OT: Am I the only one who makes my kids sit in the back seat of the car??

[4HppyCamprs]

One of our cars is a two seater. Since I can't put them in the trunk, the front seat is it.

That said, I was more vigient with the first two than with the last (my kids are 7, 9, 11 and 12). And I am someone who you might see start to drive from the parking lot with one of my kids still crawling around the car. That doesn't mean we drive all the way home like that. They are usually in place and buckled in well before we have even gone a mile. My kids may also unbuckle for a few seconds while we are driving to retrieve something they can't reach while buckled. They also may unbuckle prematurely while we are pulling into a parking lot. You may not want to be so quick to assume that a child you see unbuckled for a few seconds is a child of a negligent parent.

The greatest majority of accidents happen less than two blocks from your house. Parking lots are notorious for accidents. I have been hit twice in parking lots in the last couple years. I also would not drive a car that doesn't safely fit my family. A few seconds is all it takes for a accident (eyes diverted to text for example). My

 

[ghtx]

One of our cars is a two seater. Since I can't put them in the trunk, the front seat is it.

That said, I was more vigient with the first two than with the last (my kids are 7, 9, 11 and 12). And I am someone who you might see start to drive from the parking lot with one of my kids still crawling around the car. That doesn't mean we drive all the way home like that. They are usually in place and buckled in well before we have even gone a mile. My kids may also unbuckle for a few seconds while we are driving to retrieve something they can't reach while buckled. They also may unbuckle prematurely while we are pulling into a parking lot. You may not want to be so quick to assume that a child you see unbuckled for a few seconds is a child of a negligent parent.

I honestly can't tell if you're joking or not. The behavior that you're describing is the very definition of a negligent parent.

 

[mrsbornkuntry]

My kids have not been allowed to sit up front until they were older than 12. I don't know if it's the law, but since it's the airbag rec. on the car I tell them it's the law so no arguments. If my kids were big for their age I might fudge on it a little and let a large 10 or 11 year old sit up front, but they aren't.

Besides, the earlier they sit up front, the earlier they start wanting to mess with my radio stations .

(before I get flamed, I'm just joking, I really do it for safety reasons)

 

[moopdog]

One of our cars is a two seater. Since I can't put them in the trunk, the front seat is it.

That said, I was more vigient with the first two than with the last (my kids are 7, 9, 11 and 12). And I am someone who you might see start to drive from the parking lot with one of my kids still crawling around the car. That doesn't mean we drive all the way home like that. They are usually in place and buckled in well before we have even gone a mile. My kids may also unbuckle for a few seconds while we are driving to retrieve something they can't reach while buckled. They also may unbuckle prematurely while we are pulling into a parking lot. You may not want to be so quick to assume that a child you see unbuckled for a few seconds is a child of a negligent parent.

Wow. Just....wow! This is real, isn't it?!

 

[dsneprincess]

I am not going to show DS12 this thread. He is still in the backseat. Yes, we are not "normal", but we know that!

 

[bumbershoot]

Even in the 70s, with all the weirdly hands-off parenting styles that were going on, sitting in the front seat for me and my brother was a BIG deal. It wasn't something that started young, and my mom didn't always let one of us sit up there.

It's all about fitting in the seatbelt, and being big enough that the seatbelt hits where it's supposed to hit and doesn't do MORE damage. Before cars had seats that went up and down (or before we could *afford* the cars that did that), and before cars had seatbelt guides that went up and down, seatbelts in some cars were dangerous even for me at 5'3", and really bad for my mom who only hit 5'1". I remember putting the cross-body belt behind me, because I was scared that it would cut my throat in an accident, because that's where it hit, on my neck.

DS is 8 and therefore he has reached the age that he can ride without a booster in WA. He didn't fit the seatbelt yet, though, until last week or so. In another car, if he doesn't fit, he'll use the lowback booster.

I just looked up the front seat info, and in WA: "Children under thirteen years old must be transported in rear seats where it is practical to do so." So there we go. We have a car where it's not necessary for him to sit in the front, so he'll be in the back until he's 13. By that time he'll probably be well on his way to 6', so he'll fit up front better than I do!



My brother and I used to secretly undo our seatbelts in the bucket seats of my mom's Pinto station wagon. We thought we were so clever and sneaky. We were LUCKY that we never got into an accident while doing that. If we had gotten into an accident, we would have met the windshield.

Anyone who lets their kids unbuckle while driving is taking that risk, that something will happen during a very vulnerable time, and they need to THINK about that risk. We cannot control everything that happens while we are driving. A car could t-bone us, a deer could jump out, a dog could cross the road in front of us. We could hit ice, we could have a stroke (something very much on my family's mind, as my MIL has started having them...she's had 6 since Labor Day Sunday and she was lucky she was at temple instead of in her car driving home when she had that first one...she hasn't driven since then as far as we know), ANYTHING could happen that's not under our control. Having a person unbuckled for 2 seconds could result in utter tragedy, if something happened right then.

 

[pacrosby]

The greatest majority of accidents happen less than two blocks from your house. Parking lots are notorious for accidents. I have been hit twice in parking lots in the last couple years. I also would not drive a car that doesn't safely fit my family. A few seconds is all it takes for a accident (eyes diverted to text for example). My

That's very noble of you. We feel perfectly safe in our convertible when we have no choice but to take it with a child (not baby/toddler/preschooler) on board. I'll also take my chances that an impact at 3 miles an hour in a parking lot will not cause significant bodily harm. Or that the 5 seconds my kids or I are unbucked will not result in death and dismemberment. Are you trying to tell me that you pull over so that Junior can lean over and get something that he can't reach. I call BS

 

[pacrosby]

Wow. Just....wow! This is real, isn't it?!

I guess people on the DIS just aren't used to others telling the truth.

 

[Erin1700]

That's very noble of you. We feel perfectly safe in our convertible when we have no choice but to take it with a child (not baby/toddler/preschooler) on board. I'll also take my chances that an impact at 3 miles an hour in a parking lot will not cause significant bodily harm. Or that the 5 seconds my kids or I are unbucked will not result in death and dismemberment. Are you trying to tell me that you pull over so that Junior can lean over and get something that he can't reach. I call BS

I let my 11 yr old sit up front. She is 5'3.
But I never let my DS5 unbuckle to get something he dropped.

 

[Missy13d69]

That's very noble of you. We feel perfectly safe in our convertible when we have no choice but to take it with a child (not baby/toddler/preschooler) on board. I'll also take my chances that an impact at 3 miles an hour in a parking lot will not cause significant bodily harm. Or that the 5 seconds my kids or I are unbucked will not result in death and dismemberment. Are you trying to tell me that you pull over so that Junior can lean over and get something that he can't reach. I call BS

You can call BS all you want, but we NEVER allow our children to unbuckle to retrieve something. They either live without it, or if it's absolutely necessary, we pull over to get it. Never assume that your way is the way everyone does things. You may think it's perfectly safe to do that, but there are plenty of people who do not.

 

[pumpkinmomma]

That's very noble of you. We feel perfectly safe in our convertible when we have no choice but to take it with a child (not baby/toddler/preschooler) on board. I'll also take my chances that an impact at 3 miles an hour in a parking lot will not cause significant bodily harm. Or that the 5 seconds my kids or I are unbucked will not result in death and dismemberment. Are you trying to tell me that you pull over so that Junior can lean over and get something that he can't reach. I call BS

My kids do not unbuckle when the car is in motion. If they do, I pull over. If they drop something, they can wait until we are stopped to get it.

I don't really worry too much about accidents in parking lots as they are low speed and unlikely to cause injury, but my kids know better than to unbuckle while we are driving.

My kids are 6 and 3 and are still in harnessed seats. It will be a long time before they are allowed to ride up front. Certainly no younger than 10-11 yrs old.

There was a mom at my daughter's school last year who let her kid stand up in the car and stick his head out the sunroof while driving (not just in the parking lot, bu on the road to the school with a 40 mph speed limit). One day the cops happened to be passing the school parking lot when he was standing up and they pulled the mom over and read her the riot act. Some people just really believe that nothing will ever happen to them and that they can take chances like that and it will be ok.

 

[Mickeypooh99]

My kids have never been allowed to unbuckle to get something they dropped either. I don't pull over, I just make them wait. They know how serious I am about this, and they don't even try to do it.

 

[clm10308]

My DS is 10 yrs oldabd about 85 lbs. He has occasionally ridden in the front seat with me a few times, but mostly I make him ride in the back seat, just because he drives me crazy.
He had ADHD and is very figity in the car. He wants to touch everything he sees and talks constantly.

 

[Missypyxi]

I read a story about a grandmother who let her 8 year old granddaughter sit in the front seat in the parking lot. The car rolled forward, hit a parking guard rail, and the airbags deployed and paralyzed the girl for life.

Sitting in the front seat is not worth that risk under any circumstances.

 

[Tiger926]

My kids are under age 10, and one is in a harnessed booster, and one just got out of a booster as she is too tall (ears over).

It has now been changed to children 13 and under should not be in the front seat (changed from 12 years this past year). My kids know they won't be in the front seat for awhile, and frankly, there is no reason for it at all.

We have lots of police officers in our neighborhood who let their kids under 13 sit in the front all of the time, but these same people also don't have their small kids in car seats either.

Honestly, around here, most parents don't care about car seat safety, and so we are not of the norm around here, as 5 and 6 year olds are sitting in front seats with air bags still employed (have asked the parents). My kids do not ever unbuckle seat belts while we are in motion. They know it's not allowed, and if something needs to be retrieved (really though, what can't wait until the car is stopped?), we would absolutely pull over.

Some of the responses on this thread show the lack of knowledge that some people have regarding the whole front seat issue - it's not just height and weight, but development of young bodies for front seat. That is why it has been changed to 13 and under. Sure there are some large kids around, but just because a child is tall or weighs more than average, it doesn't mean their bone or muscle development can handle an air bag or a crash through a windshield if the air bag fails.

My daughter prays all of the time that none of these kids are involved in a serious accident.

Tiger

 

[Dizisfun]

I read a story about a grandmother who let her 8 year old granddaughter sit in the front seat in the parking lot. The car rolled forward, hit a parking guard rail, and the airbags deployed and paralyzed the girl for life.

Sitting in the front seat is not worth that risk under any circumstances.

This is a terrible tragedy.

I'm not a parent of small kids, but have several grandkids. My rule is at 10 years old they can sit in the front. Before 10 they have to sit in the backseat. They go to boosters around the age of 5. I believe in Maryland the law just recently changed or is getting ready to change that they have to be in boosters until they are 8 years or 80 pounds. The adult children know that their children are in the front seat at age 10. As for the airbag on passenger side in my car it only activates with a certain amount of weight on the seat. Not sure of how much weight but I do know that my DGD10 is not heavy enough to make the airbag come on....

 

[Leajess99]

The truth is that I CANNOT STAND it when I see someone whip their car into a parking lot and out of the front seat pops a little 3 or 4 year old kiddo. It is just wrong. Sorry but it's so unsafe for their tiny bodies!!

Or....is it just me?

Nope not just you and I was thinking of asking the same thing on here earlier this morning.

My youngest is 9 and still rides in the backseat. Everyday at dropoff and pickup I watch kindergarteners being put in the front seat of vehicles. Many of these kids do not even ride in booster seats.

I refuse to let any child under 13 in the front seat of my car unless they are as tall as or taller than I am. I have seen kids injured by airbags and it is not pretty. My son learned a while ago about the injuries that can happen with airbags and kids in the front seat as we were leaving a soccer game and came upon the accident site. It was very sad for the child injured. There is no way I am willing to put my child at risk.

 

[A&M's Mommy]

I can't believe there are parents who stuff their 7 year olds into car seats with harnesses?? That is beyond ridiculous! Why don't you just lock them in their rooms until they are 30? They'll be safer there. My 7 year old uses a backless booster and will until he's 8. You know, something age appropriate, not something designed for 3 year old. I feel bad for all of these older kids whose parents are trying to keep them babies forever. 8 year olds in strollers, 7 year olds in car seats. Poor kids. They'll probably have Mom as a roommate in college! You know, to keep them safe and all.

 

[bdklein]

We go by the laws. Our children have never sat in the front seat.

How old are your kids and in what state do you live?

 

[WantToGoNow]

I live in Ohio where the law is 8 years old or 4'9". My dd8 (almost 9) still rides in a booster but she is getting too tall for it (bottom of ears at top of headrest) so we will have to stop using it but she is too short for the seatbelt to fit properly.

My ds11 is 5'1" but only weighs 72 lbs. He does ride in the front seat ocassionally but I started letting him last year when he was 110 lbs and the size of a petite adult. If he loses any more he is going back to the back.