How far is too far?

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I understand that we’re all passionate about safety.  And at some point or another, most of us have had to deal with criticism from friends or family members who think we’ve  taken this whole safety thing too far and just gone right off the deep end.  Usually, we just brush off these ignorant remarks because deep in our hearts we know that we’re right and obviously they just can’t stand to admit it.  We’re aware of the fact that MVC’s are the leading cause of death to children in the US and we’re all determined to protect our children to the best of our abilities. That’s our job as parents and caregivers and we all take that responsibility very seriously.    
 
But how are we to know if we’ve really gone too far?  Certainly our safety-addicted friends at car-seat.org would never stage an intervention on our behalf.  Our spouses would rather walk across hot coals than incur our wrath by suggesting that maybe, just maybe, we’re being a bit too extreme.

So, who’s gonna give it to ya straight and tell you when it’s time to chillax?  Who’s gonna remind you that you can’t save the world and completely eradicate all injuries to children in MVCs – no matter how desperately you want to?  Who’s gonna tell you when it’s time to step away from that vehicle in the Walmart parking lot because clearly you’re not dealing with an appreciative and open-mined victim?
 
CarseatBlog will! 
 
However, the first step to getting help is to admit that you have a problem.  Don’t think you have a problem?  Get in line.  And while you’re there – take our short survey:
 
1. Do you find yourself repeatedly trying to talk your SIL into buying a Radian XTSL to rear-face your 7-year-old DN who weighs 43 lbs?
 
2. When you go grocery shopping do you spend 20 minutes thinking about the most appropriate way to secure these projectiles for the ride home?
 
3.  Have you purchased more CRs for other people’s kids than you have for your own children?   

4.  Have you ever considered gluing sheets of EPS/EPP foam to the rear windows in a vehicle that doesn’t have side curtain ABs?
 
5.  Do you lose sleep thinking about your neighbor’s child who is 4 years old and rides in a Turbo HBB? 
 
6.  Do you respond “ABSOLUTELY”, without a second thought, when someone posts a poll asking whether you would put a small, immature 13-year-old back into a 5-point harness?

7.  Have you ever refused to ride the monorail at WDW because you considered it too risky?

8.  Do you have anxiety attacks when you see properly restrained forward-facing 2-year-olds?

9.  Do you always remember to secure your purse with an available safety belt?

10.  On Halloween, do you hand out copies of the 5-Step Test flyer instead of candy? (If you hand it out WITH candy – that doesn’t count as a yes.)

If you answered yes to more than 1 question above – please do yourself a favor and go volunteer some of your time at carseat check events in the lowest, low-income inner-city area you can find within driving distance.  If you don’t have any impoverished inner-city areas within driving distance, then a rural, migrant farm worker community will suffice.  All kidding aside, these are the types of places where your knowledge, passion and dedication to CPS are desperately, desperately needed.  And seeing the frightening reality of how these children ride around every day will really help you to appreciate the beautiful sight of a properly restrained, albeit forward-facing, 2-year-old.  Everything in life is relative and a healthy perspective will keep you focused on the bigger picture (and help you avoid going off the deep end in the process).

25 Comments

  1. Jools July 5, 2010
  2. NicoleCPST July 2, 2010
  3. Tanya July 1, 2010
  4. BookMama July 1, 2010
  5. CPSDarren July 1, 2010
  6. Philly Mom July 1, 2010
  7. Heather (murphydog77) July 1, 2010
  8. Danielle June 30, 2010
  9. CarSeatPoncho June 30, 2010
  10. capeKo71 June 30, 2010
  11. Kecia June 30, 2010
  12. Heather (murphydog77) June 30, 2010
  13. Jennifer mom to my 7 June 30, 2010
  14. Anna Enzweiler June 30, 2010
  15. chickabiddy June 30, 2010
  16. Jools June 30, 2010
  17. Jools June 30, 2010
  18. macbump June 30, 2010
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  22. Kecia June 30, 2010
  23. Judi June 30, 2010
  24. BookMama June 30, 2010
  25. Shauna June 30, 2010