my three year old is 30 pounds and in a high back car seat (i think thats what its called). I'd like to move her to a booster. What kind should I get and is she the right age/size yet? My 9 month old is 20 pounds and I would like to put him in her old high back facing forward. Is he big enough yet? thanks!
In regards to the 9mth old he has to be 1year AND 20lbs to be forward facing. It is safer for the child to be rear facing as long as possible. So they need to be 20 and 1yr not one or the other.
The 3yr old is still kinda small for a booster - it is normally 4yrs and 40lbs unless she is extremely tall for her age (where her head is above the back of the current car seat). Knowing what her weight and height is go to babies r us and look at the information cards in front of each car seat that will help as well.
I work at babies r us and I know it is a pain (I have a 3 1/2 yr old 37lb little girl and she is still in her 5 point harness). Here is a great link http://www.infant-car-seats.com/states/car-seats-laws-Michigan.html
They do sell a car seat that turns into a booster so when she does turn 4 you don't have to get another seat. They are called 3-1 seats. Good luck
hi audrey i read kristen post and she is right with all she said 1 yr and 20 pd is the age and weight and as far as the 3 yr old goes she still needs a five point harnes to be safecheck out car seat safety or vist your local police station
Audrey ~
Michigan law says 4 years AND 40 lbs....so it's too soon to move your 3 yr old to the booster seat.
donna
Please please keep her in a 5 point harness as long as possible. It is SO much safer. Your kids are so very special to you and there are so many idiots on the road. There are a lot of great seats out there with higher weight limits now.
In addition to the other posts that echo my sentiments, I'd like to point out that American Academy of Pediatrics recommends rear facing your child for as long as possible with a MINIMUM of two years.
Please, please, PLEASE do not turn your 9 month old forward facing yet. His spine is not strong enough to handle the force of a crash.
If you are still not convinced, please watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2DVfqFhseo
Hi Audrey,
I don't know about your 3 year old but I can for sure tell you that your 9 month old cannot legally face forward yet. I was so excited in September when my son turned one. The law had been 1year and 20lbs. Well right before his bday the law changed to 2 years. As long as he can sit up ok he should be fine in the high back car seat but he should remain rear facing.
Marcia B.
Just so you know, Michigan law does not state four years and 40 Ibs for a booster seat. It states that children need to be correctly restrained in the car for their size and age. There are high back booster seats that take children from 30 Ibs but you also need to see how tall she is because that affects whether or not she is big enough to be safe in the seat. Five point harnesses are always the bet though. Your nine month old does need to be rear facing until at least 20 Ibs and one year, and I believe "they" are now recommending rear facing until two years old. Does your daughter's current high back not rear face? Most of them do now, they are usually convertable.
My 45lb 5yr old is still in a 5-point harness. It is a LOT safer than a booster.
Hi Audrey,
I think it is 4 years old before they can go in a booster. I also believe it is 1 year old before the little one can go facing forward.
Good Luck, Linda
It is best to leave your son rear facing as long as possible. My daughter didn't hit 20 lbs until 16 months. We kept her rear facing until about 17-18 months, and only switched her because of her height. She is tall for her age, and was extremely cramped being rear facing.
My stepson, until he was 7, was sitting in a 5 point harness at times. He loved sitting in the 5 point harness seat. So when it wasn't winter he would sit in it. During the winter with his big coat, he couldn't quite get it to latch. I figured it was safest for him sitting in their, so we let him do it. He has already told me that once he is able to legally be out of his booster in a few months, he wants me to leave it in the car so he can see out the windows better. His mom doesn't have him in a seat, and he can't see out the windows. (that's a WHOLE other issue)
I encourage my kids to be in the seats as long as possible. They will grow up fast as it is, bu you want to make sure they are safe at all times, just in case that accident happens.
Hi, You cannot place your infant forward facing til 1 year or more. Actually it is best to keep infants rear facing for as long as possible. Is your 3 year old using a 5 point harness or the regular car belt? I would not put a 3 year old in a "regular " booster. Actually I recently changed my 4.5 year old to his high back booster with just the car belt and I don' feel he is very safe. I intend to purchase a Graco Nautilus so he can remain in a 5 point harness to 65 pounds.
She is much too young and small to be in a booster seat. PLEASE consider purchasing a seat that has an internal 5pt harness that goes over 50lbs. The Graco Nautilus is an excellent option...It has an internal harness weight of 65lbs. Our 5yr old son is currently in one. It runs about $150 on average and can be converted to a High back belt positioning booster, and then a backless booster as your child grows.
As for your baby, it is safest to keep him rear facing as LONG as possible. Children simply do not have the upper body strength to withstand crash forces forward facing until they are closer to 2-3yrs old. A convertable seat with a 30+lb rear facing weight limit would be ideal. All of my children have been rear facing well into their 2nd year.
I'd rather keep my kids rear facing or in a 5pt harness longer giving them a better shot at surviving a crash than take the chance that an adult belt or forward facing seat will protect them.
The weight guidlines on seats are the absolute MINIMUM for safety. Do you want to give your children the Minimum amount of safety?
For your 3 year old: The absolute bare minimum to be in a high back booster seat is 4 AND 40ibs. However, the longer your child(ren) are harnessed, the safer they are. For your 3 year old I would suggest this seat. http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3009610
It harnesses to 65 ibs keeping your child safer longer. Once your child outgrows the harness (when either a.) shoulders are above the top slot where the harness comes out OR they are above 65ibs) you pull the harness out and it transforms into a high back booster.
For your 9 month old: Rear facing is 5 times safer then forward facing. The bare minimum to turn him is 1 year AND 20ibs. However, many outlets, including the American Academy of Pediatrics is now suggesting that they would like to change the minimums to 2 years old AND 30ibs in order to be turned forward facing.
(my daughter is almost 2 and 29ibs and I just flipped her FF this summer)
What seat is he in now? Where are his shoulders in comparison to the slots on the seat? How much does he weigh?
Hope this is a good start on info. If you need more info on which seat I would reccomend for him, please let me know how much he weighs and what seat he is in now. Your best bet would probably be a convertible at this point, but for now he must remain rear-facing to remain safe in the car.
--Sonya
CPST
'I do my best work in your back seat!' :P
sorry to disappoint, but no and no.
Your 3 year old can't go into a booster until he/she's 4 they should also be closer to 40lbs.
Your little one has to be at least 1 year old to turn forward facing. However, when you face them forward they have MUCH GREATER chance of major neck/spinal injury if you were ever in a crash. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration only sets 1 year AND 20 lbs as a minimum... if you read through their research, the recommend to keep your child in a rear facing seat for as long as the set allows (for height and weight).
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cps/cpsfitting/index.cfm
If you click on the link above you can find people local to you to tell you all of the requirements.
This one is a 30 second video to show you the difference in a crash test. It's even in a different language so you don't need to hear all the sentimental stuff people usually put into these videos... this way you can just see what you need to! :)
Hope that's been helpful!
(as a side note, my daughter is 21 months and just over 20lbs and is still rear facing after I saw these videos I'll be keeping her that way until she reaches her car seats recommendations for height or weight... then I'll turn her ff).
Some people below are saying that the American Academy of Pediatrics states that children should stay rear-facing until at least two years old. This is inaccurate. They state "Use a seat that can be used rear-facing by children who weigh more than 20 pounds and keep your baby rear-facing as long as possible into the second year of life, or at least until he has reached his first birthday." Here is the link:
http://www.aap.org/family/carseatguide.htm#ConvertibleSeats
It is true that it's best to keep him or her rear facing as long as possible but when my daughter turned 1, we had to turn her around as she had run out of room for her legs when the seat was facing backwards (she really tall for her age).
no no and no..
your 9 month old needs to be rear facing until he is 1 year old AND 20 pounds.. so he is not old enough--- so he needs to stay in his current seat rear facing.
The law in michigan is kids must be in car seats until 8 OR 80 pounds.. so you have a long long way to go.
Depending on her size .. you daughter may be getting large for her current seat.
I highly recommend britax car seats.. they are comfortable for the child and easy for the parents .. I would rather buy my kids slightly used britax than cheap new seats.
Look for a seat that has a 5 point harness and a high weight limit.
there are seats that go up to 65pounds now which would probably be a 6 or 7 year old depending on how big they are.
We bought graco nautilus.. but we hate it .. cant recommend it .. it does go up to 65 pounds with the harness and then it is a booster for up to 100 pounds.
From the sound of it you are using a forward facing car seat, but one that doesn't convert into a high back, belt positioning booster seat. My recommendation would be to move her to a high back belt positioning booster seat. Check the size recommendations though to make sure that she is a) tall enough and b) weighs enough. My girls were able to convert around the age of three, however, we struggled with our youngest because she would put the shoulder part behind her. We actually had to convert her back to a 5 point harness for a few more months.
As far as your son goes - while he is 20 pounds, he does need to remain rear facing until the age of 1. If the car seat you want to use can not be used in the rear facing position, then you shouldn't use it until he is one year old, and that may mean purchasing him a different car seat, as most infant carriers (assuming that is what you are using) is only rated to 20 lbs.
for your 3 yo check out the gracco nautilus! I bought one after reading another thread on here and it is excellent! It starts out as a 5 pt harness forward facing with latch. Then later on can convert to a high back booster and then onto a backless booster. Our old car seat was getting too bulky to lift my two year old up and over into and she really wanted a cup holder. Walmart has the best prices on these!
Technically, doctors say kids need to be 40 pounds to be in a booster, but my son is only 37ish pounds and he's in a booster. This is the one I bought http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=8342859 ... as for your 9 month old, if he doesn't fit in the infant seat anymore, you can put him in a larger car seat as long as it can be rear facing. This is the one we have for my daughter (my son used it too when he was too big for the infant seat) http://www.amazon.com/Eddie-Bauer-Deluxe-Convertible-Vanderbilt/dp/B001FB5BAW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=baby-products&qid=1260193126&sr=8-1 ... this color doesn't have the best reviews, but we love it; it is a bit cumbersome as far as getting it into a smaller car, but it's pretty great.