At the boys' 12-month pediatrician appointment, our pediatrician told us that we could turn the boys' carseats around -- the BIG MILESTONE of forward facing. Ben weighed *almost* 20 pounds and Sam was 21, so they met CT law that requires children to be rear-facing until 12 months and 20 pounds. I quickly told the pediatrician that we planned on keeping the boys ERF -- and the pediatrician shot Roy the "Sorry, dude, your wife is one of those crazies ..." look. Ummmm. Well, I don't think I'm crazy. Here are my reasons for ERF.
1) AAP recommends basing the 12-month age on a child's adjusted age, not the child's actual age. Because Sam and Ben were born 2 months before their due date, their adjusted age is actually 13 months, as compared to the 15 month age the calendar says they are. Because of this, the AAP recommends waiting at least until the boys were 14 months old before turning them forward-facing.
2) Ben wasn't quite 20 pounds at the 12-month appointment -- darn close, but not quite (19lb,15oz). However, after the nasty virus he had last month, he lost over half a pound, so he was well below 20lbs. That trip to the pediatrician reaffirmed my decision to keep them ERF>
3) When my mom was staying with us after the boys came home from the hospital, we saw a special on some television program about "internal decapitation" -- which is what can happen to toddlers who are forward facing in a car accident. Because the child's head is too heavy for his/her neck and body, the child can get severe whiplash that actually severs the spinal cord. After seeing that segment, I decided then and there that the boys will be rear-facing until they outgrow the Britax Marathon carseats' ability to keep them safely rear-facing, which I think is 35 pounds.
The boys don't know any different, and do just fine rear-facing. They have one another to keep them company while we're in the car (good thing, because I don't think anyone would be skinny enough to fit between the two seats in the back of my car!), and I can easily hand things back to them while driving -- sippy cups, toys, books, etc. All in all, we're comfortable with this decision, and I am happy to do whatever I can to try to keep them safe. In fact, we were at a BBQ yesterday with another family -- they have two little girls, ages 4 and 3 -- and the husband asked Roy why the boys were still rear-facing -- and Roy told him that it's safer for the boys, etc., etc., etc. All of my babbling must be sinking in!!
2 comments:
Hey Erin, new blog. Letting you know! :)
I figure as long as they are happy and there is no *need* to turn them around what is the big deal. Our front seat is pretty much out of commission with the car seat rear facing. It has to be pushed all the way forward so most people can't fit. We will turn Colin around at a year, but since he will probably be pushing 30lbs at that point (I really hope I'm exaggerating) he should be good to go.
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