i can relate to your feelings. we moved our son to the outboard passenger seat position recently. we chose to do this because our car -- a 2003 Subaru Forester -- only has LATCH hooks in the two outboard positions and not in the middle and his leg and body strength has grown so much that he was able to loosen the seatbelt tightening in one arching or push against the seat. i was not able to keep the seat tight enough for my comfort without fully reinstalling the seat before putting him in it each time, which is obviously not a realistic task, especially in the mostly drizzliness of an Oregon winter and spring. now we have the added struggle of having to have his carseat in the recline position instead of the more upright position, and this limits the front passenger seat movement and recline. this isn't bad for me right now, but i am only 3.5 months pregnant and it will become an issue in a few months. and it is a problem for my partner, who has his own "pregnant" belly and needs the passenger seat to be more reclined and then he has significantly less leg room.
our son is also smaller (only about 23 lbs and 31.5 inches) and i definitely don't feel comfortable turning him forward facing yet. the possibility of a side impact crash does freak me out a bit, but i know that we have a highly rated carseat (a britax marathon) so that makes me feel a little better.
the best piece of advice i heard about carseats in cars went something like this: the safest place in the car for your carseat is the place you can get the best, safest, tightest install. so since it is no longer the safest and tightest instal for us in the center seat because we can only use the seatbelt, the next best place is in an outboard position where we can use LATCH. and since installing rearfacing in the center is not a recommended option for you because of the armrest, it seems that the best and safest place for your carseat is in an outboard position.
~claudia
our son is also smaller (only about 23 lbs and 31.5 inches) and i definitely don't feel comfortable turning him forward facing yet. the possibility of a side impact crash does freak me out a bit, but i know that we have a highly rated carseat (a britax marathon) so that makes me feel a little better.
the best piece of advice i heard about carseats in cars went something like this: the safest place in the car for your carseat is the place you can get the best, safest, tightest install. so since it is no longer the safest and tightest instal for us in the center seat because we can only use the seatbelt, the next best place is in an outboard position where we can use LATCH. and since installing rearfacing in the center is not a recommended option for you because of the armrest, it seems that the best and safest place for your carseat is in an outboard position.
~claudia
