OBaby hates his car seat. Just being set in it often brings him to tears, and we’re not even talking about the straps yet.
Our strapping in process is probably comical to the by-stander, filled with the positive reinforcement of over-done smiles and high pitched happy voices that have the subtlest of “just please don’t cry” tones. And even if we make it sob-free through the shoulder straps and the five-point harness system, we could lose it if the click in is too jolting, I move too slow, or Mars is too in the 8th house. You just never know.
I went to a baby super store (where they don’t, in fact, sell babies) and bought an over priced jingly animal figurine to hang from the car seat handle. ‘Maybe give him something to look at?’ I thought. Except it dangles exactly 3.5 inches from OBaby’s eyes and he has to cross them to see it. Fail.
Ok, so I have a baby who likes to be held and don’t get me wrong, I love to hold him, but MAMA STILL WANTS TO GET OUT OF THE HOUSE, which usually involves the car. Some days my nerves are stronger than others and I can stomach the necessary cries that come with getting from point A to point B, but other days I pull over on the shoulder of the highway and try desperately to calm my baby. A couple of times I have cried along with him because there is nothing I can do. Well, other than not leaving the house.
But that really isn’t an option.
I’m not sharing this to be Nelly Negative, I’m sharing because I need help. I have tried classical music (cranked) singing to him, that dumb $8.00 hanging toy, and finding my happy place, but none of them have had any consistent results.
What worked for your kids? Will this end soon? Could his straps be on wrong or is this fear and loathing of a car seat fairly common?
Seriously, what’s a girl gotta do to have a tear-free grocery trip?
Get the Lamaze rattles, they are much shorter and are available at Target for a couple bucks. The jingle and dance nicely, are cute and bright and baby won’t have to cross his eyes. That or the Manhattan Whoozit activity whirly gig. It never much interested Lucy but it seemed to fascinate every one elses baby.
Oh, get a Praise! Baby cd or the imagination movers CD, or even one of the Disney movies “Greatest Hits” cd’s. We found any thing specifically geared towards children, especially if the songs were sung by children Lucy loved them. There is an AMAZING CD out there called “Love” and it is the Beatle’s greatest hits sung by children. Lucy LOVED it. Unfortuantely I never bought it, they played it at daycare. I know it is on Amazon. Maybe those things are worth looking into.
Oh! One of those soft plastic books that have mirrors in them so Baby can see his reflection, Lucy dug those too. I think the one we have is called “Where is baby” or something like that.
i think this is fairly common and i had 2 babies that were the same way. sometimes, they just grow out of it. others need “things” to get them through. here are a couple things that might work. a little mirror that attaches to the back of your cars seat. a big one though, so he can see himself. also, the baby einstein cd’s work wonders. but, just remember, this too will pass. and all too quickly.
It is a common thing to have babies who don’t like the carseat, car rides, or the combination of those. Maybe some toys and books that are especially for the car. Something he doesn’t always see might catch his interest and calm him down. A routine that is pleasant for the baby to remember. At our church our nursery has the same music playing in the background at pickup and drop off so that the kids start to recognize the happy calming music with happy things like playing and knowing that their parents really do come back for them when they hear that music. It really works too. Maybe have a cd in the car playing that he likes. Have a couple to rotate from so that when he does get in the car crying maybe the music and/or the car toys calm him. It is normal and he will outgrow it though. Hang in there. :)
Babies like white noise since it reminds them of being in the womb. My baby tends to fuss in the car too so I tune the radio in between stations until I find static and then turn it up really loud. If I crank it, he usually quiets down for a bit. I hope that helps!
My son never liked being in his baby carseat (maybe because it was rear-facing??), and it wasn’t until he was in a forward facing carseat that he was fine in the car. So… a year about? Good luck!
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