Missouri car seat safety laws require children under age four and under 40 pounds to ride in a federally approved child car seat that is appropriate for the child's age and size. Children ages 4 through 7 who weigh more than 40 pounds but less than 80 pounds or are not at least 4'9" tall must ride in an appropriate child car seat or booster seat. Children ages 8 to 18 must wear a seat belt.
So while they do not have to be in the back seat (like I originally thought, till I researched...and let me say, it shocks me that it's not law for them to be in the back seat!), they clearly have to be in a car seat/booster seat, depending on their age and/or weight. So WHY do people just blatantly ignore that fact and take such risks with their children's lives?
Once when I was younger, a friend told us of how she always answered the question from her daughter, "Why do I have to always be in my car seat?" with the answer, "Because I love you so much that I want to make sure you are safe while we're driving." But then one day, the little girls' grandma came to visit and Grandma took her shopping but didn't move the car seat. The little girl asked Grandma about it and Grandma said, "Oh, we're not going far....it will be okay for you to ride up here with me in a seat belt." Well, the little girl came home crying, running to her mom. When asked why she was crying, the little girl replied that Grandma didn't love her anymore. When quizzed even more, she said she knew Grandma didn't love her anymore cuz, "She didn't make me get in my car seat to make me safe."
How true!!! We LOVE our children so much that we want to do everything we can to keep them safe while on the roads. What does it say for the ones who don't take that extra step to ensure the safety of our children? It just bothers me when I see grown, responsible adults (currently 2 of my neighbors who do this all the time!) who will put a little kid in the front seat. One of the neighbors will take the time to at least strap the child in the seat belt. But the other one doesn't bother. Her granddaughter is simply allowed to ride all over the front seat, and at times we've seen her go by with the little girl in her lap 'helping' her drive. !!!!!! It's unfathomable to me!
Brent got mad last year when the MO law was changed to require children who weighed less than 80 lbs to remain in a car seat if they were under 7. That law used to be 60 lbs I believe, but don't quote me on that. Anyway, he was very close to reaching that point where he no longer had to use a booster seat, but with the change in the law, it made him have to remain in his booster seat. He was pretty upset and (like his mama!) pretty vocal about his opinion! We had to explain (a few times) that the law was changed because they were seeing children getting hurt even with the law the way it was before, and they thought that if they extended it a bit, it would help save children's lives. And since we want him to be safe so we have him around a long time, and because we want to obey the laws like God wants us to, we will follow the law and he will stay in his booster seat. He wasn't happy, but he complied. :)
Please find out what the laws are in your state and OBEY them! Keep your children safe!!!
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