September is National Child Passenger Safety Month and we recently partnered with Graco asking you, my readers, to take the Buckle Up For Safety pledge with Graco. For every pledge, Graco will donate $1 to Safe Kids Worldwide until they reach their goal of 10,000 pledges! If you haven’t taken the pledge, I’m asking that you please do.
Mommy doesn’t think that National Child Passenger Safety should only be recognized in one specific month. It should be recognized daily. Mommy does not move her vehicle out of the driveway unless we are all buckled up. No matter how short of a distance we are traveling.
Well Graco really believes in Car Seat Safety just like mommy does and they sent me their Nautilus™ 3-in-1 Car Seat with Safety Surround™ Protection for review. Was I excited? You bet I was. Mommy decided to install this in her 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe. Here’s something to take note of. If you have an older vehicle without the seat anchors this can take a while to install it properly. Daddy took a REALLY long time getting it installed the correct way. It was included in the middle of the back seat which uses the lap belt.
Now a bit about the installation which wasn’t fun. Using the lap belt was a doozy. Well that’s what mommy said. My former car seat had a seat belt clip that snapped the lap belt into place when threaded through the seat keeping it stable. This one doesn’t have that. So you have to constantly check to make sure that it is tightened and stays tightened. We do have latch anchors in the trunk but not in the seat so daddy had to anchor it to the back keeping it secure.
The Nautilus™ 3-in-1 Car Seat with Safety Surround™ Protection is a forward facing car seat with 5 point safety harness. It is highly encourage to use the included safety harness. Now there’s a reason this is a 3-in-1 Car Seat. It is forward facing for your child from 20-65 lbs but then converts to a belt positioning booster when your child is 30-100 lbs. When your child is ready it can then covert to a backless booster from 40-100 lbs.
Now this is very comfy. It is really padded and mommy and I loved that it was. The seat is also reclinable which works out great for me as well. The 5 point safety harness also easily adjusts, there is no rethreading which mommy hates. Seems like Graco thought of everything. I love the padded shoulders that can be easily removed if I didn’t like them. The seat cover can also be taken off and machine washed so I won’t be sitting on a dirty seat if I spill any of my food.
The head rest is fully adjustable and can be done very easily. You won’t have to struggle getting it done.. and that’s where the safety surround performance comes in. My head is securely nestled in the headrest and since it’s adjustable it grows along with me. The Graco Nautilus™ 3-in-1 Car Seat with Safety Surround™ Protection has been rigorously crash tested to meet and exceed US standards which made both mommy and me feel so much better, especially since it has energy absorbing foam. It has also been side impacted tested as well. The seat also has a steel reinforced frame. Nothing stronger in my opinion.
Now this also features arm rests and a cupholder. The sides also are hollow and I can fit little items in there, I call it my cubby holder. The armrest is contoured and padded so it is very comfortable. I now have my very own armrest but this also takes up a bit more space in the car as well.
Now I love my Graco Nautilus™ 3-in-1 Car Seat with Safety Surround™ Protection but the installation wasn’t easy to do but may be in a newer vehicle. As mentioned before my former car seat included a safety snap that kept the car seat belt tightened and I wish Graco would include this in their next seats. I really hope they listen to me. This also takes up quite a bit of space with the arm rests. In a bigger vehicle that would be no problem but when you’re a big family you need all the space you can get. Three of these will not fit comfortably in the back of a smaller vehicle.
Aside from those drawbacks, this car seat is excellent, and I highly recommend it. I’ve already ridden in my new seat quite a few times, and I love facing out to the world. Now I no longer stare at the back of the seat. Yay me!
You can buy your own Graco Nautilus™ 3-in-1 Car Seat with Safety Surround™ Protection at your local Target store.
You can also connect with Graco via their Website, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube.
Disclosure: Growing Up Madison receives products in order to conduct reviews. No monetary compensation was provided unless noted otherwise. All opinions are 100% my own. Some posts may contain affiliate links from which I receive commission for payment in exchange for referrals. In the event of a giveaway, the sponsor is responsible for delivery of the prize, unless otherwise noted in the posting. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I personally believe will be a good fit for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
