Hi Moms,
My 15 month old son has gotten a "thing" where he hates being put in his carseat. The strange thing is, once he's in he's fine! He's never really liked the carseat much. As a baby he hating facing backward and cried whenever the car stopped moving. When I purchased his next carseat I got a huge Recaro Signo. He seemed to like facing foward and being so high up in his throne at first. As he got older he started to fight getting in by arching his back or holding himself up with his elbows and tucking his legs into the air, to fight it. It's especially bad if I'm trying to go to many places in one day and he doesn't feel that he's had enough time to play before getting back into the car. so a day with even just 3 errands is hard. It's like he has to exhaust a place/situation before he'll happily get back in the car. I had many tricks, such as, using a special toy or trea, telling him how "big boys" get in their carseats, talking to a stuffed toy (gossip style) about how cool "big boys" get in… etc. however it seems he's gotten wise to all my tricks and lately it's gotten really bad. I can only try to coax him into his seat for so long before I give him a countdown and try to gently force him into his seat. I think this is the part he hates and now he starts shaking his head no the moment he even thinks we're getting into the car. Ug! It's so stressful because he screams/fights/shakes his head no like it's the worst thing in the worle and I feel like I'm being a bad mom. I need to be able to run errands without dreading leaving a place. The strangest part is, no matter how bad the struggle, as soon as we're moving he's fine. sometimes he'll even be all crooked and slouched in his seat from the struggle. I should also add that he's a very spirited little guy. He's sweet but he's also having problems hitting and especially taking toys from other babies his age. He's small and quick on his feet.
A little about me:
I love all things natural and am very proud that I had a natural birth at home and am a breastfeeding mom.
Thanks for your help!
Well done – you sound like a great mum. also well done for always insisting he gets in the car seat, no matter how much he protests. That is a very important thing. You seem to have so many strategies already, I wonder if you are just looking for reassurance that you are not hurting or damaging with these struggles. if so, be reassured, you are not. It's one of those things you just have to do, whatever, like cleaning teeth. so keep up the good work and wait for nature to help him grow out of it.
15 Month Son HATES Getting In His Carseat?
