I couldn't believe my eyes!

I was downtown tonight looking for something at a drugstore and as I left a couple with a little boy were also leaving. They were parked right by me, and I watched as mom & dad got into the car, and proceeded to pull out with the little boy on dad's lap in the passenger seat.

So while I'm staring and trying to remember the license plate to call the police, I realize that there's a car seat in the back seat! :jaw: Yep, they had a car seat installed, they just weren't using it.

Anyways, I couldn't help myself... I went up to them and asked if they'd "do me a favor" and buckle their little one into the car seat. They gave me an excuse that they were only a few blocks from home.

Long story short, they did buckle their son in for me - mentioned they didn't always buckle him in because he cried, so I offered to take a quick look. Nothing noticeable causing the discomfort, but I had dad tighten up the seatbelt so the seat was installed tightly and had him tighten the harness and explained the importance of the harness being adjusted properly. And told them that they needed to get a tether anchor installed. (Mandatory in Canada.)

Honestly I wish I could've said/done more. They had a 3-in-1 and the headrest was obviously in the booster only mode. I think kiddo was short enough that they can move it down a position, but given the midnight hour & parents attitude I left it at having them check the harness height in the morning and just felt better knowing that at least he was in his car seat and not in his dads arms in the front seat.

So that was my excitement for the evening anyways... strangely enough, it did away with my bad mood that was brewing towards dh - the reason I went out in the first place.

I just don't understand what people are thinking

A few blocks from home or not, a crash can happen at anytime, anywhere with NO warning!

Good for you!

Yep, some people just don't get it. I can't even count how many times I have heard people say, "Oh, we use the car seat anytime we go out of town, but I just don't think it's necessary so close to home." . WHAT!!! I just can not figure some people out. What are they thinking?

Good for you for saying something! It almost makes me sick to my stomach to see something like that, but I get so nervous & panicky and I can't say anything!

snowbird25ca said:

mentioned they didn't always buckle him in because he cried

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And not buckling him every time will just make him cry more when they do buckle him. Why can't people understand that kids are smart? If they get out of their seat for crying one time, they will do it more and more hoping for the same response. I have a couple of friends who learned this the hard way.

I live down the street from the park (its so walking distance). When we drive there, both kids are in their seats, same when we leave. Yes, it would be 'easier' to just sit them in their seats, but you have to expect the unexpected.

stayinhomewithmy3 said:

Good for you for saying something! It almost makes me sick to my stomach to see something like that, but I get so nervous & panicky and I can't say anything!

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Me too...its like your heart starts pounding and you feel all nervous and cant say anything. Or if I did I would sound shaky. I gotta get over that.

stayinhomewithmy3 said:

Good for you for saying something! It almost makes me sick to my stomach to see something like that, but I get so nervous & panicky and I can't say anything!

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I have the opposite problem - how to be nice without my anger coming across.

It just really ticks me off to see someone holding a baby in their lap in a moving car. The icing on the cake was the car seat in the back seat. So instead of calling the police, I put on a nice face and went to talk to them since I knew the police wouldn't get there anytime soon... Thankfully, I'm pretty good at being nice to strangers even if I'm secretly boiling...