Safety first

Today I took a trip down to my local fire department to have a certified fireman walk me through the safety steps of installing Ava's infant car seat and base. A lot of new parents may think that installing an infant car seat is fairly easy; I agree it is, but the safety precautions that should be taken are easily overlooked and pose as a threat to your baby if an accident should occur.

A few things the fireman brought to my attention:

1. Always check where your deplorable air bags are located in comparison to your infant car seat.
2. Always make sure the base is not inclined and always level with the seats of your car.
3. Never put towels or any other objects underneath the base to make it level. If you absolutely have to, a swimming noodle will suffice. (if you go to your local fire department they can actually install this for you)
4. Do not use anything in the infant car seat or on the infant car seat that was not designed or made by the manufacturer of your seat. 
5. Never allow the infant car seat to be pressed against the driver seat or passenger seat.
6. Check the manufacturers guide to see how the handle of the infant seat should be positioned while infant seat is in traveling route. 
7. Always make sure the base is securely latched to provided seat latches. If your car doesn't come equipped with latches you are able to use a seat belt. Make sure that there is no slack when using seat belts. You want the base to be so secure it doesn't move more than half of an inch away when tugged on. 
8. Never attach toys or other objects to the infant car seat. This can be harmful to your baby in the event of an accident. 
9. always make sure infant seat straps are level with their nipple line. You don't want the straps lower than that, and you don't want them too tight. If you can pinch the strap and find that you have excess strap, it's too loose. You should only be able to fit a pinky in the space from your baby and the strap buckle.

Those are just a few of the safety guidelines I learned today. I am taking our infant car seat back to the fire department once Ava arrives. The fire department wants to ensure that you are traveling correctly with your child in the vehicle.

By taking thirty minutes out of my day, I was able to make sure that Ava's car seat is installed the safest way possible. I was also able to triple check that her seat passed all safety guidelines. There is no better feeling than knowing you are doing everything right on your part for the safety of your infant.

That would be Ava's seat perfectly installed. A friend of mine went with today and she brought her 8 month old. She was able to ask the fireman safety guidelines regarding her daughter's age, front facing, etc.