yea this is a big deal up here in the arctic climate i live in. honestly? its one of the parent safety things i have had most issues with. it gets down to -40 degrees here regularly in the winter, and that is unbelievably cold. how much do you think i want to take my kid outside not wearing a coat, or get to the car and take his coat off and then make him sit in a FRIGID carseat with a blanket over top, when its that cold outside? ya not likely.
when he was in the bucket seat still i shelled out $70 in addition to a winter coat for him to wear out of the seat, for this blanket type thing that kinda was like a bunting bag but it opened so i could put him in, strap him up, and then put the blanket on. but they dont' make anything like that for the 5 position carseat that he has now and probably b/c that is completely unreasonable and wouldn't work anyways.
i put him in a coat and often some ski pants too, and its really hard to get his car seat to buckle b/c of all the extra padding, but it'll go if i lean on it. looks like thats what the woman in the article suggested doing, seeing the difference between what the straps are like with their suits on and with them off. theres no difference for him. he just can't move the entire time we're driving. heh.
It's probably never been a problem for you because you're in a warmer part of Canada. I checked the climate normals for your area and what the average temperature for winter months is, and compared to here and where Kaya's at, you might as well be in Hawaii ;)
There, as well as in Calgary, it often dips below -30 in winter. Last year we had quiiiiiite a few days where it was -50C with the windchill.
I do the same as you, Kaya. I don't take off T's snowpants or jacket, I just take extra precaution when putting him in that it's not too loose, or the jacket bulk isn't too much of an obstruction.
no one here would even think of taking their child outside without a jacket on. ever get up in the morning and hear that your skin will freeze in 10-20 seconds and small children and the elderly should stay inside because the windchill has dropped down to -60 or 70? thats like, january and feb here. maybe you know what it feels like, but to live in that and perpetual darkness for months is a different story. like naivete said, look at the stats.
not that i'm proud of that. it really fucking bites! just sayin, is all.
I don't take her outside without a jacket. That would be suicide. Just take it off in the car.
I am very conscientious about this issue because every winter the news has stories of babies who are hurt or injured in car crashes more severely than necessary because their bulky coats interfered with the safety of the car seat.
For some of us though, that isn't really an option. Perhaps instead of talking about how we should all remove jackets for the carseat, we can discuss the ways to properly secure a child with a jacket that doesn't compromise the safety of the carseat. The best scenario is being able to remove it, but like I said, I wouldn't think of expecting Kaya to, knowing how dangerously freezing her city can get; I would encourage all parents who are able to, to do so, but for those who it's just not a good idea for, we can talk about how to do it properly.
It's damn cold here too in the winter usually and I have never taken off my childs jacket to put then in the car seat. I just make certain to use a less bulky jacket and to ensure the straps are well adjusted each time.
The best scenario is being able to remove it, but like I said, I wouldn't think of expecting Kaya to, knowing how dangerously freezing her city can get; I would encourage all parents who are able to, to do so, but for those who it's just not a good idea for, we can talk about how to do it properly.
I wouldn't expect her to either. I think I came across way different than I meant to in this thread.
Wow, I dont' really know what to do about that for us.
It gets -20 to -30 (without the windchill) on the coldest days of winter, and I'm not about to let my car sit, running, alone, in my neighborhood. I won't bring Zoe out without a winter coat/snowpants on, and taking them off in the car isn't an option either-- it's just too cold.
I'll have to check the seatbelts on this one. She's in a booster seat, so the seatbelt just goes over her chest the way it does an adult. Are adults in danger as well, or just small children?
yea this is a big deal up here in the arctic climate i live in. honestly? its one of the parent safety things i have had most issues with. it gets down to -40 degrees here regularly in the winter, and that is unbelievably cold. how much do you think i want to take my kid outside not wearing a coat, or get to the car and take his coat off and then make him sit in a FRIGID carseat with a blanket over top, when its that cold outside? ya not likely.
when he was in the bucket seat still i shelled out $70 in addition to a winter coat for him to wear out of the seat, for this blanket type thing that kinda was like a bunting bag but it opened so i could put him in, strap him up, and then put the blanket on. but they dont' make anything like that for the 5 position carseat that he has now and probably b/c that is completely unreasonable and wouldn't work anyways.
i put him in a coat and often some ski pants too, and its really hard to get his car seat to buckle b/c of all the extra padding, but it'll go if i lean on it. looks like thats what the woman in the article suggested doing, seeing the difference between what the straps are like with their suits on and with them off. theres no difference for him. he just can't move the entire time we're driving. heh.
We always take J's coat off in the car and strap her in. It has never been a porblem for us.
It's probably never been a problem for you because you're in a warmer part of Canada. I checked the climate normals for your area and what the average temperature for winter months is, and compared to here and where Kaya's at, you might as well be in Hawaii ;)
There, as well as in Calgary, it often dips below -30 in winter. Last year we had quiiiiiite a few days where it was -50C with the windchill.
I do the same as you, Kaya. I don't take off T's snowpants or jacket, I just take extra precaution when putting him in that it's not too loose, or the jacket bulk isn't too much of an obstruction.
Hey it gets to be -40 with the windchills sometimes.
Yeah, pretty often actually. :)
My solution, is to not drive. :D
I don't take his jacket off because my heating system in my car sucks, we might as well be sitting outside. I just sqeeze him in there.
By the way, I hope my post did not come across as judgmental because I don't judge what other mamas do. I was just sharing my experience.
no one here would even think of taking their child outside without a jacket on. ever get up in the morning and hear that your skin will freeze in 10-20 seconds and small children and the elderly should stay inside because the windchill has dropped down to -60 or 70? thats like, january and feb here. maybe you know what it feels like, but to live in that and perpetual darkness for months is a different story. like naivete said, look at the stats.
not that i'm proud of that. it really fucking bites! just sayin, is all.
I don't take her outside without a jacket. That would be suicide. Just take it off in the car.
I am very conscientious about this issue because every winter the news has stories of babies who are hurt or injured in car crashes more severely than necessary because their bulky coats interfered with the safety of the car seat.
For some of us though, that isn't really an option. Perhaps instead of talking about how we should all remove jackets for the carseat, we can discuss the ways to properly secure a child with a jacket that doesn't compromise the safety of the carseat. The best scenario is being able to remove it, but like I said, I wouldn't think of expecting Kaya to, knowing how dangerously freezing her city can get; I would encourage all parents who are able to, to do so, but for those who it's just not a good idea for, we can talk about how to do it properly.
Is warming the car up an option?
Like I said, I am not telling other parents what to do. I am just saying what I do and why even when it is dangerously cold here.
And again, I am just saying what I do. I am not judging others or telling them what to do, so I don't understand the response.
It's damn cold here too in the winter usually and I have never taken off my childs jacket to put then in the car seat. I just make certain to use a less bulky jacket and to ensure the straps are well adjusted each time.
I wouldn't expect her to either. I think I came across way different than I meant to in this thread.
Wow, I dont' really know what to do about that for us.
It gets -20 to -30 (without the windchill) on the coldest days of winter, and I'm not about to let my car sit, running, alone, in my neighborhood. I won't bring Zoe out without a winter coat/snowpants on, and taking them off in the car isn't an option either-- it's just too cold.
I'll have to check the seatbelts on this one. She's in a booster seat, so the seatbelt just goes over her chest the way it does an adult. Are adults in danger as well, or just small children?