Amazon is offering $45 off of Britax Decathalon car seats. This is a 24% savings for a total of $225. The Decathalon is rated up to 35 pounds rear-facing and 40 pounds forward-facing. The seat also offers an infant positioning system as well as an adjustable crotch strap for added comfort. Like all Britax seats, the Decathalon features a five-point harness system and a safety record parents trust.

The Decathalon also qualifies for Free Super Saver Shipping. - Jenn

Amazon has expanded their Britax sale to include the Marathon convertible car seat. The Marathon generally retails for $280 but is marked down to $230, 18% off the regular price, and qualifies for Free Super Saver Shipping from Amazon. The Marathon features a rear-facing limit of 35 lbs. and a forward-facing limit of 65 lbs. It utilizes both a five-point harness and the HUGS system for added safety and comfort and comes in six different colors/patterns. The Marathon has received over 200 5-star ratings on Amazon from happy parents.

The Britax sale at Amazon ends May 9. - Jenn

As I'm sure most of you know, sales on Britax car seats are hard to come by. Lucky for you, Amazon is running a sale on Britax car seats featuring True Side Impact Protection. This includes the Boulevard and Diplomat convertible seats as well as the Frontier booster seats.

The savings is $50 per seat, across the board. This brings the price of the Boulevard down to $260 (16% off), the Diplomat down to $200 (23% off), and the Frontier down to $230 (18% off). Each seat also qualifies for Free Super Saver Shipping from Amazon. The Boulevard features a rear-facing limit of 35lbs and a forward-facing limit of 65lbs. The rear-facing limit on the Diplomat is also 35lbs but the forward-facing limit is somewhat less - 40lbs. The Frontier is, of course, forward-facing only as a booster seat and fits children 2 years/25lbs to 80lbs/53". All of these seats have received excellent reviews on Amazon, just one indication of the fact that the Britax name is so trusted in car seat safety. - Jenn

Registering for the real basics

A friend recently asked me what to register for. Now, my list of recommended items is probably more bare-bones than most, so I am likely to neglect things other people would want. So I thought I’d review some baby registry lists I found online to see what I thought of them. My assessments of six lists from leading parenting websites and retailers are below.

Good lists

Parents.com: I was impressed by this list. Sure, the quantities are off (8 pairs of socks? We had two, and we had a winter baby, and that was enough) and some things are not truly necessary (like a crib bumper, which is not recommended because of small increase in SIDS risk) but really, it is a good list. [Link]

Babyfit.com: A nicely organized, non-overwhelming list. Some things were a little odd (belly casting kit?) but most things were practical and safe. [Link]

Decent lists

Giggle.com: A good list. Again, too many of some things (seriously, how is a stroller blanket different from a crib blanket?) but not overwhelming and not very materialistic. [Link]

Target: Target’s Newborn and 0-3 month lists are comprehensive - overspendy but a good start to whittle down from. For instance, you do not need a diaper stacker, diaper disposal system, or diaper disposal refills, in my opinion. But that is your decision. And according to roughly 95% of the internet community, you can skip the wipes warmer. I know I did. [Link]

Bad lists

Baby/Toys R Us: Totally insane and overwhelming, this page would have made me cry. Unless you love to shop (and thus spend money), avoid. [Link]

Walmart.com: Whoa. Do not follow this list. Far too long, lots of unnecessary things, and at least one thing that is unsafe (sleep positioners). Finally, they completely lost me at “elbow cushion” for the bath list. Are they serious? I did not know such a thing existed. I think the "elbow cushion" of choice for 99.9% of moms is called a "towel." [Link] - Leigh G.

We sent Jeremiah's sister, Bethany Wallace, a sample Car Seat Poncho and asked for her thoughts from the colder climes of Seattle, Washington. Below is her guest review from the ZRecs Archives. It was originally published on January 14, 2008.

Hats and mittens are a joke in our household. Our 17-month-old, C, treats taking them off and throwing them out of the stroller (despite freezing temperatures) a fantastic game - that is, until C gets cold, at which point he starts screaming and we have to cut our walk short. So I was excited to try the Car Seat Poncho, a wearable, machine-washable poncho for children. Car Seat Ponchos are currently produced in 6-24 month and 3-4 T sizes.

The idea behind the Car Seat Poncho is a marriage of convenience and safety. Safety experts and car seat manufacturers caution against placing children in car seats wearing bulky clothing like coats or bulky sweaters, as the material has significant give and the difference in tightness of the car seat straps could allow your child to slip out of their car seat in an accident.

(If you need a visual on why you should never buckle your child into a car seat while wearing a jacket, try this experiment: Bundle up your child and put them in their car seat. Buckle and tighten securely. Take your child out, but do not readjust the belt tightness. Remove their coats and put them back into the car seat and buckle them up. See the slack? That slack is keeping your car seat from properly protecting your child. This goes for adults too!)


The poncho works like this: When you are ready to leave the house, pull the poncho on to keep your child warm from the house to the car, when you get in the car you can buckle your child into the car seat without ever removing the poncho. Simply lift the back of the poncho up over the car seat and buckle the car seat straps under the front of the poncho - your child stays warm and safe.


The poncho covers C's head, hands, and body from the knees up while riding in a stroller or the car, and is almost impossible for him to remove due to its cleverly designed flaps, which fit over the stroller straps or car seat back. Made of extremely soft fleece that is much warmer than many of C's coats, it has a zipper up the front you can adjust for fluctuating temperatures, and for car seat use you can easily put it on your child after securing the car seat straps. I did have some trouble with the zipper, much to C's frustration.

For C, the poncho does not take the place of a coat, since active play on the playground caused our 17-month-old to trip over its ends. This means at least some parents will need to pack both a jacket and poncho or leave the poncho in the car. I probably won't use it much for the stroller because it's inconvenient to pack a coat as well.

Stylistically, C looks a little babyish in the sky-blue poncho with its Kewpie-doll hood. C is still somewhere between a baby and a toddler in my mind, so it doesn't bother me now, but I would likely reach for a coat and blanket next winter. (A variety of styles are available on a rolling basis.)

In general, I found the Car Seat Poncho to be extremely useful in specific situations (namely long walks in the stroller, which we do a lot of); to use it in the car, leave it there and treat it as a blanket you leave there.

The Car Seat Poncho is available from the company's website. - Jennifer