Monday, March 21, 2011

i'm putting my kid in a bubble

So as to overwhelm me even more, the American Academy of Pediatrics and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration are now recommending stricter guidelines for children car seats. These are the news stories I used to ignore.

The new guidelines include:
- Rear-facing seat until the age of 2.
- Forward-facing with harness until child maxes out height/weight restrictions for seat
- Booster seat with seatbelt until child is 4'9" tall, possibly to age 12.

Under these guidelines, I am only three inches shy of needing my own booster seat.

I love reading the comments on these stories. The parents who would rather sacrifice the safety of their child so they aren't being called a "baby" by their peers. Or the reluctance to go rear-facing because it takes two minutes longer to get them out of the car.

On the other hand, between BPA-free bottles, drop-side cribs, booster seats and bumpers it's going to be hard to keep up. Especially when I'm still trying to figure out why a three-month-old wears six-month-old clothing.

2 comments:

  1. These seem a bit extreme! I can't imagine seeing a 12 year old in a booster chair! But maybe I'll have a different frame of mind when I'm a parent.

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  2. i would also like to put my daughter in a bubble... but I can't so bring it on dangers and germs!

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