Brad and I may be relaxed on certain parts of parenting...Sam's bedtime is very fluid, we let Sam drink apple juice (gasp!), and even some sugary desserts at times (double gasp!) etc. However, there are certain things that we've been very strict about - and keeping him facing backwards in the carseat is one of them.
Most of our other mommy/daddy friends are regularly shocked when they see us putting Sam in the carseat facing backwards. Most people turn their kids to facing forward as soon as they are allowed to - usually around 12 months. "Doesn't he get bored?" they ask us. He has never faced forward so how does he know that facing forwards is more "exciting" than backwards?
"Aren't you worried about his legs being squished into the back of the seat?" they ask us. As my pediatrician said, if you got into an accident, would you rather have a child with broken legs (from sitting backwards) vs a broken neck/head (from sitting forwards before the age of 2)? Clearly, a broken head would be worse than broken legs!
Sam turns 2 this week and we JUST turned his car seat facing forward about a week ago. It was a very exciting event in our house! As the car started to pull out of the garage with Sam facing forward, he realized that he actually got to ride like that and yelled out "WHOA!" Here's a picture of his very excited face facing forward for the first time:
He loves facing forward and looking out at the world. His entire perspective on car rides has changed and he looks forward to being in the car. However, I am very proud of our decision to keep him facing backwards for 2 years - especially in light of all the news stories this week about keeping toddlers backwards until 2. Safety first!
2 comments:
SURPRISE! SURPRISE! You and I are on the exact same page! ;) I felt so vindicated when that came out. Although I'm going even further...we bought a special compact car car seat that is rear-facing up to 40lbs. So, if Griffin ever wants to see where's he's going he best start packing on the pounds!
I kept Connor rear facing until he was at least 18 months...and even at 5 and a half years old he is STILL in a 5 point harness! We are constantly driving fast on interstates, so if I do get into an accident, I have a feeling we'll be on a highway and I want him as safe as possible. I LOVE Sam's smile as he gets his first taste of "facing forward"! What a big guy:)
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