Do I "need" a highchair? - Page 2

AileenM · 11-04-2009, 02:56 PM

By the way, the stick-on-the-table high chairs, like this: http://www.amazon.com/Regalo-Diner-P.../dp/B0000A1O7P
Are dangerous, IMO. I've had two different kids I've been watching get excited, give a little jump, and the whole thing unhooked from the table and went crashing to the floor...child included. I will never ever use one of those again.

youngmomma86 · 11-04-2009, 04:45 PM

I was going to buy a bumbo seat off craigslist with a tray. Most the people i know first feed them in a bouncer when they start cereal and all that but i think the bumbo seat is easier to clean as the cereal satrs getting stuck to the cloth unless you have amazing acuracy and baby doesn't ever spit it out. . . . I make a mess :-) but while bumbo is usally expensive i have seen several with the tray for like 25 bucks on craigslist. Then i dunno what i will do when baby is older i guess i will figure that out later

tvantol · 11-04-2009, 06:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boheime

I remember when I was pregnant with my first. I planned to delay solids for the first year. However, right around 6 months, all of my kids have started grabbing food off my plate and having at it. We don't do baby food, but they've all been pretty adament about helping themselves. I still hold them during meals until we reach a point where it's too hard to eat with them grabbing everything.

We have a space saver high chair, which is kind of like a glorified booster. It straps in a chair but does recline. It never sees a lot of use, but since we're not a baby gear family (minus slings, other carriers to wear them, and carseats), it's nice to have a place to put a newborn when I'm getting in the oven.

I totally agree. Plus it is nice to put your child somewhere so you can eat yourself. Without the high chair my DS would just run around at meal time and I think that is a bad habit. Happens at restaurants and it is not pleasant. You child likely will want to eat solids before 12 months. Be prepared. We got this product for about $35 and DS is now close to two. Takes up no extra room and fairly easy to keep clean.

http://www.fisher-price.com/fp.aspx?...duct&pid=35236

sandcastle · 11-04-2009, 06:56 PM

I don't think you truly "need" a highchair, but it can be nice to have one. Even if baby is not eating, baby can be playing with toys while you get dinner ready or manage to get a few bites to eat for yourself.

We have a swing that converts to a highchair. We've had it since our first child and it's not made anymore, but it's been great. By the time the child outgrows the swing, it's OK for them to be in the highchair so there was no need for two different products. If we didn't have that, we'd probably have bought the Fisher Price Space Saver high chair. You can probably find either a regular highchair or booster seat used at a good price.

waiting2bemommy · 11-04-2009, 08:46 PM

well, my baby was eating at like 5 months (and I really tried to wait, I tell you, but he was grabbing food off my plate!) and I didn't have a highchair. I had the first years booster seat...it even reclines and has a nice removable padded cover. Ds sat in it from the time he was 3-ish months, whenever I was doing something in the kitchen. He stopped using it at about 15 months (but he probably could have fit it to 2-3 years if I'd really cared) and now he just sits at the table in a regular chair.

CamoShades · 11-04-2009, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jenica

Aesthetically, I like the wooden ones much better than the plastic but the only one I had seen was the Eddie Bauer one Shazer mentioned and I had read reviews it was hard to clean also.

FWIW, we have this Graco wooden high chair, and I love it. It's really easy to keep clean, and since the back is straight up and down, it keeps DD from slouching or leaning back, unlike some of the plastic chairs with adjustable backs, which I've noticed don't sit up totally straight.

arabellalysette · 11-04-2009, 10:21 PM

I used the bouncy seat till they were too active to sit still to eat their cereal or fruit.
For my youngest I have a portable highchair that sits on a reg chair or placed ob floor.Its good for us since we do not have alot of room in our house.

Realrellim · 11-04-2009, 11:15 PM

You can get one of the kinds of high chairs that strap to a regular kitchen chair but have a tray. They're not bulky and turn into a booster seat too. Some of them recline, which is a bonus if you want to have the baby at the table with you at dinnertime before they're ready to eat solids. I've eaten dinner with a squirming baby on my lap many times, and it's not at all my favorite way to eat dinner--especially if they're at the stage where they grab the plate and try to fling it to the floor while you're eating. I've also nursed while eating dinner and had DD in a sling sleeping while eating dinner, and those both lead to me dropping food on her head.

For us, the reclining high chair was a great way to have her present with us during dinner but not have food dropped on her or otherwise be grabbing at our plates or something.

ETA: it wouldn't hurt to take a wait-and-see approach. If you have a kid who will happily play on a blanket or in a bouncer or even sleep (not in your arms) while you eat dinner, it makes life easier. DD wanted to be held and interacted with all the time, and she pretty much only slept if she was being held.

Robbins0614 · 11-05-2009, 12:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Realrellim

ETA: it wouldn't hurt to take a wait-and-see approach. If you have a kid who will happily play on a blanket or in a bouncer or even sleep (not in your arms) while you eat dinner, it makes life easier. DD wanted to be held and interacted with all the time, and she pretty much only slept if she was being held.

This is great advice for almost all baby gear! Every baby is different and has different needs and wants, so not all baby gear works for every child. We waited until after DS was born to see if we wanted a swing or bouncy chair and quickly realized he hated those things (we temporarily borrowed these items) so they would have been a waste in our home. Other babies love swings and bouncy seats so they can be really helpful. So I'd definitely second this wonderful piece of advice!

Jenica · 11-05-2009, 03:23 PM

I think I will take the wait-and-see approach you all advised. Everyone brought up some interesting points I hadn't thought of and some really nice highchair/booster seats that I hadn't seen. I can now see the convenience of having a high chair to put the baby in, like while I'm cooking. I though I could nurse at the table with the baby in a sling while I'm eating but I never thought about the chance of dropping food on the baby's head. I'm a pretty clumsy person so that "chance" would be an almost guarantee that the poor kid would end up with most of my meal on it's head

Thanks for all the advice and links, there's nothing like getting advice from experienced mommies

sprouthead · 11-05-2009, 09:10 PM

I have the Eddie Bauer booster seat. It has adjustments so you can raise the seat a couple inches, and it has it's own tray that you can attach or just push them up to the table. I love it!!

Unicorn75 · 11-06-2009, 01:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sprouthead

I have the Eddie Bauer booster seat. It has adjustments so you can raise the seat a couple inches, and it has it's own tray that you can attach or just push them up to the table. I love it!!

This.

I also found that it was not too hard to clean. DD was a climber, and could climb into this on her own by 15 months (we supervised). It was sturdy enough that it would not tip over.