Booster Seats - Backless or High Back

Hi, She needs to be in a carseat facing backwards. She has to be that direction until she is 25lbs AND 1 year. Then I would transition her into a forward facing carseat. Read the manual of any carseat that faces backwards. As for him, I would say he is still 3 yrs and the high back would fit him better because it has a slot to place the seatbelt properly over his shoulder. Keeps him safer than not have it properly strapped. Hope that helps!

I was told by a DPS officer that Booster Seats with High Backs are the best and safest. The Booster Seat with no back dont provide as much safety as the high backs.

Your son and my son are the same age and size. Keeping him in shoes alone is big financial drain, so I can relate!

My opinion is do not skimp on car seats. It is way way too important to save a few $$. Better to skimp on clothing, hair cuts, etc. which does not affect his health and well being. Your best and most secure option is to keep him in a 5-point harness and not a booster quite yet. I know these tend to be more expensive, but they are worth it imho. So my vote would be to get your dd her own car seat. It's an investment yes, but one you won't regret.

Hi, This is worth doing a lot of research on. After doing my research and soul searching because we are definitely not made of money either, we just moved my 5yr old son who is 41 lbs and 43in to a booster, but it wasn't cheap. We saved up for it. It is VERy safe on the other hand. I would not put my child (especially a 3 yr old that is likely to unbluckle himeself while you are driving) in to a seat belt only booster for quite a bit longer. He is also too small to be safe in anything but a 5 pt. harness. We bought ds a Britax Frontier. They retail for 279.00 but I got it for 250.00 incl. shipping on ebay. He can sit in it with the 5 pt. harness until he's 80lbs then it becomes a belt positioning booster to 100 lbs. I seriously doubt he'll be in it that long-he'd be like 12! LOL It also has a tether strap to keep it securely fastened to the car's seat. Since your son is a little bigger than mine and 2 yrs younger, you would also probably be able to use this booster for you daughter. So it would save you that way. If you go to different internet stores and look at the customer reviews, you will see several done by parents that are also professional car seat installers. They give the Britax Regent (another Britax booster) and Frontier high praises.

To me this is just one of those things that it is worth spending the money on. And believe me I am ALL about saving maoney and bargain shopping-even if it wasn't the necesseity that it is for us.

Good luck. I hope you can find a way to afford something super-safe for your precious son!

ps. Also, be sure to keep your dd rear facing. I know many folks here have said that she should be rear facing to 1 yr and 20lbs. but that is actually an old recommendation. The new recommendation is that children be kept rear facing until the car seat's rear facing weight limit is met (usually between 30-35 lb). If you move your dd to your son's seat and it isn't made to be rear facing, you need to get her a new seat 1st instead. I know it is a pain, but you'd never forgive yourself it something happened to one of your precious babies over a couple hundred bucks.

If you decide to buy your daughter a new car seat, than I would go ahead and use his car seat with the seat belts. We did this with my daughter who is now 6. We did however buy her a booster seat later on. The converted car seats are so bulky. However, for our twins who are 3, we are going straight to the booster seat. Again, the converted car seats take up so much room. I would go for a high back. From my research, they are much safer.

HI G., Your son is not ready yet for a booster he is TOO young. My 5.5 year old rides in a Britax Regent (got it brand new in box on Ebay for 200 and he can use it until he is 80 pounds with the 5 point harness) My 5.5 yr old is 49 pounds and 46" tall. I would not think of even putting him in a booster they are not safe for the little ones especially the 3 year olds. There are many videos on u tube and other places on the web that show crash tests and stories of kids who have dies because they were in a booster to young and or the cars seat belt failed and the booster and the child came out of the car in the crash and if they had been in a 5 point (especially with a teather strap) they would have been ok.

I suggest the Regent or the Marathon by Britax but there are other brands out there that go to 80 pounds with the 5 point harness. The 5 point harness is the safest way for a child to travel in a vehicle. I would keep his seat for him and buy your daughter a new seat.

Hope that helps!
A. J

A 3 year old needs to be in a 5 point seat. The baby needs to be rear facing for at least 6 months longer - 1 year old and 20 lbs, minimum. I would leave your son where he's at and, if your daughter is too big for her infant seat, get her one that will face backward and is still big enough to hold her.

My 5 year old is in a high back booster, fwiw. His little brother (2 1/2) moved into his forward facing five pointer last December.

S.

Here is the problem with a 3 year old and a booster seat...they slouch!! I moved my 4 year old into one, and right back into the old seat, because she would not sit up straight. Now, lets realize here that I tend to think of the worst thing that could happen,but since I had actually heard of it happening, go with me....I worried that if we were to get in a bad accident the seatbelt would seriously injure her neck, even to the point of decapitation! Awful, I know, but everytime I looked back and saw her squirming around, and slouching where the seat belt was right at her neck, I cringed. She is 5 and still sits in her car seat. We are beyond poor right now, but I bought my son a new carseat, rather than forcing my daughter out of hers. So, really, leave him in his seat for as long as you can, and get the baby a new seat. I know people will tell you to get a Britax, but look around....the most important thing about a car seat is whether it is installed properly, not how much money you spent on it. Sorry for the graphic post, but I had to share my thoughts! 3 is just too young! ~A.~

Have you tried your local church or called some of the second hand stores or good will. Ask neighbors or friends. Look for garage sales, call first if possible to save on gas. But I would definitely spend the money to have the second full car seat for the sake of your child. Life does not give you second chances.

HOpe this helps.

Kat

i would use the seat for the daughter & buy a booster...but i would definately go with a booster with a high back... i originally got one without a back but i was unhappy with it.

We got a booster with a high back for $25 at Wal-Mart. It seems safe and secure though it probably wouldn't win any awards. Probably it's safer to go with the seat you have, and buy your daughter a new seat. When it comes to car seats, I think bigger really is better. The seat we had before our booster had a crash bar, and she was just entirely too big for it.

A.
www.greenbabydiaperservice.com

I haven't read any of the other responses. Personally, I would keep my son in his carseat (five point harness) as long as possible and then transition to a high back booster. I would also put baby girl in a five point harness rear facing or her infant carrier rear facing at this point. When my sons were four years old and 4 months old, we were in a serious car accident (our vehicle rolled and landed upside down). The car seats saved our kids' lives. My 4 year old was in a five point harness seat and my 4 month old was in an infant carrier, rear facing. When making car seat decisions, money is a non-issue IMO. Cut corners somewhere else. Buy a cheap stroller, don't go out to eat a few times, something, but don't chinch out on the carseats!
By the way, my six year old is in a high back, Graco, Booster seat. Fits him great. My now 2 1/2 year old is in a 5 point harness Alpha Omega Eddie Bauer carseat. We replaced the carseat and infant carrier after the wreck. Or insurance did I should say. After any major car accident you should replace carseats.

I know in Florida some fire stations would give away car seats once in a while just to be sure all children were properly secured in vehicles. You may want to check around and see if there is anything like that in your area. Or see if a mom's group in your area has an exchange or even your church. Our church is growing by the baby every year so there is a lot of handing off things to the new moms.

As for the carseat, your 3 yr old should have a seat with a back to it. It will raise him up a bit and hold down the shoulder strap in the proper position. Once a in while my 5 yr old daughter will ride in the backless car set and it is not properly positioning her, thankfully, we were only going 4 blocks to school.

J.

HI!
For your son, you can get a high-back booster seat that has a 5-point harness in it. When he is ready to be out of the 5-point harness, like at about 4 or 5 years old, you can take the 5-pt harness off and just use it as a seat belt support booster. That is what we did and it worked out great. If you believe your daughter needs the next carseat, buy one that can face rear or front ways. The Alpha Omega is a good one. It is probably about $130-$150 at Babies R Us. Although it is a little bit pricey, it is one of those that does the rear-facing 5-pt harness, then front-facing 5-pt harness, then you can take the harness off and just use it as a seat-belt support booster. You can use it for your daughter now rear facing, then at one year front facing with the harness, then when she's like 4 or 5 you can take her out of the harness and just use it as a booster. It really does last a long time. If you have another child by then, your son will have outgrown his booster and you can give that one to your daughter, then give the Alpha Omega to the new baby. Just a thought. Hope this answers some of your questions.

We bought a seat at a thrift store in Rockwall for $10 that someone had donated. I think the place was called helping hands. It is a name brand, great car seat... Eddie Bauer. She has been using it from carrier and it goes (I think) to 100lbs. I know we can use seat blets with it. You can check out craigslist.org or garage sales.

I have both but prefer the high back. When he falls asleep it keeps his head from slumping. When he uses the backless or just seat belt it doesn't feel as safe. My son is four and 48". The only thing is you have to have a seat that leans back so the angle is right. A lot of the new vehicles don't have that option in the back seat.

there is NO WAY i'd take a three year old out of a five point harness, it's just not safe. there are plenty of 5 pt seats out there that accomodate to 60 or 80 lbs.

buy him a booster seat with a tall back that uses the regular car seat. the backs come off for later down the road. Also Texas law says they must be in a car seat till they are 5 it is a recent change so call and check first. I have a 3 year old who is 40 inches and his car seat straps pull on his shoulders so I took them off and used a regular seat belt for a while. Now I have a booster which looks like a car seat and he rides alot more comfortable.

L.

Hello G.,

we have the booster seats w/ the back support. it helps with keeping the seatbelt off their necks and they're a life saver. Last december we had an accident and if my 8 year old had not been in the boosterseat (with back support) he would have ended up w/ a very bad head injury. right after the accident I bought the same type of booster seats for both of our cars. we used to have the ones w/out the back support in my husband's car because the kids didn't ride in his car that often. after the accident I realized that it only takes a split second and a life can be gone.

for your 5 year-old I'd go with the britax. I believe it has a 5-point clip instead of using the regular seatbelt.

I always wait for the kids to be buckled before I even get out of the garage. (it just became a habit as they were learning to use the seatbelts themselves and for somereason now they get upset if the car starts moving before the're buckled --which it's a good thing!)

Good luck! ~C.~

Definitely go with the booster seat with the back. It positions the belt much better therefore it's much safer. I know it's a bit more money, but remember that it will be his last car seat, so the extra $30 spread over 4 or more years is minimal. The Graco turbo booster with the back is around $50 if I remember right (we got the better model with the extra padding for $60), so you aren't paying that much more. Also with the Graco you can remove the back to just use the bottom (great for trips) when he outgrows the back part but is still too small for no booster. I would use his old seat (turned backwards of course) for your daughter.

My doctor recommended moving to a booster at 40lbs and 4 years. I waited until 4 years with my 1st, but did my 2nd at 3 1/2 (they were both over 40 lbs). As long as he is not unbuckling it he should be fine.

I am probably over reacting but I want to be sure that when you said that your 6 mo old is ready for a regular seat you are still keeping her facing backwards for her safety until she is at least 1 year old! If your son's seat is safe for rear facing there are seats at Walmart that are 5 point harness that turn booster with a back up to 80 lbs. that are not very expensive. I always feel that it is best to err on the side of caution. Their lives are worth more that the cost of the seat!

Graco has a high back booster for around $40. I've gotten them at Target. The back is removable so later you can use it just as a booster. Personally, I like the added support that the back provides and it helps the seatbelt be in the right place instead of hitting my youngest too close to the neck.

Good luck!