Disclosure: Product provided for review. All opinions are my own.
I never thought the day would come that I would be switching my girls out of their 5 point harness car seats into booster seats. The day seemed so far away when they were born and still rear facing. I remember shopping for a convertible seat that would take them from infancy and beyond, and knew that the Diono Radian RXT and Ranier seats were just what I was looking for. For reference, my oldest had the Radian RXT and both my second and third babies had the Ranier seats. I chose these seats for a few reasons- steel reinforced beams, comfort cloth, and the ability to use the seat for ten years. After we converted both girl’s seats into booster seats, we decided it was time to upgrade their seats in my husband’s car as well.
When it comes to car seats, you can say I’m a bit overprotective. My girls were in 5 point harnesses way past their friends. I researched every seat they’ve ever sat in, and always came back to the unmatched protection of Diono seats. My oldest already had the Diono Monterey, so it was only natural my other daughter would use the same seat. We were excited to see the new features and fabric choices of the Diono Monterey XT. Some of my favorite features are the side impact protection when the high-back feature is used, as well as the ease of adjusting the seat as my girls grew. Latch connectors ensure that their seat stays put in the event of an impact, even if they aren’t sitting in their seat. Just as the Radian RXT and Ranier seats, the Monterey also features aluminum reinforced sidewalls to truly protect them on impact. Their seatbelts are always held in place properly with the seatbelt guides, and this makes me feel much better about the decision to move them to a booster seat.
My girls like having hideaway cupholders (they stash their sticker collection in one and have the other handy for a water bottle) as well as the ability to choose the color of their seats to fit their personality. One upgrade from our old Monterey to the new Monterey XT is the fabric choices, which are now solid colors of red and teal.
The Diono Monterey XT fits children from 40-120 pounds and 38-63 inches tall. You can find all the specs as well as where to purchase the Diono Monterey XT by visiting the link. My little guy will be in his Ranier from now until he’s completely outgrown his car seat, but I know that if he needed a booster instead at some point, Diono is what he will be riding in.