If you haven't heard, putting your child rear facing for as long as possible is the safest way to travel in a vehicle.
If you want facts, figures and to see crash test videos go to Joel's Journey.org It isn't made with scare tactics, it is a web site devoted to saving as many children as possible. It was created by Joel's grandfather. Joel was a 33 pound 18 month old that broke his neck when he was in his front facing car seat.
But if you want the funny/silly reasons I rear face - then here they are!
Lizzie Lou loves facing backwards because:
*She can see the train for a lot longer amount of time
*She is more reclined and sleeping is more comfortable
*She can see Bubs easier and sing to him
Why I love her rear facing:
*I can eat whatever I want without her saying "Zizzie bite!"
*She falls asleep faster
*She is in her own little world and I can have time to think
While I was browsing car seat safety, installation, and the best car seats out there I also found some super fun things too!
Baby Bella Maya makes the most adorable slip covers for toddler and infant car seats. I won one from Eco Chic!
It is a very soft silky fabric...since it is so new to me I haven't gotten it dirty yet, but it looks like it will be super easy to handwash.
The photo below is Lizzie Lou in the original Triumph Advance cover....what an impressive difference a simple, elegant cover makes!
And you can see how well Lizzie Lou still fits rear facing. Her and Bubs fit into the same sized seats now! This is a good thing because ever since we got this new cover on it, she will throw fits wanting to sit in her old seat. 
We took out the infant seat and my mother in law treated us to a new convertible! I can't believe how spoiled I am - she bought us the Sunshine Kids Radian XT! I can't afford this, but she is a blessing to us! This has one of the highest safety ratings, steel alloy frame, side impact protection, but no cupholders! Yup, that is the one thing my mother-in-law was bummed about. She said "Annie, are you sure you want this one? Where will Lizzie put her drink?"
I laughed! Ok, I giggled to be polite. She won't be drinking in this car seat cadillac! Besides, isn't safety a bit more important than cupholders? oh MeMa....
Now I'd like to leave you with a super happy Bubs. Oh he just loved the silkiness of his new car seat cover!
10 comments:
I love this post!!! I was going to do a similar one as well - I have my 2 year old still rear facing and don't have any plans of turning her around soon (she still only weighs 26 lbs. and our seat can be rear facing until 30). She loves it and I am much more comfortable knowing that is the safest option for her. Joel's Journey website also completely freaked me out when I saw it last year (when I was about to turn around my daughter)
BTW - your chilren are adorable.
I saw that video a few weeks ago and decided we'll be doing rear facing for my longer with my 13 month old!
Thanks for all the info. What a nice car seat! We bought a cheapy convertable a couple months ago.
Cute pictures!
People are shocked to find out I haven't turned my son around. I have tried to convince my sister to turn my 2 1/2 year old nephew back but she refuses. My 13 month old is almost as big (he's in the 90th percentile for height and 83rd for weight). There's probably only 2-3 pounds and 1-2 inches difference between them.
I thought that when her husband just set the carseat back in her van without hooking it in place (of course she didn't check) and she put her son in. When she slammed on the brakes, he flew forward, hit the back of her seat and banged up his face. I couldn't resist commenting that if he was still rear facing he wouldn't have been hurt at all. Her response was that the seat still would have moved. Hello?! Backwards still would have been safer for him! :o)
I tell all of my friends too, but so far I guess I'm the only smart one among us. LOL Call me overprotective or whatever you want but I know I am doing the right thing. Thank you for spreading the word! :o)
oh I love all those reasons... too bad I didn't read those a couple years ago
I totally agree! I also wrote a blog about this. You can have your car seat inspected for free! They really helped me learn how to put my seat in correctly.
http://ethanlukas.blogspot.com/2009/09/texas-law-car-seats-and-freebies.html
That is scary to think about - so many people convert their kids to front-facing way before they need to.
Love the picture! Bubs looks thrilled - SO cute!
My (almost 9 month old) son has about 2 more pounds before his carseat is too small for him. I can already tell that with winter coats, it's not going to fit him anymore. I have a hand-me-down front facing seat for him to move into, but I've been wondering if it's really ok to move him to it yet. (He'll be upright and front facing) Maybe I'll check Craigslist for a cheap convertible seat. We just can't afford a fancy one. (LOVE yours..so great!) Thanks for your post. It got me thinking. :)
I knew that facing backwards is best for as long as possible, however, both of my boys outgrew based on height for being backwards. I can only assume having their legs cramped up like that would not be any safer than simply turning them around once their legs are no longer short enough ... OR .... we can make cars that have a hole for rear facing kids legs to stick through and a cover to put over it once they are facing forward?! Great creation?! maybe!
Hey Annie - thanks for your comment! Usually I stick to easy things too but every now and then I venture out into the world of baking.
As for my layout - I like to look at other layouts and combine everything I like (the coding I mean) until I get what I want out of it. I've been wanting something new for a while but finally just sat down and did it!
First off..your kid are adorable! They look so comfy in their car seats. But, where is the DVD player? LOL Just kidding, we don't have one either. BUT, if we ever travel far...I'm on it!
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