size & car seat/booster seat & shoe sizes

[Guest guest]

Kim,

I'm pretty sure that along with the weight limit there should be a

guideline for height so that if your son reaches a certain height but

does not yet exceed the legal weight guideline you would probably be

okay in taking him out of the booster seat. The laws were written with

the " average " child in mind, so most people tend to go by weight because

their children are of " average " weight for their age. The most important

thing is that the seatbelt fits your son properly. From what I

understand, a child's legs should be long enough so that their knees can

bend over the edge of the vehicle seat. When a child gets tall enough

this will happen, even if they do not yet weigh enough. Also you want to

make sure that the lap portion of the belt fits low and snugly over the

childs hips, not over the stomach or they may submarine under the belt

in the event of a collision and cause damage to the soft tissue area of

the abdomen. Then there's the shoulder belt....the shoulder portion of

the belt should be positioned in the middle between the edge of the

shoulder and the neck. If a child does not meet these guidelines without

a booster, then they should ride in one for their own safety. I wouldn't

get caught up on weight as much as I would on fit. The fit is what will

determine how well the child will be protected in a crash.

, 's mom (RSS, 33 months old)