When to Move On?

Hi L.,

Most car seats have both a weight or height limit. The one I have says either 26 pounds or 29 inches. Is looks as though my daughter will outgrow it in length as well! Hope this helps :)

My son grew out of his infant seat rather quickly, but most convertible seats can sit backwards and forwards and can hold the smallest of infants. And my son just grew out of his convertible seat and he is 2 years old now. The instructions in the different seats has when the child should be moved, but sometimes you just need to go on the comfort of the child. Hope this helps.

read the manual for the seat. It will have a maximum height and weight that the seat is designed for. If her feet are sticking out- that is not a safety issue- but if her head is over the top or the straps can not be adjust to properly fit her- then she definately needs a new seat. There are car seats that your daughter can fit into now and will fit her until she is 60 pounds -So you can buy one more seat for all of her car seat needs..

You need to talk with your ped, but typically it is one year (so they can support their head and neck muscles) and 20 lbs. It is better your daughter be cramped for a little while and be safe rather than risk head or neck injuries. My daughter was in the 90th - 95th % for height so I was in your shoes and I talked with my ped about this same issue. Good luck I hoped I helped :)

Hi L. :-)
Most infant seats go up to 20 or 22 lbs. They're also outgrown when the top of the baby's head is 1" below the top of the seat. Check the labels on the seat, it should say what the weight limit is.
She should still be rearfacing (at least until a year old, but the longer the better) so the next step is a convertible car seat. Those can go rear and foward facing. Most convertibles will do the trick, just avoid one with an overhead shield (the bar that goes in front of them). If you need a cheap seat Walmart and Target sell the Cosco Scenera for $40.

L. - unfortunately, you are suppose to keep them REAR facing until 1 yrs of age - even if they are super long!! My son was pretty long, but the doc told me to wait. Double check with your ped.
Good luck!!!
~L.

When I asked my ped about when to switch my daughter to a rear-facing carseat instead of a carrier, she said I needed to read the instructions that came with the carrier. We ended up switching our daughter to a rear facing carseat at 7-8 months because she was so long. I think our carrier said to switch to a larger rear facing seat at 26 pounds or 20 inches long. Good luck!

I'm not sure about what kind you have, but the Graco Snug Ride I have has a height limit of 26". So if your little one is taller it might be time for a new one.

Each car seat is different but it is normally about 22 lbs. Check you owners manaul and if you don't have one go to the web and goggle it. Also please check out http://youtube.com/watch?v=Y2DVfqFhseo

Best of Mothering, M.

Read the side of your carseat, mine had it right on the side. My daughter is 9 months old and has been in a rear facing carseat for 3 months now.

hello L.
the weight lim is 20 pounds and if her feet are at the end of her seat it time for the next one up she will still need to face the rear intill she is a year old and twenty pound she need to be both by state law hope i helped

Both my son and my nephew grew out of the infant seat before they reached a year~ if you go to walmart or any other store that carries carseats, you need to look for a "convertable" carseat, one that can face rear or forwards, so that you can keep her facing the rear but she'll have more room~ it's different from the "infant carrier" b/c it is stationary and you don't take it out of the car (just the baby) you can check with your pediatrician on one that he/she might reccomend, but these make sense b/c you don't have to buy ANOTHER one once they reach a year. good luck!

There is a length limit for those seats too. I was shocked when my son out grew his in length at six months old. A convertible car seat is the way to go. Still rear facing of course!

I believe the height limit for infant seats is 24 inches. There may also be a 20 lb weight limit. It usually says on the side of your seat.

Go to www.nhtsa.gov. It has all the requirements for car seats and should answer all your questions. Some pediatricians might not know the answers to those questions.

Hi L.,

The carseat should say on the side of it what the maximum weight/length is, but usually if the baby's head is within 1 inch of the top of the carseat, it's time to move on. I suggest (since she's still so young) to buy a convertible car seat that also rear faces. I have one for my son who is 6 months old. It's wonderful, the only difference is now Mommy is the carrier, not the car seat itself!

Hope that helps you out some!

There should be a label on the side of your carseat carrier that lists the weight limit and length limit. If your child exceeds either of these then it is time to move on to a convertible car seat that should still remain backwards until the child is one year of age.

Hello! I am not sure of the weight limit, but I switched to a forward facing car seat when my daughter was around 6 months old. That is when most people that I have talked to usually switch. When I switched, I just got a forward facing one that had the "arm-rest" thing that comes over her head. I am not sure how to explain it, but it was nice to have that padded rest in front of her. I felt a lot safer and it also gave her somewhere to lay her head when she fell asleep or to put toys on. I think I got it at Wal-Mart and it was pretty inexpensive. It lasted until she was 15 months old. Hope this helps. Good Luck!

She should be rear facing until at LEAST 1 year AND 20+ lbs. As long as she can't push hard on the seat back she should be rear facing. Infant bones are calsifying as they grow and are not strong enough to stand impact forward facing before a year.. even then it's hard on them (obviously cuz it's hard on us adults!).

If it's an infant car seat they generally go to 20lbs. If it's a convertable some models go up to 35lbs... what kind of seat is it? I can look it up for you on your seat if you don't know.

Even if her feet are not so comfortable, it's better a broken ankle than neck (hate to use that since it's scary for mom's to think about, but it does put the issue in prospective!)

C.

Hi. There should be a sticker on your car seat that has all the weight and height information.