So would you FF your 3.5 yr old?

kiloyd

New member
32# and I forget his height at the moment.

My only reason is that he's RF'd a year longer than both my girls, they hit that RD wt limit of 33# at 2.5 yrs.

DS2 is in a Milestone with a RF limit of 40#.

Right now I am thinking I will turn him when he turns 4 or I have to raise the harness/headrest up a notch as it will block my blind spot view more.
 
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ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
If you have no compelling reason to no, I wouldn't.

My daughter will be 4 in a month; she still fits with room to spare in her rf seat, so the first time she's ever ridden ff was the other day in my mom's car (her rf spare didn't install easily/well there so I put in a Frontier 90.)

I feel we have enough evidence to show benefit to rf to 4+ that if a kid fits and there aren't other compelling considerations, it's a good idea to continue.

After 4 I give more weight to child preference and convenience. I still wouldn't worry about what you did with other kids- that doesn't really bear on the present.
 

jjordan

Moderator
My 3 year old is very close to the RF height limit of his seat and so he might get turned soon. But since your 3 year old is in a seat with room to grow RF, I personally wouldn't turn him yet. My approach is to not buy a new seat to RF past their 3rd birthday, but keep them RF if they fit in their seat until they turn 4, at which point they get to turn FF if they choose.

You're saying the ONLY reason you'd turn him is because he's been RF longer than his older siblings, which is not a good reason for me personally. I've done all sorts of things differently with my different kids!
 

Nedra

Car-Seat.org Ambassador
I agree with KQ and jjordan. My daughter is nearly 3.5 and I am planning to keep her RF until at least 4 -- potentially longer if I can't find a compelling reason to turn her. I say, RF until you truly can't stand it anymore (unless they outgrow the seat first, of course!) It doesn't matter what you did with the first ones -- we all do the best we can with the information and resources we have at the time.

If you had other concerns about RF (like if the blind spot is a serious hazard...my RF seats have never been a problem with the blind spot in my car, so I wouldn't know....) I'd want to hear more info. But if you really don't have a reason for turning him then I wouldn't rock the boat.


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kiloyd

New member
I agree with KQ and jjordan. My daughter is nearly 3.5 and I am planning to keep her RF until at least 4 -- potentially longer if I can't find a compelling reason to turn her. I say, RF until you truly can't stand it anymore (unless they outgrow the seat first, of course!) It doesn't matter what you did with the first ones -- we all do the best we can with the information and resources we have at the time.

If you had other concerns about RF (like if the blind spot is a serious hazard...my RF seats have never been a problem with the blind spot in my car, so I wouldn't know....) I'd want to hear more info. But if you really don't have a reason for turning him then I wouldn't rock the boat.


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Thank you. :)

I think the blind spot will be blocked too much when I need to move the headrest up a notch, but that won't be for many months I don't think.

I just get this itch to turn him every few months and come here for reassurance to wait. With my other 3 children they moved up to each new car seat level when they reached the limit. This much larger limit now is new to me. I really don't think I want him RF until he's 5!
 

Celeste

New member
Another vote for RF here! There are plenty of times (in, every time she falls asleep??) that I wish my 6yo was still RFing!

We made her use her radian FF all summer since she was falling asleep on the way home from camp a lot and I didn't think a booster was a good choice for that yet.

So far - in 2 years of FF, the only real perks are 1) she can play cards/games with her brother and they could watch the same movie if they wanted 2) I can see her in my mirror.

I do think that before they go to kindergarten that some level of booster training is required for playdates but you have plenty of time for that even if you RF to 5 in your main seat!!!
 

TechnoGranola

Forum Ambassador
I do think that before they go to kindergarten that some level of booster training is required for playdates but you have plenty of time for that even if you RF to 5 in your main seat!!!


And my kid is starting Kindy right away and still 5 pounds shy of 40. So no play dates with boosters for us. Plus she's only 4y8m so too young IMO. Can't say I'm disappointed that she can't ride in a booster with other people driving. ;)
 

bnsnyde

New member
Ours about the same age is RF because, well, she can and still fits. 40 lbs. and 40 inches in her Fllo.

But blind spots are huge. I WON'T have her seat in my middle blocking the view but all 6 seats are full in back so I had to arrange carefully. So she is RF behind me because it does not matter and does not affect my blind spot.
 

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