Better Late Than Never

Hi!!! This is Sunee....I sort of missed my day this week!!! It was President's Day weekend...lots of family visiting. Anyway, my Dad wrote a really great article in response to Joni's car-seat saga. If you didn't read Joni's Saturday entry, read it first. This will introduce you to our wonderfully, insightful Dad!!!

Sunee

As I read Joni's blog entry I thought how the system is taking advantage of all of you. When you were children some of you drove around in your mother's lap (some were actually nursing while we drove, imagine that!).

We did not have government approved car seats and cribs and lead free everything. What? Were we not caring parents? Were we irresponsible? To think that the one car seat we used was really a baby flipper? In case of an accident it ejected the child away from the vehicle like a mid-evil catapult.

Now, I think all of this safety stuff is good. But we need to settle down and take a deep breath. The reason your seat is no good after five years is because some government person realized that SOME parents do not take care of their things and perhaps SOME part has broken, like the belts or straps and so in order to fully implement the "nanny state" they decided to say that any seat over five years old is no good. If you use one, you are BAD!!!!

Now, about the crib, and this is why the DI won't take any of this stuff--they would rather a poor baby from a poor family sleep in a cardboard box than a used crib--is because somebody called that guy on TV when they did something irresponsible and their baby got hurt, or worse, died.

Here is a solution. Permanently disable the side so that it cannot fall down. I would probably use wire on the bottom or better yet either a bolt or a screw. I can make that thing so that it would not go down! But stop for a minute. Whoever invented that concept should have a special place for him (or maybe her) in heaven. The first one we had that did this was great!

Would not a better bumper around the mattress help?

OK. I am not in-charge. But those that are, and those that do not want to be sued, also want to sell more product. Think of all the babies in the world that do not have less that five year old stuff and are OK. Think of the cliff dwellers and their babies. Imagine them not having guard rails on those cliffs!

I know you all want to do the best thing, and none of you want your kids riding with me in my truck. But just think of all the memories you have of going to the dump. Today you couldn't go, even if the reason I was going was to get rid of all the unsafe, outdated, perfectly usable baby furniture. Maybe I am approaching this all wrong. Maybe we should just ban everything. Think of how lovely Disneyland would be without strollers. Maybe that is too far, lets start with double stroller, especially double-wide strollers. Especially jacked-up double-wides-front-to-back-big-enough-for-grandma-too strollers.

God bless you all for your desires to protect your children. Our biggest fear is that one of them will be injured on out watch. So no going to the dump with grandpa.

Love,
Wreckless and irresponsible, Dad

OK, so there is my funny Dad!! I love you Dad! I wouldn't have missed those special trips to the dump and ice cream at Dallas Green's. I cherish the alone time I got with my Dad!! And guess what???? I lived through everything without a carseat!!!