Car seat issue / quandary

[Anonymous]

We have three kids - 2, 4 and 8. 2 and 4 are rear facing and it is fine. We have Diono seats for the two little ones. Three seats fit fine in the car.

The problem is the oldest moved from a harness to the low back booster. She has trouble getting the buckle buckled because she has to sneak her hand under the middle rear facing seat to get to her buckle.

Wondering if a different configuration of seats (she is at the end on passenger side) or forward facing the 4 year old seat would make it easier? Or is it always just hard because of spacing? It was much easier for her in the harness but she is both size wise and maturity ready for the low booster, so trying to honor that.

Any advice or tricks that helped folks in this position?

[Anonymous]

If you FF the 4-year-old in a high back harnessed booster it will b the same issue.

[Anonymous]

When we had this issue we chose to keep the 8 year old in a forward facing harness. She was able to buckle herself in much easier. When a classmate made a comment about her being in a baby seat she responded by pointing out that Nascar drivers all wore harnesses too.

[Anonymous]

You can buy these seatbelt buckle extenders that raise it. I read mixed reviews but a car seat tech told me they’re fine. I had twins and a third and was in the reverse dilemma - 2 boosters and one reverse. The booster on the passenger side needed one

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can buy these seatbelt buckle extenders that raise it. I read mixed reviews but a car seat tech told me they’re fine. I had twins and a third and was in the reverse dilemma - 2 boosters and one reverse. The booster on the passenger side needed one

They are not recommended.

[Anonymous]

Don’t know if this will work with low back booster, but with high back booster you can leave it buckled and teach the child to climb in with it already buckled. The Car Seat Lady’s website has a video.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can buy these seatbelt buckle extenders that raise it. I read mixed reviews but a car seat tech told me they’re fine. I had twins and a third and was in the reverse dilemma - 2 boosters and one reverse. The booster on the passenger side needed one

CPST here - NOPE. Absolutely not. A certified tech would never say this. The only time this is allowed is if you buy it directly from your vehicle manufacturer and they say it is meant to be used with car seats (e.g. not just extenders for obese people).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can buy these seatbelt buckle extenders that raise it. I read mixed reviews but a car seat tech told me they’re fine. I had twins and a third and was in the reverse dilemma - 2 boosters and one reverse. The booster on the passenger side needed one

CPST here - NOPE. Absolutely not. A certified tech would never say this. The only time this is allowed is if you buy it directly from your vehicle manufacturer and they say it is meant to be used with car seats (e.g. not just extenders for obese people).

What is the reasoning behind it not being OK?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can buy these seatbelt buckle extenders that raise it. I read mixed reviews but a car seat tech told me they’re fine. I had twins and a third and was in the reverse dilemma - 2 boosters and one reverse. The booster on the passenger side needed one

CPST here - NOPE. Absolutely not. A certified tech would never say this. The only time this is allowed is if you buy it directly from your vehicle manufacturer and they say it is meant to be used with car seats (e.g. not just extenders for obese people).

What is the reasoning behind it not being OK?

PP again. Seems like the extenders can end up on child's tummy and otherwise mess up the way the seatbelt worms.

[Anonymous]

Different car seat tech here. Most of the time we don’t recommend things it’s because they haven’t been tested and approved as safe. OP if you’re sitting 3 in a row and one is using a seatbelt there really isn’t a way around this. Even if you get the 8yo a narrower booster they would still have the problem of reaching the buckle.

[Anonymous]

Does your 8 year old have to change car seats? Ours is still in a 5 point harness.

[Anonymous]

I would try forward facing the 4 year old’s seat and trying different spots in the car for the 8 year old. If the 8 year old is trying to use the buckle next to the middle seat buckle, I’d try the other side. I might also try a different low back booster because some are pretty wide. I have found the peg perego and clek boosters to be narrower than some others I’ve tried (and they have rigid latch so the booster stays in place).

[Anonymous]

Keep oldest in the Diono but without the harness. Use it as a high back booster with the regular seat belt.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Keep oldest in the Diono but without the harness. Use it as a high back booster with the regular seat belt.

Won't she have the same problem? Getting the seatbelt behind the other seats? We moved from the high back to the low back to give her more movement/ vision to get to the seatbelt but it is still enough.

Torn about keeping her in the harness. It is easier with the harness but I don't see the seats changing for another year or so (when 4 is 5) at the earliest. I don't know that being almost 10 and harnessed is the right move. (I know the science and that we are all safer in a 5 point harness but at some point we all change over)

[Anonymous]

We bought seat belt extenders from the manufacturer. What ones are you all buying that they ended up on their stomachs?? Ours just come to the top of the booster. DD just could not buckle herself at all without them. Even when she was in a pilots seat. Put a car seat next to her and she couldn't even find the darn buckle. Also, when we had to buckle her, it scraped our hands up digging for the buckle.