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Tuesday, February 17, 2009

I guess that’s why they call them PESTS…Car seat woes!

EmDee got home last night about midnight from his trip, (coincidentally the same time we got back from urgent care last night after taking Sweetpea in for an ear infection) and reminded me that he would need the car seat replaced in his car before I left for work in the morning if he was going to be able to pick Sweetpea up from daycare. I am admittedly anal about installing the car seat, but this little reminder elicited a groan from me nonetheless. The thought of getting up early to install a car seat after getting home from the sick kiddo zoo at midnight wasn’t overly appealing.

That groan was nothing like the one (or was it whispered cursing under my breath? I’ll never tell) that I let escape when I saw a little mouse had taken up residence in the car seat over the week that EmDee had been gone. At first I thought it was just the pad that sits in the bottom of the seat. No big deal, really. I dusted it off and shook the car seat every which way to make sure said mouse wasn’t still in residence.

As I went to install the seat, I noticed that mouse hadn’t stopped at the pad. He felt it necessary to chew the edges of the straps of the car seat too! I imagine it was the stray goldfish and the warmth of the seat that attracted him. Why, then, did he spare the goldfish cracker and eat the straps? I guess that’s why they call them PESTS!! I don’t think I’ll ever be able to look at Mickey the same way.

Oh, and to add insult to injury, the straps the mouse chewed? Not replaceable!! That means this miscreant ruined my $130 car seat – I could just cry thinking about it! {{sob}}

*edited to add* I absolutely LOVE my Evenflo Triumph Advanced car seat, but as an engineer I can't imagine designing straps that can't be removed. If I had known at the time, I never would have purchased this model. I love the infinitely adjustable shoulder strap height, but apparently it is that very feature that is causing me so much grief right now. I called the manufacturer and confirmed that I can't replace the straps.

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10 comments:

T with Honey said...

Note to self: be sure to shake the crumbs out of the car seat when it will not be in use for more than a few days.

Thanks for the warning!! Hey, I wonder if you contact the car seat manufacturer if they could help you with replacement parts? Could be less expensive than buying a whole new car seat.

Marva said...

That stinks! I really hate that. Our straps are not removable either. We have had some vomitting episodes in the seats before. It's weeird you know, with twins everything comes times 2!;) Imagine that! We have Eddie Bauer seats.

What kind of seat are you getting to replace that one? Just curious.

Blessings!

Mel said...

ahhhhhhh i have furry rodent phobia and i would have to sell the car LOL

Ok so did you get a new car seat??

Lisa @ Crazy Adventures in Parenting said...

Oh nooo :(

Steph at Problem Solvin' Mom said...

So far we've just not used that one and are making due with the other one we have. That won't last long though, I'll have to make a decision about what to do this weekend.

Jen said...

YIKES! I honestly would not have even thought about that...and I shudder to think about all the crumbs that have accumulated in our car seats. Definitely going on my to-do list. Maybe you can figure out a way to get a replacement?

HeatherPride said...

Oh man, from bad to worse!! Sorry about your terrible day! And why do ear infections always seem to flare up at midnight?? We had one of those late-night ear infection ER visits last year. NOT fun.

Brooke said...

What a bummer! Sorry to hear about that. If you are looking for your next car seat, I was able to replace a strap on my Britax Boulevard. I love this carseat.

Anonymous said...

After reading this I am 1.) going to go out and IMMEDIATELY vacuum out both cars which have car seats and 2.) Let MommyPie know she's not alone! She's been dealing with pests of the Mickey Mouse variety too, lately!

CC said...

How horrid!!!!

and I HATE our Evenflo Triumph. Hate it. We call it the "evil carseat". We also have a Britax Roundabout which is the "nice carseat." ;)