Have you been successful in getting someone to NOT use a Bundle Me?

pastrygirl

New member
I'd love to hear some positive stories. I'm growing weary trying to explain the safety issues of Bundle Me-type blankets that go behind the baby, or even custom car seat covers and puffy coats. I post lots of links, lots of info, lots of safe alternatives... yet no one is ever converted. Why is that? Maybe for the same reason that parents still FF their kids right at a year old, after being told the current guidelines? Is it just out of pure convenience? Apathy?

When I learn something new about car seat safety, I take it seriously! I did even before I became a tech. I don't brush it off. Why do other people? Especially when it's an inexpensive product that can easily be replaced with another inexpensive product?

My heart is heavy. :(
 
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Patriot201

Car-Seat.org Ambassador
I was successful in getting my sister to stop using the BundleMe. I got lucky. She responded well to the scare tactics. :p
 

kmcenery

New member
I have to a few moms (like 2-3) on a parenting borad I go on. Just by posting links to here and other sites.
 

MissAllyLou

New member
Yeah just last night. I loaned my SS1 to my cousins, and told them they were free to use it for as long as they wanted/needed, as long as they followed MY rules! No aftermarket products, INCLUDING Bundle Me's, and ERF to the limits of their convertible seat. They readily agreed, no scaring involved!

I have a harder time convincing parents not to use them, but I've had some luck. I usually just explain that anything the harness has to go through isn't safe, and in an accident, their baby could be ejected. That's all that most parents need to hear.
 

PixieEMT

New member
I help the local hospital with their ABC of baby care class every other month. Mostly it's first time parents. I speak for about 30 minutes, then question/answer time. I usually take some of my seats with me, hand outs, the shower cap cover.

I usually tell them about the power point pressentation that my CPST-I showed us. A picture of the infant seat with the bulky snowsuit buckled in.......EMPTY. (Picture Rand from a Christmas story...I can't get my arms out!) The baby was ejected and killed. The suit still in place empty, the harness not positioned correctly and tight enough.

I've always had positive results. They usually leave saying they are going to remove the JJ Cole Bundle me from their registry.
HTH
 

AnnD

New member
****

I don't disagree with them - would love to hear why they aren't safe (and what are the decent alternatives in cold winter weather when baby spends a fair bit of time in and out of cars as a newborn) - really just curious.

Coffee is hot (i.e. I don't think the manufacturers recommendations always are worthy of the words - I ignore some of their instructions when I use my seats 32"RF is the big one)
 
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mum2two

Active member
YES!

I new mom that I work with was getting her registry together and asked for my input....one of the first things I explained was no Bundle Me's-baby was born last week so a winter baby, as well as other suggestions which she took-she changed her Snugride to one with a front adjuster even though the pattern wasn't the exact color scheme she was going for....and when she and her DH asked me come over and help install carseats last week I again gave the no bulky snowsuits/compression/no aftermarket products and I'm pretty sure they got it...they understood the other safe ways to keep baby warm that I suggested.

Beth
 

Judi

CPST/Firefighter
Yes. I tighten the baby in, with the after market product(s). Then I take the baby out, without loosening the straps. I then remove the product(s) and put the baby back in. I pinch a good inch of slack, and talk about compression of said product(s). I let the parents know how the baby could easily be "born again".
 

TechnoGranola

Forum Ambassador
I usually tell them about the power point pressentation that my CPST-I showed us. A picture of the infant seat with the bulky snowsuit buckled in.......EMPTY. (Picture Rand from a Christmas story...I can't get my arms out!) The baby was ejected and killed. The suit still in place empty, the harness not positioned correctly and tight enough.
Do you have this pic? I would LOVE to have a copy to share with people.
 

pastrygirl

New member
:whistle: care to educate ME?
Sure, I'll do my best! :eek:

Harness snugness is extremely important when using a car seat. Using a blanket that goes behind the baby, snowsuit, or bulky coat can prevent you from getting the harness tight enough. Those things all compress in a crash, meaning that they might feel tight before they're compressed, but once compressed, you end up with a bunch of slack in the harness. As someone said above, there might even be enough slack that the child is ejected during impact.

When it comes to those blankets that interfere with the harness, the problem isn't just bulkiness. Do the holes match up exactly, perfectly right? Was it crash tested with your seat? Probably not, to both of those. So, the harness might not be sitting where it's supposed to sit. The material might bunch up during a crash, introducing slack. And, since it probably hasn't been tested, your child will be the test example. I personally don't want to use a seat in a way that hasn't been tested. That's why I use the proper recline, don't combine LATCH and seat belt, etc. If my seat says that I must use the base, I'm not going to install it without the base. This should be just as clear a safety issue. It hasn't been tested with a Bundle Me, so I'm not going to use a Bundle Me.

Now, blankets that go OVER the baby are a different story, since they don't interfere at all with the function of the harness. There are many safe alternatives to a Bundle Me. They are referred to as "shower-cap" style, since they are fabric with elastic all around the edges. Land's End has one, if you want a "big" name, but there are others available on the internet.

This is a video someone posted here recently, showing how winter bulkiness is a problem in infant seats, plus it lists some alternatives.

This thread talks about the pinch test. Try the coat, bunting, etc., and tighten the harness properly. Then, without adjusting the harness at all, remove your child and the coat or bunting. Put your child back in and do the pinch test. If it no longer passes the pinch test, the coat or bunting should not be used in the car seat.

Here's another thread that was posted here, and another. This one in particular talks about crash testing, mentions how the harness doesn't line up properly -- it was 3 inches off! Meaning that it isn't just a compression/puffiness problem -- there's a link to a photo in post #15.

Then there's the car seat manufacturer's statements. They warn that using any aftermarket products voids the warranty. Granted, that might not mean much after an accident, but still. They feel strongly enough about it to make a statement about it.

Thin fleece jackets are nice and warm for the car. There are photos in that video I linked to. I keep Toby in a fleece jacket inside, and take his parka along. I put the parka on when we get outside. He was 5 months old when I started doing this, because he was already in a convertible by then. Yes, it's a hassle, but I know he's SAFE. That's the most important thing, and trumps convenience! :)
 

tiggercat

New member
I take them out of a lot of seats at clinics (or ask parents to remove them), but I don't know how many just put them back on after they leave :(

My best friend stopped using one once I explained the trouble and did the test for tightness (strap in, remove baby without loosening, remove bundle me, buckle back up, gasp at the amount of slack in the harness). She's pretty malleable though, probably the only person other than my husband who I would trust to install seats for my kids.
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
I've had lots of luck, actually. I explain crash forces, show the loose harness, and then ask them what they think happens when the baby isn't buckled in snugly and crash forces are applied?

I actually once put a teddy in a bulky snowsuit (in a department store!) and buckled it in, then pulled Teddy right out without unbuckling.

The parents were shocked and I saw them buying a thick quilt to tuck over baby and taking off the snowsuit before they left the store.:thumbsup:

As my sister-in-law asked me when I explained internal decapitation to her, "Why don't they tell you this at the doctor's office???"
 

kaysmom

New member
I just talked a coworker into getting a shower cap style cover over the bundle me...I was pretty excited;) I always start out by saying that (before I knew better obviously) when we were getting discharged from the NICU with DD they wouldnt let us take her home with the bundle me in the seat. That seems to help for some reason, like it's not just coming from me. Whatever works!
 

snowbird25ca

Moderator - CPST Instructor
I just talked a coworker into getting a shower cap style cover over the bundle me...I was pretty excited;) I always start out by saying that (before I knew better obviously) when we were getting discharged from the NICU with DD they wouldnt let us take her home with the bundle me in the seat. That seems to help for some reason, like it's not just coming from me. Whatever works!

Something very interesting I learned back at a seat check a number of months ago... If you're adopting a baby, they won't allow you to leave with a bundle me bag in use because it's considered to be improperly restraining the child thereby endangering him/her. Birth parents on the other hand can easily leave hospital with one. :rolleyes:

But it makes you ask - if they consider it a big enough safety risk that an adopted baby can't be taken into custody by his/her adoptive parents with a bundle me in use, there's obviously a risk involved in using them.

I usually tell parents that, and then just show them the difference. I remove a lot at checks too, and a lot of time parents are amazed at how much differently the harness sits on baby and how the harness can be actually tightened properly without the child crying. I think in a lot of cases it's a case of seeing is believing... people don't fully believe until they see the difference in fit or tightness.

This has to be one of the things I hate most about winter here. Everybody thinks it's a necessity to have one if you have a newborn. At least at prenatal classes they're now telling parents to use a shower cap style and not the bundle me so parents are starting off with a better knowledge base. :thumbsup:
 

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