PSA For the day - Carseats

We turned our daughter around before her 1st bday, because she outgrew rear facers.

She went to a booster/positioner at about 2.25 or 2.5 because she outgrew front facing harness types.

The problems of having a really tall kid.

Also for everyone's info: shoulder belts need to be 90 degrees or higher than their shoulders, shoulder straps should never make a U shape.  Moving them to the next size up is much safer for them than staying in a seat that doesn't fit/is too small.

Isn't this just for forward facing seats?  Rear-facing have different requirements (at least the Britax Marathon does).

We have small kids.  Turned the first at a year because we thought that was what you do.  Have just turned our 2-year-old and I think we are the last people in our town to have a 2-year-old rear-facing.  There is a really good u-tube video showing why they should rear-face as long as possible but I don't have time to look for it.  I think in Europe kids remain rear-facing until they are much older.

There are convertible carseats that can keep a child rear facing for an extended period of time. Our daughter is not short, I am 5'9" and she was fine until 3. The convertible seats sit higher so their legs are not bunched up. Then you can turn the convertible around and use until 49 inches and 65 pounds. Then you can move to a combination harness booster which is still a 5 pount harness and can be used up to 65 inches and 85 pounds.

http://www.britaxusa.com/car-seats

These are laws but guidelines. Studies show rear facing as long as possible is safest, it is a head and neck issue. Then a 5 point harness is much safer than just a booster with a seatbelt which rarely fit small children the way they are supposed to.

A booster that they can fit in until they are 65 inches?  I am 65 inches!  I'm all about safety but I can't believe how long they have kids in boosters these days....and yes I realize that no one keeps their kid in a booster until 65 inches...I'm more referring to the changes over time...I don't know when I was no longer in a booster, but I am SURE that by kindegarten I wasn't in one anymore...I'll have to ask my parents.

And the verdict is: "You never had a booster seat.  You stayed in a car seat until about age 4 when your shoulders got too wide for the car seat."

This is what you all are talking about, right?

My 4-yr-old is in a 5-point-harness which he can remain in until he is 65 lbs.  After that, we have to use it with a regular seat belt but he will be able to use it until he is 100 lbs. He is currently only 40 lbs.  It is a high back booster but can also convert to a regular booster if we need it o.  As far as the rear-facing issue is concerned, it is all about how well fused the spine is.  High impact front-on crashes do incredible damage to the not-completely-formed spine.  Rear-facing is much safer in these types of crashes.  I am always asked "what about rear-end accidents".  If rear-end accidents occurred at the same speeds as front-ons, then yes, the same problem would exist for the rear facing children.  But these types of accidents are typically at much slower speeds and the cars are moving in the same direction.  Just as I was the only one to still have a 2-year-old rear-facing, I am about the only one to have a 4-year-old in a five point harness.  But I don't care.  I know this is the safest option for my son.  If he was too tall for the seat, then obviously we'd have to make different choices but my children are unlikely to outgrow either the weight or height restrictions.  When my younger son was rear-facing, we would just ease the back of the seat down a little so his legs were not bunched up.  He slept a lot better on road trips when he was rear-facing.

I didn't have a carseat at all. Either a family member held me or my Mom put me on the floor board of the car.

I've been in two accidents with my children. One about 12 years ago when my boys were small (both were in 5 point harnesses) and one last year when my girls were little and I was glad I had taken the safer measurers. No injuries in either accident.

that's what i would have guessed.  there were no booster seats when we were kids.

Be sure to check in your car manual if you're using a 5 point harness up to 65lbs.  Many cars LATCH systems (UAS?  Not sure which it's called in the US) don't go up that high, which leaves the potential for a gigantic 5 pt carseat & child to become a projectile, despite the child being safely buckled in.  Clearly that isn't the safest option.

Also, the argument about "we didn't do it that way when we were kids" is inherently flawed.  As my good friend who's a pediatrician says, there was less traffic then, the cars didn't go as fast then and to be blunt, the kids that died aren't around to advocate for carseat safety.  Perhaps we're the lucky ones, you know?

Hence why I said that I am a fan of safety.  HOWEVER, I think we might be getting silly here.  I haven't been around enough kids to visually be able to tell what kid is 65 lbs and which isn't, but I'm thinking that well into 3rd/4th/5th grade I probably had several friends that were not 65 lbs.  65 lbs is quite close to approaching adult size.

What exactly is wrong with a regular seatbelt on a 4 or 5 year old kid?

For most 4 and 5 year old kids the seatbelt does not hit them where it is supposed to because they are designed for adults. I see it all the time on TV reality shows where the kids take the shoulder strap and put it behind them because it rubs against their neck. I even see adults do that. If there was a serious accident the shoulder strap could cause more harm than good if it isn't across their chest but rather their neck. My girls are 8 and 7 and still in boosters. The older girl will be 9 in June and weighs in the low to mid 50s.

I know it seems silly to have a 9 year old in a booster to some but about half of her friends are still in booster seats so she doesn't complain too much. What is interesting is my girls always point out to me when they see a little kid in the front seat of a car, they get very upset. I am often stunned to see children as young as 5 in the front seat with a regular seatbelt. I'm not sure how parents make that decision with all the information out there.

I don't entirely disagree with you.  My kids are 4 (almost 5) & 7 and are both in booster seats.  The seatbelt hits them both in the right place with the booster.  I think the reason for the recommendation is twofold.  First, kids are heavier these days.  Sad but true.  What was average weight for our generation is not average now.  So the kids are heavier at a younger age and the carseat manufacturers and legal bodies need to increase the weight limits to ensure that a very young but very overweight kid is protected (and therefore THEY are protected from legal actions as well).  Also, because kids could move up to a booster earlier, their muscle/bone development is not as advanced as older kids and being snapped forward, even as little as happens with a regular seatbelt, can cause major neck & back issues if a collision happens at high speed.

I am actually fairly middle of the road on this issue but I have some friends that have 4 year olds rear facing still and 9 year olds in 5 pt harnesses.  They're hard core.  

Check Consumer Reports for their choices for the 5 Point Harness seats, great info and not always the most expensive seat.

I used them for my carseat choices because my son has always been on the taller/heavier side.  He just came out of a booster since he turned 8 and is 80 lbs/4'8".  He actually liked the booster because he could see out the window better when he was younger.

In 8th grade, I was only 75-80lbs, and 5'8" or so.

I know for sure I wasn't in a booster seat then .  I remember sitting the back of our VW bug when I was little without a car seat, and we got rid of that when I was 3 in 81.

I'm actually thinking about putting my 8 year old back into a 5 point harness.  He falls asleep and just flops over in the car.  He has low muscle tone and really probably should have never come out of it.  However, he's 8 and HUGE.  He is bigger than my (almost) 10 year old.  My (almost) 7 year old is still in a booster and will be for awhile.  He's a peanut.