Toddlers: 12 - 24 Months

when did you start forward-facing car seat?

my son is almost a year old .. he's 29 inches and 21 lbs .. in a couple days his father is getting him a new car seat that is forward-facing and I do not like this idea at all .. ! the AAP recommends keeping them rear-facing until they're 2 years old .. the only reason he wants him forward-facing is because of the sun in his eyes (which most people would get a visor for their window) .. I just don't understand why he cannot keep him rear-facing if it is safer to do so .. 
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Re: when did you start forward-facing car seat?

  • We kept our son RFing until 2 years and 3 months of age, our daughter at almost 16 months is still RF and I have no plans of turning her until she is at least 2. 
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  • I had every intention of waiting until DD was at least 2.  We just bought her convertible seat and everything.... and then she started vomiting on every car ride.  DH and I both had terrible motion sickness, and it appears that she does, too.  We just switched her to FFing at the very minimum legal allowance.  I am so torn about this.  She had her maiden FFing voyage today, with no vomit, but I was convinced people were trying to ram my car - I was so nervous about getting in an accident.  

    Good luck with his father - at least he can be RFing in your car, right? 

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  • Mine will rear face until 2 or longer.
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  • Maybe he doesn't realize the real benefits of extended RFing... Here's a video of FF vs RFing, have him watch it and maybe it will help him see your side...  I'd also go out an buy a visor so you have "fixed" the problem with the sun, so then there really isn't a reason to turn.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8gU9zzCGA8

    ETA: My younger two are still RFing, DD2 will be three in Feb and DS3 is 19 months old.

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  • At 2yr 7mo (37", 33lbs), we are still RF'ing. Don't plan on changing any time soon.
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  • I see people at LO's daycare turn their child around the 1st birthday. LO is 15 months and hasn't been turned yet. Her seat had two different recline settings one is 45 and she's in the 30 degree which is pretty upright and she's fine. 

    Why cant you just get better sun shades or sun glasses for LO?  

  • We will reface until my kids reach the height/weight limits on their seats.  My DS is refacing and will be 3 in April and DD just turned 1 and is obviously rearfacing.  Please research the risks of forward facing too early and internal decapitation.  For us the "annoyance" of rearfacing is worth it.

     

     

  • Ditto showing him the research but also, he realizes that sometimes the sun is behind you and sometimes it's beside you and OMG, sometimes it's in front of you, right? :)  It's the weakest of all the weak arguments.
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  • We turned her at 20 months, for a variety of reasons, which was sooner than I planned. But it doesn't matter what I do. Are you not with the father? Can you not put your foot down?

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  • Not until after 2. There are plenty of videos on youtube regarding extended rear facing. Show them to him. It's not worth a potentially broken neck, because "the sun is in his eyes" for a few minutes. 


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  • My son will be 2.5 here shortly. We are still rear-facing, and have no plans to switch before he is 3.
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  • We just switched her seat this week.  She is 21 months old. 
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  • It's not only his decision. If you don't like it, return that shitt and get an extended RFing seat. The idea of turning at age 1 is archaic and unsafe.

    DD is 30lbs and close to 36" tall. She'll be two in March and will RF until June, when we have to install a second carseat for baby number two. Her seat will move to behind the driver and will have to FF. If our car was bigger, I'd keep her RFing longer.
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  • I'm going to be very blunt here because I feel very strongly about this issue - you want him to live to experience having the sun in his eyes.  Please google youtube videos that show crash tests of rear vs. forward facing carseats.  Rear-facing is much safer in the majority of accidents and can help prevent something horrible from happening: internal decapitation.  Their heads are just too big for their bodies at this age and that big head being yanked forward is just so dangerous.  We kept DS1 rear-facing until he was 2 years, 10 months because he reached the weight limit for his seat to be rear-facing.  Get a convertible carseat that can be rear-facing and can be switched to forward facing when it's time.
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  • My son will be 2 in a week and he's still RFing. We plan to keep him that way until he outgrows the height or weight limit on his carseat, which will be awhile.
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  • My DD turned 4 in November and she is still Rfing.  She hasn't reached the limits yet.  Her car seat can be RFing till 40 lbs and 57 inches.  So unless she starts having terrible car sickness, we don't see any reason to switch her yet. 

    This is an issue I would put your foot down. 

  • Right now I'm so torn as well...  We purchased a carseat for DH's car thinking it was RF & FF, turns out it is only FF...  With DS starting DC this week it's no longer an option to not have a carseat in DH's car in the unlikely event that DH has to pick him up.  Purchasing a second seat for DH's car when this one is designed to go all the way through to a booster just isn't an option for us (he wanted to use the expired carseat from DD so thankfully I talked him out of that).  And, at some point soon I'll need to replace the carrier that we've been using for DS because he'll pass the height requirement (we bought a 35 & 32" carrier)..  I know we kept DD RF until it wasn't comfortable for her anymore, but finding a seat that is within our budget and will fit my car is going to be the determining factor. 
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  • imageMesmrEwe:
    Right now I'm so torn as well...  We purchased a carseat for DH's car thinking it was RF & FF, turns out it is only FF...  With DS starting DC this week it's no longer an option to not have a carseat in DH's car in the unlikely event that DH has to pick him up.  Purchasing a second seat for DH's car when this one is designed to go all the way through to a booster just isn't an option for us (he wanted to use the expired carseat from DD so thankfully I talked him out of that).  And, at some point soon I'll need to replace the carrier that we've been using for DS because he'll pass the height requirement (we bought a 35 & 32" carrier)..  I know we kept DD RF until it wasn't comfortable for her anymore, but finding a seat that is within our budget and will fit my car is going to be the determining factor. 

    Return the seat?

  • Where I live it's normal to change your child FF at 9 months. I did my research and imported a seat from a neighboring country (totally legally) to allow us to keep DD RF. Her seat is rated to 55 lb rear facing. She'll be in it RF until she's too tall or to heavy (she'll most probably outgrow the hight first). She'll probably be in there until she's 5.
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  • We chose to turn both children around at 1 year and 20 pounds, however we were both on board with it. It's got to be something you both agree on so if you're not comfortable with it keep talking to him and put your foot down. 
  • imagestw_77:

    My DD turned 4 in November and she is still Rfing.  She hasn't reached the limits yet.  Her car seat can be RFing till 40 lbs and 57 inches.  So unless she starts having terrible car sickness, we don't see any reason to switch her yet. 

    This is an issue I would put your foot down. 

    I am interested to know what carseat allows RF to 57in.

    I had the graco myride65 which is a 40lb limit and one of the taller carseats on the market. My son had to be flipped FF at around 39in since he had outgrown RF. A child can no longer be RF when they're an inch below the top of the shell. Many kids with long torsos outgrow them way before 40lbs. My son was only 31lbs/39in when he outgrew RF in his seat.

    I'm all for ERF--just make sure you're doing it properly.

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  • My DH bought a FF seat at 12 mos and after research, we returned it and purchased a convertible RF/FF seat.  DD is ~18 mos and RF (30+ in, 25+ lbs).

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  • DD1 was RFing until 2y9m. I would have liked to have kept her RFing until she turned 3, but she's tall (over 85% for height) and outgrew her seat RFing at that point. I think she was about 38in and 29lbs.

    DD2 will be RFing as long as possible - quite possibly past age 3, as she has a growth delay and I don't see her outgrowing the RFing limits of the convertible seat near as early as her sister. 

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  • We are still rear facing our almost three year old. I think I will turn him around shortly after his birthday, but haven't really decided for sure. He seems comfortable and he can talk with the kids in the back of the van, so it's still working out for us. If you are uncomfortable, don't do it. Get a sun shade, hat, sunglasses ect instead.
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  • imageRayRay007:

    We turned her at 20 months, for a variety of reasons, which was sooner than I planned. But it doesn't matter what I do. Are you not with the father? Can you not put your foot down?

    Same here. 

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  • imageLalaMama81:
    imageoverture:

    imageMesmrEwe:
    Right now I'm so torn as well...  We purchased a carseat for DH's car thinking it was RF & FF, turns out it is only FF...  With DS starting DC this week it's no longer an option to not have a carseat in DH's car in the unlikely event that DH has to pick him up.  Purchasing a second seat for DH's car when this one is designed to go all the way through to a booster just isn't an option for us (he wanted to use the expired carseat from DD so thankfully I talked him out of that).  And, at some point soon I'll need to replace the carrier that we've been using for DS because he'll pass the height requirement (we bought a 35 & 32" carrier)..  I know we kept DD RF until it wasn't comfortable for her anymore, but finding a seat that is within our budget and will fit my car is going to be the determining factor. 

    Return the seat?

    Yea, I don't see why you wouldn't just return that FF seat and buy a convertible. Later down the road at around 5 you can buy a high back booster (or one w/ a harness if you still want it). Car seats don't have to be expensive, the Cosco Scenera convertible can be had for as low as $40 w/ the right deal.  

    Yes this! We have a Cosco scenera in one of our vehicles. We wanted another seat so we didn't have to keep reinstalling and I found it at Walmart for $40. The price is pretty fixed and $40 is incredibly cheap! Sears just had a bunch of carseats on sale too and there were several I saw under $50. The scenera is also pretty small so it should fit in any vehicle easily. Safety should be the priority here. There is no reason not to invest in a RF seat for your LO.


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  • We will be RFing for as long as possible!!! So many videos and articles out there that prove why its safer. I wish more people understood the benefits of RFing, but it seems IMO they dont and dont do the research other then the minimum. I would rather two smashed legs then a crumpled dead baby. Period!!!!!!

     

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  • I am a huge advocate for extended rear facing. My daughter will be 2 in March and we will keep her rear facing until she has exceeded the height and weight restrictions on her carseat and it's actually necessary to turn her around. Until then she can cross her legs because that's a lot safer than internal decapitation. 
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  • After reading everyone's replies, I feel like a horrible mother :( We turned our LO FF at 12 months. He absolutely despised the car rides and we thought DVD player and seeing us would help and ever since we did, he's a joy in the car. Sounds selfish on our part I guess but it's not uncommon around here. I've never heard of RF till two until I read this post...so I will def. do my research now.
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  • imageLizghannam:
    After reading everyone's replies, I feel like a horrible mother :( We turned our LO FF at 12 months. He absolutely despised the car rides and we thought DVD player and seeing us would help and ever since we did, he's a joy in the car. Sounds selfish on our part I guess but it's not uncommon around here. I've never heard of RF till two until I read this post...so I will def. do my research now.

    You should check this out:

    https://carseatblog.com/5168/why-rear-facing-is-better-your-rf-link-guide/

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  • imageKC_13:
    imagestw_77:

    My DD turned 4 in November and she is still Rfing.  She hasn't reached the limits yet.  Her car seat can be RFing till 40 lbs and 57 inches.  So unless she starts having terrible car sickness, we don't see any reason to switch her yet. 

    This is an issue I would put your foot down. 

    I am interested to know what carseat allows RF to 57in.

    I had the graco myride65 which is a 40lb limit and one of the taller carseats on the market. My son had to be flipped FF at around 39in since he had outgrown RF. A child can no longer be RF when they're an inch below the top of the shell. Many kids with long torsos outgrow them way before 40lbs. My son was only 31lbs/39in when he outgrew RF in his seat.

    I'm all for ERF--just make sure you're doing it properly.

    I have a Diono Radian RXT. I forgot the weight limit. It is actually 45 lbs.  But after doing more research on the height limit, it seems it is rfing to 44 inches.  I had misunderstood their manual.  Thank you for pointing that out and forcing me to do more research.   I appreciate it.

    However, my DD4 is only 32 lbs and 36 inches tall, so she still has a while. 

    Thank you again for letting me know about my mistake. 

  • We are going to attempt to rear face until 3 years old.


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