DD was 6. DS is 5 and we'll be switching him after Labor Day (last long drive to the lake house for the season). He's a lot bigger than DD was at this age (they're actually the same size now and 2 years apart). Basically we're doing it early because the convertibles expire and I'm not buying new ones.
DD is 5. She's in a HB booster in my parents car and is harnessed in our cars. She does not do well in the booster, reaches to grab things, shifts around, cannot buckle herself in etc so I'm going to wait awhile. She actually can buckle herself in and out of her harness, but can't do a seatbelt, so I for sure won't switch her until she can do the seatbelt herself.
We switched my son at 5 into a booster. His harness no longer fit him at that point. He is a "super safety guy" in his words & a rule follower so I never have had to worry about him being irresponsible in the seat.
Oh & if you are 9 months pregnant when you switch your kid it suuucks. It took him foooorever to figure out how to buckle/ unbuckle himself & I had to lean all the way over him with that huge tummy.
Correct but she didn't specify. Most people don't realize that HBB can be harnessed. We just bought the maestro for my MILs car as a backup seat. It goes up to 57 lbs in seatbelt mode. My son is only 39 lbs so we will gets of use.
I thought the post title was pretty clear? Why pay for a seat that harnesses if you are looking for a high back and the price is less than half the cost?
Watch the the height restrictions on the Maestro, harness-wise, they'll outgrow it much sooner due to height than weight.
I don't know any 4 / 5 year olds in booster seats. Most of DD1's friends seem to switch when they hit 6/ 1st grade but she's barely 40 lbs and had never complained (and my state now has a 5+ yr old law for a booster). My friends say it can be tougher for kids to buckle their own seatbelt vs the harness so I'm totally cool with her staying harnessed for as long as possible. Hate the judgement for keeping kids safer longer...
Except that it's a misconception that harnessing longer is keeping a child safer longer. There is literally no evidence that a FF harness is safer than a properly used booster. In fact, the nation with the absolute best safety record for children in cars never uses a FF harness at all due to concerns about the stresses it puts on the spine and neck. So the sanctimonious "keeping children safer longer" is not only incredibly rude, but not even based on evidence.
We transitioned DD1 when she was 4. I kind of wish I had kept her harnessed longer but we didn't have the money to purchase a new seat after she outgrew her harness seat (it turned into a high back). It ended up working out because she was able to sit appropriately and pretty much never napped in the car. She is still in a backless booster at age 9. DD2 is 4 and weighs 48 pounds - she is still harnessed in her Britax Pioneer, which we love. It goes up to 65 pounds, I think. I don't think we will transition her until she outgrows the harness limits. I wouldn't trust her in a high back yet because she is too nuts and can't sit still.
Post by textbookcase on Aug 6, 2017 10:26:38 GMT -5
The older two were probably 4-5 when they transitioned. B is 5.5 and tiny (35 lbs) and she has been around the same weight for a long time so I don't see her moving anytime soon.
My oldest was 5. He was totally fine. Needed a few reminders to stay sitting up at first because new found freedom and all, but he already slept sitting straight up so i wasnt worried about that part. Its so kid dependant. My 4.5 yr old is feral and sleeps slumped over, so she's not moving any time soon, lol
not recommending anything either way, but remember, these boards skew incredibly conservative when it comes to these ages.
I don't know a single person IRL who has a kid over 5 in a 5-point harness.
My eyebrows have been a bit higher than normal reading these responses. Lol.
I 100% admit to being overly cautious. I spent 7 years as a medically fragile school nurse. All of the students who were quadriplegics or severely mentally impaired from a non genetic medical issue had been in car accidents. I do everything I can to minimize the risks of long term injury.
@@trigger@@@ 2 students have always stuck with me. A boy who was in an accident at 2 and became a quadriplegic (cognitively normal) and a young girl who lost her entire family in an accident when another driver crossed the center line. We spent years teaching her how to walk again and feed herself, but she was never going to be able to live independently. It's not worth the risks to me.
share.memebox.com/x/uKhKaZmemebox referal code for 20% off! DD1 "J" born 3/2003 DD2 "G" born 4/2011 DS is here! "H" born 2/2014 m/c#3 1-13-13 @ 9 weeks m/c#2 11-11-12 @ 5w2d I am an extended breastfeeding, cloth diapering, baby wearing, pro marriage equality, birth control lovin', Catholic mama.
DD was 6.5 in DH's car (his car got hit so he had to get a new seat). He takes her in the morning and she is more focused then. Until recently I had a long afternoon commute with her and she is unfocused at that time (and has ADHD), so she is still harnessed at 8 in mine. She is small though, not even quite 48".
I thought the post title was pretty clear? Why pay for a seat that harnesses if you are looking for a high back and the price is less than half the cost?
Watch the the height restrictions on the Maestro, harness-wise, they'll outgrow it much sooner due to height than weight.
I don't know any 4 / 5 year olds in booster seats. Most of DD1's friends seem to switch when they hit 6/ 1st grade but she's barely 40 lbs and had never complained (and my state now has a 5+ yr old law for a booster). My friends say it can be tougher for kids to buckle their own seatbelt vs the harness so I'm totally cool with her staying harnessed for as long as possible. Hate the judgement for keeping kids safer longer...
Except that it's a misconception that harnessing longer is keeping a child safer longer. There is literally no evidence that a FF harness is safer than a properly used booster. In fact, the nation with the absolute best safety record for children in cars never uses a FF harness at all due to concerns about the stresses it puts on the spine and neck. So the sanctimonious "keeping children safer longer" is not only incredibly rude, but not even based on evidence.
Properly used is the key word though. I don't think my kid is mature enough for a booster so yes, it is safer for her to stay in a harness. She falls asleep in the car regularly. Not judging anyone who chooses to switch when their kid is ready.
Except that it's a misconception that harnessing longer is keeping a child safer longer. There is literally no evidence that a FF harness is safer than a properly used booster. In fact, the nation with the absolute best safety record for children in cars never uses a FF harness at all due to concerns about the stresses it puts on the spine and neck. So the sanctimonious "keeping children safer longer" is not only incredibly rude, but not even based on evidence.
Properly used is the key word though. I don't think my kid is mature enough for a booster so yes, it is safer for her to stay in a harness. She falls asleep in the car regularly. Not judging anyone who chooses to switch when their kid is ready.
That's fair, it wasn't clear from your other post. So many people use improperly installed and outgrown harnessed seats under the mistaken assumption that boosters aren't safe. In fact, the only kids I've seen IRL boostered past 4-4.5 are in long outgrown seat that are loosely installed, so way less safe than a booster.
My oldest is 5.5 and is still in his Britax Frontier. My youngest is 2. I don't plan on Noah moving from the Frontier until the younger one needs the Frontier. I figure he'll be almost 7 so he'd have one of those backless boosters, if anything.
I don't know if I'm answering this right.
Is it typical to go from a harnessed high back booster to a non-harnessed high back booster?
Depends on when you switch from harnessed. Most kids aren't tall enough to use just a booster (and pass the 5 PT test) before 8 or 9 so most will need a HBB for some period of time unless they are particularly tall for their age. A HBB adjusts the seatbelt to the correct angle until their shoulders are high enough for just a booster.
Also some states require a HBB until a certain age and you can't use a booster until they meet the requirements so check your state laws.
My oldest is 5.5 and is still in his Britax Frontier. My youngest is 2. I don't plan on Noah moving from the Frontier until the younger one needs the Frontier. I figure he'll be almost 7 so he'd have one of those backless boosters, if anything.
I don't know if I'm answering this right.
Is it typical to go from a harnessed high back booster to a non-harnessed high back booster?
It is typical to go from a FF harness to a HBB in the US, yes. There is no need to specifically use a harness to booster combination seat unless your child has outgrown their convertible seat before they are ready for a HBB or you are buying a new harnessed seat for a FF child for some reason (to give the convertible to a younger sibling or to replace a seat damaged in a car accident, for example).
I switched DS at 5.5 and DD at 5. Neither are car sleepers and both very trustworthy when it comes to sitting correctly. They argue over who is sitting safer in the car.
I just wish they were that responsible when it comes to pretty much anything else.
And for recommendations- both kids use the graco affix boosters in my car so they don't fly around when they aren't in the seats. It also makes it easier for them to buckle because the car seats are narrow and other boosters slid over the buckles.
My son switched at 5-ish. My daughter was 4-- she is super tall and heavy, so had outgrown the harness seat we owned. I bought a booster instead of another harness.
My son switched right around 6... he turned 6 about 3 months into K and he had a hard time undoing his seat himself, plus he was mature and big enough to use a HBB. We ended up trying a few to find the right fit in our car, though. We ended up with the Britax HBB, forget what it's called.
My daughter will be 7 in mid-September and is still in a harnessed seat (Britax frontier). She still falls asleep in the car on occasion, and is still just barely over the weight requirement for a booster. She's plenty tall, but has only recently stayed consistently above 40lbs and it was non-negotiable while she was still slipping below 40. She now occasionally rides in a booster in other people's cars, but for long trips and when she's with me, she's in the Frontier.
My almost 11yo is pretty tall for his age, but is still in a booster in our car, because his seated height is not enough to have the seat belt fit properly. It fits properly in my ILs' car for example, but not in ours, so for as long as he mostly rides in my vehicle, he's in a booster. He doesn't seem to mind though. Actually that's a problem with both my kids - they are tall, but have very short torsos so their seated height is much shorter than you'd expect.