Should I try to re-Rearface my 3 year olds?

T.O. Twins

New member
My just-turned-3 year old, 30 pound, 37inch twin daughters have been forward facing since about 17 months (I just didn’t know enough then to keep them RF longer). Now that I know much more about the safety of rear-facing, I am stressing over whether I should try to turn them around again. This would be a huge hassle in terms of getting new seats (we just got Radian 65’s – which only go to 30 pounds RF in Canada) and convincing my kids and husband to go along with the plan. The girls are now forwarding in Radian 65’s and are just above the next to tallest harness slots (so we are using the top slots). We drive a 2006 CRV and my husband is tall and must have his seat all the way back. Getting Radian XT’s is not an option for rear facing, they just won’t fit. The only thing that I think might work would be either a True Fit (though I’m worried about the buried harness adjuster RF) or maybe an Avenue (if the girls aren’t too tall for it already). I would probably use whatever I buy to rearface for those 5 pounds and then sell them and go back to the Radians, since the reason we got the Radians a few months ago instead of the Frontier or Nautilus was because we really wanted to fit an adult in the back seat with the kids. The girls have been hovering around 30 pounds for about 6 months now, so I don’t know if that means we have a long time until they reach 35 pounds or if we’re due for a growth spurt any day now.

Would you bother trying to make this work (and if so, how)? Do kids ever agree to turn around after they’ve been FF for so long? Can kids climb into their own seats RF?
 
ADS

vonfirmath

New member
No. Considering you don't have the seats to do it already and the children are 3 years old, I would not try to turn them around now.

Just keep this in mind for future children. :)
 

wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor
Staff member
I wouldn't either.

Piper could climb in rear facing (she still does climb in to other people's rear facing seats), but given the hassle and their age and weight I'd be fine with them forward facing.

Wendy
 

canadiangie

New member
Hi, :happy-wavehello:

Given the circumstances, no I wouldn't turn them back rf. You have excellent seats now, and as long as they're installed and used correctly each and every trip your children are quite safe being ff at age 3.
 

T.O. Twins

New member
Thanks everyone, this makes me feel better about them being forward-facing and keeping them that way.

Just keep this in mind for future children. :)

Funny you should say this. We're done having kids, but my husband jokes that I will want to have another one just so I could rear face the kid until age 4. To tell you the truth, that really is about the most compelling reason I can think of for me to have another.
 

wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor
Staff member
LOL Nathan talked me into another and the first thing I said was, "At least now I can buy more carseats." :) It's not reason enough to have another, but it's a fun perk.

Wendy
 

wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor
Staff member
Sorry to derail the OP, but yes. I'm due in just under three months. I didn't make an announcement, but I put it in my siggy in January.

Wendy
 

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