Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 2.5 year old is rear facing behind the driver and my baby is in a bucket seat in the middle so that an adult can also ride in the back seat behind the passenger. I have zero issues unloading her after parallel parking. Do you often parallel park on crazy busy streets? I don’t find that to be an issue very often. Is your 3 year old too heavy to carry to get her quickly in and out of the street?

Slightly OT, but what make/model of car seat do you use for your 2.5 year old? We’re looking for one that doesn’t take up much space.

Britax Boulevard Clicktight. I drive a Pilot and neither of us are super tall (5’6 and 5’8) but there is plenty of room to sit comfortably with the seat behind the driver. (Even when I was pregnant with my seat as far back as possible and we rearranged the seats early, I could still make it work.)

Anonymous wrote:i think you are asking if I reached over one carseat to unbuckle the other? I did not do that. I would go around to the other side and get to the carseat there.

So, getting to the car with both kids, I would open the passenger side door and have ods crawl under the back of the baby seat to get in his seat. Then I would put the baby in and buckle him up. Then I would close that door and go around to the rear drivers side door and open that, reach in and buckle ods.

When we arrived at our destination, I would do everything in reverse. Unbuckle ods, but not take him out of the car. Close that door and go around to the passenger side rear door and get the baby out, talk ods to crawl under the seat and get out that same door.

It was very exciting when ods could unbuckle and buckle his own seat.

Thanks for writing this, I know that she's not strong enough to climb into the car seat alone. I think she can walk from the right side to the left side of the car. I've been working on getting in and out of the car without assistance with her for months but she still needs help. I'll have to do more with her. I could look into gymnastics too but I am getting her those balance buckets for Xmas which might help.

Op start working now on having your 3 year old learn to buckle herself in. I have 4 kids and all (including my twin w/ low muscle tone & zero shoulder strength) learned sometime while 3. You’ll still need to reach in and pull the strap a bit tighter as well as help unbuckle, but it’s really not nearly as big of a deal as you’re making it. You set bucket on sidewalk or if in a parking lot hold it or set it sideways on front pass seat for a minute, toddler crawls in & buckles, you give the extra tug on her strap & then click in bucket seat. Get your toddler used to entering/exiting through the front seat if you want bc st some point your baby will be in a non-removable seat. Also make sure your toddler is in a skinny seat such as a radian.

It does really sound like you are overthinking this. Every situation w/ multiple kids has logistics, just relax and nothing is a big deal.

I have a tall DH and there is no way he could drive in front of a rear-facing seat in a sedan.

i think you are asking if I reached over one carseat to unbuckle the other? I did not do that. I would go around to the other side and get to the carseat there.

So, getting to the car with both kids, I would open the passenger side door and have ods crawl under the back of the baby seat to get in his seat. Then I would put the baby in and buckle him up. Then I would close that door and go around to the rear drivers side door and open that, reach in and buckle ods.

When we arrived at our destination, I would do everything in reverse. Unbuckle ods, but not take him out of the car. Close that door and go around to the passenger side rear door and get the baby out, talk ods to crawl under the seat and get out that same door.

It was very exciting when ods could unbuckle and buckle his own seat.

sorry, he is 14, almost 15.

Can you put her in one of those preschooler gymnastics classes? Those classes work on core strength, crossing the midline, jumping. It will help her a lot.


I'm trying to remember what I did with the baby when I was buckling ods in. Our cars had 4 doors, does yours? I think I just had all the doors closed and let ods be loose in the car while I buckled the baby in, then I buckled ods in. Then I unbuckled ods, but kept him in the car, while I got the baby out, then I had ods climb out of the car. I viewed the car as a safe space with the doors closed to contain ods, even when he was unbuckled. Ods is almost 14 now so it is hard to remember. I do remember the "secret passage" thing though. Ods still remembers it too.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 2.5 year old is rear facing behind the driver and my baby is in a bucket seat in the middle so that an adult can also ride in the back seat behind the passenger. I have zero issues unloading her after parallel parking. Do you often parallel park on crazy busy streets? I don’t find that to be an issue very often. Is your 3 year old too heavy to carry to get her quickly in and out of the street?

We live near Old Town Alex so we park on Rt one a lot. Her daycare is on a busy street too.

I taught my 3 yr old that when I unbuckled him, he could crawl either under the rear facing infant seat and out the rear passenger side door. We called it his "secret passage" and he loved that. We also had him crawl up between the two front seats and then out the passenger side.

Work on these things with your dd.

OP here, I can work on these things. So what do I do with the baby when I'm buckling her in? I have to buckle toddler in from the middle seat? Is the baby in the car with us? I guess I could put her in the seat, then unattach, leave the car, and reattach.

No, 3 year old is not in PT anymore. She was released from EI last winter. She is more or less caught up but I can tell she is not as strong as some of her peers. I can see them leave the ground when they jump or it's easier to jump forward. It's harder for my child, but she's not behind enough to really benefit from therapy.

Immediate PP here; OT in my post meant off topic, not occupational therapy... realized those posts in quick succession could be confusing!

Anonymous wrote:My 2.5 year old is rear facing behind the driver and my baby is in a bucket seat in the middle so that an adult can also ride in the back seat behind the passenger. I have zero issues unloading her after parallel parking. Do you often parallel park on crazy busy streets? I don’t find that to be an issue very often. Is your 3 year old too heavy to carry to get her quickly in and out of the street?

Slightly OT, but what make/model of car seat do you use for your 2.5 year old? We’re looking for one that doesn’t take up much space.

Is she is OT or PT?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 2.5 year old is rear facing behind the driver and my baby is in a bucket seat in the middle so that an adult can also ride in the back seat behind the passenger. I have zero issues unloading her after parallel parking. Do you often parallel park on crazy busy streets? I don’t find that to be an issue very often. Is your 3 year old too heavy to carry to get her quickly in and out of the street?

We live near Old Town Alex so we park on Rt one a lot. Her daycare is on a busy street too.

I taught my 3 yr old that when I unbuckled him, he could crawl either under the rear facing infant seat and out the rear passenger side door. We called it his "secret passage" and he loved that. We also had him crawl up between the two front seats and then out the passenger side.

Work on these things with your dd.

Anonymous wrote:My 2.5 year old is rear facing behind the driver and my baby is in a bucket seat in the middle so that an adult can also ride in the back seat behind the passenger. I have zero issues unloading her after parallel parking. Do you often parallel park on crazy busy streets? I don’t find that to be an issue very often. Is your 3 year old too heavy to carry to get her quickly in and out of the street?

We live near Old Town Alex so we park on Rt one a lot. Her daycare is on a busy street too.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why don't you move the baby seat depending on who is in the car?

All 4 of you -- you drive, baby goes behind you.
You +2 kids -- baby goes behind you
Husband +2 kids -- whatever he prefers

... etc.

Sorry to be rude, but this is so inefficient. You want us to switch the car seat whenever we switch who is driving? Usually he will drive one way and I'll drive home. That sounds really unsafe too, to constantly be switching the car seat.

It isn't unsafe but it isn't realistic for people who have two small children to change the carseats all the time.

My 2.5 year old is rear facing behind the driver and my baby is in a bucket seat in the middle so that an adult can also ride in the back seat behind the passenger. I have zero issues unloading her after parallel parking. Do you often parallel park on crazy busy streets? I don’t find that to be an issue very often. Is your 3 year old too heavy to carry to get her quickly in and out of the street?