Today, Kim Kardashian (or someone who hangs out with her) made a car seat blunder.
She was on her way home from (or maybe even to) somewhere with her young daughter and an unidentified companion when she Instagrammed a picture of the two sleeping little girls sitting in side-by-side car seats. And yes, it feels totally weird to refer to a toddler as an unidentified companion. I have no idea who North’s snoozing bestie is, but the good people in the land of Instagram have pointed out that she’s buckled incorrectly:
https://instagram.com/p/9CUHylOS2H/
Disclaimer: I am NOT a fan of anything Kardashian. Kim, Khloe, Kris and whoever the rest of them are? Meh. I’m not a Hatey Haterson; I just don’t get why anyone in that family is even famous. But they are, and therefore, everything they do is plastered all over the Internet for all of us celebrity watchers to see… and to criticize.
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It took me a minute to realize what was amiss. Keep in mind, I’m old and I rode in my mom’s lap in the front seat in the ’70s when I was about this size, but the straps on the child on the right are too loose and the clip (which should be sitting on the chest) is too low. Kim’s not the first mom to do this, clearly. One study estimates a third of parents get this one wrong, while almost ALL parents (93 percent) make some sort of car seat safety mistake.
It took all of 47 seconds for the Internet to point out what Kim was doing wrong. Three thousand comments and going strong — the snarky, the helpful, the random ads for swimsuit giveaways.
While I can’t relate to life in a fishbowl, I can relate to being a good friend and neighbor. If you see someone buckling their kid into a car seat incorrectly, why not find a way to tell them politely? Those things come with manuals, but people aren’t perfect and sometimes we get stuff wrong.
So here’s the deal. As car seat safety expert Heathyr Kemp recently told SheKnows, “Your child’s chest clip should be centered on their sternum. For most kids, armpit level is a good guide. Consult your manual for more information on seat-specific placement.”
More: Dangerous car seat mistakes parents regularly make
As for those straps, if they’re too loose, a child can be ejected during a crash.
The more you know, people. Share this information if you think it will help keep a child safe, but don’t be a douchebag about it. Moms make mistakes and need to look out for each other. And yes, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but this includes Kim Kardashian. With all the talk about helping each other out instead of tearing each other down, maybe it just starts here.
Keep your kids safe, people.
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