Car Seat Help Please!!!?

Question

I have a 2 yr old that can unbuckle herself and get out of her car seat. I have looked everywhere for a car seat that will restrain her. Can someone give me a few ideas on a good car seat that she won't be able to get out of? I looked online and the law states that she can be put in a booster seat, but I am not sure that I am ready for that!

Answer 1

First thing first, its not just how tight the harness is, but also where the chest clip is. Make sure the chest clip is at armpit height, no lower or higher. The harness needs to be tight enough that you can not pinch any slack at the shoulder, though sounds like tightness isn't exactly the problem. There really is no seat that's going to prevent this - if she's getting out by sliding the chest clip apart, make sure you pick a seat that has a 2 part chest clip, not just the 'paper clip' one piece kind that's really easy to get off.

But unfortunately, the real issue here is discipline. You are definitely not the first or the only to have to deal with this, and I know, it stinks! My son is 3.5, and has occasionally complained about his car seat and I swiftly informed him she would be staying home if she didn't want to sit in his seat. Punishment isn't usually a good form of discipline. You want a cause and effect relationship - she undoes his seat, she doesn't go anywhere in the car.

Set aside a day that you can devote to teaching your little girl about why she needs her seat. First thing in the morning (well...ok...after breakfast) talk to her about car seats. You of course have to tone it down to terms she can understand at her age, basically I asked my son if he knew why he had to be in a car seat. He said no. So told him that if he rides in the car without his car seat, he will get BIG boo-boos and have to go to the hospital, perhaps for a long time. I also told him that if he doesn't sit in his car seat, the police will take mommy away (yes, a little bit of an exaggerration, but not much, the authorities actually will restrict kids from riding with parents if there is persistent negligence about using car seats). After that, I asked him if he wanted to go to the pet store - his favorite outing. I told him he had to sit in his seat for the entire trip. (The trip was only 10 minutes, start out with a short one) As soon as he was buckled and we were ready to go, I told him that if he got out of his seat or undid it, we would turn around and go home. And be prepared to follow through! If she undoes her seat turn around and go home, then wait an hour or so, and suggest a different outing she'd like - the park, ice cream, whatever. And try again. She WILL get the message. And anytime she does undo her seat, pull over at the first availability. She HAS to learn that if she undoes her seat, you WILL stop the car to put her back in. Also, she has to learn that if she doesn't stay in the seat - she doesn't go anywhere fun. Be consistent, and do what you say. She will get the message, which is important b/c she needs to be in a harness for at least another 2 years (and experts recommend waiting till 5 years old to put in a booster), and its an issue that has to be fixed long before she can sit in a booster. And you absolutely right in your feeling that she's not ready for a booster seat, see the links below, but you're right, the law doesn't always suggest the safest practice - just the bare minimum and sometimes not even that. The law in my state said I could put my 2 year old in a booster if he was 40lbs. The bare minimum for safe booster use is 4 years and 40lbs, so its way off.

Answer 2

If she's already getting out of the carseat, don't put her in a booster seat, because she'll just end up all over the car.

Instead, look for a carseat with a clip across the chest that takes some hand strength to release.  You can get some velcro and make a cover for the actual buckle part...hopefully that would slow her down and it would make noise that would let you know that she was trying to get out.  There are some carseats you can buy that are bigger and convert into a booster seat later on.  

Tell her how important it is to sit in the carseat too...that if she comes out of the seat and you get in a crash, she could get broken and have to go to the hospital.  Some two year olds will be able to understand that.  My oldest daughter used to get out of her carseat, and she didn't understand why she had to stay in it.  We bought an evenflo toddler seat/booster seat combination, and she couldn't do that one.  We used it with the harness until she was 4, and then switched to using it as a booster seat.  Now she's six and she already comes up to my shoulder, so she doesn't use a booster seat anymore.

Answer 3

Try this site, they have alot of nice items that should help you.......

http://www.babyant.com/seatacc.html