TTMA: Booster Seats

[erinshelley21]

I think we are nearing booster seat territory but I know nothing and don't want to throw DS in one too soon. He is still in the convertible car seat right now and we are trying to teach him to unbuckle and buckle in preparation for preschool drop off and pick up. He's having a hard time and I'm wondering if a booster would be easier. 

He is 3.5, 39 inches tall and 34 lbs. Is this the right size for a high back booster that has a harness? I shouldn't skip the harness right? 

[sunbutter]

You want a five point harness for as long as possible- follow the manufacturer's instructions for height and weight.
I specifically don't want my kids to know how to buckle and unbuckle themselves for safety reasons. I.e. Getting out of the seat while the car is in motion.
My nine year old just learned how to buckle and unbuckle his own seat belt. He just wasn't strong enough to maneuver it around the high back booster side and into the latch until recently.

Edit to add: DD is five, still in a car seat that accommodates her height and weight (up to 55lbs.). We will soon move her to a high back booster with five point harness and she will probably stay with that for a couple more years like DS did. Yup. My first grader was in a five point harness.

[Covergirl82]

My uncle is a volunteer firefighter and has always told me that keeping kids in a 5-point harness for as long as possible (within manufacturers specifications) is always safest.

DS was in a 5-point until he was almost 7 and DD was in a 5-point until 6. DS moved to a no-back booster around 7.5 years old, and DD is still in a high-back booster with the regular seat belt.  (ETA:  If I had the energy and intestinal fortitude to continue fighting, DS would still be in a high-back booster with the regular seatbelt, and DD would still be in a 5-point harness.)

[erinshelley21]

sunbutter, he has unbuckle the chest clip once or twice but the ass reaming he got afterwards put the fear of God in him and he only does it when told he can now. That is like the one thing we have successfully taught him. The preschool he is going to doesn't have an area for parents to park and bring kids in is the only reason he needs to be able to do it. There will be a teacher standing at the door, but I'm not sure they'll be helping them get in and out of the car.

[twinmomma]

I think you should be ok to switch to a high back booster as long as you use the five point harness. We're still in a high back booster with 5 point harness and my kids just turned 5. I have zero intention of changing that any time soon. The five point harness should last us at least another year before they max out the size restrictions and then our seats will switch to high back boosters with the seat belt.

We switched to this style of seat around the age of your DS. They fit in my car a lot better than the two convertible seats we had, so that's why we made the switch. We have Evenflo Maestro seats. I love how light and easy to install they are! And they fit well on plane seats too.

As far as buckling and unbuckling, this summer is the first my kids have even showed interest in it. DD1 is pretty good, and DD2 asks for her help. They both know it is only ok when we are parked in a parking lot or in the driveway though. We hammer that home regularly.

[erinshelley21]

I'm also feeling better about the amount of judgement I had when I saw a picture of FB of twins younger than DS in a regular seat belt booster with no back.

[twinmomma]

Jul 17, 2017 13:09:14 GMT -5 erinshelley21 said:

I'm also feeling better about the amount of judgement I had when I saw a picture of FB of twins younger than DS in a regular seat belt booster with no back.

Seriously. The girls' BFF is in a no back booster seat and it makes me sick. I often want to mention to her dad that it's not ok, but I haven't figured out how to yet. She's taller than my kids by a lot, but I still think too young to be in that type of seat. 

[erinshelley21]

Jul 17, 2017 13:10:34 GMT -5 twinmomma said:

Jul 17, 2017 13:09:14 GMT -5 erinshelley21 said:

I'm also feeling better about the amount of judgement I had when I saw a picture of FB of twins younger than DS in a regular seat belt booster with no back.

Seriously. The girls' BFF is in a no back booster seat and it makes me sick. I often want to mention to her dad that it's not ok, but I haven't figured out how to yet. She's taller than my kids by a lot, but I still think too young to be in that type of seat. 

These kids are in a family with an "old school" mindset, which is pretty common around here being such a small town. Some of which is fine, but not the carseat stuff. 

If it weren't for this place, well not this exact forum location but you know what I mean, DS probably would have been forward facing right at 1 and who knows what else. 

[mommyatty]

DD at 4 is in a high back booster. DS at 3 is in one for my MIL's car only. And the reason is that MIL flat refuses to learn how to properly use a car seat. I figure he's safer in a seat belt where he occasionally may be out of position (but he's a very good rider) than in a car seat where I know damn well he isn't properly positioned.

[k3am]

CSFTL suggests 5-7 years as an ideal time to make the switch. (But we all know they border on being fear mongrels, right?)

I wouldn't let your DC dictate when you move your kid out of the harness.

We currently have DD in a Diono Radian that she'll be in forever - it has a 50lb weight limit before it can be used as a booster. She can buckle herself in properly and unbuckle the chest clasp and we're working on the bottom clip. She is very aware of the fact that that thing stays buckled until the keys are out of the engine.

[mommyatty]

Btw there is no study that shows a 5 point harness is safer than a seatbelt. The only question is whether they are sitting properly with the seatbelt in the proper position. The idea that a 5 point harness is inherently safer is a common misperception. Really you have to look at how your kid acts in the car. DD is very VERY good. We've had to correct her posture exactly twice since she moved to a booster at 4. DS is also very good, but he's a little more prone to rebellion so he may stay in the harness longer in our cars.

[twinmomma]

Jul 17, 2017 13:22:44 GMT -5 mommyatty said:

Btw there is no study that shows a 5 point harness is safer than a seatbelt. The only question is whether they are sitting properly with the seatbelt in the proper position. The idea that a 5 point harness is inherently safer is a common misperception. Really you have to look at how your kid acts in the car. DD is very VERY good. We've had to correct her posture exactly twice since she moved to a booster at 4. DS is also very good, but he's a little more prone to rebellion so he may stay in the harness longer in our cars.

This is why my kids will be in harnesses forever. lol They wiggle and squirm and are constantly trying to bug the shit out of each other WITH the harness. I can't even imagine the chaos in my backseat if we gave them some more freedom. 

[erinshelley21]

k3am, I don't think they care if he's in a harness or not. I just wanted to make sure I could put him in a harness booster now rather than finally teach him how to use the crotch buckle on his car seat then teach him how to use another one in a few months.

Plus, DD will need the convertible car seats soon anyways and I don't really want to buy 2, possibly 3 since I know MIL wouldn't buy another one, to use for just 3ish months.

[erinshelley21]

Jul 17, 2017 13:25:28 GMT -5 twinmomma said:

Jul 17, 2017 13:22:44 GMT -5 mommyatty said:

Btw there is no study that shows a 5 point harness is safer than a seatbelt. The only question is whether they are sitting properly with the seatbelt in the proper position. The idea that a 5 point harness is inherently safer is a common misperception. Really you have to look at how your kid acts in the car. DD is very VERY good. We've had to correct her posture exactly twice since she moved to a booster at 4. DS is also very good, but he's a little more prone to rebellion so he may stay in the harness longer in our cars.

This is why my kids will be in harnesses forever. lol They wiggle and squirm and are constantly trying to bug the shit out of each other WITH the harness. I can't even imagine the chaos in my backseat if we gave them some more freedom. 

Yep. This is DS and based on the 4 months of squirming from the baby, she will be right there with him. 

[erinshelley21]

DS really needs it because he falls asleep in the car A LOT. A seat belt would have him slouched over in no time.

[jlaok]

We have Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 car seats for both DS and DD and I love them! They go from a 5-point harness, to belted high-back booster, then to a backless booster. DS is 7 and just outgrew the shoulder straps for the 5-point harness this summer (he is a little over 4' tall) and is using the high-back booster with the seat belt. DD is tiny and will be in a 5-point harness for quite a while.

I've been working with DD to learn how to buckle herself so that I can go through carpool line but she's not quite there. I am just preparing to park and walk until she gets the hang of it. I'd talk to the your preschool about it. I can't believe that they don't have an option except having a 3-yr-old buckle and unbuckle themselves.

[akafred]

A 5 point harness in a convertible car seat is exactly the same in terms of safety as a 5 point harness in a "harness to booster" seat. You just really do not want to lose the harness for a few years yet. So if you want to buy a new seat that is easier to buckle, that is fine, but if he has a ways to go before he outgrows the current seat, there is no safety benefit or detriment to doing so.

[indyrowergirl]

erinshelley21 - we have moved both DS1 and DS2 from convertible to a HBB with harness at roughly 3-3.5. DS1 just managed to talk his way out of the harness in the last two months at almost 8yo. So we converted the HBB to seatbelt use. (We got the Britax Frontier because it had the highest weight/height limit when we were shopping for DS1, and because it converted from harness to seatbelt only.) Its a beast has far as being heavy, but the click tight that Britax has now makes it pretty easy to install in harness mode.

FWIW my 3.5yo DS2 just figured out how to buckle and unbuckle himself in the last week. (Which we wanted so that it's easier to get him out of the car. We keep the child locks going on his side so he doesn't slam his door into the car next to us.)

[waverly]

Since he is 3, he should be in a harness. State law here is 4 for a booster seat. They don't define it anymore than that, but I am assuming when they say that they mean booster with seatbelt. Most don't go to the seat belt until age 5, so you are fine with the harness. Otherwise the law says follow what the seat says, and we all do on this board, I think.

[sunbutter]

Jul 17, 2017 13:07:45 GMT -5 erinshelley21 said:

sunbutter, he has unbuckle the chest clip once or twice but the ass reaming he got afterwards put the fear of God in him and he only does it when told he can now. That is like the one thing we have successfully taught him. The preschool he is going to doesn't have an area for parents to park and bring kids in is the only reason he needs to be able to do it. There will be a teacher standing at the door, but I'm not sure they'll be helping them get in and out of the car.

Yeah, I have a drop off like that at camp. I still put the car in park, get out and have to help DD (5) get her bags out of the car and step out. Even if she could unbuckle herself, it would take an hour for her to climb out with her stuff. And I still have to sometimes help the 9 yo, lol. Then I hop back in and drive away, less than a minute.

[erinshelley21]

Thank you all for the help. I'll be going booster shopping this weekend I think.

[186momx]

erinshelley21, I've positioned DD so that I can reach around from the front seat to be able to unbuckle her so we can use the carpool lane. This being said she still needs help most of the time to get out of the car with her stuff so I still have to get out.

DD is 6 and is still in her 5 point. She does ride in a high back booster (after school and camp transport) and we use the Bubble Bum for carpool quick trips. That saying when we had our big accident back in December the EMT, and state troopers were so glad that DD was in her 5 point harness as her injures were minimal and could have been so much worse if she had just been in the booster with a seat belt. Now DD prefers to ride with her 5-point and gets very nervous when she does the boosters.

Bumble Bum Review-its okay for short trips but I wouldn't choose it as my every day seat. I think it will come in handy and be amazing on vacations where the only vehicle time will be shuttles to and from the air port kind of deal. The 2 times we've used it is when she got a ride to a b-day party from a friend and it made it easier than trying to haul her big seat around. Plus it can stash in her backpack easily.

[sandandsea]

My 5.5 yo is still in a 5 point harness. He can buckle and unbuckle himself and it's so much safer than a booster. He also regularly falls asleep in the car so I know a booster isn't right for him at this point. And he's never known anything else so I'm keeping him in it as long as possible. We also bought a graco car seat that has a 5 point harness with a very tall height limit that converts to a booster.

[erinshelley21]

186momx I can barely reach him. I can to unbuckle, but I know MIL won't be able to and she will be dropping him off as well.