Holly Choi

Have a moment to help out our small business? Share this post to let your friends know about our Instagram account that is packed to the brim with ... child safety content. The best part? It's all captioned, so you can watch it when you're awake with a baby in the middle of the night (with the sound off!) Follow us here: https://instagram.com/safebeginnings/ See more

We are THRILLED to announce that our third online course is now available! "Getting It Right from Day One" covers how to keep your baby safe in their car seat d...uring their first year of life. Presented by Holly Choi, nationally-certified Child Passenger Safety Technician-Instructor (CPST-I) Becoming a parent for the first time is challenging and often confusing; with all sorts of contradictory information being given between the government, health care providers, friends and family. Though installing car seats shouldn’t be complicated, it can be an extremely daunting task for new parents, experienced parents and other caregivers. This course is designed to help you de-mystify installing your car seat, clarify best practices and get you to a place of confidence regarding your child’s safety in your vehicle. Learn more: https://safebeginnings.thinkific.com/courses/getitright

Thank you to everyone who's been in a class in 2020 so far! This weekend we experienced the longest waitlists we've ever had for our courses and we are doing ou...r best to make more classes available for everyone to join us. For those who haven't been able to grab a spot in our classes, here is what we have AVAILABLE in the next few weeks: Our next course with ANY space: Tomorrow: Sunday, February 9th 6:30-8:30pm at MOVE - Yoga.Pilates.Dance in New Westminster [just ONE spot left] Registration for this workshop: https://safebeginnings.ca/register Next VANCOUVER and SURREY courses with space: Tuesday, February 18th 1:00-3:00pm at Bed Bath and Beyond on West Broadway (Vancouver) [just 4 spaces left] Monday, March 2nd 6:30-8:30pm at Pomegranate Community Midwives in East Vancouver Wednesday, March 11th 6:30-8:30pm at Westside Midwives in Kitsilano Friday, March 13th 7:00-9:00pm at Community Birth Program in Surrey Saturday, March 21st 10:00am-12:00pm at The Childbearing Society in East Vancouver Registration for all the above workshops: https://safebeginnings.ca/register Upcoming courses in the next three weeks with spaces available: Sunday, February 16th 10:00am-12:00pm at Kahlena Movement Studio in North Vancouver Tuesday, February 18th 1:00-3:00pm at Bed Bath and Beyond on West Broadway (Vancouver) [just 4 spaces left] Saturday, February 22nd 2:00-4:00pm at Yoga Spirit & Wellness in Burnaby Sunday, February 23rd 10:00am-12:00pm at Terra Nova Midwifery in Steveston (Richmond) Sunday, March 1st 2:00-4:00pm at Epic Yoga & Fitness in Maple Ridge [just 1 space left] Registration for all the above workshops: https://safebeginnings.ca/register Also still has space, but a slightly longer course that offers certification upon completion: Sunday, February 16th 1:00-6:00pm at Kahlena Movement Studio in North Vancouver This course includes all the content of our 2-hour Infant/Child CPR workshop, but adds in necessary items to bring the course content up to a certification level; including: bleeding, burns, heart attack, stroke and the use of defibrillators (AED). We only offer this once per month, it is always at this venue. Registration for this course: https://safebeginnings.ca//2-first-aid-for-the-infant-and/

And just like that, it's December! Here's a quick holiday safety tip regarding Christmas stockings and toddlers: Weighted mounts/hooks on a mantle can be ver...y hazardous to small children; as they're known to pull on the stocking and have the mount fall onto them. We keep our stockings empty until the night of Christmas, and place them under the tree on the tree skirt. On Christmas morning, these will be accessible to our kids as they're already on the floor, and it avoids them pulling them down from a higher area.

Here's a quick test you can do with your winter outerwear to see if it's appropriate to be used in a car seat:

If you’d like to join us, please grab a ticket! I can only run this if we have a group

Thank you for the continued sell-outs! We have just a few spaces left available this weekend, if you're in need of a course soon, this is your chance! Sunday,... September 29th @ Kahlena Movement Studio 10:00am-12:00pm Infant/Child CPR, Choking and Injury Prevention: https://bit.ly/2FRhIl5 1:00-6:00pm First Aid for the Infant and Toddler Years (CPR-C/AED Certification): https://bit.ly/2LnSSg5 Monday, September 30th @ The Childbearing Society 6:30-8:30pm Infant/Child CPR, Choking and Injury Prevention: https://bit.ly/2ZMudWA

What is a CPST? CPST stands for Child Passenger Safety Technician - commonly referred to as a "car seat tech". In Canada, CPSTs are certified with the Child P...assenger Safety Association of Canada through a multi-day hands-on training program. The course discusses the ins-and-outs of proper use and installation of car seats, crash dynamics, Canadian laws and best practice, and how to interact with caregivers and provide public education on child passenger safety. Some CPSTs use their training in their line of work, be it injury prevention, education, law enforcement, or a medical/paramedical field. Many CPSTs use their training as community volunteers; offering hands-on assistance through seat checks, or providing advice to caregivers in-person or online. CPSTs can help you learn how to install and use your seats correctly and safely every time; in a respectful, non-judgemental environment. CPSTs provide education on best practices and give you the information you need to make safe choices. To get in touch with a local CPST: Canada-wide: https://cpsac.org/find-a-tech/ In the Greater-Vancouver area: Visit https://saferseats.ca to book an appointment with a local CPST or visit Vancouver and Fraser Valley Car Seat Safety on Facebook to connect with local technicians and ask questions #CPSWeekCanada #CPSAC

No, you don't! Convertible seats can be perfectly safe to use from birth in most situations. What is an infant seat? An infant seat, also known as a "bucket" ...seat, is the recognized term for a "Rear-Facing Only" car seat. These seats feature a carrying handle and may be removed from the vehicle to bring baby with you during errands without having to unbuckle them. They have low height and weight limits and are typically outgrown by children somewhere within the first year of their life. What is a convertible seat? A convertible seat is the recognized term for an "Infant/Child" car seat. Convertible seats may be used rear-facing, and then, when appropriate, turned forward facing - which is where the term "convertible" comes in! They have higher height and weight limits than an infant seat, which means they can be used for a much longer period of time. Is an infant seat safer or better than a convertible car seat? Not necessarily. For a seat to be safe, it must fit your child properly, fit your vehicle properly, and be used correctly every single ride. There can be fit challenges for some seats with smaller infants, and some convertible seats may require additional (crash-tested and regulated) accessories before they may be used with an infant. Okay, so when is my infant seat outgrown? Your seat should have labels on the side that list the height, weight and fit limits of the car seat. For example, it could be 30lbs OR 32" OR less than an inch between the baby's head and the top shell of the car seat - but these limits are different for every seat. If your child has outgrown their infant seat, move them into a larger, rear-facing seat. This could be a 'convertible' car seat, or an 'all-in-one' etc. You should keep your child rear facing as long as they fit within the height, weight and fit limits of their seat to do so. I thought I only had to rear face until 2 years old? And can't I legally turn them around at 1 year old? Unfortunately, law making takes time, and the current laws do not reflect current best practice and research. There was previously a consensus that rear-facing until age 2 was the gold-standard. In 2018, the American Academy of Pediatrics revised their position statement on rear facing, stating: "Infants and toddlers should ride in a rear-facing car safety seat as long as possible, until they reach the highest weight or height allowed by their seat. Most convertible seats have limits that will allow children to ride rear-facing for 2 years or more." Read the full article here: https://bit.ly/2PlyoU9

Hey, it's Child Passenger Safety (CPS) Week 2019! From September 15-21, we are celebrating with local events and education. We're kicking off CPS Week with a... little mythbusting: What's the deal with the CHEST CLIP? Chest clips aren't meant to restrain a child in a crash. They're actually what we call a "pre-crash positioner" - this means the job of the chest clip is to position the harness on the child's shoulders, before a crash, so that the harness can do its job to properly restrain the child. In the event of a crash, chest clips may "break open" or shift, and that's fine, provided it was in the appropriate position pre-crash. Keep those chest clips at armpit level! #CPSWeekCanada #CPSAC See more

A rare opportunity! Vancouver Island Car Seat Technicians (CRST/CPST) is offering 2 half-rate scholarships for the upcoming CPST course in North Vancouver. Details in their post below:

We have just a handful of last-minute spaces in our courses this weekend: Saturday, August 31 EAST VAN 10:00am-12:00pm at The Childbearing Society Register:... https://bit.ly/2ZMudWA SURREY 2:00-4:00pm at Community Birth Program Register: https://bit.ly/2FQGySa Sunday, September 1 PORT MOODY 2:00-4:00pm at Kushala Yoga Register: https://bit.ly/31YR6I6

There are some spaces available for next weekend’s courses in North Vancouver - register online at https://safebeginnings.ca/register/