Dr. Mom: Don't hurry to 'graduate' your child out of his car seat
When you find out you're expecting, one of the first items you put on a gift registry is a car seat.
It's a big and important decision. You've likely done a little research and some comparison shopping before deciding on "the one."
There's a reason you put so much thought and effort into picking out this one single item: You want your precious newborn bundle to be safe.
So, when the new recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics on car seats came out in March, I was surprised to hear that many parents were less than thrilled with the new findings and recommendations.
The academy noted, for instance, that children younger than 2 who ride in a rear-facing car seat are 75 percent less likely to die or be severely injured in a major motor vehicle accident. They revealed that car crashes remain a leading cause of death in children ages 4 and older.
Even without taking a hard look at the statistics, all we need to do is to take a look at what we do most of the day. We drive. We drive our kids to school, to day-care, to preschool, to soccer practice, to swimming lessons and on and on.
Sports Capsule
Second annual Big Game Boot Sock Challenge
Operation with “LOVE from HOME” is having its second annual “Sock it To ’Em” Boot Sock Challenge between Napa High School and Vintage High School for Big Game XL.
Operation with “LOVE from HOME” sends care packages to the troops for the holidays. Vintage and Napa have challenged each other to collect the most dark colored socks during Big Game week.
The public can bring new dark colored socks to the activities offices of Napa or Vintage this week. The Big Game is Friday night at 7:30 p.m. at Memorial Stadium.
The winner of this challenge will receive a plaque during the Big Game. For more information, call 251-2007 or go to www.opwithlove.org
Optimist Youth Basketball sign-ups still open
Seventh- and eighth-grade boys are still able to register for the upcoming 2011-12 Optimist Youth Basketball season by phoning division coordinator Jake Wilson at 258-0118.