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Hello! I lurk a lot, but rarely post! I don't have any living children of my own, but I am a nanny for two 6 1/2yr olds. One is very petite and 35-40lbs I would guess. The other is built very big, about 60lbs, maybe more. This twin has autism, and is prone to extremely violent outbursts. I've been in the Mom's car with them before, where he told her to go to the car wash, but we couldn't because the windshield was cracked. He proceeded to un-do his seatbelt, leap forward, and punch her in the head. I had to un-buckle myself and climb in the back to settle him down. I wasn't able to get him buckled back in, I barely got him to even sit.
SO, all that to say, I need 2 backless boosters for them in my car. They will be used extremely rarely. I'm trying to decide between this one, and this one. The only difference is the extra arm on the belt path to prevent submarining. I really want this one for the small twin, she is very petite. But I was thinking the regular one might be best for the boy, to allow more thigh room.
Second question is if anyone here knows of anything that can safely be used to keep the seatbelt from being unlocked. I do not want the above scenario to happen when I'm alone in the car with them, unable to do anything until I can pull over. I would also tell Mom about it so she could get one too.
Oh, and they are both boostered in harness-to-booster seats in Mom's car, and backless in Dad's car.
Thank-you!
Last edited by Squishy; July 31st, 2011 at 01:21 PM.
Reason: links didn't work
Well, firstly, my opinion is that the autistic child isn't ready for a booster and should still be harnessed. My second opinion is that they need highback boosters and not no back boosters, so that they have some protection for their head and neck.
About submarining- submarining is when the CHILD slides down under the seat belt in an accident. The design of the second booster is going to help keep the lap belt in place, but a child can still slip down under the belt if they don't fit properly. Something like the Britax Parkway SG has a secure guard clip that goes between the child's legs and over the lap portion of the belt preventing the child from submarining.
What harness to booster seats are they in in their mom's vehicle?
And, I don't believe there is anything you can put on the belt to prevent him from unlocking it. My only suggestion is that he should be harnessed, and less likely to get him self all the way out before being noticed.
Big ditto to harnessing the autistic twin. A child in a booster needs to be able to control his/her impulses and not take off the seat belt. He is not ready for that. For his safety and yours, please consider that, and tell his parents too. It is okay to still be harnessed if it's safer for him!
If you can't get him harnessed, a high back booster is better because it provides more side impact protection than a backless. A child should remain in a high back booster until he/she outgrows the back, no matter how little the backless is used.
We have no choice on the booster for the autistic child, he is above the top slots of even the frontier. Mom is not willing to get him a special needs seat. She hates her child to be referred to as autistic or special needs
I can't possibly see how it would be a good belt fit in booster mode. Those seats make really lousy boosters, not to mention that the boy has outgrown it if he's no longer using the belt guides for the shoulder belt. The manual does not give permission to use without using the belt guide. I guarantee the lap portion of the belt is too high up on the tummy, and not low across their thighs.
Anyway.
The Turbobooster (highback) would be a good option. The belt guide on the Turbobooster adjusts an inch and a half higher than the top harness slot on a Frontier (not a Froniter 85). Question though- how does one know that the boys shoulders are above the top harness slot of a Frontier if they don't own a Frontier?
Can you measure his torso height? Have him sit on the floor with his back against a wall. Measure from his bottom to his shoulder. If it's less than 19.5", he still fits in the Frontier, which I'm guessing he does because he still (might) fit in the Vantage.
Please don't think that we're ganging up on you. We really just want to see your charges to be safe in the vehicle. A boy who cannot stay in the seat belt is not safe to himself and every other passenger in the vehicle. He needs to be harnessed until he has learned how to sit properly in a booster.
They honestly do have good belt fit in their seats in Mom's car. Their lap belts are across their hip bones, not above them on their tummy. The boy's is lower than the girl's, probably because he's much bigger. I do know that he has outgrown it, but when I brought it up to her and told her he needed a dedicated booster, the next time I rode with them, he was in nothing. So I figured the lesser of 2 evils was to have the belt fit correctly, even though the seat was being used incorrectly.
The frontier came into play the day after the incident about the car wash. He had never unbuckled himself in the car with me there before. I explained to her that day after we were home. The next day after taking him to Speech and OT, we went to BRU and tried him in the nautilus and frontier. He was just over the Frontier slots. At that point I told her she would have to order a seat online that is meant for big kids who can't sit in a booster properly. She was all gung ho about it, until I pulled it up on her computer and she saw they were special needs seats. She didn't want to talk about the car seats at all from there. I then soon after found out from the other nanny (there were 2 of us until she was fired for mishandling the boy) that when they went on a long trip, he rode most of the ride unbuckled, and that the parents didn't make too much effort to re-buckle him once he protested. So scary
The reason I'm looking to get them cheap boosters, is because me having them in my car would be unplanned. Such as she's running late and can't get girl to dance on time, or can't get boy to speech/ot on time, etc. So there won't be seats left for me. I live in an 8 or 80 state, plus I know they are 100% un-safe just in seatbelts. So that's why I'm doing this on my own. As it stands now they're late 9 times out of 10 because Mom is notoriously late to everything, including getting home on time
does babysrus even have frontiers?maybe u are mistaken and it was another seat?the frontier has really high top slots,he must be really big to outgrow it at 6!
It seems like you will be using the seats in your car alot,i would def think about doing a harnessed seat or atleast 2 high back boosters.Is the girl only 35 pounds though?i personally would want her still harnessed to,i wouldnt put a 35 pound child in a seat belt at all.
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Amanda,mommy to Tatum Wyatt 4/12/09And Bennett Robert 6/6/12
Our BRU does have the Frontier. I know a lot about car seats, I wouldn't mistake another seat for it...The boy is very big, I would say the size of a normal 8-10yr old.
The seats in my car would be used very rarely. She likes to take the kids to their stuff herself, she's really involved that way. So I would only be taking them if otherwise they would be like half an hour late. Normally she's just running 10-15mins behind. I can't afford to buy a special needs harness seat for hundreds of dollars, out of my income, to be used so rarely. And if I was to buy it I certainly wouldn't keep it in my car, I'd fib to her about it not being a special needs seat so she'd use it for him, lol...
No one is suggesting you spend hundreds of dollars on a special needs seat. We just don't want a child riding in an unsafe manner, even if it is how the mom allows him to ride.
Get whatever booster works best for your budget. If you go backless, make sure there is a headrest that adjusts high enough for the boy to protect his head and neck, since you say he's the size of an 8-10 year old. And you'll have to keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't unbuckle the seat belt.
The backless boosters you posted first are perfectly fine. If you want a cheaper highback booster option, the Evenflo Big Kid Sport is another option (it's basically an Amp bottom with a Big Kid back). I think they're about $30.
Is the Big Kid a good booster? It just seems so flimsy to me. Maybe they've changed them since I last checked them out. I've had TB's before, so I know I like those. In your opinion, which of the two would be better for the boy? Does one have more room than the other?
I have adjustable headrests in all positions in my car. I'm feeling better about getting highbacks though, especially for the girl, she's so tiny.
The Big Kid is a fine booster. It's just a basic booster, kinda like the Cosco Scenera is of convertible seats. Bare bones, no extra bells & whistles. It positions the belt just fine. Yes, some highback boosters seem like the back is flimsy, but that doesn't really matter, it's just a personal preference. IMO, the TB back is really flimsy too. If you end up with TBs, make sure the screws are in the arm rests. Leaving them out compromises the integrity of the seat. If the boy really has outgrown the harness of a Frontier 85 (not sure if he sat in the original Froniter or the Frontier 85), then he would have more than likely already outgrown the high back of a Big Kid booster and the Turbobooster. If it was just the original Frontier, he may have a tiny bit of room left, depending on how long ago it was. You main concern with him is keeping him belted in and sitting properly.
I went ahead and got the big kid sports. I realized those are different than the ones I remember, the regular big kids. I had the girl in my car yesterday to go to the movies, and her belt fit was amazing! She loved that it was pink, too! I haven't had the boy in the car yet, he will be in less than the girl. I'm hoping he fits with the back. If not I'll take the back off. It looks like it should be roomy enough for him width-wise.
I have a pic of girl I can post once I'm on the computer and can blur her face. Thank-you for your help!!!
This isn't my normal car, so the belt fit may change when my car comes out of the shop next Friday from being in an accident. For now I'm driving a rental, a Jaguar. I wonder if I can convince them to let me keep it I drive a '10 Camry XLE normally.
And Bennett Robert 6/6/12
I drive a '10 Camry XLE normally.
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