So you want to skip the rear facing only seat for a new baby? Makes sense; instead of purchasing a car seat that will only be used for the first year, pick one that will be used for four or five years. Seems smart, right? Sure! However, choosing a convertible for a newborn can be tricky; newborns are teeny little creatures with a unique set of needs, and not all convertibles are created equal when it comes to fitting a brand new Little.
*This seat has been replaced with the Cosco Scenera NEXT* The Cosco Scenera is a back to the basics, no frills, convertible car seat. It’s a plastic shell with a fabric cover, and there really isn’t much else to it. But the beauty of this seat is that for $39, it will fit the average 0-3 year old child, and it meets all the same safety standards as a $300 convertible seat does.
The child passenger safety world is full of outdated information that has been spread by well meaning individuals. One of the most common misconceptions is which position the handle on a rear facing only seat must be in while in use in the car.
Looking for a good booster seat that doesn’t take up much room and comes in a bag? Yup – a bag! The BubbleBum is a FMVSS 213 (Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard) approved booster seat that is inflatable, and small enough to fit in a bag. It is made from durable materials; similar to that used to make life vests and other life saving products. It has even passed standards in its deflated state in case it were to be punctured in a crash. It’s easy to inflate and even self inflates to a certain extent when taken out of the bag.
Need help adjusting the recline of your rear facing car seat? Some seats allow the use of a pool noodle or tightly rolled towel in the seat bight to achieve proper recline of the seat, here’s how it should look. We suggest cutting the noodle into three 11″ pieces, so they will fit in between the LATCH anchors.
*This seat has been discontinued* Recently I had the opportunity to check out the latest offering to the rear facing only seat market by Baby Trend: the Inertia infant car seat in the Horizon fashion. The seat itself has many similarities to Baby Trend’s popular Flex-Loc infant seat, but the base is full of new technology for Baby Trend, featuring an anti rebound bar and rigid lower anchor connectors. This seat has been discontinued.
Ever wonder what that funny looking strap and plastic piece are that comes with your booster? It is called a shoulder belt positioning clip and is used to keep the shoulder belt at the correct position when using a backless booster. The fabric loop attaches to the bottom of the booster and the red clip attaches to the shoulder belt above the shoulder. Make sure to read your car seat manual to find out exactly where to attach it and when to use it!
It’s hopefully common knowledge now that rear facing in the car is the safest way for toddlers to ride. As a child passenger safety technician, I’ve heard all the reasons that parents choose to forward face too early, and I’d like to provide some answers to those questions here. Hopefully, this guide will help keep your child rear facing as long as possible!
If you have a small car, you know how difficult it can be to fit a rear facing only car seat in it. We decided to put 25 rear facing only car seats to the test and find which seats take up the least amount of front to back space. Remember that all seats fit differently in different vehicles, so even though you find a seat that takes up less front to back space, that doesn’t mean it will fit correctly in every vehicle. It’s always suggested that you try before you buy.
At CSFTL, we advocate for best practice when it comes to putting your Littles in car seats. That includes riding rear facing for as long as your Little’s convertible car seat allows.
A question that comes up quite often in our Facebook group is “how do I keep my rear facing child cool in the summer?” The companion question to that is how to keep a rear facing child warm in the winter. We’ve got one answer for both scenarios: The Noggle.
