Anyone go rogue and go forward facing in car seats early?

jcath · May 2012

The girls have moved to the Britax Roundabout. I have it rear facing in our back seat and even though I have vents to the back seat - it is soooo hot. I don't have a garage or carport at home so the car is always stifling. I do roll down the windows and start up the car before putting them in but whenever I get them out they are really hot. They are also miserable in the car and I think they'd be happier if they could see something besides the back of the seat. They both weigh more than 20lbs would it be insane to turn them forward facing?

itsmevkb · May 2012

I think that here in Wisconsin I can't legally forward face until my child is at least one year. I never turned my kids around so they could see more, but did turn them earlier than the whole two year plus thing because they were tall, and heavier kids and it was harder for me to lift them into their seats rear facing.

I sympathize with the hot car issue as we deal with that same thing.

Carrie25 · May 2012

I would absolutely not do it until they are at least one year old, even if they are both 20 lbs. They are SOOOOOO much safer rear facing. In fact I'd leave them rear facing as long as possible. We live in a very hot place and my DS was RF until 20 months. We all survived!

Plus, it's against the law to turn them before one and if someone saw you and knew they could call the cops and you could get ticketed.

GypsyEsq · May 2012

I don't know that anyone will admit to it - but definitely confirm the law in your state. It's usually 1 year AND 20 pounds, not either/or. To address your concern re: heat though, you can buy clip on fans to get some air circulating (not my favorite idea) or you can buy something like this (or make them if you are crafty) - https://www.babybeecool.com/products.html We have an older one that we got for DD when she went into the convertible and it was really great in the hot Texas summers. We also do not park in a garage or under a carport so understand how hot it can be. This at least kept all the material and buckles cool.

hopecounts · May 2012

No. DD is still rearfacing because it's so much safer.

The issue isn't just weight, it's physical development. They're not physically strong enought to support their head and spine at this age in

hannah&ben · May 2012

Nope. For safety reasons Henry is still rear facing comfortably. He'll be 3 years old tomorrow.

google123 · May 2012

Do not do it. I think they are going to change the law to rear-facing until 2 years old. Right now they've already stated that this is the preference. It's not safe at all. My SIL keeps her son forward facing at 9m (she lives in another country where it's allowed) and I cringe when I see that.

Of course I would like to have my kids face forward, but it's just not worth the risk. If they are bored, give them toys to play with. As for the heat....what difference would it make if they were forward facing? I guess I didn't understand your point there.

watch this video if you aren't sure. True story.

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

muppet.fan · May 2012

hannah&ben:

Nope. For safety reasons Henry is still rear facing comfortably. He'll be 3 years old tomorrow.

Ditto this. We're still RFing Elizabeth and it gets into the mid-90s here each summer.

She'll RF until she outgrows the seat limits (35 pounds or by height, whichever comes first.) She was 29.5 pounds and 36.5 inches at her 3-year appt last week.

dusk42 · May 2012

We have a cover for the seat to keep it cool, open the windows, crank the air, and if we needed to, I would do a clip-on fan way before I turned the carseat around before age 2. And they just need to get used to the heat - it's a way of life in the summer here (especially since kids are outside playing so much). Your kids are 5 times more likely to die if they are FF before age 2 (when their skeletons and muscles are more developed and their heads are more proportional with their bodies). Heavier kids like your girls have even more weight to support on their fragile spines. The AAP recommendation is at least two years and beyond is great too (to the RFing limit of the seat). DD's seat RFes to 35 pounds, and she is only 26ish now. She'll be RFing until at least 3 unless she outgrows the seat by height.

So yes, it would be insane to turn them forward facing. And illegal. And dangerous. There is no "what's right for your family" in this question, and it's not going rogue. It's bad parenting.

https://www.joelsjourney.org/

jcath · May 2012

GypsyEsq:
I don't know that anyone will admit to it - but definitely confirm the law in your state. It's usually 1 year AND 20 pounds, not either/or. To address your concern re: heat though, you can buy clip on fans to get some air circulating (not my favorite idea) or you can buy something like this (or make them if you are crafty) - https://www.babybeecool.com/products.html We have an older one that we got for DD when she went into the convertible and it was really great in the hot Texas summers. We also do not park in a garage or under a carport so understand how hot it can be. This at least kept all the material and buckles cool.

Thanks for the clip fan idea - that might help.

I certainly don't want to break the law and wasn't aware it was law vs recommendation. I have teenager boys as well and you turned them forward facing the moment they turned 20 lbs (which for my boys was like 6 mos) so it seems pretty normal to me. Thanks for the update.

njohnson1972 · May 2012

We are keeping Jack RF as long as possible. He is a tall kid, so that will be our biggest issue. But for now, he doesn't complain. Big Smile And it is very, very hot here in Houston.

I also think the heat bothers adults much more than kids, not to say that they don't get hot. But I don't remember the heat bothering me as kid as much as it does now that I am older. I still played outside.

jdp · May 2012

If you watch youtube videos you will absolutely RF your child as long as possible!!! They scared me to death!

wille2b · May 2012

we did it right at a year, our ds was soooo miserable rear facing. i would say to try to wait a little longer just because they are a little young.

Yellow_Daisy · May 2012

Nope DS will stay RFing as long as possible. I purposely got a seat that RFs until 40lbs for this reason.

We also don't have vents in the back of our car and it is hot here, will be 100 today. Can you get a sun shade for your rear window to keep the sun from beating down in there? We got our rear windows tinted with a limo tint and it has helped decrease the heat a bit.

kkfeb04 · May 2012

Two words: Internal Decapitation. 'Nuff saud for me.

I would prefer DS to be RFing but he hit the height limit on his seat, he was 37.5" at his 2 year checkup (only 26.8 lbs so he would have a while before hitting that) and we turned him 3 days after DD was born since we moved him from the middle to put her there. We don't have back vents, no sun shade nothing in the back as it could become a projectile and DS NEVER complained about RFing, even when his head was getting hit in the car door since I had a huge belly and tried to get him in while sitting next to his seat. He didn't know any different.

alchris · May 2012

I live in the South as well, and my 4 year old is the sweatiest person I know, and she managed 4 summers rear-facing.

It's all little ones know. I promise.

Being hot is not reason to move to forward-facing, let alone before 2, let alone before 1. They just sweat! Getting my daughter in and out of the seat was a PITA for years, but it wasn't worth turning her for that reason either. Safety is worth all sacrifices.

ksandine · May 2012

The new recommended age is 2. I have to say, I turned my son ff about a month ago. He's 18 months now but 30+ lbs and his car seat (Britax) said it had to go forward facing after 30. I was hesitant even then...I know it's hard but it's so much safer. Other countries keep their kids rf until they're like 6 and they have the lowest auto death rates.

Dochas · June 2012

Mine will be two in August and he's still RF. I don't really get why people say they don't like staring at the back seat. My son looks out the window. Two of my friends have said that their own parents said they feel sorry for the kids because "they can't see anything". Crazy.

jjhp2018 · June 2012

We're in the same situation with the same car seat. We bought a small fan that plugs into the car charger and it works really well. The way she is positioned we clip it onto the headrest of the front passenger seat and it blows right on her.

Ali212 · June 2012

I had turn my younger daughter, L, ffing at 15 months due to severe motion sickness. Personally, I would wait as long as possible...even with L, we held off for ~2 months after her motion sickness first started appearing but it seemed to be getting worse and we needed to try and help it a bit. I've struggled with turning her as early as we did (I wanted to wait until she turned 2 to go FFing, just like I did with C).

Since I think the heat is somewhat temporary in that you can try to pre-cool the car and then crank the AC to get it more comfortable, I personally wouldn't go FFing yet. To keep them occupied, do you have mirrors on the back of the seats they look at? That can make it more interesting to them.

skoorbnibor · June 2012

honestly? yes, insane. Do your due diligence and I am sure you will change your mind

They might be hot, but they are safe. FFing is simply not safe. My kid RF'ed until he was 3 and would have stayed there longer except when we got a new car, his advocate was not installing correctly, so we turned him, he was about 42 months old.

Papps · June 2012

Nope. This video (first cliky below the picture) TOTALLY convinced me not to. I'd rather everyone involved be uncomfortable but safe.

https://www.lucieslist.com/lucies-list-blog/2012/5/14/real-world-car-seat-installation-tips.html

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