Mom Fears

I think we all know what I am talking about. Every Mom has at least one. That heart-wrenching fear that something terrible will happen to your children, usually moms have something specific that they greatly fear. I have two friends who are deeply afraid that their children will drown, they are nervous wrecks around pools, lakes, beaches, kitchen sinks. Maybe not that last one, but the others can ruin the poor moms day, or even week if the anxiety is that bad. Another friend is terrified that something will happen to her child while he sleeps to the point that the child isn't allowed to have any blankets or stuffed animals in the crib. I never judge any Mom for her fears and over-protection for any instance because I know how hard it is to deal with the fear of something terrible happening to your child. I strongly urge anyone who reads this blog to not judge Moms you know for their fears. Even if they seem silly or outrageous, the Moms are just trying to protect their little ones.

My fear is the car. I have driving in the car with my son. I am always so fearful that we'll get in an accident and he will get hurt. I did months of research while I was pregnant before I chose a car seat for my son, and researched for many long hours again before I chose his convertible car seat not long before he turned one. The fact of the matter is that no one car seat is the best, but some are better than others and it is up to you to find out which one is best for your child/car/lifestyle. Another thing that you have to think about is keeping your child's car seat rear facing (RF) until they are AT LEAST 40 lbs (or whatever your car seat recommends). It isn't the law, but the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends keeping a child RF until they are at least two years old or the highest weight allowed by the car seat maker. I recommend that you keep in mind the weight guidelines are more important than the age guidelines. Think about it, what makes a kid safer when he is 24 months old than when he is 23 months. The weight is the key. I desperately want to turn my sons car seat around. He would be so much happier in the car if he were facing the front, he would be cooler in the Summer because the air vents could point right at him, it would be easier to get him in and out of the car, to hand him things while driving etc. I do have a point. My point is that keeping your child RF sucks. It is a huge pain in the butt, but it is the choice that will help keep their butt alive if there is an accident. Every parent has to make their own decision on this subject, and because the recommendations are not the law no one can fault you for whichever decision you make, just be sure to educate yourself so you can know exactly what your decision means.

And if you would like to see what made me stick with RF for my son check out this video.