Totseat - the washable, squashable highchair

When I officially made my decision to travel to Asia with an eight month old child, I had a lot of details to figure out, including how exactly I was going to feed my son the solids he so dearly loved. At the time he did some self-feeding, but he also ate purees. When I began investigating travel highchairs and boosters, I wasn't sure what to expect. I needed something small, light and compact, but I also needed something effective.

Enter, the Totseat, made in the UK, the Totseat is an adjustable highchair made of fabric. You can adjust the crotch length with buttons and the wrap around straps tighten with a clasp. To top things off the Totseat works on practically any chair. I was skeptical at first about their claims of fitting on any chair, but then I watched the demonstration and decided it was worth a shot.

Let me tell you, I traveled for three weeks with my son and probably saw as many actual highchairs; but that didn't stop us, the Totseat really did fit on every chair I encountered. Another bonus, after three weeks of travel, I just popped the totseat in the wash and it came out like new.

The Totseat comes with a thick fabric strap, with ample velcro, to fit around the back of any chair that has a gap in the back, which prevents worries that your child could slide out the back of the chair. Despite my concerns, the Totseat was also effective at containing my squirmy little son. That being said, I recently lent the Totseat to a friend going on a trip to Mexico with her 2 year old son and she informed me her little guy could easily get out of the Totseat - if he wanted. Fortunately, for the most part, he was happy eating in the Totseat. ed. note: After some discussion with my friend, it turns out she was securing her son the "lazy way", which means she wasn't threading the straps through the loops at the back of the chair, which is likely the reason why he could get out of the seat! [7 April 2010]

The Totseat comes in bright, bold patterns which are not only FUN they can help hide the food stains if you just haven't had time to wash it in a while. Speaking of food stains, if your tot is eating on a fabric chair, you may want to bring an extra receiving blanket to put underneath his/her bottom. I also recommend bringing along a coat, sweater or blanket to put under your baby if they need a boost. This is rarely a problem for us, as someone is always wearing extra layers.

The Totseat is a great product for a family on the go, or for travels near or far. It's a small and compact, but effective highchair that isn't cumbersome to carry, setup or take down. The Totseat is a well constructed and amazing product - I give it a 4.5/5!