Chicco NextFit: Too Much Slack In the Harness Straps

Do you have extra harness slack, and you can't figure out why? When you go to strap your child in, do you find that you can't tighten the straps as tight as you did before? Or are the straps as tight as they need to be, but there is more "tail" in the harness adjuster strap than you're accustomed to? There is usually one cause, and one fix. Grab a screwdriver and your phone: you need to call Chicco and ask for the instructions to replace/rethread the harness.

Really? Call Chicco?

Yep. Don't worry, you haven't voided the warranty on the seat, they won't give you a hard time for needing these instructions, and no, you don't need to sit there on the phone with them while they walk you through the steps. Just tell them the harness isn't threaded over the rollers of your NextFit and you need the instructions to rethread the harness. They'll email you PDF of simple instructions with picture illustrations (since I do much better with picture illustrations, I have to say these are top notch!) and you can rethread the harness at your own speed.

Chicco NextFit Seat Belt Install: Forward Facing Edition

The question was asked, how do you tighten down a NextFit seat belt install, specifically a forward facing install on leather seats? I don't have leather seats, but I did just install a rear facing NextFit on leather sits this past weekend, and it took a bit more maneuvering than my regular tricks. So, with that memory still relatively fresh in my mind, I took to my Odyssey with my camera phone and did the best I could to capture a forward facing install.

Triangle Trick: NextFit Edition

It's your worst nightmare.  You go to buckle your child into the car seat, and find that the strap is twisted.  You can't just buckle the seat with the twisted strap, but you don't have time to unthread and rethread the harness.  What do you do now?

NextFit Harness Release Button

I recently asked this question of some NextFit moms: is a little give in the harness release button normal?  They all assured me that it is.  Even so, I thought a video showing what the question is and how to actually release the harness might be in order.

Storing the NextFit LATCH Strap

So, you've read up on how to do the seat belt install, you may have even given it a shot.  Maybe you're already a pro at it, but there's one last thing that messes you up every.  Single.  Time.

How in the heck do you get those blasted LATCH connectors into their storage compartments without breaking anything?

Storing the NextFit Manual

Did you know that the NextFit has a storage compartment for the manual?  Check it out!

Chicco NextFit: Adjusting the Headrest

I'm back, with more NextFit goodness.  This time, with a couple of videos of my own to share!

A question was asked on Car Seats for the Littles: "How do I adjust the headrest and get it set for an infant?  Specifically, how does that back panel keep from getting in the way?"  The resulting YouTube and Google search turned up...nothing.  Absolutely nothing!  So, I pulled my seat in from the car and took a couple of videos.  Please keep in mind, these are home-made, unscripted, unrehearsed and (in the first video) made all by myself.  I roped DH into being my cameraman for the 2nd video, hence the better video quality.  (Videos after the jump.)

Chicco NextFit: The Harness Won't Tighten Easily

As mentioned in the Disclaimer, I am very active in the Facebook group Car Seats for the Littles (CSFTL, for short).  I also happen to own the Chicco NextFit car seat.  It's a very nice seat, and over the last few months since I've bought it I've learned quite a few tricks related to the proper usage of this seat.

This is a question that comes up frequently within Car Seats for the Littles: "Why is the harness on my NextFit so hard to tighten?"  I've gathered together several answers to this question, as well as a list of tips and tricks to make it easier to tighten the harness.

These tips come from several different moms who own the NextFit, and none of them are anything I've discovered on my own (except for one trick, which other moms have confirmed works...but that is the only one I found out on my own).  Unfortunately, I don't remember exactly who first brought each tip or trick to my attention first.  So, to any moms on CSFTL who have helped me with the straps on my NextFit, you have my eternal thanks and gratitude!

NextFit Flying: Up, Up and Away!

Next in my series of NextFit posts is from a guest author.  Melissa Hebert is a mother and NextFit owner I met through Car Seats for the Littles.  Melissa has helped several NextFit owners prepare for taking their NextFit car seats on a plane and having the best experience possible.  One time she wrote up this list of her favorite tips and I asked if I could post it here.  She graciously agreed.  So, please allow me to present Melissa Hebert's Favorite Tips For Flying With a NextFit:

Chicco NextFit: Seat Belt Install

As mentioned in the Disclaimer, I am very active in the Facebook group Car Seats for the Littles (CSFTL, for short).  I also happen to own the Chicco NextFit car seat.  It's a very nice seat, and over the last four months since I've bought it I've learned quite a few tricks related to the proper usage of this seat.

One of the questions that gets asked often in CSFTL is "how do I do a seat belt install for the Chicco NextFit?"  Now, I'll admit, there is a small learning curve with the NextFit seat belt install, as opposed to the LATCH install.  However, once I figured it out, I actually find the seat belt install to be consistently easier and tighter than the LATCH install.

Car Seat Safety Advocate Disclaimer

I plan on posting more than a few articles about car seats, car seat safety, and probably more than you care to know about my Chicco NextFit and Graco SnugRide 30 car seats.  In the interest of making sure everyone is as safe as possible on the roads out there, I offer this disclaimer.

If you have a child, that child should be in a car seat of some kind (AAP recommends kids be boostered until 10-12 years old).  If you have a child in a car seat, you could probably benefit from having the child, car seat, and install in your car verified by a Child Passenger Safety Technician (CPST).  To find a CPST near you, look at http://www.safekids.org/.  From here you can find a nearby tech, find out when the next car seat check event in your area will take place, and learn more about car seat safety.  There is also no substitute for reading the manuals for your car seat and your car.

Now for the disclaimer part:

I AM NOT A CPST.  I have not taken the training course, I do not have access to the training materials that a tech does, and I don't actually know that much about that many car seats.  I am, however, a very active member of the Facebook group Car Seats for the Littles, where I learn more every day about car seat safety, and how to make adults and children of all ages safer.  Anything I put up in this blog will most likely be a result of conversations with moms and techs about car seats and car safety.  If you have a concern about your child and the car seat they are in, I urge you to join the group and pose your questions there.  The group follows best practices, and is passionate about keeping the littles safe.  You can also learn a lot about car seat safety at the CSFTL website.

The term Car Seat Safety Advocate was coined by one of the moms within that group.  I warned her I am going to steal the term, and she said I could.  So, I may not be a trained tech, but I am a staunch safety advocate.