I would be getting one but not spending a forturn. You can get a decent rear/forward facing car seat from Big W for About $170. At least then you have it for those time you may need it.
eta - Just in cases... Baby is sick needs to go to Dr, its raining outside making that walk, ride, bus wait a bit of pain & not good for a sick baby to be out it.
YOUR sick & need to get to Dr, really want to walk?
doing your shopping, its going to be much harder to do your shopping then lug it home on the bus while you have a bubba.
Ummmmm I don't know, I can't not drive as I don't live near anything.. I use to walk/bus a fair bit before we moved here & I miss that. But I know it was difficult to catch the bus with kids.
If you don't drive at all, then I guess there is no rush to go out & buy one, but these days the expense to get a car seat isn't that big so I would get one anyway.
Last edited by *Efjay*; August 24th, 2008 at 10:31 AM.
The only 'just in case' moment that I can really think of is if you needed to take bub to Doc/hospital in a hurry. I say that because I frequently care for my nieces and I don't like driving with them in the car ... it's a silly mindset that I have. I will often get SIL to leave carseats though 'just in case' I had to make an 'emergency' trip.
I love the getting around with the girls without the car. We do the groceries, we run errands, we get all those everyday life things done. We are very well located to PT & the girls LOVE catching the tram or train. If you think getting rid of the car is possible for you I applaud you. Maybe don't make the final decision before bub is born, see how you go initially and if you're managing well more power to you!! So long as you have a 'back up plan' for an emergency I think you'll be fine
If you do buy one, a carseat is one thing that I would be careful about getting second hand. You do need to be sure that it hasn't been damaged in an accident. I would hope that people wouldn't on sell a damaged car seat, but it's hard to know who to trust these days.
TBH....I dont trust those few taxis that do have carseats in them, this is from knowing a mum that used to drive one of the few that had them, she said that they were very unhigenic not reglary cleaned ect, people would often leave with the seat wet from leaking nappies ect, one had a 2 yr old with shcool sores ect in, just some horror stories I have heard and then there can be a lenthy delay in getting on and if its an ermegency like in the middle of the night I would prefer to have a back up just in case.
Mmm rethinking- I think that hiring one or buying one JIC is probably wisest. I guess worst case scenario is that you want to go see a Dr or to the hospital(but not necessarily call an ambulance) and you can just get in the car and go.
You might get one and never need it but for peace of mind it might be worth it?
Are you having bub in a hospital? How will you get home? I don't think I'd trust a taxi for my bubs first trip... (yes I'm an overprotective mother!! Lol)
I'm also one of those "better to be safe than sorry" people, so I would get one JIC. You can get great rear/forward facing ones at a reasonable price, they are usually for up to 18kgs so I'm sure you would get some use out of it over the years!
All the best with whatever you decide darl
I don't drive (I don't even have a drivers liscence). I am of two minds about what you are suggesting - but basically my opinion is that if you have a car, have a seat - JIC. If it is a JIC seat, then a cheap second hand one should do, I mean if you plan on never using it, it hasn't cost you much, but if an emergency arises then you have it. If you are getting rid of your car though, then you obviously don't need one (but I have found having a spare one handy is a good idea, if only for when others babysit, etc).
Also, hire is a good option - But not in the middle of the night, plus you usually have to drive to pick up the seat in the first place. And relying on others generousity is not the best option either. I personally would never lend my kids car seats out to a friend, and would feel arkward and put on the spot, if they ever asked.
If you have one you don't have to use it. I would rather have my own than trust a taxi or hire car one - we've caught the cabs and hired the cars with baby seats and often they were totally inappropraite to our babies' development (ie the booster seat that we had to put 3 month old Yasin into) and really low budget without good side impact protection.
If you have your own you can put it in a cab or hire care.
Also you can use it on planes instead of the plane seats which can be pretty uncomfy for longer flights.
Since I have a child who gets bad croup I've done many, many late night hospital dashes. Our MO is to dump a parent and sicky at the front door and the other parent can worry about parking afterwards. Trust me - when your baby is gasping for every breath finding a parking spot before getting your baby through the door isn't an option.
Imran is still using the one that we bought for Yasin almost 4 years ago - it only cost about $300 which works out to less than $100 a year. To me that's a cheap price to pay to make sure that my child has an appropriate seat to sit in every time he travels by car.
I'm perfectly happy to save money by buying/using second hand clothes, books, toys and furniture but I would never scrimp on their car seats, helmets and other safety equipment.
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