17 different women, 36 crazy children, 0 babies in utero
Adventures, Advice and Questions from a group of Mormon women who met in Queens, NY and have now scattered all over the place.
 

Sunday, October 12, 2008

From the Tales Inbox: What Kind of High Chair?

Hello ladies,

I am wondering what you would recommend about high chairs. I talked with mothers who love their portable-hook-it-up-to-the-table high chair and those who like a traditional high chair just fine. I like the idea of a portable one taking up less space, but my husband thinks it would dent/scratch/ruin our table...even with the padded ends. Anyone have an opinion?

thanks,

Carrie C.

posted by Tales Guest @ 10/12/2008 09:20:00 PM   add to kirtsy


16 Comments:

  • We don't have much room in our kitchen so we opted for one that attaches to the counter. We have the Inglesina Fast chair and absolutely LOVE it! It is super stable, has rubber grips (no wear and tear on our counter and it's been through one baby and on its second), and the cover is removable and washable.

    Plus, because the supports underneath don't extend too far it can fit under even shallow counters (if that makes sense). We had one before the Inglesina but it wouldn't fit under the counter because those bars underneath stuck out too far. The Fast chair comes in some great color combos too. Good luck!
    posted by Anonymous Anonymous at 10/12/2008 09:28:00 PM  



  • We use a Space Saver High Chair by Fisher Price. It is around $50 and is very versatile. It straps to a dinner chair and has a roomy tray. You can tilt the seat and/or tilt the tray. The cover is easy to remove and clean. When we wanted our son closer to the table, we found a slightly shorter chair to strap it to and he now sits right up to the table at meal times instead of using the tray. It seemed a little too big for us to take on vacations, but a cheap little one (Walmart $12) worked fine for a few days at grandma's.
    posted by Blogger danyelly at 10/12/2008 10:18:00 PM  



  • We've had 3 kids without ever wishing for a real high chair - for a long time we had a booster seat strapped on a regular chair, and lately we've kept up one of those clamp-on kind. both are great ways to save space. no table damage to report.
    posted by Blogger cchrissyy at 10/12/2008 10:57:00 PM  



  • living in a small apartment at the high-chair stage, we fed our son in his little bouncy seat for quite a while, and then I was a big fan of the booster seat that attaches right to a chair - something along the lines of this. My cousin has twins and is a big fan of the IKEA high chair - so cheap! So simple! She's visiting this weekend and they have these great Eddie Bauer pop-up seats that are amazing, and fold up really small - great for traveling or at a grandparents house.
    posted by Blogger marian at 10/13/2008 06:42:00 AM  



  • We have used the counter chairs beofore and had it attatched to the island in our kitchen (where our kids mostly eat) THIS is the one we've used and liked.

    But I was looking recently at IKEA and noticed they have a modern looking inexpensive high chair for $20, and wondered if anyone has tried it? You have to buy the tray separately for $5. I wanted to give it a try.
    posted by Blogger Rachel H at 10/13/2008 06:43:00 AM  



  • I bought the Healthy Care seat by Fisher Price, and it has been miraculous! I've seen them for sale at Shop-Ko, Target and Walmart.

    1) It folds up easily for transportation, if going to visit at someone's house, or to a restaurant (safer than most restaurant chairs.) Its cinching straps double as over-the-shoulder straps for carrying, which is important when trying to manage a fast-moving toddler.

    2) It cleans easily. Just a few swipes with a cloth or sponge, and it's good. Its food tray is dishwashable.

    3) It adjusts tray depth and size. I used it for my daughter from when she begun solid foods (4 mo) until now, nearly 2 1/2 years. It'll probably work for another year or two.

    4) It cost about $20-25. There was no way I was going to pay +$60 for the big high chairs, that only seem to fit the child for a few months.

    5) It quickly, securely and easily cinches to any solid chair. I've even attached it to sturdy folding chairs. I have even folded my daughter's bib and put it in the food tray to carry it along.

    6) If you are travelling and can't clean it right away, you can just snap on the tray cover and carry it out to clean later.

    7) No worries about clamping it to a table. That always seemed insecure to me.

    8) It's gender-neutral and NOT PINK or overly cutesy. I'm not a fan of pink.
    posted by Blogger SilverRain at 10/13/2008 07:22:00 AM  



  • Our first baby ate in her swing which sat up and had a tray. No room for anything else. Our second had a real high chair because we had the room and I fell in love the old metal ones.

    We are back to no room with our third so he started eating in his bumbo chair but then I got tired of sitting on the ground to feed him. I just picked up a travel booster that attaches to a chair a few weeks ago. It was $20 and works great.
    posted by Blogger This is Carrie at 10/13/2008 07:40:00 AM  



  • Amen to everything silverrain said. I'd just like to add one more point.
    Our kitchen table is counter height and a regular high chair would be too short. Because the booster seat attaches to the chair, my son is at just the right height. He's old enough now that we stopped using the tray and just push him right up to the table. With my oldest we had a regular high chair and we like the booster seat option so much better.
    posted by Blogger Lahni at 10/13/2008 08:38:00 AM  



  • I have the Phil and Teds MeToo seat - it attaches to the table. It is super lightweight and folds down to 1" thick! It doesn't have any fancy padding or anything, so it's easy to clean up - wipe down with a damp cloth and you're done.

    We've had problems with it not attaching to all tables, though. The arms are very short, and some tables have a lip the chair just can't get past.

    But for the most part, I've been very happy with it.
    posted by Blogger Miss Shelly at 10/13/2008 10:46:00 AM  



  • We have a portable Regelo which have used for extended periods of time and use on vacation. No damage from the chair, although I will say that if you have a banger, you may not want it on a nice wood table! We had it on a portable island for a while and you could see the marks from the spoon banging.

    We LOVE LOVE LOVE our ikea high chair. We are in a tiny apartment and it works out quite well. It is simple and therefore cheap. It can be brought right up to the table without the tray - but we mostly keep the tray on (the tray is not the easiest to take on and off. It clips in, but in order to make it childproof, it takes some willpower to take it off. But there really is no reason to take it on and off either. There is NO padding - out little one never seemed to mind and it means it is a ton easier to clean since it is a single molded plastic piece. It really is quite small and unobtrusive.
    posted by Blogger Nicole at 10/13/2008 11:47:00 AM  



  • Marian- sorry I didn't read the comments before I asked about the ikea one!! Hah. It looks good, I like how simple and small it seems. (for a regular style one)
    posted by Blogger Rachel H at 10/13/2008 11:48:00 AM  



  • I had four main concerns when choosing a high chair:
    1) safety
    2) cleanliness
    3) appearance
    4) functional
    We have had the same high chair for six years. It has gone through three kids and meets all of our criteria above. Very safe, with enough straps to keep the baby restrained but not enough to make it uncomfortable. Super easy to clean, all surfaces are wipe-able. (no fabric involved) GREAT appearance-- very modern and sleek, goes perfect with my kitchen. Absolutely is functional. Easy to transport from place to place and to store away when company is over.
    If you're interested: http://www.supercoolbaby.com/archives/pictures/flairelite.jpg
    posted by Blogger E at 10/13/2008 12:51:00 PM  



  • We used both a traditional high chair and a booster seat. We had room for the traditional both times, but the booster was so easy to use we just started using that all the time. I don't think they make the one we had, but it could recline and strapped to the dining room chairs. It was nice too because we could take it along with us when we went over to other people's houses and not have to worry about how we were going to feed the baby. We used it until they were big enough to sit at the table w/o a booster.
    posted by Anonymous Anonymous at 10/13/2008 01:06:00 PM  



  • Whoops, my link above didn't seem to work...let's try this one: http://booninc.com/products/Flair
    I LOVE Boon...they are a great company. Very helpful with reliable customer service. There slogan is "innovations for modern parents". And I think that fits most of the Tales readers. Great products! Go check 'em out!
    posted by Blogger E at 10/13/2008 05:36:00 PM  



  • Thank you ladies for all your imput!
    posted by Blogger Carrie at 10/13/2008 08:09:00 PM  



  • Please visit our official site baby cribs sorelle for baby cribs sorelle.
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