Show your support
At 18 months. Yea, I know it’s really young but my son is VERY tall and the type of car I have is also very small so he was beyond uncomfortable back there. I couldn’t go anywhere without him throwing a tantrum and since a forwarded him, he’s happy!
At the age of 2. I find it much easier getting her in and out. She is also much happier being able to see more.
following
Following
It's recommended until 2, but any er RN or Dr will say longer the better. Paramedics too, the pastor at work (retired paramedic 40 yrs on job) lectures me every time I drive my husband's car. My son is hardly ever in his car. My son is 2 and can (with help getting up to the seat) get himself in his car seat on his own. Just needs help with the buckles
I did it just after he turned 2. It was probably still too early, but we travel frequently and our little guy was much happier.
We plan to keep our son (almost 27 months) RF as long as possible. His car seat maxes out at 40 and 50 lbs (2 models) unless he clearly becomes uncomfortable. We have the Evenflo 360 seats so getting him in and out is much easier than a traditional seat.
I wait until they meet the requirements for forward facing on the car seat. It should have a length and weight requirement
@Tara watch the 1 inch rule on that seat for rear facing. My son outgrow it RF at 2.5 🫠 so I got a new seat
After doing a ton of research and watching scary videos forever rear facing 🤣 but seriously our goal is around 4. That’s when the bones are more rigid and fused.
@Bryanna he was 48” at 2.5? Wow you must have tall genes lol. Our guy is pretty big and tall for his age like his dad but is only 33” tall
@Mary I also did this with my daughter, she didn't have space so I turned her around to face front. If the height or weight requirements are there, it should be fine
@Tara no no. Not the height. The 1 inch rule. Read over your manual but from the top of the head to the top of the shell you need 1 inch of space and to keep the straps below his shoulders we lost the 1 inch of shell space. Essentially evenflo made the headrest too small so kids grow out of it before the harness height. It’s very frustrating and a huge design flaw. It’ll work for my younger daughter and then forward facing when we’re ready for that for my oldest but still frustrating for such a pricey seat.
We haven’t yet - we will be waiting to max out the seat limits on the Graco Extend2Fit. We have a small car, but fortunately legs are bendy so for us safety comes first. If you’re on any of the car seat safety groups on FB, or have a CPST nearby they can intro you to how the spine and body reacts during an accident when forward facing.
to connect with women at a similar stage in life.
Trusted by 5M+ women
to connect with women at a similar stage in life.
Trusted by 5M+ women
My daughter turned 3 in may and she happily sits rear facing and I don’t look forward to the day I have to turn her around either!!
@Tara yes that’s the 1 inch rule and my son’s head is less than an inch from the top of the headrest. Sorry I use headrest/shell interchangeably, it’s the top of the car seat. Once they outgrow 1 thing (1 inch rule, height, or weight) you can’t use it anymore. And it son doesn’t pass the 1 inch rule anymore
@Bryanna but for the revolve they are 2 separate parts that’s why they height max specifically says 48”
I turned my son at 2 years old. Hes always been over the 100th percentile for height so I wasnt too fussed. Maybe with a smaller babe id wait till 2.5 🤷♀️. I know you can stay rear facing for like 5 years or something but personally my son enjoys the car more being apart of it lol
Thanks everyone !! Yes mine is 26 months and I turned her around at 2 . She is tall and seems way more comfortable. I make sure all strap and whatnot safe . In a life threatening crash no one safe either way
@Tara this is a standard rule for almost all rear facing seats regardless of the child’s height. My twins outgrew their mesa bucket seats when they were well within the height and weight limits because of this rule.
@Genevieve yes I know it’s the standard rule. Our son is 33”and has plenty of space yet with the headrest adjustability in the Evenflo 360. The specs for the seat specifically state up to 48” in height as the max when rear facing (unlikely to reach that tall unless they are a long legged child before maxing out the torso height with the 1”)
@Tara perfect. At first it seemed like you didn’t understand the implications of the 1 inch rule because you continued to reference the max height limit when responding to Bryanna.
My daughter will be atleast 3 before she’s turned forward, unless she hits the weight limit too soon x
@Tara I see what you mean. Just be mindful that the straps still have to come from at or below the shoulders. With my Mesas I could still move the headrest up 2 positions, but doing so would bring the straps above the shoulders. The seat is technically outgrown if the headrest cannot be set in a position that allows for both the straps to come from below the shoulders and the top of the headrest to be more than one inch above the child’s head.
@Tara make sure your straps are rounds behind their shoulder… if you were in an accident the child would slide up and could fall out of the straps with them being above
@Genevieve yep, there are multiple adjustment options for that as well
@Bryanna yep, there are multiple adjustment options for that as well
My daughter is 2 and still rear facing, we plan to turn her when she outgrows the rear facing limits