Turning DD FF

scuby20 · Feb 12, 2008

Well my daughter is currently in a Britax BLVD and now that we got the tightening issue down, we like it. She is almost 10 months old and is 20lbs and of course RF. She is special needs, she has sever GERD and laryngomalacia. She is getting better and better, so that is good. We currently live with my parents, and I don't take her anywhere alone. Someone has to be riding in the back seat with her. We have been apart from my husband almost a year now, because of her health issues, and he is in the military and gone a lot. I wouldn't have been able to go anywhere by myself, so that is why we live in another state with my parents. We will be going home to live as a family in May, she will be 13 months....I know it's best to keep them RF for as long as possible....but when my husband isn't there to drive me and allow me to sit in the back with her (he is often gone for a few days-a week or two at a time)....I have to be able to get to the store and her pediatrician, but I want to be able to see her. I know they have those mirrors for RF but I just can't see her clearly enough in one of those....so I'm going to have to turn her FF at 13 months.....is there ANYTHING I can do to assure her safety, other than securing the seat and her in it properly?

We almost lost her 2x, so it's hard for me not to have a really good eye on her at all times....she is much stronger now, but after all that we went through, I have to be able to see her.

Am I horrible for turning her FF at 13 months?

crunchierthanthou · Feb 12, 2008

What vehicle do you drive? I would petition NHTSA for an airbag switch so you can turn it off. That way you can keep her in the front seat next to you.

How is her muscle tone? Does she do okay more upright? Older babies and toddlers with good head control can be as upright as 30 degrees. That may help with her GERD issues.

joolsplus3 · Feb 12, 2008

Gosh, no, not horrible at all! And it doesn't have to be a permanent turn, either. You can put her back rearfacing when the situation allows

. Top tether the seat, that's paramount for FF installs...if you need to get a top tether installed, do that first (we can help with part numbers if you need to do that).

scuby20 · Feb 12, 2008

I drive a 2005 dodge grand caravan....and we can turn in RF when my DH is in town, and he can drive, so I can sit in the back with her.

What is a top tether? Does the britax BLVD come with one? I'm not aware of all that. We have the hooks in the seat to attach the carseat in stead of using the seat belt.

She does good now with her GERD in her carseat...but if she is RF I cannot see her and make sure she is ok...she still chokes on her reflux, that is the main reason I want her FF so I can see her in my rear view mirror.

Suzibeck · Feb 12, 2008

Yes, the tether is the strap with the hook that comes from the top of the seat.

I'm sorry you are dealing with GERD. My younger two girls have GERD also and my middle was a choker. We only had choking problems when she was flat on her back however, so we didn't have to deal with that in the car.

CDNTech · Feb 12, 2008

As Susan stated the top tether is the V-shaped strap at the top of the seat. It can be tethered both rear facing (with the d-ring that came with your seat) and forward facing.

The top tether strap anchor is located on the back of the captain's chairs towards the bottom of the vehicle seat.

You can also top tether your Blvd when rear facing...

The underside of the front passenger's seat will look like this (look under from the 2nd row)...

The d-ring is a short piece of webbing with a metal ring at one end and a sewn loop at the other end.

The d-ring goes around this hole (open the tray under the front passenger seat while doing this for easier access)...

Loop the metal end through the sewn fabric end and you've just created a rear facing tether anchor point. Then close the tray again...

This is a Radian that is also allowed to be tethered rear facing in an '03 Grand Caravan. You can see the top tether coming down from the seat going to the newly created rear facing tether point...

ETA: One more picture...
You can see the black line coming down the middle of the captain's chair... that is the top tether and it is attached to the tether anchor point of the captain's chair. Your '05 GC will have the top tether anchor located in the same spot...

cryswilkins · Feb 12, 2008

What about a mirror that is big, like this one?

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4269003

We have that one and I can see everything that Zoe is doing.

I think that if she is in danger of choking to death RF then, I would turn her. I would also look into getting an airbag shutoff swith installed so she can be in the front with you.

scuby20 · Feb 12, 2008

thanks! My dodge grand caraven is an 05 with stow and go seats....will it still work for the tether?

joolsplus3 · Feb 12, 2008

Yes, there's a top tether for Forward Facing...check the back of the seat there will be some sort of hook thing, probably labeled with a picture of a carseat and/or an anchor. (the manual will indicate where it is exactly if you can't find it). The pictures Jen posted are for rearfacing a Britax...tethering RF is fantastic for safety and you should do that, too

joolsplus3 · Feb 12, 2008

Oh, PS, the procedure for turning the LATCH straps from the rearfacing position to the forward facing position is kind of a pain, I think page 21 of the manual shows how, I'm not sure than any of us has made a pictorial of how to do it yet... but you might just want to use the seatbelt for a forward facing installation (seatbelt and top tether strap), it's SO easy to do, even easier than using LATCH, I think (rearfacing LATCH is WAY easier, though!)

CDNTech · Feb 12, 2008

I edited my post... the last picture shows the captain chair flipped forward and you can see where the forward facing tether attaches. The '05 GC has the tether anchor in the same identical spot. The only difference is that your captain's chairs will not flip forward like mine (and they are Stow n' Go).

cryswilkins · Feb 12, 2008

Ok, is it just me or does the hand in the background look like there may be a child folded in the seat, lol. I saw that was cracking up.

CDNTech · Feb 12, 2008

cryswilkins said:
Ok, is it just me or does the hand in the background look like there may be a child folded in the seat, lol. I saw that was cracking up.

:ROTFLMAO: That's Aiden playing around *between* the two captain's chairs.

Valentine · Feb 12, 2008

We have the same mirror that cryswilkins posted (which is made of plastic and fabric and attaches to the tether anchor), and we can see our son just as clear as a bell, right down to the facial expression. I can't imagine turning my 13-mo-old just so I could see him. I'd try a lot less drastic measures first, like shopping for different mirrors until you find one that works (starting with the one cryswilkins posted, an excellent choice).

scuby20 · Feb 12, 2008

thanks for the pics!!! the hand is to funny lol

scuby20 · Feb 12, 2008

Botzi said:
We have the same mirror that cryswilkins posted (which is made of plastic and fabric and attaches to the tether anchor), and we can see our son just as clear as a bell, right down to the facial expression. I can't imagine turning my 13-mo-old just so I could see him. I'd try a lot less drastic measures first, like shopping for different mirrors until you find one that works (starting with the one cryswilkins posted, an excellent choice).

well most parents I know do turn their kids around at a year.....and while the mirror is a good idea, it's also still difficult for me....you get really scared about everything when you almost lose your child 2x. I want to protect her from everything, and keep her as safe as I can, which is why I woul dlike to keep her RF, but not sure it's an option for us all the time.....the GERD mixed with the Laryngomalacia is just a pain....but at some point, I have to live my life. I've been living at my parents for almost a year, and I would love to have my husband be a part of our lives again.

ThreeBeans · Feb 12, 2008

scuby20 said:
well most parents I know do turn their kids around at a year.....and while the mirror is a good idea, it's also still difficult for me....you get really scared about everything when you almost lose your child 2x. I want to protect her from everything, and keep her as safe as I can, which is why I woul dlike to keep her RF, but not sure it's an option for us all the time.....the GERD mixed with the Laryngomalacia is just a pain....but at some point, I have to live my life. I've been living at my parents for almost a year, and I would love to have my husband be a part of our lives again.

I strongly recommend not turning her forward facing. Instead, petition NHTSA for a shut off switch for your front air bag. You can then install her rearfacing seat in the front, where you can keep an eye on her.

Melizerd · Feb 12, 2008

cryswilkins said:
Ok, is it just me or does the hand in the background look like there may be a child folded in the seat, lol. I saw that was cracking up.

I saw the same thing and had to look at it a couple times to realize the child wasn't really in the seat.

Defrost · Feb 12, 2008

Two of my refluxers were on apnea monitors (they're 11 and 10 now). Are they not using those for severe refluxers anymore? We used them in the car, and it's the only way I could drive alone with them.

scuby20 · Feb 12, 2008

yes, she is currently on an apnea monitor, and has been since 2 weeks old....but even with the apnea monitor I couldn't drive alone, because I didn't feel safe driving if she stopped breathing or had a bradycardia event if she was choking that I could SAFELY pull over and help her. We live in the Tacoma area of Washington, and you have to get on I5 for most everything....well I don't know if any of you have been on I5 but it's bumper to bumper all the time, and trying to pull off safely, while the monitor goes off, knowing that my child isn't breathing is to difficult......and she is coming off of the monitor soon...right now we are living in Anchorage, Alaska, because they have better medical care for her right now....but in May, after her 1st birthday, we will be heading back to Washington to live with my husband (her father). We need to be a family, he has only seen her about 2 months out of her life.... we did what we had to do in order to take the best care of her as possible....but now it's getting time to be a family......Look, I'm not saying I don't want her rear facing....I want her to be safe, I'm just so scared to get in the car and not have a full on view of her...

If I were to get the front air bag turned off...how would I go about doing that??

Turning DD FF

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