Product Review: Simpson Tyler Car Seat - made by Graco

Simpson Tyler Convertible Car Seat

Manufactured by Graco

$229.99 - $299.99

* WARNING: ALL REVIEWS REFLECT OUR PERSONAL OPINION OF THE PRODUCT WE  WERE NOT INFLUENCED BY ANYONE FOR THIS REVIEW *

 

We purchased this car seat about a week ago, and returned it the very next day. My husband and I were super excited about this car seat because we are a racing family and we use Simpson Racing products. But, we learned that the seat was manufactured by Graco. I've never really been a fan of Graco products, but we figured we would give it a try.

 

After removing it from the box, I was very impressed with the material and the cushion for the seat. It was very plush and the fabric seemed breathable. I began reading the instruction booklet to figure out how to move the belts to fit my little man. The seat is made to be rear-facing for infants 4 - 40 lbs. and forward-facing for toddlers 20 - 65 lbs. My 6 month old, who is a chunky monkey, weighs 21 lbs. so he is well within the rear-facing range.

 

Once I started to move the belts, it became such a hassle. I had placed my son in the seat to see where the shoulder belts needed to be and then the mess began. The belts were a pain to get in and out of the slots because when you fed them through the cushion, the belt wouldn't come through the plastic because it would go straight down in between the cushion and plastic and you would have to try and try again to get them to feed through. There was a plastic shield that covered the belts so they were hard to feed in and out. Considering how broad the range is for weight and height for this seat, there was a lot of belt to deal with.

The seat is equipped with belts for the LATCH system. I own a 2010 Chevy Impala which has the LATCH system. We used this system for our infant seat and loved it, so we planned on using it for this seat as well. The LATCH system belts were easy to install, until it came down to tightening the seat. My 225lb husband placed his weight into the center of the seat (like it instructs us to do) and then tried to tighten both sides. After the belts were as tight as we could possibly make them. The seat was able to move quite a bit. So much as you could almost swing it around. That is just NOT safe. I was not comfortable putting my baby into something like this. Even with the weight of my 21lb 6 month old, it was still able to move quite a bit.

Also, since we had the seat tightened down so much, it was making an indention into the actual seat of the car which is fine, but the release button for the belts was also hidden at this point and was impossible to release the belt to let my little one out.

Now clearly, some of these problems wouldn't be an issue if it were forward facing, and it may fit better in a different vehicle. I just wasn't a fan and didn't feel that my child was as safe as he could be in this seat and that is my number one priority.

I hope you find this review helpful. Like I said, this is based on our experience with the item and our personal opinion. It may work better for you.

COMING SOON - PRODUCT REVIEW: CHICCO NEXTFIT CONVERTABLE CAR SEAT


A Beautiful Blessing, Jayden Blaize is Born! Birth Story - Part 2

We got into the room, and thankfully it was MUCH bigger than the previous room. Chris went down and got our bags that had our tablet, phone chargers, pillows and camera in. Also, some snacks for Chris. I had been starving since I had only had breakfast as I usually would have ate lunch after my appointment and was too scared and in a hurry to eat anything on the way to the hospital. We got my bed set up the way I wanted it, my pillow with my aromatherapy stress spray on it (BEST STUFF, EVER!), and all of the baby monitors set up on my belly. They decided to start my Pitocin about 10 minutes after getting into the room and that was around 4:15pm. We called our parents and told them what was going on and that we would keep them updated when we could. Since my allergies are so bad, the doctor didn't want me to have any visitors while at the hospital so we had to keep updating everyone via text message.

We made friends with our nurse and just hung out for a while, my water hadn't been broken yet and I wasn't having contractions just yet so it was easy as pie at that point. But, then my doctor showed up and checked me, I was at 5 1/2 cm and my water was on the verge of breaking so she decided to break it for me....GROSS! I felt like I wet myself! Ugh that was one of the worst parts. About 5 minutes after she broke my water, contractions started. That is one of the worst pains I have ever felt. It didn't help that Chris sat on the couch and just laughed at the faces I was making for each contraction, jerk. The nurse that checked me in had told me to get my epidural before my water breaks and man...I should have listened to her. So about 5 contractions in I requested the epidural.

Baby bump friends - if being induced, request the epi before you have your water broken. Also, don't feel bad for requesting it right away. It takes them at least 30 minutes to get the anesthesiologist team to come in and it takes them about 20 minutes to get things set up before you get the epi and about another 15 - 30 minutes before it starts working so you will get your fair share of contractions during that time.

The team came in to give me my epidural and I was in relief that they were there. It took them about 20 minutes to set up and get things ready and then they had me sit on the side of the bed as close to the edge as possible. Probably the worst part of my labor was having to sit still during the process of them putting my epidural in. They don't want you to tense up and they want you to sit as still as possible and at a certain angle. Having to sit that way during a contraction and not being able to move was the WORST part, hands down. I was really nervous about it because I am not a fan of needles but it wasn't that bad. They numb the area first, and then all you feel is a little bee sting. Then its kind of a gritty feeling because they are placing it in your spine.

After the epi was placed, they had me lay back and they gave me a little wand with a button on it. Anytime I felt like I needed more medicine, all I had to do was press this button. The thing about epidurals is, it only numbs you from mid-waist down. For some reason, my body felt the need to let me continue feeling the contractions, except the pain moved into my shoulder blade. I kept "getting my hormones on" with Chris because I asked him to come rub my shoulder and he complained that his hand was hurting too much, (the NERVE of that guy). I kept hitting that epi button in hopes that it would help a little bit...NOPE. But, I felt pretty great otherwise.

It was about 9:15pm and I kept telling Chris that I felt a lot of pressure. Almost as if I needed to use the restroom. He got the nurse and I told her that it felt like I needed to go to the bathroom and that there was a lot of pressure and she jumped into action. She checked me and sure enough I was at 9 1/2cm and the baby was coming. She placed her call and shortly after, a parade of women came in. It was well orchestrated, they all had a job setting something up. There were lights, and tools and they dropped the end of my bed down. Chris sprung up and was at my side waiting to see what was going to happen. I didn't really feel much at this point, just the pressure. Chris was watching the TV and made sure to change the channel to the movie Cars, because he wanted his son born during a racing movie. LOL!

My OB came in and took a look, said we were about ready to push. So, they all started gathering around my under carriage and I felt so awkward. Here I was, legs spread apart, light beaming and a bunch of people looking...weird. They raised my bed up, and placed a oxygen mask on my face because I was losing oxygen and hadn't even started pushing yet. They told me to pull my knees into my chest....ummm that's not going to happen, I can barely move my arms at this point because as soon as she told me it was about time to push, I pressed that little magical button about 15 times to make sure I wasn't going to feel a thing! My nurse held one leg and Chris held the other and I started pushing. I was determined to get the baby out quickly because I didn't want to be one of those that pushed for 2 hours. They had me hold onto a towel and another resident had the other end and we tugged back and forth to help me push.

I heard my OB say something about she could see his head and the first thing I asked was "what color is his hair?". They all laughed and told me that he had a full head of dark hair. So, that was my motivation to keep pushing because I wanted to see my baby with his full head of dark hair.

A few more pushes later and he was here!! As soon as he came out Chris left my side and went to the table where they had taken him and made sure everything was alright. I asked if he was perfect and Chris assured me that he was, and at that point I felt like I was going to go to sleep. They had to sew me up a bit because I had a second degree tear, so I just laid there and was watching Chris hovering over Jayden taking pictures and he walked over and gave me a kiss and told me "he is beautiful, thank you" and went on his way of protecting his baby boy. It was the sweetest thing, ever!

 

They handed Jayden over to me and had him lay skin-to-skin on my chest and I was shocked at how perfect he was. He looked just like Chris. I counted to make sure he had 10 fingers and 10 toes, and of course he did, but I wanted to check. Hehe! His eyes were dark blue. He was handsome and perfect and I was in shock at what had just happened. I looked at Chris and said "we're parents, you're a Daddy" and he smiled and I saw a little tear in his eye. At that moment, I realized that nothing else in this world mattered.

 

The first time Daddy got to hold his baby boy.

 

Jayden Blaize

November 1, 2012

10:21pm

7lbs 2oz

20in long

What a (scary) Surprise! Birth Story - Part 1

Picking up where we left off..

November 1, 2012

I had my normal weekly check up. I remember my appointment was at 11:30 that day. I gave Chris a hard time because he had only been to three of my appointments and two of those were for my sonograms. The doctor had asked me to get him to come to the appointments within the last few weeks just in case. So, that morning I went and got my breakfast I was craving (a bacon breakfast bowl) and texted Chris and gave him a bit of a hard time and asked again if he could make it to my appointment. But, he said he was busy at work and wouldn't be able to make it.

I headed to my appointment and was in a good mood. I really never left the house when I was pregnant. Due to my allergies, I can't go anywhere alone anyways so when it was an appointment day it was a special treat for me so I was always in a good mood heading to my appointments. I kept going over the things in my head that I needed to talk with the doctor about.

1. I nested quite a bit a few days before Halloween because I heard there was suppose to be a full moon and there is an old wives tale that pregnant women go into labor when there is a full moon.
2. I think because I cleaned the house all in one day and nested pretty hard, I must have over did it because on October 30, 2012 something just didn't feel right. I called to talk with one of the nurses at my doctors office and she said to go into the Labor and Delivery Center at the hospital. Chris rushed home, we loaded the car with the car seat, and all of our bags. We got there, got checked in, they tested to see if my water broke, it came back negative. But, the baby's heartbeat was SUPER fast and they were worried. I had a biophysical sonogram done. Basically, it looks at 4 different things to see if the baby is stressed or if there is something wrong. It came back good. So we were released.
3. On Halloween, Chris picked up my favorite Carrabbas meal and came home and handed out candy because I felt weird. Baby Jayden hadn't been moving all day and my stomach felt weird.

So I told all of these things to my doctor. Asked her if I over did it and if that is why I ended up in L&D the next day. She said probably and measured me and I was already at 4 cm and 95% effaced. I told her he hadn't been moving but his biophysical was good on the 30th. But, she was still concerned. His heart rate was in the lower range but she had the sonogram tech come get me to do another biophysical just in case.

I laid on the table in the dark room as the sonogram tech squeezed the gel on my belly. She moved the wand around my belly and the room was silent. It was heartbreaking, watching the screen and seeing absolutely NO movement. She bounced the wand on my belly, I laid on my side, we did everything and nothing! We tried for a good 20 minutes when she finally said we were done.
She left me in the dark room to go "talk to the doctor" and I felt in my gut that something was wrong. So, I called Chris. I told him that they did another biophysical and that he wasn't moving and that I was waiting on the doctor to come back but I had a bad feeling. As I was on the phone with him and he was trying to calm me down from thinking the worst, the nurse walks in and said "you need to go to the hospital" and I didn't even think to ask what was wrong or why or anything because I was in shock and just wanted to get going.
 I asked if I could go home and get my things because I only lived 10 minutes from the hospital. She agreed that it would be fine and before she finished her sentence I was back on the phone with Chris and headed out the door. He picked up the phone and I said "get home now, we are going to the hospital" and I hung up on him. I feel bad for that now because I am sure he was feeling the same as me and was just as worried and scared and here I am hanging up on him.

I literally did 80mph down the highway trying to keep calm and not cry. I had my mom on speakerphone telling her what was going on and she was trying to keep me calm. I made it home in a record time and grabbed all of my stuff and was running through the house making sure I had everything, even though my bags had been packed for months. I changed my clothes to something more comfortable and Chris finally made it home. We packed the car, and off we went. Still not knowing what was going to happen. Was I going to be hospitalized until the baby was born? Was I being induced? Was I going to have a C-section? I had no idea.

We get to the hospital and go check-in. I felt out of place because here were all of these other pregnant women checking in and they were having contractions and knew what was going on. I wasn't having pains, contractions, or anything and all I knew is that something was wrong with my baby. The way our hospital works is, if it is a normal delivery with no complications and you are past 35 weeks you have your baby in the Labor and Delivery Birth Care Center. If you are having a C-section, being induced, or you have complications you have your baby in the actual hospital. I was not thrilled about having the baby in the actual hospital since I had heard horror stories about the hospital labor and delivery unit. But, I knew I was there for a reason and that they have staff on hand to help with whatever complication I may be having.

We checked in, and during all of this...our new medical insurance had just became effective on November 1st. It was quite funny because for 2 months, Chris had been telling my belly that he couldn't come out until November 1st because that was when our new, and better insurance would be effective. So, we were scrambling trying to get a print out of our temporary insurance card. The nurse asked us why we were there, we told her we had no idea that the doctor told us to come in because something was wrong but we didn't have a clue as to what was wrong and what we were doing. So, they had a nurse come get us and take us to a small room on the other side of the labor and delivery floor. The worst part was the fact there was a rocking chair in the room that had a "In Memory of ---- ----" plate on the chair. It was for a baby that only lived 3 days. There was a picture with an angel over that rocking chair. I felt like I was in the "death" room. It was horrible.

They got all of my information entered into the system, had me dress in a gown, and were in the process of trying to get ahold of my doctor to figure out what was going on. They checked me and I had gained a 1/2 cm. My water hadn't broken yet, and I wasn't on any IV meds. We just waited. They finally got word from the doctor that I was going to be induced. The baby failed the stress test but his heart rate was stable. They were worried the cord might be around his neck and that was why he wasn't moving. But, the couldn't tell enough for me to go through a C-section instead. They brought in the sonogram machine and made sure he was head down.  I also found out that day that I tested positive for the Group B strep. So, that meant I needed to be on antibiotics before labor and that we would have to spend an extra day in the hospital after he was born, no big deal.

It was shift change for the nurses so they waited to give me my IV's until the new nurse came in. She showed up and grabbed everything that was needed and started to prep me for my IV. She couldn't get the IV to go into the top of my arm (like normal patients) so I had to have it placed on the underside of my wrist, let me tell you that is the WORSE place for your IV. Also, she was nervous about putting the IV there and wasn't moving quite fast enough so blood was sprayed, and dripped all over the table. It looked like a murder scene. I think that was the first test for Chris though. I made sure he was ok because if not...he was going to faint during delivery. But, he assured me that he was fine. They hooked the IV of fluid and antibiotics up first and wheeled me to my delivery room.

TO BE CONTINUED....