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And just like that, the car seats are now forward-facing

"The time has come", the Walrus said,

"to talk of many things:

of shoes and ships, of sealing wax, 

of cabbages and kings,

and why the sea is boiling hot,

and whether pigs have wings..."

– Lewis Carroll 


I bought the Diono Radian 3QXT and the Clek Foonf many months ago because I preferred that Donan stay rear-facing for as long as possible (or at least beyond his second birthday). After all, this is the safest seat orientation for him as an infant and a toddler. One of his teachers commended me for keeping Donan's seat rear-facing as long as we had. I told her this might be the last week of it because Donan had figured out how to unbuckle the chest clip to look forward. 

That same weekend, I worked on reversing the orientation of his car seats (one is in my car, and the other is in Daddy's car). I had entirely forgotten how heavy his seats were! They are both heavyweights! Anyway, uninstalling them was more challenging than I had expected. The anti-rebound bars of both seats were difficult to remove. I also had to remove the base of the Foonf (designed for rear-facing seats) and add an extension to the strap of the Radian. Fortunately, Donan's weight is currently within the LATCH system's limit. I have yet to do a seatbelt installation (how far into the future depends on his growth spurts). Both seats require a top tether, so I had to learn where the tethers are in both vehicles.


I thought we were good to go once the seat was reinstalled. But wait, there's more! I should have taken into account Donan's height. His shoulders were taller than the harness slots being used on the Foonf. Therefore, I had to uninstall the seat, adjust the shoulder straps, change the crotch buckle strap from short to long, and reinstall it. 

The impact of the change to forward-facing was immense. Donan started talking more about what he saw through the windshield and the windows. We had long discussions on giant trevallies, tuna fish, and trains. And I gained a very enthusiastic co-pilot (or backseat driver, depending on the mood).

This is another one of our lasts. And yet, I also recognise it as another of our beautiful beginnings. I am slowly but surely saying goodbye to the toddler who has proven that parenthood is filled with long days and short years. I am saying hello to the inquisitive preschooler who likes to observe, comment, and sing.

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