# RF Poll



## goodheartedmama (Feb 1, 2007)

I'm going to write the options up here and number them since they're too long for poll options!

1) I knew the benefits of ERF and either RFed my child to the limits of their seat or plan to

2) I knew the benefits of ERF but turned my child at 1 year and 20 lbs

3) I did not know the benefits of ERF and turned my child at 1 year and 20 lbs but when I learned, I turned them back RF

4) I did not know the benefits of ERF and turned my child at 1 year and 20 lbs, and when I learned, they were too big to RF

5) I did not know the benefits of ERF and turned my child at 1 year and 20 lbs, and when I learned, I kept them FF.

6) I have not yet heard about keeping a child RF past 1 year and 20 lbs

7) I kept my child RF past 1 year and 20 lbs but not to the limits of their seat (please specify why)

8) I turned my child before 1 year and 20 lbs but knew they should RF to 1 year and 20 lbs

9) I turned my child before 1 year and 20 lbs and did not know the benefits of RF to 1 year and 20 lbs

10) other (please explain)


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## kai28 (Sep 9, 2008)

10. "other" - I don't know what the benefits of ERF are, but when shopping for car seats, I found a RF infant seat that is rated to 32 pounds and is slightly larger. Logic kind of told me this would be a better option & would be safer (flawed reasoning, maybe - just because a product exists does NOT mean its a great idea), but it seemed that if an infant should be rear-facing for safety, that would extend to older kids as well - why would the safety benefits of RF suddenly change at the magic weight of 22 lbs/1 yr of age?

I haven't yet had to deal with the 'to face forward or not' issue - DS is 3 months and about 15 lbs.


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## chickabiddy (Jan 30, 2004)

Kai, an appropriate option after a 22# infant carrier is a convertible seat that rear-faces to 35# or 40#.


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## kai28 (Sep 9, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *chickabiddy* 
Kai, an appropriate option after a 22# infant carrier is a convertible seat that rear-faces to 35# or 40#.

Thanks! I'll keep that in mind.


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## Brilliantmama (Sep 28, 2006)

I chose 1 for my almost 2 yr old. She is 26 lbs or so and will rf to the limits of her seat.

I chose 7 for my oldest daughter who at 5.5 yrs is still only 30lbs (just barely) and she is forward facing, but technically could still rf. She was rfing past her 4th birthday, when hubby and I decided that she was old enough to choose. She chose to be ffing. I made sure that she is in a tethered seat with a 5pt harness. And I really like that her radian has the safestop which is designed to help absorb energy for the lighter weight ffing kids, like mine.


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## mbhf (Jan 8, 2005)

1 and 3. I turned my oldest when he was about 13 months. After becoming pregnant again and starting to research carseats for #2, I learned about ERF and also the danger of overhead shield seats. I bought him an OHS seat when he outgrew his infant carrier because I thought it looked the most comfortable. I bought him a new 5 point harness seat and turned him back around. He stayed RF until he was not quite 4. #2 stayed RF until he hit the limits of his seat, around 2 1/2. #3 is still RF and will be for a long time, he's only 24 pounds. #4 is of course still RF, and will be until she maxes out her seat.


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## Swandira (Jun 26, 2005)

With my first kid, I turned him around at 1 year and 20 pounds, although I knew it would be better to keep him RF. He hated RF and it made every car trip miserable (and we live in the suburbs, so that was a lot of misery), so against my better judgment I FFed him and car trips were instantly no big deal for him.

My second kid never really minded RF, so she's still RF at 3 years 4 months and 31 pounds.

My third kid is only seven months old and about 17 pounds. Obviously he's still RF. In fact, he's still in the baby bucket! (A Chicco KeyFit 30, so he'll probably be in it until about 12 or 15 months.)

Nealy


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## Evergreen (Nov 6, 2002)

Well, I picked 7.

With Dylan (who is now 6) I knew about the benefits of ERF but I thought ERF meant anything past 12 mos and 20 lbs. So she was turned at around two which everyone thought was really late.

Ava (will be 3 in October) I had taken her car seat out of my car to put in my mom's. When I tried to put it back rf it wasn't working and I got frustrated so I put it in ff and got it nice and tight. She was 27 months but really skinny (over 20 lbs though). I never turned it back around.


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## pixels99 (Jul 8, 2009)

10. My daughter rides rear-facing in a Radian with a 40 pound weight limit. If she stays on her growth curve, she could still be RFing at age 6-7 years. My plans are:
Turn her FFing if she outgrows the RFing limits (of course).
At age 4, take her wishes into consideration, though she doesn't get the final say.
Upon starting Kindy, turn her FFing, unless she expresses a clear desire to stay RFing.


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## Anastasiya (Jun 13, 2006)

I picked 1 and 7

1 - I knew the benefits and kept my dd RFacing till she was almost 4. That's when she grew out of her Radian RFacing - she had reached the 33 pound cutoff.

and

7 - I kept DS1 RFacing to about 2.5. I turned him when I turned his sister because he already weighed 30 pounds. I realized that while it would have taken awhile for him to gain the last 3 pounds (now at 3.5 he's 36 pounds), he and his sister do everything together, and it was a big fuss that she got to turn but he didn't. So I gave in.

Our DS2 and DS3 will RFace to the limits of their seats (Radians with the old 33 pound limit).


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## sapphire_chan (May 2, 2005)

1, but after age 4-5, I'll give her a choice on RF, and after age 7-8, I'd give a choice on using a harnessed seat verses a seat-positioning booster.


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## ashleyhaugh (Jun 23, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *sapphire_chan* 
1, but after age 4-5, I'll give her a choice on RF, and after age 7-8, I'd give a choice on using a harnessed seat verses a seat-positioning booster.

thats about how i feel too. ds is 21 months and about 24.5lbs.


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## alfabetsoup (Jun 13, 2005)

I chose other. We lived in the UK when DD1 was a baby and when she outgrew her infant seat at 15 months (we had the biggest infant seat) there was no other option than a FF seat. We are in the US now and she's FF in a Nautilus--she could RF but she was so much happier when we FF'd her that I didn't want to make her turn around again. She was 2.5 when we moved, is 3 + 2mos now.

DD2 is perfectly happy in RF in her infant seat at 12mos. We'll get a convertible when she grows out of it and she'll RF to the limits of that seat, although she is pretty petite. I don't see her hitting RF limits of the bigger seats until she's 5 or 6, so we might turn her before she gets to the RF limit if she wants. But that's a long time from now!


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## kalamos23 (Apr 11, 2008)

I chose 1 - I plan to RF to the limits of her seat and beyond (our Marathon only RFs to 33 lbs, so we are buying a Radian so she can RF to 40!! so happy they raised the limits for my tall heavy girl!) DD is 32.5 lbs. and just turned 12m so I am hoping to get her to 2 with the 40 lb. seat. I would love to get her way past that RFing, but with her weight and height, I'm not sure.


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## tbone_kneegrabber (Oct 16, 2007)

I chose 1. Ds outgrew his bucket seat at 3 months and I did a bunch of research before purchasing his convertible seat. He'll be 2 on Aug 2nd and is over 34lbs, so we will be turning him soon as he just keeps growing!


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## mamadelbosque (Feb 6, 2007)

I chose 10 - other. We turned DS at 14ish months because he was so totally, completely utterly unhappy in the car as a trial - we agreed that if he was no happier FF than he was RF he'd go back RF. But the difference was immediate and amazing - from the first ride FF, he actually started to ENJOY car rides vs screaming bloody murder through them, irregardless of what anyone did to attempt to amuse him.


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## goodheartedmama (Feb 1, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *kalamos23* 
I chose 1 - I plan to RF to the limits of her seat and beyond (our Marathon only RFs to 33 lbs, so we are buying a Radian so she can RF to 40!! so happy they raised the limits for my tall heavy girl!) DD is 32.5 lbs. and just turned 12m so I am hoping to get her to 2 with the 40 lb. seat. I would love to get her way past that RFing, but with her weight and height, I'm not sure.

My son was that big at that age (unfortunately no 40 lb RF seats, though) and he didn't reach 40 lbs until about 2.5! It could be longer for some kids. Most kids slow down growing at some point!


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## Spring Lily (Sep 26, 2006)

7. I kept her RFing until 3 yrs (30 lbs) because that's when she started complaining of her legs feeling uncomfortable. Her seat goes up to 35 lbs RFing, so I'd planned to wait until then.


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## TortelliniMama (Mar 11, 2004)

I picked 1 for dd. We just turned her at 33 pounds, the limit of her Boulevard.

I picked 7 for ds. We turned him at 2.5 yo and about 31 pounds. Dd was about to be born, and I was afraid that when we went from 1 kid to 2, that we would just kind of, uh, forget to pay enough attention to him to catch when he got to 33 pounds.







I really didn't want to finally think to have him get on a scale and discover he was over the weight limit by quite a bit. (And, frankly, between the baby and the severe PPD I had, I can't say that it wouldn't have happened that way.)


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## Flower of Bliss (Jun 13, 2006)

I chose 1 for DD. She's currently 35 months, 33 lbs, 36 inches tall, and happily RF in a Boulevard. I'm not at all ready to FF her, and she's never ever indicated a preference for FF (even when riding in cars with friends that are FF). She's never even questioned the difference. In fact, when she pretends something is a car, the back seat passengers (dolls, stuffed animals, etc) ALWAYS ride RF









Sadly, one of our Boulevards is a 33lbs RF limit seat, so we recently flipped it to FF in DH's car. We haven't put her in that car since, and hope to not do so at all. We plan to buy one of the new 40 lbs RF seats for her in August or perhaps September (when we have the funds and the Air Protect is on the shelves so I can see it and read reviews when chosing which of the 3 seats to get her).

DD#2 (due in August) will start out in a snugride. We'll move her to the Boulevards (RF of course) when it seems appropriate (out grows snugride or simply seems like she'd be happier in a convertible). We plan to get a second 40 lbs RF seat when DD#2 moves to the boulevards. Then when DD#1 out grows the RF limits on the new seats we'll have the 40lbs RF limit seats to pass on to DD#2.

I have every intention of keeping both girls (and any future children) RF to the limits of their seats, but I do acknowledge that sometimes you can't predict what will really happen in the future.


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## MommyJoia (Oct 31, 2007)

I RFed DD#1 until she was 15 months and 27lbs. A fireman tech said that she was fine FFing, so I turned her. then I got a minivan and turned her back around until she was 30lbs (18 months)

DD#2 is almost 2 and weighs about 23lbs, so she's RFing, and will stay that way until either the seat expires or she hits 30lbs, the max of our seat.


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## treemom2 (Oct 1, 2003)

We turned DD at about 18 months. She was miserable in the car. We went to a safety place to have her seat re-installed and they were surprised that she was still RFing (btw, she was over 20lbs at 5 months). We turned DS around at about 15 months. Yes, we know the benefits of ERF, but he also hated the car so we made it easier to ride with him. Another reason was that we live in Japan. The maximum speed limit where we live is 50km. There is no backseat seatbelt law. . .so most children are jumping up and down in the backseat (not my kids, but they see others doing it and get upset that they have to be buckled). In Japan drinking and driving is super rare (a blood alcohol of .01 will get you thrown in jail, take away your license, etc. . .so most people don't do it. . .one glass of beer--a small glass--and none of my Japanese friends will even think about driving). In Japan you can't get your license until you are 20, you have to pay thousands of dollars for a professional driving class (which is very rigorous and most people have to take the class more than one time to pass their driving tests). So, I honestly feel safer here. If we were still in the states, I might have had DS RFing longer. . .but here, I don't worry about it as much.


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## SFB (Mar 8, 2007)

I chose option one for my 3 yo and 1 yo girls.


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## Sharlla (Jul 14, 2005)

I voted #4 with DS1. I turned him at 20 lbs (he was about 18 months) and did not hear about ERF until 7 years later. DS2 is age 4, still RF and I plan on getting a new car seat to keep him RF even longer.


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## jojojojojo (Feb 4, 2009)

I voted for 1 and 7.

1 because I'd like to RF my daughter as long as possible, but when her little brother comes, we're going to have to move her car seat from the center to the side either immediately behind the driver's seat or the passenger's seat, and I don't think it will fit without pushing the front seat too far forward for the adult's safety/comfort, so we may have to FF her at the age of 2, even if she hasn't reached the RF limits of her seat.


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## SomedayMom (May 9, 2002)

I picked 7.

DS1, I knew about ERF. He had a Roundabout in one car and a Boulevard in the other. He outgrew the RA by height (RF) at 22 months and I turned him in both. In retrospect, I would have chosen differently.

DS2 is turning 2 tommorrow. He is in Boulevards RF in both cars, no intention to turn soon. When we travel though, if I can't get the Scenera we us installed tightly RF, I will FF him. I don't know if I will keep him RF to the absolute limits of the seats, but I have no plans to turn him either.


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## tabrizia (Oct 24, 2007)

I chose 10 because I am not sure if the answer for DS will be 1 or 7. We will be turning him in September after the Britax sale when we get him a Frontier or Regent (depending on which has the better price), if he has outgrown his Marathon or not. Because we want to move DD in her seat, because I hate our Sceneca which she is in now.

That being said he is 30 pounds right now in just a diaper, and we only have a 33 pound rear-facing Marathon, so if he gains 2 more pounds we'll be turning him, it just depends on if he gains the two pounds before September then my answer would be 1, or after September since then my answer would be 7. He is also only an inch or so from outgrowing it height wise, so we are just waiting to see if he outgrows it by height/weight or if September comes first.

We just feel he is big enough at this point that even though I know I could get a seat that would keep him rear-facing another 6 months or so, I don't feel it is the best use of our money. That being said, DD will likely end up rear-facing till she hits the limit of the Marathon, which in her case will be closer to 3/3.5 if she follows her current growth curve. With having to buy a new car seat though, we prefer to get a longer lasting forward facing car seat to another convertible.


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## hottmama (Dec 27, 2004)

4-- I didn't know about it with my oldest and turned him when he hit 20 lbs (around 15 mos) and didn't learn about ERF until he was too big to rearface, and then 1-- I left my little one RFing until he hit the weight limit (33 lbs) at age 2.5.


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## MonP'titBoudain (Nov 22, 2005)

I chose 7 for my oldest. He was 16 mos and 30#. I knew about ERF but we had two super long car trips in a row and couldn't handle the constant screaming for days on the road.

DD is now 16 mos and not even 20#. She will be RF as long as (sanely) possible. She also hates it but since her big bro is there, he can often distract her and keep her happy longer


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## snoopy5386 (May 6, 2005)

I chose option 1. Just today I turned my DD FFing. She is 3 yrs, 3 months old and has reached the 33 lb limit on her BLVD. I considered buying her a 40 lb radian but decided against it. We got our car's top tethers retrofitted today at the dealer and turned her this afternoon. I am sad.


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## calpurnia (Sep 26, 2004)

i chose option 2.

dd is 13 months & 25 lbs. we took a 5 hour car trip the other week & i forward faced her. she's not used to car journeys (it was her first long journey since 9 weeks old) & she copes much better ffing. actually, i'm not even sure if i can rf her carseat. we're in the uk & babies here ff from 9 months.


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## Ruthla (Jun 2, 2004)

I voted 1 and 9. 1 was for DS: I knew the benefits of ERF, and kept him RFing until nearly the limits of his seat, turning him around at age 2.5, when I was cleaning out the car for Passover and it was a convenient time to do so. I also knew that, although I might have been able to keep him RFing a few months longer, I didn't want to risk "not noticing that he outgrew the seat" and keeping him RFing past the limits of the seat, or of having to switch the carseat around in a hurry and possibly installing it wrong.

9 was for both of my daughters. I turned them both around when they were over a year old, but still under 20 lbs. I had already done some research about RFing, and learned that age mattered more than weight in terms of RF/FF safety. I simply got frustrated with the RFing carseats of the time (with the vehicle seatbelt OVER the child's seat, and then having to fuss with the seatbelt harness under the seatbelt, toddler shoes catching on the seatbelt, etc), and decided that at 18 lbs they were close enough. They were each about 13 or 14mo at the time.

Also keep in mind that there was no such thing as a seat that RFed past 22 lbs in 1996/1997 (at least not in my price range.) I had friends who'd had no choice but to turn around their 9mo or 10mo babies (who were too big to RF in those seats), and many others switched the seats EXACTLY on the baby's first birthday, so I figured I did well keeping them RFing past 13m.


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## mrskingred (Aug 3, 2006)

I chose 7. We moved to the UK as my ds turned 18 months so had to go forward facing then.


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## claddaghmom (May 30, 2008)

option one. she is 8.5 months and will be rfing to the limits. and if her daddy has his way, she'll be erfing in a swedish imported seat. (i'm researching before saying yes...have not learned about this until now)


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## ErikaG (Nov 12, 2005)

I chose "other"-my toddler is petite...at 12 months she was about 17 pounds. I'll take her for a 15 month WBV this week, but I'm guessing she's right in the neighborhood of 20 lbs. She fits her Sungride (the 22 pound one) by both height and weight still, but she's in a rear facing convertible seat now-she rode that way on vacation and seems to prefer it.

While I know the benefits of ERF, and would like to keep her RF to the limits of her seat, it may be that her age and associated skeletal development makes it reasonable to consider turning her forward facing-whether it happens or not is something that can't really be decided until the time comes.


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## Llyra (Jan 16, 2005)

DD1-- I turned when her head hit the top of the seat shell.

DS-- I turned at around 15 months (well past 20 pounds, but a long way from the limits of the seat) because of motion sickness misery.

DD2-- will stay rear-facing until the limits of her seat, but I will not buy a new seat to accomodate ERF.


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## WC_hapamama (Sep 19, 2005)

DS#1, we turned forward facing at about 11 months, when he was 23lbs... before I knew the benefits of extended rear-facing (11 years ago)

DS#2, we turned forward facing at 13 months, when he was 20 lbs... again, before I knew the benefits of extended rear-facing.

DD was turned forward facing at about 18 months old. I don't remember how much she weighed, but it was probably about 23 lbs. It was the middle of the summer, she had terrible eczema, and we needed to be able to keep her cool. She got none of the benefit of a/c in a heavily padded car seat while rear facing (Britax Marathon).

DS#3 was turned FF at 18 months also, about 23 lbs. The little turkey was rocking the seat, even with a super tight installation, and we were getting fed up with having to essentially reinstall the seat twice a week.

I have skinny minnie kids... none of them passed the 35 lb mark until after their 4th birthday.


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## hibana (Jun 9, 2006)

I chose 7. We turned dd's convertible carseat around sometime between 2 and 2 1/2. The constant screaming was affecting my ability to drive. As soon as we turned her around, she stopped having a tantrum every time we got in the car.


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## azmomtoone (Aug 30, 2008)

I chose 1....but maybe should have selected "other" as well. DS is currently, at 31 mos, RF in two radians. One has a 33 lb limit, the other a 40 lb limit. He FF'ed for awhile at 1 though....he was too tall to RF in his Triumph (around 18 mos??) and we (thought) we couldn't fit any bigger seats RF'ing in DH's neon, so he ff'ed there. Then we learned that the seat could be installed at less of an angle for older kids - and were able to fit a Marathon, then a Radian rf'ing, so he turned around again.
And he still rides FF occasionally, in a grandparents or the sitter's vehicle, in a Marathon.....which he is now too tall to RF in as well.
Don't know yet if we wil buy another Radian when he gets too heavy for his older one or not; he doesn't ride in DH's car as often, but then again, it's a car with poor safety ratings so the extra money on the seat might be well spent.


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## LizaBear (Feb 1, 2003)

DS #1 and DD were both kept RF until roughly their 2nd birthdays, although I didn't know the benefit of ERF at the time - that's when they hit the 30lb limits they had.

DS #2 is ERF, he is 2½ years old, about 32 lbs and is RF in a seat with a 35lb RF limit.


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## leighann79 (Aug 4, 2005)

1 and 4

4 with my first two. They were way past RF when I learned about ERF.
1 with my last one.
Will be 1 with this next one.









I will say that child #3 got turned FF for a short time because I was so desperate to have her ride in the car not screaming. Didn't help though, so I convinced DH that we would turn her back around. It was easier for me to nurse her that way anyway. (the only way we got ANYWHERE in the car for 2 YEARS)


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## AndrewsMother (Jul 30, 2007)

I made a mistake. I chose option #2, but the correct response would be option #1


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## 4Marmalade (May 4, 2004)

#5 for ds1 and dd1 - I think they were both turned around 13-14 months and over 20lbs. I had learned more by dd1 and bought a Radian to keep her harnessed longer (she still is at age 4 and 38lbs) but didn't know about ERF. I would not turn her back around now but will definitely be keeping her harnessed for a while yet.

#1 for ds2 and dd2 - they are 13 months and both RF in True Fit's. They will stay that way until they reach the 35lbs limit and then be harnessed after that.


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## sarajane (Oct 20, 2004)

I only recently learned of ERF. My first daughter got turned a month before her first birthday because I was totally clueless and she was a screamer in the car and large for her age. I thought she just had to reach the weight and not the age. She loved FF. Thankfully we never got in a wreck with her in the car, her seat wasn't even correctly installed I now know. I had no idea at all.









With my second I was still clueless until I decided I wanted to buy her a new car seat because the other one was getting old and realized my infant would need a convertible. When I went shopping I came here for advice and now they are both rear facing in a Boulevard and will be as long as possible. I love these car seats, it is so easy to get a nice tight install and the seats are like a rock. They just feel so secure. Makes their old car seats look like toys. I couldn't believe the quality.

I only wish I had known about rear facing and how to install a seat sooner. I always did complain about how loose the car seat was in the car thinking, this can't be safe. I thought car seats were just unsafe because of how loose mine were and I couldn't seem to get it tight. I'm just glad they are both safe as possible now and that we never had a wreck with them in the other seats.


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## fairymom (Sep 15, 2008)

When all of my olders were younger I kept them RF till 1 yr/20 lbs like recommended. It's only been in the last few weeks I've learned about ERF and am on board on. My ds4 sits in a booster and would NOT be happy about being RF so he'll stay that way- and he's a BIG boy so I think it'd be hard to find a seat he'd fit RF into. As for babe, he'll be ERF now that I know better for as long as possible! wish I could get DS4 and DD7 RF but many car seats in the car would not be possible!


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## MamatoPeach (Nov 15, 2008)

My daughter was turned as soon as she was 20lbs, which I know isnt the right thing to do







BUT it was also not safe for us to drive with the amount of stress we felt hearing our daughter have breakdowns. Driving became much safer when we turned her. And yes, I would pull over and nurse, and did everything we could think of to make the rear facing work.


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## MamatoPeach (Nov 15, 2008)

ERF is new to me. 1yr/20lbs was all I knew of


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## Adventuredad (Apr 23, 2008)

Option 1. I knew about the ERF benefits like almost every single parent in Sweden. It's almost unheard of to even see a 3-year old forward facing. This clearly shows in stats for fatalities and injuries whichy are unbelievably low.

As a cool little side note, I sat rear facing when I was a child in 1967!

My son stayed rear facing to just over 4 years, he was tall so had to turn him. My 3-year old daughter is still rear facing and she has LOTS of space left in her Britax Hi-Way.

We've used Swedish high weight rear facing seats exclusvely for our kids. RF limit is 55 lbs, istnall is super easy, and seat shells are high making RF to 4-5 very easy.


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## an_aurora (Jun 2, 2006)

1 and 3 for me.

DD1 was FF at 11.5 months and 19 pounds because she was "close enough" and we were going on a long drive from AK to WA and we thought she'd be more comfortable FF







. She went back RF'ing when she was 18 months, and was RF'ing until 3.5. At that point she had outgrown 2 of our seats RF'ing by height (Marathon and EFTA) but could still fit in the TrueFit with plenty of room.

DD2 is teeny tiny (21 pounds at 28 months) and she will be RF'ing until a) she outgrows her seat by height or b) DS outgrows his seats. Either way, she'll be RF'ing until at least 4.


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## Katie T (Nov 8, 2008)

My first who is nine I turned around at a year and 20 lbs.







I didn't know of extended rearfacing back then. I have a DS who will be 3 in Sep. who is still rearfacing in a True Fit and will be till the limits of that seat. I also have a 12 month old DD who is of course rf and will be till she outgrows her carseat as well. I credit MDC for teaching me the importance of erf!







:


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## THBVsMommy (Mar 13, 2007)

I chose #4. The only thing I knew about RFing was that a child had to stay until they were a year old and 20 lbs. DS was 20 lbs by the time he was 4 mos old, so we had to buy him a convertible since he grew out of his infant seat. He stayed RFing until he was a year, and by then he was already 35 lbs so we reached the RFing limit on his Britax anyways. He's 3 years old and 45lbs now, so his weight really slowed down after his first birthday. With this new baby on the way, we're buying the KeyFit, so hopefully s/he will be able to use that seat the entire first year. Then we will be buying a True Fit as a convertible once s/he grows out of the infant seat. I now know the benefits of ERF and plan to keep our newest LO that way for as long as possible.


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## EviesMom (Nov 30, 2004)

I chose 7. We don't have a car, and I was not about to tote 2 car seats on public transit along with the 2 kids just so they could rear face for the 20 minutes a day total we're in the car on vacation. We have a Radian for DS and DD has a Ride Safer Travel Vest. He's 21 months and she's 5 yo. If we had a car where the seats stayed in it, I suppose it would be very different. I do feel like this is a safe travel option though. When DS is big enough for a vest, we'll probably leave the Radian in my parents trunk--since that's the car they're in most often--DD has an inexpensive but decent seat in that car already. And travel via train and airplane with 2 vests instead.


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## Aliyahsmommy (Sep 9, 2008)

I voted #7.
My daughter is two years old next week and weighs about 27lbs. She is still rear facing, but will only be until November 2009 as that is when new baby is due. Her Britax car seat rear faces until 35lbs, so she will be turned forward facing before she reaches that weight. Once the new baby comes she will be moved out of our middle seat to behind the passenger seat and forward faced.
Our next child is a boy and we have no plans for more children for about three years, so he will probably rear face until the 35lb weight limit or until we have our third child when he is 3 or 3 1/2.
I do find it shocking that I am the only person I know personally that practices ERF with their children.


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