Booster Seat vs. High Chair? - Page 2

[MamaPhD]

We got a hand me down booster and really hated it. The straps were flimsy and it never felt secure to me. We tried it on our formal dining and eat in kitchen chairs and neither worked well enough. We didn't even put DD in it! And all those cracks seemed impossible to clean well.

We got a Graco high chair and LOVE it!
It has adjustable height (5 settings), so we can have it all the way down if DD wants to walk upto it for snacking, middle for fitting the high chair right at the table (minus the tray), and higher for using the tray.

It has 5 point harness, which is the safest, though lately we are not using the shoulder straps any more.

It has 3 reclining positions, I use the reclined positions for brushing her teeth (very convenient as she is strapped and can't wiggle as much!). It was also useful when DD was learning to use sippy cup and had to really almost lie down tipping the cup, lol.

We got it when DD was about 5 mo and now she is 18 mo, and there's plenty of room to grow. It has nice padded washable cushion, which is great at the beginning when LO is small but still great when they get big. Personally I don't get those flat wooden chairs, seems so hard on LOs bum & back, especially now my DD is eating 4-5x per day!

It doesn't take up that much room, about same as our dining chair, maybe slightly more because of the legs are wide, but that's what gives stability for my wiggling DD.

Overall, two big thumbs up for our high chair!!!

[belltree]

We have a high chair that grows with the child (Svan). It is nice to sit with him together at the table. But often enough we just eat on the floor so he can be mobile as much as he likes to be. A booster would be nice when visiting people, it packs easily.

We also use the high chair, when I or dh take a shower, chop vegetables or do things higher up, so he can watch and see, he really hates being "left behind on the floor".

[newtomotherhood]

We received a wooden eddie bauer highchair and love it, I tired of washing the cover so now the cover is in her closet and I don't stress as much if she wants to turn around spread yogurt all over the back of the chair. We also eat at our kitchen nook alot and the chairs at the Dining room table are bar stool height so I wouldn't feel it safe to put a booster on one of them!

[sarahr]

We have the same booster linked above, and actually I wouldn't recommend it (and we will get a regular high chair for ds). Strapped onto a regular kitchen chair, it's too tippy; my dd loved to kick at the table leg and came too close too many times to tumbling over. High chairs have a wider base at bottom, so seem more secure to me.

[BetsyS]

We have a fisher price space saver high chair, and we really like it. It has many of the benefits of a booster (fits on a chair, doesn't take up much space, can slide right up to the table), but also some of the benefits of a high chair (including a recline and the tray).

We actually have 2 of them, cause my 2 year old isn't ready to get out of his chair (using it as a booster, without the tray currently), and we have a new baby on the way. It's nice to have a place that is table height to put the new baby down while you eat. With #1, I tried to eat with him on my lap frequently (awful), and sometimes on the floor in a bouncy seat (he cried, cause he wasn't on the same level as us). The high chair was a lifesaver when we got it. Instant happiness! I really like ours.

[Nicole730]

We have both a Safety 1st booster and a Graco Wooden high chair and I love both of them. We also have a restaurant high chair for on the deck and I really love that one.

High Chair - I like that I can move it around our house, I used to put it in the bathroom while I showered... He still sits in at age 2, I like keeping his mess contained to one area. Like PP, we keep the cushion off a lot

Booster - I used this occasionally at the table, but then DS would try to climb up in it when we weren't there and I didn't like that, he doesnt do that with the high chair. Plus, our table only has 4 chairs and when we have guests, there isn't enough seating if DS is in the booster. Also, are kitchen table (only table) is often full of crap, so we have to be pushing papers and stuff out of the way to eat, easier not to do that with DS. I took the booster with tray to parks all last summer for picnics. DS was able to stay belted in to eat lunch, otherwise he would have ran off playing. Plus at the beginning of last summer, I didn't feel safe having him eat at picnic table.

[MamieCole]

We have the same booster that is linked in this thread as well that we have been using with DS1 since he was a baby. He is 3 1/2 and still likes to sit in it.

Now that we have DS2, I have been trying to decide what to do: Get another booster and use a second dining chair? (I don't wanna do this if I can avoid it) Get a regular high chair? (I really don't like high chairs, in general) Get a hook-on high chair? (DH doesn't like hook-on chairs and I am not sure one would work with our table anyway)

Then one day I was watching Ellen and I saw this chair.

So, since we won't be winning the lottery any time soon, I am now drooling over a chair that I will never be able to have. And I am still at square one with what to do about DS2's dining table solution. I suppose he will just remain in my lap indefinitely, or until I can convince DS1 that he really doesn't need a booster anymore.