Ridge Meadows Doula Services

Your experienced Doula Collective (Maple Ridge, Pitt Meadows and beyond!)

Think your child is ready for a booster seat?

 

Many parents want to know when their child is ready to ride in a booster seat. In Canada, the law says children can ride in a booster once they reach 40 pounds. Some seats also specify the child must be at least 4 years old, but others don’t, so out in the world, we see many children in boosters as young as 3 or even 2. Why is this a problem, you ask?

The seat belt must fit a child properly to be safe and effective. When a very small child is placed in a booster, often times, the shoulder belt is cutting across the neck instead of being centered on the shoulder, and the lap belt is on the belly instead of over the hips. Poor belt placement puts stress on soft tissue and organs, instead of bone. Poor belt placement can also mean the seat belt is not holding the child as well as it should. This could cause serious injuries when force from the seat belt is exerted on soft tissues such as the belly, damaging internal organs that aren’t being protected by bones.

In addition to fit issues, many children do not possess the impulse control needed to properly sit in a booster seat for the duration of the car ride until they are around 5 ½ or 6 years old. Unlike in a 5-point harness where the child physically cannot move out of position once buckled, boostered children have a lot more freedom. If children are bending forward to pick up a dropped snack, wrenching their torso around to see a passing firetruck, leaning forward to find a book in the seat pocket in front of them, or reaching across the width of the car to poke a sibling, then the seat belt will not be positioned properly, and it will not provide proper protection if a crash occurs. The risk during a crash is the child’s head striking the interior of the vehicle: windows, seats, or other people’s heads.

Some children will fit in their 5-point harness seat until they are 7 or even 8, and leaving them in harnessed seats is a great idea especially if you don’t feel like they can sit properly for the whole ride. Some boostered children will fall asleep and end up leaning out of position either forward or to the side. If this is the case, a 5-point harness is your best bet. However, there are reasons why parents may put children into a booster before they outgrow their harnessed seat. A family may want to pass the harnessed seat down to a younger sibling and move the older child into a booster. Or, perhaps due to frequent carpooling, it may be better to use a booster because other parents may not know how to install your child’s 5-point harness seat. An improperly installed or improperly used harnessed seat is much more dangerous than a properly used booster, provided the child is over 40 pounds and sits properly all the time.

There are other reasons why you may want to delay moving your child into a booster. If you have three car seats installed in a row, it may have been difficult to install those seats, but imagine trying to stick your hand in between to buckle a seat belt every day? In most cases, it’s easier for children to buckle themselves into their 5-point harness rather than wedge their hands between seats to buckle the seat belt. Also, if your child is not quite ready for the booster, and still sometimes moves out of position, it can be quite distracting for you as the driver to keep glancing back in the rear view mirror to check.

If children outgrow their 5-point harness seat, and aren’t ready for a booster, either because of weight or maturity, there are 5-point harness seats with very high top harness slots available, such as the Britax Frontier and the Evenflo Sureride.

So how do you know whether your children are booster-ready? Once your child is consistently over 40 pounds, and at least around 5 ½, you may want to consider booster-training. You know your child best and are the best judge of whether your child is developmentally ready. Take your child booster shopping. Try the booster in your vehicle to insure it fits well, and the seat belt fits well over your child: lapbelt should fit low over the hips or upper thighs, and never over the belly, and the shoulder belt should sit flat in the center of the shoulder, not falling off the shoulder edge, or cutting into the neck. Make sure the shoulder belt retracts back easily if your child moves slightly then moves back. You can start by telling your child that the new seat is for kids who can sit still really nicely in the car, and go over examples of what’s allowed and what’s not allowed while riding in the car. For example, you might tell your child “You can move your arms and legs, but keep your body still so the seat belt always fits properly. If you drop something, you must wait until we stop, and I will get it for you.” You may want to start booster training during short trips where another adult can watch the new booster rider carefully to give feedback or warnings, then gradually try longer rides before putting the child into a booster full-time.

We recommend first putting your child into a high back booster. This establishes some physical boundaries, and high backs have head support for a tired or sleeping child. Once children do well in a high back booster for some time, and no longer fall asleep in the car, you can try a no back booster. Remember that if your vehicle doesn’t have headrests at least up to the tips of the child’s ears, you would need a high back booster in that seating position. In this case, check that you purchase a high back that does not require head support behind it.

So, the key points to remember are:

  • By law in BC, children must be over 40 pounds, and usually also at least 4 years old, to ride in a booster.
  • However, many 4 and even 5 year olds aren’t ready for the freedom, so it’s better to keep them in a 5-point harness until they are ready. Don’t be in a hurry to move them into a booster just because all their friends are riding in one. Most are ready by age 5 ½ or 6.
  • Remember that boosters can *only* be used with lap/shoulder belts, never with lap-only seat belts.
  • Take your child shopping to get a well-fitting and comfortable booster seat.
  • Establish some rules with your child to respect the new found freedom that comes with boostering.

Here are some useful links:

A list of technician-recommended booster seats: http://vicarseattechs.com/our-favourite-seats/dedicated-booster-seats/

Information on the booster stage including a list of which high back boosters don’t require head support behind them, and a graphic of good belt fit vs poor belt fit for a boostered rider: http://vicarseattechs.com/2012/to-booster-or-not-to-booster/

To ask car seat questions, or to connect with a local technician, join this Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/FraserValleyCarSeatSafety/

 

-Elaine Wardley, CRST

Research Shows The Effectiveness of Doulas

A 2011 study from the Cochrane Collaboration Pregnancy and Childbirth Group showed clear evidence for the effectiveness of doulas in creating positive birth outcomes.

Hiring a doula is part of creating a birth you are happy with, asking questions, trusting your care provider and informed consent are all pieces to the pie. Research does indicate…

 

 

 

 

fewer medical interventions
less vacuum/forcep delivery
less analgesic use
less Cesarean Births
report more positive birth experience

Find our magnets for a prize 

To  make summer just a little more fun we are  having a fun community contest.  let’s have some fun community spirit and share this contest with your friends and family. Every one likes prizes (and coffee!)

There are 3 (edit: 4!) vehicles in Maple Ridge that have the Ridge Meadows Doula Services magnet on them. 2 cars and 2 mini vans. keep an eye on our Facebook page  for hints.  The contest is simple….

 

 

 

1- take the magnet off our car

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2- post a PUBLIC photo on your Facebook page of you holding the magnet

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3- meet us in Maple Ridge to trade out magnet for your Tim Hortons gift card.

***the magnets may not be taken from our homes. 1 prize per person. Contest is for July 2015 only***

 

Keeping your cool as a parent (being PROACTIVE)

 

When dealing with misbehaviors (either your own or your child’s) you basically have two choices on how to handle them.  Reactive or proactive.

 

Choice number 1:  reactive.  Being reactive is the gut reaction that we have when we feel that a situation is spiraling out of control. That we are at the end of our rope.  That we just can’t take this one more second!!!   It’s screaming, yelling, making demands that may be unreasonable or certainly requested in an unreasonable way.  It’s using punitive punishments like time out or taking away privileges that may or may not have anything to do with the actual circumstances.   Now if your Mommy guilt is in overdrive after reading that, and you think you are going to do or say something reactive, fear not!  We’ve all be there and we’ve all done it.  The trick is to stop being reactive and move towards choice number 2…

 

Choice number 2: Being proactive is all about making a plan.  Could be a mental plan, (note to self, kind of a thing) but I’ve seen parents sit down and actually write it out.  It’s thinking ahead and putting knowledge into how and why we are addressing with the misbehavior.

 

So a simple plan might look like this:

 

1. figure out what the misbehavior is that you want to change.  (what are the unmet needs?)

2. decide on what your end goal is.  (hint: to change the misbehavior long term) **Be aware of his developmental stage and try to make sure that your expectations are appropriate for that age

3. think of ways that you can teach your child that will really mean something to him. For example, if your child is a visual learner maybe a social story or pictures will help him to really understand what your expectations are or what is socially acceptable.

4. put it into practice

5. keep doing it. be consistent.  Your plan might not work right away, because let’s face it, any behavior takes a while to change.  Or you might need to tweak your plan to make it more effective, but try to stay with it.

 

There are a lot of reasons to be proactive with your child’s misbehavior.  It helps children with self regulation which is a fancy term that means;  to identify, understand and appropriately meet their own needs.  It helps them to draw on and cultivate their natural empathy and sympathy.  And each time they navigate a situation in an suitable way and encounter success,  it gives them higher self confidence and self esteem .

 

Interestingly enough the definition of insanity (according to Albert Einstein) is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.  So if being reactive is not working or only working in the short term you might want to try being proactive.  One step ahead of a reoccurring situation.  It takes time, it takes commitment, it takes all of your supermom powers but once the goal is reached it’s well worth the effort.

 

Sandra and her decades of Early Childhood experience is often seen as Nicole’s side kick in parenting classes. She has an extensive knowledge on child development, behaviours and discipline. When Sandra is not teaching she can be found knitting all the cute baby hats you doula clients find in your swag bags.

What your child is LEARNING while playing outside

 

Getting outside is super simple when it is summer or hot and the weather is just right. Opening the back door and letting the kids explore, make a mess, paint, run, jump, sing is all spring/summer expectation. But what are your children learning while they are outside? For me once I learned and really mindfully thought about all the skills my child was gaining, we decided playing outside was not just for warm weather. We bundle up, put on our rain gear and just have fun (and LEARN!)

I hope this post helps educate parents and adults, but also encourages you adults to take off your shoes, run though the sprinkler, jump on the trampoline or do some gardening. There is so much evidence below and everyone can grow and learn.

dirt

 

My child likes pink, barbies, twirly dresses and DIRT. Yup, mud pies, cakes, toes, hands feet and all in the DIRT. Many studies have shown dirt to be good for your brain? Apparently, there are types of bacteria that are naturally found in soil which activate the neurons that produce serotonin – a key chemical in many bodily functions. So really DIRT makes people happier, it’s science.

 

Indy truck

 

 

Being in nature helps stimulate the curiosity and creativity of children. Do you know what a dump truck can be used for? Spend 30 minutes and you will see how many tasks that tiny yellow truck can have.

 

get outside- animal

 

The more we spend outside with my daughter the more I notice her compassion. She is so observant of any part of nature, plants, flowers, animals. But recently she is noticing litter. She get’s really wound up when she sees trash on the ground. She picks it up and is already a tiny environmentalist who is set on not leaving mother earth with crap all around.
trampoline

 

Bouncing on a trampoline is more than just for gross motor it increases blood flow to the brain and heightens mental alertness.

 

get outside rain

 

 

Problem solving skills- When my daughter and I were running through this puddle repeatedly she was determining the best path, where we could safely stay dry and where to best splash zone was. She was a leader in this activity guiding me though the rain.

outside 2

 

Do you know what happens when you are barefoot? Research indicates that electrons from the Earth have antioxidant effects that can protect your body from inflammation and its many well-documented health consequences. For most of our evolutionary history, humans have had continuous contact with the Earth.  Read more here

 

outside 4

 

 

Green outdoor settings appear to reduce ADHD symptoms in children across a wide range of individual, residential, and case characteristics Said this study.

 

outside 5

 

Playing outside increases flexibility for children (and adults, this wobbly thing is tricky!)

 

outside

 

Playing outside can can help protect children against stress, according to a new study by two Cornell University environmental psychologist.  Check out the study published in  Environment and Behavior.
get outside- parent exercise

 

 

Parents can use their time to build massive biceps, or at least have fun getting active.

 

outside 6

 

 

Playing outside has many benefits for the eyes. Recent evidence says children who play outside are less likely to have myopia (nearsighted). Help your child by NOTICING. Point out the pine cone, stick, pretty flower and pretty soon they will be pointing them out to you.

 

outside swing

 

When a child was on a swing they engage core muscles as well as muscles in the hand and arms to hold on. This teaches balance and coordination.

 

outside D

 

Bikes and scooters that requite balance teach children new skills and self confidence. A bike is something they start off with as a trike and then those skills can grow with them and their confidence also expands. Hold your breath parents because there will be some blood and tears, but they keep on getting back on and then you get to see the smile on their face when they have mastered the skill.