Toddler Booster Seat

My daughter just turned 2, is 37" and weighs 32.5 lbs. We're using the Britax Roundabout right now, but her head is sticking up over the top. Someone told me that this is dangerous and that she should go into a booster, but I don't know if this is true. She's not even at the top shoulder straps yet, so I'm a little confused. I want to get a booster seat that's safe to 100 lbs., I guess, since I think that's where safety laws are going. I have a VW Passat if that makes any difference in the seat I should be getting.

Thanks for any advice.

Gwen

Hi Gwen.

There are two rules about heads and tops of seats. You've got them switched. The rule for rear facing seats is to leave an inch of shell ABOVE the child's head. The rule for forward facing is to make sure the top of the child's ears don't go above the top of the seat. So you can use this seat until your daughter reaches 40 pounds, until her shoulders are above the top slots, or until her ears are above the top of the seat. The shoulders will probably be first. So you've got awhile to go, which is good.

The best is if your daughter can use the RA until at least 3 1/2 and 40 pounds, at which point she can go right to a booster. She probably won't need the 100 pound weight limit to get to adult size. Most kids start fitting the adult belts at around 8-12 years, and at 4'9" or a little before. My large 8 year old is 4'6" and 75 pounds, and fits one of our cars but not the other. Check out www.carseat.org for the 5 step Test for booster use.

But when you do need a booster, getting one that goes to 80 pounds is likely to be sufficient. When that does happen, stop back and get new advice - there will be new seats out by then.