It is summer, which means travel time in our home. In the past, we have flown with our car seat and go-go-kidz, which I still love and lend out to my friends quite frequently. Now that The Boy (TB) is getting bigger, however, I decided to invest in acar seat cover and CARES system. I use the cover and check the car seat, which is usually free.
Early on, I held off because I thought the curve of the seat would be uncomfortable for TB, but I have to admit, I love the CARES system, and so does my son.
When we boarded, I quickly slipped the main portion around the seat, and then looped the harness through his seatbelt. It took very little time, and we were able to board as a family instead of separately. (We normally tried to have one parent board with the car seat and the second board later with TB.) The harness and strap were easy to adjust.
CARES fits kids 22 to 44 pounds, which makes it a great addition for children on the airplane. It is also nice during layovers, because the system folds back up in to his six inch sack. At a meer one pound, it is a great travel companion.
The picture I am posting is slightly misleading. I snapped this picture prior to take-off, and when I looked at my son in it, I realized that the portion that attaches to the seat back was not low enough. We also further tightened the harness to fit his slight frame. According to the installation instructions, the red strap should be just above a child’s shoulders.
The CARES system is available for purchase in the US ($74.95) and UK.
(This post is cross-posted at www.piecesofmymind.com.)
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We got the CARES system and used it for traveling to the US with Oliver over Christmas. I think the idea is great and it’s so much easier to handle than taking along a car seat, but Oliver is also slight and was at the low end of the weight range at the time, so we couldn’t really get it to fit properly. It was too loose. We still used it, just to keep him in the seat. I think it will be great for future trips.
I’m glad you commented, because a friend asked me just this question on my blog (how it would work for a smaller child). TB is 39″ and 33 pounds, so he is a bit larger than the lower end of the use guidelines.