A passion of mine

I don't know that I've ever mentioned it here before, but I am passionate about car seat safety. Ridiculously so. It actually caused a small war once when I found out that Ian's private school was transporting children (including him) as young as age four around town in regular seat belts, even in the front seat, without parental consent. Boy did I blow my top! Both our kids are still in car seats and they will be for a LONG time.

I've been preparing for our newest little one and that meant buying a new car seat since our old infant seat had expired (they only have a 6-8yr lifespan depending on the seat). Since the topic was on my mind I thought I'd share some thoughts.

As parents we are often so excited to see our children reach different milestones. Some of those, like sleeping through the night or potty training, are terrific! Others, like going from rear to forward facing, harness to booster, booster to adult seat belt, are no cause for celebration at all. All those milestones mean that your child is just a little less safe than they were before.

Unfortunately, I wasn't as savvy about child safety until just a couple years ago so both my kids turned around promptly at 12 months/20 pounds because that's what I thought I was supposed to do. While I thank God that we were never in a crash, I wish that I had known better. I plan to keep our newest little miss rear facing for a number of years. I'm shooting for age three or until she reaches the 35lb rear facing weight limit of her seat. Now if you are like most everyone I know, you are thinking that I am entirely off my rocker keeping a toddler rear-facing that long. In an effort to keep all your little punkins safe, here is a YouTube video to watch. The difference is astounding.



Then there is the harness to booster switch that people make WAAAAY too early. Your three or four year old is NOT mature enough for a booster. I don't care if they are the required 30lbs or whatever the box says. Even if you have some super mature preschooler, don't do it. It's just not safe. Yes, this may mean that you need to spend a little more money to buy a seat that harnesses to a higher weight since you're not going to find one at WalMart for $30, but they are becoming increasingly available for good reason - they are so much safer. Audrey is currently just over 40lbs, too big for an average 5-point harness, but her Radian65 will hold her to 65lbs or about 53in. It is also the most compact convertible car seat out there. Even in my Civic, three across is no problem. I would HIGHLY recommend anyone and everyone to purchase one. With an eight year lifespan before expiration, it can take your precious cargo from birth to their 7th birthday(when they are truly ready for a booster) with no problem. With that in mind, a $200 car seat is just over $2/mo. My kid's safety is definitely worth that.
Here's a super short 12 second crash test video showing the difference between a 5-point harness and a booster. Even though the dummy in the booster is probably big enough to be using it, I wouldn't consider a privilege to move from harness to booster if it means that this is what happens in a crash.



Your big kid is not ready to ride without a booster until he or she can pass the 5 step test each and every time they ride in the car. Ian, at 7.5yrs, is actually the height of an average 10yr old and he is no where close to being able to pass. Thankfully, he likes his booster even though none of his friends are still using one.

Start 'em young and they'll never think it's strange that they are the only kid they know still in a car seat or booster. If you've been lenient to this point, it's not too late to take a step back and make safer choices from this point on.