hi. we have some trips planned for this spring and summer, some of which are long drives (8-12 hrs) my kids are great travellers, but we have recently encountered a problem. my five year old rides in a backless booster, and when he falls asleep in the car on long trips, he flops around and falls out of his seat. the shoulder restraint isn't enough to keep him upright and his head rolls around. we have tried to bring pillows to prop against the door so he can lean on them, but it doesnt' really work.
p.s.
ok people!!! enough! my child is not actually falling out of his seat!! it was an expression! and his shoulders are way too broad for any sort of booster or seat with a back--we tried them all, even the million dollar Britax ones.
You've probably been told this already but try a booster with a detachable back. The weight limit is higher than the booster/car seat combos.
You can get a Graco Turbo-booster for around $40. The back is removable on that one so you can use it either way. If your child meets the height and weight requirements, it is best to go backless (their body is closer to the center of gravity of the car) unless they are needing the support for sleeping. With this booster, you will have the best of both worlds.
I understand your problem, we travel from Oklahoma to Ohio a few times a year. My son is now 7, but before he was out of a booster, we purchased one at Walmart, that had a high back and as a bonus, small lights on both sides of the top of the chair for when it gets dark out. He fit in it pretty good and for the most part with a pillow he would stay upright with the seat. It didn't always work, but more times then not it did. My son is not small in stature either. He is now 4 ft 7 inches tall and around 90 pounds. Good luck. I usually kept him in range for myself or someone else to push him back up when he went over the wrong way. Unless you have a seat that can recline a little nothing works completely. Good Luck.
I don't know if it is still available but several years ago at Toys R Us you could buy a head rest for booster seats that the child sits on and extends up to their head with head rest on either side - they work great.
If it's a long trip, can you prop him between the door with pillows and a suitcase (upended) with pillows? I've also seen child harnesses for walking with a child. Could you improvise using one of those strapped to the seat/seatbelt? The parent not driving may need to sit next to him while he sleeps.
Switch him to a high-back booster or (my preference would be) back to a 5-pt harness that works for his weight. You don't want to get into a highway accident with him in a position like you describe. He needs a seat that works better for him.
Invest in a booster with a back. They don't cost that much, and it will support him a little better.
Most boosters have a back that you can buy, as an attachment. The back has supports and straps.
I would definitely put him in a highback booster with side-impact protection like the Sunshine Kids Monterey. It will fit him until he no longer needs a booster. It has deep sides to rest comfortably against. If the $130 price tag is too much, you can find highbacks at Walmart for as little as $40-$50. If he's under 40 pounds you could get a combo seat that has a five-point harness and would then be used as a highback booster when he reaches 40 pounds.
The pillow idea is not safe as leaning onto it would put him out of a safe position for his seatbelt to protect him in a crash. The same goes for the pillows that attach to the seatbelt.
It'll be a much more comfortable trip for all of you when he can rest safely and comfortably and you can know that he is as safe as possible.
A. I am a car giver for my wife. For holidays try to put her in a wheel chair so she can be with the family.
I strap her in with a rag type belt used by physical therapist and this works very well.
You probably will stop off for coffee or drinks however you may want to fix a picnic basket whereby you can pull into a park area. This will give th children a chance to run and the driver may want to lay down and close his/her eyes for about 15 mins or so.
Have a good trip. God Bless
The whole point of boosters and carseats are to keep our kids in the correct position while awake and asleep. If he is not in the proper position in a booster, then he probably needs to go back into a 5-point harness, at least for the long road trips. You need to assume the worst could happen. If you got into a wreck while he was sleeping, he'd have no defense to brace himself or keep himself where he belongs if he is slumped over. I hope you guys can work something out that works for everyone. Good luck!!
A. K
Hi, A. - I had this same problem when I switched my 3-year old son to a booster seat (and I even purchased one with the back). After asking for advice on Mamasource, I found out that I needed to put him back into a car seat with the 5-point harness that is made for bigger kids. I felt the Britax was too expensive, so I ended up purchasing the Graco Nautilus at my local Target store (on sale) for about $150 (you can also find them on Amazon.com). My son is now 4 1/2 years old, and let me assure you, his car seat has been worth every penny. We frequently travel from Alabama to Arkansas (10 - 11 hours) to visit family - he still takes good naps in the car and his head does NOT fall forward. Good luck!
We use a nedk pillow like Darlene. I even have one for trips to use. YOU can get them in children sizes and some even look like animalls around the neck. wal-mart and target usually have them around the travel area.
Hey A.,
We are still too young to have this problem ourselves but I remember my sister's girls going through that phase and they had these seatbelt pillows that allowed them to rest more comfortably. Here is the website to them, http://www.kalencom.com/main/page.asp?id=8&s_cate_id=...=
And then just something to think about. I recall vividly as a child my dad insisting we sleep with our heads on the center console or towards the inside of the car. I realize as an adult he was concerned about side impact accidents and brain injuries. I have been the same with my neices and nephews, and I know I will follow this with my children.
The safest place in a vehicle for a child is the rear middle seat. And then the next is rear passenger side. So if your younger one has a carseat in the center and your older has a pillow... maybe he can lay against her seat. Then they both can be as safe as possible.
I just love being a mommy and never imagined the amount of worrying that would ensue... it is funny now how much I plan around my precious little one. It is something I can not imagine giving up and it saddens me how fast they grow.
Best Wishes,
-MB
they sell a thing in the travel department at walmart that goes around kids neck to help hold their head up.
you may have to find a booster seat that has a back to it or find a car seat big enough for him you might be able to have someone make a horness to fit that will keep him up right like ones they use in race cars that goes over both shoulders and crosses in the front may be that will keep him upright and you might be told if the seat reclines you drop it back so he won't fall over but that may be against the law cause changes that way the seatbelt can work good luck
Hm. If he's falling out of his seat when he falls asleep, I get the feeling that booster isn't doing its job: keeping him safe in case you're in an accident. Get it checked out by a certified carseat (etc.) inspector at your local fire station. Maybe it's how it's installed (I heard some wild statistic about how many carseats out there are installed unsafely or ineffectively...ours was one of them....)
L.
