Pimp My Ride: Our New Orbit G2 Toddler Seat

So it has been nearly a month since the big box housing our new Orbit Baby G2 Toddler Seat arrived, and our love for it has grown everyday. See, the nice thing about the Orbit Baby system is that it grows with your child, from the infant car seat to the toddler car seat and separate toddler stroller seat. And the even greater thing is that even when they come out with a whole new system, they design it to integrate with your current setup so you won't have wicked stroller envy. So what, you may be wondering, do I adore about our new toddler seat? The hard question is where do I start? The new seat still has the same patented spin technology that allows you to move it 365 degrees, but now the seat also reclines so your wee one can get sleepy and nap completely horizontally. Pooka has already tested this feature many times. It fact, she seems to fall asleep much more easily then any other stroller she's been in. My next favorite element of the new seat is the amazing sun canopy. It has three positions, and when fully extended it blocks any rays from hitting your wee one. The seat also has a great bumper bar that has an attachable bento box that holds snacks and a sippy cup. We haven't used it too many times yet because Pooka has a tendency to grab entire fistfuls and shove them all in her mouth at the same time. Then she realizes she can't eat so many at one time and spits them all out. So until she has a better mastery of her snack situation I just gaze at the bento box and dream of its usefulness to come. Oh, I also really love the soft fleece snuggler and matching shoulder pads that come with the seat. It's removable when your child grows, but it's still working great for Pooka at 17 lbs. There is also an extendable footrest that grows with your child. And did I mention that all the fabric on the new G2 is Orbit Green Certified, which means all fabric that comes in contact with your child is Oeko-Tex 100 certified to be free of 100 harmful and toxic substances. It's an industry first for strollers and car seats! You can even feel good about the rain cover because it is PVC-free. Another industry first! Finally, the seat now has awesome ventilation thanks to a panel that zips open to reveal mesh that makes the seat nice and breezy. There is nothing worse than peeling your sweaty child out of their seat on a hot summer day! And I nearly forgot, but there is a new color on offer besdies black or mocha...an absolutely gorgeous Ruby Red (my favorite color)! I went for the Ruby Red seat, which works smashingly with a black cargo pod on the older models. It is a really snazzy set up!

Of course we are using the new G2 seat on our old stroller base, for for those of you who are going to buy the whole system there is a newly designed stroller base. It is a fab powder-coated white so it will be sure to stand out in the stroller world. It also incorporates new foam filled tires (no more pumping them up or changing flat tubes) and a QuadShock system to give your wee one a cloud-like ride. The double cup holder has changed to a single cup holder designed to accommodate more drink sizes and also gives a place for keys, lip gloss or even your phone. The cargo pod is also more user-friendly with inside pockets and a better shoulder strap. And as with the older version, the fold is beyond amazing, and the stroller takes up much less room in your car than pretty much all of its competitors.

I also added the Panniers to my Orbit Baby and wish I had them from day 1! Now I can do a full trip to Whole Foods and between the Panniers and Cargo Pod I don't even have to hang a bag from the handles. They are brilliant! Oh, and people ask me about those all the time too. And while I don't have it yet, I plan to order the Green Edition Foot Muff for next winter. I was so jealous this winter when all the other strollers had their made to fit foot muffs and I was struggling with a bulky 7 Am Enfant Evolution. To read more about the Orbit Baby system see this previous post. For us it's been a love affair from the start, and the romance keeps get better and better!