If you haven’t been there, you certainly know someone who has: you leapt from a taxi with kids and luggage in tow only to be searched by strangers at security checkpoints. You then spent several aggravating hours on the plane trying to keep the kids happy and when you touched down, you made a beeline for the rental desk. Of course, you made arrangements with the rental agency for the kids’ car seats, since it’s safety first (and also illegal to drive with kids in most places without them). When the rental agent informed you that the seats weren’t there, you had only a few options: rush around like crazy trying to find an alternative… or start walking. Or, if you are like Grainne Kelly, inventor of the
BubbleBum inflatable safety seat, you could just whip out your car seats and be on your way.
Entrepreneur Grainne Kelly, a native of Northern Ireland, has had to pay homage to the infamous law of Mr. Murphy a number of times: she frequently traveled with children. After her own desperate travel escapade, she realized that modern families need a safety seat that can go anywhere but not be difficult to carry or store. “BubbleBum is the first inflatable, foldable and portable solution,” notes Kelly. “Our customers love the product!” As a Child Passenger Safety Technician, Kelly was able to develop a safe seat that not only met all safety standards for the European Union and the USA, but was also comfortable for a child.
Two styles are available (black
& silver or purple
& lime) and the seats measure 13 x 13 x 4.5 inches when fully inflated. It takes less than a minute to inflate the seat and it collapses easily for storage. Kelly included positioning clips that help provide more security for the child. While the seat is not machine-washable, it is easy to wipe it off with a damp cloth and mild soap. The BubbleBum booster seat has been approved for kids ages 4 to 11 years old (15-36 kgs. or 40-100 lbs.), and comes in under $40 retail.
BubbleBum has a closet full of awards, including the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s Best Bet Booster, the Parent Tested, Parent Approved, Winner for Best Product, and The National Parenting Center Seal of Approval. Of course, Kelly doesn’t rest on her laurels: “BubbleBum has a few other products in development and a new color to be released later this year.”
Travelers big and small deserve a real break from seating hassles: http://www.bubblebum.co/us/
