Madison (age 5) is 42 inches, and 36 lbs. Both kids have a convertible car seat that goes up to 80lbs as a belt-positioning booster. We have removed the 5-point harnesses on both, and are considering replacing the car seats with Graco Turbo Boosters, and using the current ones as backups, but I'm not sure if Madison should really be without the 5-point harness. The reason I moved her to the BPB is the 5-pt was kind of a pain, and I started getting lax about using it on very short trips, which I know is VERY dangerous. (Please don't throw things at me, I know it was wrong!!) The reason I want to get the Turbo Booster is my current boosters are not very easy for the kids to buckle themselves in, the seatbelts get caught and twisted, and the plugs (female ends of the seatbelts) are hard to reach. What would you advise, considering Mads' small size? TIA

By Trina~moderator on Tuesday, February 5, 2008 - 09:54 am:

I'm not going to throw anything at you. LOL! Just to get a better idea of your situation, what seats are they currently in? You are correct that Madison should be in a harnessed car seat. We recommend kids stay in harnessed car seats until they are at least 4 yrs. and 40 lbs.. Longer is even better, especially if a child is wiggly and not able to sit properly in a belt positioning booster.

There is a brand spanking new car seat on the market I think would work well for you. It's made by Graco and is called the Nautilus. It's a combination car seat that harnesses up to 65 lbs. and transitions to a booster up to 100 lbs.. It looks like a harnessed Graco Turbo Booster, and I've heard nothing but raves from parents and CPS Techs.

Graco Nautilus

Concerning your kids having difficulty buckling... It could be just the way the buckle stalks are positioned in your vehicle, but I've found many kids need help buckling until they're about 7 or 8. At the very least, an adult should check each time to be sure they have buckled in correctly. It's not unusual for them to have the belt twisted or not positioned properly.

HTH