Baby Hates The Car Seat? 5 Easy Hacks to Prevent Car Seat Battles

Inside: Baby hates the car seat? Learn the 4 easy tips to help make your car seat battles seem like history!

We’ve all been there…

Where car door is flung open to maximum capacity as you are trying to wrangle your child into the car seat while your little one flails their body around like a fish out of water.

Then, as if perfectly on cue, you hear the subtle hum of the car behind you inching closer and closer trying to get into the spot that your open door is currently occupying.

You signal a sorry sign to the driver as your baby refuses to be bucked in.

The driver gives you *the eye roll*.

Trust me, we’ve ALL been there.

When your baby hates the car seat, running errands can be almost impossible. But it doesn’t have to be!

My daughter was the queen of car seat tantrums, but I started using fun tips and tricks and now, she loves her car seat!

I’ll show you the 5 easy tips that you can do when your baby hates the car seat and how to turn those struggles into successes.

Baby hates the car seat? Here are 5 easy mom hacks to end car seat battles:

Start on the right foot
Create a diversion
Have special car toys
Kiddie Playlist
Combine Trips

Let’s get down to the details of these easy tips!

What to do when your baby hates the car seat

One day Baby L was absolutely refusing to sit in her car seat…I’m talking head rearing, back-arching, screaming.

I was at a complete loss of what to do.

The driver honking at me didn’t help either.

If you’ve ever been in this frustrating pickle, I’m sending you a virtual hug!

These mom life hacks can help make car seat troubles seem like history 🙂

Before you start to walk to your car, here are 5 mini mom life hacks to make the car seat buckling as smooth as possible:

1. Start on the right foot

The first tip to preventing car seat troubles is to prepare your baby before you get to the car.

Before you start walking to the car, is when you’ll want to get everything ready that you need.

(Those items will come later in the next tips so keep reading!)

But the key is to start on the right foot.

If you know your baby hates the car seat, you want to keep your little one as calm as possible beforehand, so it’s not a completely apocalyptic situation.

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2. Create a diversion

The next tip to ending car seat battles is to distract your baby as much as possible.

Just like when your baby is getting a shot or doing something else they really hate, you want to create a diversion so you are drawing their attention away from the fact that they are getting in the car.

You can create a diversion by handing your child a:

favorite snack,
a little toy,
or even a shiny object (baby appropriate).

Pack your diaper bag with things that you KNOW your baby will love. Then before you even see the car, hand your baby the distraction.

Your little one will be so occupied that they don’t even care about being restrained.

Side Tip: If your baby gets distracted and then quickly notices they are sitting in the car seat and gets upset, use the next 2 tips!

3. Have special car toys

If your baby hates the car seat, you may need to take extra precautionary measures.

For me, this meant hiding special toys in the back seat pockets…

What are special toys?

A special car toy is a toy that your baby only plays with in the car. This can help make the car seat a fun, special activity instead of a dreadful one.

When Baby L was just 6 months old, she had a special car mobile that we would bring with us and it really calmed her down.

As she got older and turned 1, we made a little car toy bag that we left in the car with her baby dolls and “toy remote control” that she loved.

Now that she’s 2, we purchased this V-Tech car steering wheel and it has worked wonders!

Using “special” toys that your baby can only play with while in the car help makes the car a special/fun thing for your little one to look forward to.

4. Kiddie Playlist

The fourth tip to help your baby’s aversion to car seats is to create a fun kid playlist!

Put together a playlist of your child’s favorite songs or nursery rhymes that you know will get them excited. As you are buckling them in, sing the songs and make it fun!

Singing and doing nursery rhythm hand movements (such as the itsy bitsy spider) is another create a diversion for your baby.

This is a great way to get their mind off of being angry about being restrained.

These are the songs we have on our kid playlist:

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Theme Song
Fancy Nancy Theme Song
Let It Go from Frozen
You’ve Got a Friend in Me from Toy Story

If you have Spotify, you can also download a Mother Goose Nursery Rhyme playlist that is already created for you. All you have to do is press play!

5. Combine Trips

My new motto since becoming a mom is: never do 5 trips when it can only take 2!

It’s always best to plan your errands in a way that prevents your having to take your little one in and out of the car seat 10 different times.

I started running errands at places that have a cluster of stores so I can eliminate needing to drive to the next place. It’s been a sanity saver!

I learned to not just run my errands aimlessly. When you have a baby with you, you want to plan out your errands in a way that works best for your little one’s routine.

If there’s a way to hit one store that can eliminate 2 different errands, that’s the way to go!

Eliminating the need to have to put your baby in and out of the car 1000 times will help make your day run waaayyyy smoother.

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I know these little tips can seem small and insignificant but anything to make your day even 1% easier is always worth a try!

Remember, if your baby hates the car seat, ere are 5 easy mom hacks to end car seat battles:

Start on the right foot
Create a diversion
Have special car toys
Kiddie Playlist
Combine Trips

Now you don’t have to worry about rude drivers waiting for you to close your door. Your little one will go into their car seat without any struggles!

Keep reading these posts for more easy hacks!

Best Tips for Eating Out with Your Baby: Stress-Free

How to Make an Awesome Structured but Flexible Baby Routine

What My Baby’s Daily Schedule Looks Like

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