What is my beef?  People who allow their children to ride in cars with either outdated car seats, or no carseats at all.  I was out with my family this past weekend and was horrified by a family of 3 adults and 5 children that piled out of a 5 seat vehicle.  Three of the children were under the age of 3.  The other two were under the age of 6-7 years of age.  Now you tell me how those kids can be properly in a car seat?  They can’t.  The third adult drove the car away before I was able to get the plate number.  The next time I see this, I will be reporting it to the police station.  You may think this is harsh.  I however, don’t think its harsh enough.  This is child endangerment!  Those children can’t speak up for themselves so somebody should.  The law should really buckle down on people who don’t put their children’s safety first.

Also, I was driving around on Saturday, and at two different garage sales I saw people trying to sell car seats.  I saw one infant car seat that looked like it was at least 10 years old.  Luckily nobody had bought it, but I am sure that some people do.  PLEASE…look at the expiry date.  Also, many of the reputable consignment stores do not sell car seats or cribs because of safety concerns.  This is because you don’t know the history of the car seat.  What if the previous owner was in an accident with that car seat?  Think of your child’s safety.  Be sure your car seat is installed properly, it is not expired, they have not outgrown it, and know the history of your car seat.

Below is a chart taken from Transport Canada’s website that outlines the expiry of the car seats.  If you look at the bottom of the seat/base, there will be a manufacturer’s date on it.