Booster Seat Safety

40 pounds was the 'magic' moment for our granddaughter. I'm sure that's the recommendation. Age wise I've heard 4 years. That makes sense to me watching the children grow, because I saw a big difference in the way she could handle her body after she turned 4, and the weight factor probably helps her stay in the booster better. Our granddaughter is a bit on the small side (tall and skinny so doesn't weigh as much as many children her age) so she had passed her fifth birthday before getting into the booster. Some children who tend to be heavier and reach 40 pounds prior to the 4th birthday may not be ready to sit safely in a booster just because of the factor of how they handle their bodies at the younger age. The rules are in existence as a guideline but you do have to use your own common sense in the matter, but I think it helps to try to figure out why a certain age and weight were determined as the safest time.

booster seat readiness is a combination of age, weight/height, and maturity (i.e., is the child responsible enough to understand that he/she MUST stay buckled and not wiggle around, put the shoulder portion of the seatbelt behind his/her back, etc.). Child Passenger Safety technicians stress that although the *minimum* recommendation is 4 years and at least 40 lbs., parents should seriously consider the safety benefits of keeping 4YO's in a 5-pt. harness longer (see http://www.kyledavidmiller.org/pages/4211/Car_Seat_Safety... ). There are now many seats that can be used with a 5-pt. harness above 40 lbs., including some good "combination" seats (forward facing seats that can be used with a 5 pt. harness, then convert to a belt-positioning booster) such as the Graco Nautilus and Britax Frontier.

Some good resources if you have any additional questions on this subject are the discussion forums at http://www.carseat.org and http://community.babycenter.com/groups/a7645/car_seat_que...?

The middle of their ears should not reach the top of the seat or they weigh 40lbs

A combo of factors. Age 3/35 lbs. is pretty standard, but it can also vary depending on the seat. There's also a strong contingent out there against booster seats and keeping kids rearfacing in baby/convertible seats until well into elementary school. I personally love booster seats because they're practical and we moved our son when he fit the guidelines (at that point he was overflowing the convertible baby seat anyway, so it was time to move).

EDIT: Just looked it up with AAP and it's changed slightly since our son made the move a few years ago. It's now recommended at age 4 at the earliest. Here's a link:
http://www.aap.org/family/Carseatguide.htm

Contact your local P.D. Many police departments have a child safety day/night when they answer questions and perform a harness check for you.

Mom of 4: 19, 12, 7 and 7mos

A booster seat may be used whe your child out grows his/her forward facing 5 point harness. That being said a 5 point harness is much safer than a booster or seatbelt. Many seats have increased the upper limit for the five point harness so as long as the child is within the seats maximum limit it is best to keep them in it. They have recently increased the rear facing limit to 30-35 pounds so I am pretty sure that 4 and 40 is pretty much out the window.

The short answer is yes. Comfort should also play in; if a child is just entirely uncomfortable in a car seat, but is perhaps a LITTLE under the weight/height/age requirements, then I say go for a booster. I agree with the other poster who said maturity is another factor - if the child cannot sit still or keep his/her seat belt in place, she/he is probably not ready for a booster.