Speaking of Extended Harnessing, if you were me...

My dd1 turned 5 Nov 4th, weighs 60 lbs and is 45 inches tall. She is currently in a Regent (top slots with lots of room). I was thinking of boostering her full time this spring (April or May) after winter weather is over. She has been booster training and is doing wonderfully. What would you do if she was your daughter?

Does she have an opinion?

Sort of. I showed her a pic of the pink Monterey, and she thought it was cool but didn't say she wanted it "now" - just said "awesome!"

does she sleep in the car? if so, does she sleep well in her booster? can she unbuckle and buckle the regent herself? can she unbuckle/buckle the booster herself?

She can't do the harness in the Regent - she can do the chest clip. She can't undo the buckle either. She usually can buckle and unbuckle her booster. ETA: The few times she fell asleep in the booster, she did fine - just tipped head against the wings (TB). Actually looked more comfortable than the sideways slump she gets in her Regent.

Is she in Kindergarten yet? I'd wait till first grade. If she's still in preschool, I'd wait till Kindergarten.
Of course, my kids are the opposite, they can buckle their harnesses but not boosters, it's way more convenient to keep them harnessed till they are 7 or so when boostering becomes easy, but I think 5 is kind of young for boostering (not for regular non-car-seaty people, I'd kill for them to harness to 5, but to those of us who already own nice big comfy Regents...might as well use them a little longer), though I guess she'd be 5 and a half, soo... hmmm. I dunno, lol.

We've gone through the same debate. DS is exactly the same size. He's in a FR85 and will be in it until he maxes the harness out or until he turns 6 and chooses to switch it to booster mode. He does use a booster off and on in my DH vehicle and does great, but we figure we might as well keep him in the harness until he maxes it out (he's on the 2nd to top click on it). I like the idea of you keeping her in it at least through the winter.

She will be in kindergarten next fall (Sept 1 cutoff so she couldn't go this year). This is where I'm wavering - she hasn't asked to be in a booster full time, but she really loves when she does get to ride in the booster and be a "big girl." She does really awesome when she gets to ride in the booster (knows she has to or can't ride in it), but the "novelty" of full-time boostering may wear off. Of course, I won't get rid of the Regent so if she starts not sitting properly in the booster she could always go back. Tough decisions... Of course, she's the only harnessed 5 year old I know

You don't need our approval If you are ok with it then do it. If you are not, then don't. If you want me to tell you to buy another seat I will because I like seats . You said your daughter is doing wonderfully in her booster. If she wasn't then that would be the main reason NOT to switch.

My oldest is large for her age, like your daughter, and I choose to booster her when she outgrew the Nautilus harness at her 5th birthday rather than buy a Regent for her. At that point she was large enough that she fit very well in boosters and sat well. She has done fine in boosters and I am completely comfortable with my decision. My middle daughter is 4 and only 34lbs, so while she could probably handle riding in a booster sometimes, she probably won't ride in one at all until she's closer to 6 because I have so many harnessed seats she fits in and I will feel more comfortable with her riding in a booster when she is physically larger.

For my DD, the novelty did wear off, and she's harnessed at 5y6m. She'll stay that way until the end of the winter, and then I might re-evaluate.

I would keep her in a harness seat for a couple of reasons. Personally, I prefer to wait until at least 6 years old for moving to a booster seat. For me, part of the reason is related to bone development and part is maturity. Also, you already have a harness seat that is not expired and fits her so why not use it?

We moved my DS to a booster part-time this fall because he was outgrowing the Radian. He actually outgrew the Radian by height and weight (65lbs and 48in tall). He was 5y9m when we made the switch first in our secondary car and then around 5y11m when he switched in the nanny car. My DS is still riding in the Regent in our primary car and probably will be in it until he outgrows it. He'll be 6 in 2 weeks.

My DS hasn't expressed a strong preference for the booster or harness seat at this point. If that becomes an issue after he is 6 years old, then I'll reconsider. His twin sister is also still in a harness seat full time and will be for a little while longer since she is much smaller. She's finally up to 39lbs.

ETA: What is your compelling reason for moving her to a booster seat? Do you feel like you should since it sounds like all of her other friends are riding in booster seats? I do know some of the children in the kindergarten class are still in harness seats like my twins, but for the most part, I don't think my children know that most kids their age ride in a booster seat.

HTH

Melanie

My DD is also 5 and rides a Regent, she's 50lbs and 48inches. She was almost even with the top slot of her Nautilus at just over 4 and she was no where near booster ready, so we traded her seat for a regent. We are booster training in our 2nd vehicle, but in our truck where we need 3 across it's much easier to have her in a harness. She likes her regent and thinks it's very comfy, so it works great for both ends.

I think whatever you decide will be just fine, it's just taking that first leap that can be hard. She's old enough and as long as she's mature enough it's a safe option!

I'd max out the Regent...But I don't have money to throw around like that.

Maybe what is making me think of the switch is the idea of the neck loads in a harness versus booster - like how in Sweden they go from rfing to booster for this supposed reason, even though it is a somewhat unsubstantiated claim. Even though there is no real "research" about neck loading, I can totally understand the theory behind it. I have several months of winter left to really think about this and evaluate, and since dd hasn't been pressing the issue about being in the Regent, I won't pressure her to want to switch. Also, since she isn't in kindergarten yet, she hasn't seen too many of her friends in their boosters. I notice of course, and luckily she hasn't too often.

This page always offers me some reassurance about harnessing longer... http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/safedrivers-childsafety-programs-testing-harness-report-923.htm

"When this study began in 2003, Canadian regulations set the upper weight limit for forward-facing car seats at 22 kg or 48 lb. Once children reached this limit, they would then move from their car seat into a booster seat. Although moving from a car seat to a booster can be exciting for the growing child and the family, it may offer less protection for some children.

Why? A children's car seat uses a 5-point harness system that is built into its shell. The harness straps are narrower than a car's seat belt and fit a child's small shoulders very well. In case of a sudden stop or crash, they will hold the child back and spread the forces of the crash over the two shoulders, the chest, part of the belly and the hips. This way, the child's body can come to a controlled stop with less chance of injury.

A booster seat, on the other hand, relies on the car's lap and shoulder belt to protect a child. Instead of a harness system, it has guides that help keep the car's seat belt on the child's hips and on one shoulder. Keeping the belt on the shoulder of a small child can be difficult, especially during a crash, because a child's shoulder is much smaller and more rounded than an adult's. And even if the booster seat does a great job of keeping the belt in place during a crash, it still may not hold back a child as safely as a children's car seat would.

In a study on booster seats, we found that in many cars, the booster seats were not able to spread the forces of a crash or control the upper body or chest of the child dummy. This led us to ask whether children could be better protected if they stayed in children's car seats for as long as possible."

As usual, 'as long as possible' is not defined, but given these tests, I have no worries at all about keeping kids harnessed to at least age six (or 7 or 8, frankly, harnesses and belts stretch like crazy, that reduces a lot of force on the neck, a carseat installed is absolutely a different animal from a harness bolted directly to the car frame...they have found those to be very dangerous not only in NASCAR, but in Australia, where harnesses added to boosters have been fairly popular for young/heavy kids, and now they are not recommended).

I'd wait until age 6... or, since she's already in the top slots... when the regent is outgrown... my own super-tall boy moved into the top slots at about that age and then outgrew the seat completely (BY HEIGHT) at age 6.5yrs...

I don't worry about the neck loads until like... 7 or 8... and even then, only if they are mature enough to be in a booster.

at 5... meh... and by holding off, who knows, some new awesome booster changes may come on the market.

I'd hold off until she starts Kindergarten.

Thanks everyone - I'm thinking now I'll wait. Jools - thanks for that info - it is reassuring. Just today, dd got so excited because she was finally able to unbuckle her Regent by herself (obviously when we were parked) - so now we just need to work on the buckling, which will make my job a bit easier! I guess I bought the Regent for the sole purpose of EH a big kid, so I might as well make use of it! But, it's also reassuring to know dd does quite well in a booster, which I'm comfortable with when she rides with dh or grandma (who knows the rules very well too!).

if i had a regent for DD that wasnt about to expire (it expires soon and i got it used..so its back up for grandmas) I would totally have her in it full time until she outgrew it i that seat and wish i could get a new one for cheap haha