Car Seat Advice
It's the age-old question of "how do you get your child into a car seat or stroller?"
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There comes a time where your child will refuse to get into the car seat/stroller because what is the fun of being strapped into a chair that doesn't let you move or play? Who wants to do that? 🤷🤷🤷
First things first...make sure your child is not hungry! They will not get into a car seat or stroller hungry! That being said you do need to get from point A to point B.
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Most times, if you simply slow down (physically and with the tone of your voice) and provide your child with few extra minutes, they will most likely get into the car seat on their own. Children don’t transition as quickly as adults so we need to provide a time cushion.
Here are some tips if you find yourself in a rush. 1) When walking to the car, say "look, let's pick up this stick on the street" (I find a stick or a leaf). Typically they want to hold it and I say: "You may hold it WHEN you sit in your car seat." Living in the city you don't always have sticks lying around. If you open the back door of my car, you will often see extra sticks and rocks that I keep on hand from hikes for when I need them.
2) Get the wiggles out before you get in the car. For example, see how high they can jump, or run to the car “as fast as they can!”
3) If you truly can’t give them a few extra minutes, then apologize and say “I didn’t give us enough time to get into the car. I’m sorry. When we get home, you may get out of the car yourself and show me how you buckle the seatbelt.
4) Lastly, if it becomes a struggle and you truly have to go, provide them with the autonomy while holding the boundary. Say "I can put you in your car seat or you may put yourself in the car seat. Oh, do you want to put yourself in your car seat?" Then you may allow them to buckle their own chest clip too. It is actually fun to see how accomplished they feel when they can do it on their own.
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You should also remind them that, "it is my job to keep you safe when we drive a car. I have to keep myself buckled in my seat and you have to stay buckled in your car seat to keep us safe."
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I know it is frustrating, but spending the extra fee minutes to validate their feelings and using the above tactics may help prevent the escalation of a temper tantrum.