Three Things Expectant Parents Don’t Know How To Do
I’m always so grateful to see expectant parents at car seat checks. It’s a great to have that foundation of car seat safety knowledge before your baby arrives. After your baby has been born, you will have so much on your mind! Learn the ins and outs of your child's car seat before they arrive so you can use it confidently from the very first day. There’s nothing worse than feeling nervous and confused when you’re trying to get your newborn into a car seat for the first time!
If you’re an expectant parent and you’re signed up for a seat check event (or a private consultation), make sure you take the time to read your car seat’s manual and learning about it before you arrive. If you arrive with no knowledge of your own car seat, we’ll spend more time covering basics. If you arrive having read your manual and attempted an installation, I can answer specific questions about your car seat based on your experience!
Here are a few things that many expectant parents/caregivers that I see at seat checks don't know how to do:
1) Adjust the Harness (tighten/loosen) - This is a huge part of getting a good fit and can be really frustrating if you're not sure how to do it. Especially when you're trying to get a snug fit on a tiny baby and when you're trying to loosen the harness enough to get your tiny baby OUT of their car seat! On infant and convertible seats, there is a button near the front edge of the seat. To loosen the harness, press the button in with one finger and then pull the harness away from your child’s chest. I like to do this by inserting my hand flat between my child’s chest and the harness (back of your hand against their chest, front of your hand against the harness) and pulling toward the harness. To tighten, just pull the tightening strap! Don’t press the button at the same time, as this will only cause the harness to loosen.
2) How to Harness a Baby - Proper harnessing is one of the foundations of car seat safety. Getting a snug fit keeps an infant's airway open and ensures the car seat can help protect them during a crash. Here is a quick primer on how to harness:
Sit your child in their car seat with their back and bottom flat agains the car seat
Buckle the crotch buckle
Buckle the chest clip and pull it down toward the crotch buckle while pulling the harness straps up to remove slack from the hip area
Tighten the harness almost all the way
Wiggle the chest clip up to armpit level
Finish tightening the harness and do the the pinch test at the child’s shoulders to confirm it’s tight enough
If you can pinch the harness webbing between your fingers at their shoulders, the harness is too loose and should be tightened further
3) How to Dock/Undock the Car Seat - Don't wait until you're placing the bucket seat in the car on the way home from the hospital to find out how to dock/undock the seat! Many car seats have a release handle at the back of the car seat shell. Some car seats have a release handle on or near the base. Read your manual and practice docking/undocking until you can do it with your eyes closed. Your tired parent brain will thank you later!
Practice all these things before your car seat check and I guarantee your CPST will be impressed! Plus, you’ll be able to ask specific questions about how your car seat works and any issues you ran into while practicing.
