As soon as I got pregnant, I pictured my maternity leave in Italy. And here I am, with Daphne and Jonathan, enjoying three weeks of my family’s company and my mamma’s homemade lasagna (we didn’t eat lasagna for three weeks in a row). I’m genuinely the happiest person on earth having all the people I love the most here with me! If everything goes to plan, we will be back here in summer again for a few weeks.
As a first time mum I’ve tried to plan everything in advance but I’m learning what my baby needs along the journey. Does it sound familiar? When we are here in Italy I drive a lot (unlike in London where we don’t have a car), as the public transportation is basically not an option. The first time I came over from London I honestly didn’t think about bringing a car seat, so my parents found an old one used by my cousin. What we didn’t realise was that all car seats have an expiry date, and that one was well expired! Does that count as bad parenting? Probably. Thankfully I’m a blogger! And luckily the brand Diono asked me to test their ultimate car seat: the Diono Radian 5, and Daphne is now travelling safe and comfortable! She’s such a tiny baby and seeing her in that big and fancy car seat makes me feel emotional. I know my hormones must be going wild these days, but Daphne is four months old now and she will use the car seat for the next seven years. She will literally grow in it!
Some important facts:
The Diono Radian 5 is proven to be five times safer for children to travel rear facing so Radian 5 features extended rear facing capacity. It also gives parents the option of forward facing in a five point harness for longer. In fact, it is the only car seat on the market to rear face and forward face in a five point harness from birth up to 25kg, keeping little ones super-secure in their seat up to a maximum of seven years. Plus with an exclusive fold mechanism and industry leading lifetime warranty, Radian 5 is the complete all in one package.
The innovative design of the Radian 5 combines all the essential elements of car seat safety as well as superior comfort, ease of use and longevity. The unique steel frame provides a tough immovable core, making the seat ultra-strong and durable whilst metal reinforced side walls along with advanced energy absorbing foam stop crash forces transferring to the child, keeping your most precious cargo totally protected. The advanced design with straight sides also gives more space across the back seat meaning all three seats can be used at once.
As a convertible seat offering extended rear facing and longer five point harness use, Radian 5 allows parents to choose the right time to turn their child forward facing and move up to the next stage seat. No longer will they be governed by the standard capacity limits.
Radian 5 includes thick memory foam on the seat base, a comfy headrest and ample padding, plus a plush newborn insert to keep babies secure and content. So now both short and long journeys will be a pleasure.
Diono are so confident in the quality of the Radian 5 they are the first car seat manufacturer to offer a unique lifetime warranty for the car seat. Free to all consumers when they register their purchase online, this warranty covers against any manufacturing defects for the whole 10 year life of the seat (all car seats have an expiry date!)
The great features don’t end there, simple things like extra deep cup holders and easy care fabrics to more exclusive features like a folding mechanism and expandable sides make Radian 5 the most full featured convertible car seat available.
My experience:
If you’re a new parent like me, I highly suggest you to take your time to go through the instructions and figure out how to install the Diono Radian 5 car seat safely. At first, it looked like rocket since to me! I thought I would never make it and that I would need another degree to complete the task. Following the instructions step by step is key, even though most of us are not used to it anymore, right?
I’ve always been a confident driver but since I’ve started driving around my niece, my nephew and my daughter, I’ve felt overwhelmed and worried at the wheel. Installing the Diono Radian 5 car seat makes me feel loads more secure and calm.
Here are a couple of links with general guidelines on how to position the car seat and mistakes to avoid. I found them quite helpful:
https://www.babycenter.com/0_installing-a-car-seat_9458.bc
And here are a couple of videos made by Diono to make your life easier:
Queens of Hackney 