Room by Room Home Safety
Everything on your home is open to exploration for an inquisitive baby or toddler. While you can spend hundreds of dollars on toys and activity sets, inevitably your child will want to play with the remote control or DVD player. As a parent you strive to protect your child from harm and to encourage them to learn in a safe and protected environment.
Once your child is crawling and able to move about freely it's time to do a room by room safety check.
Getting started
First step is to protect your child from major harmyou get the picture.
What you'll need:
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Drawer Locks can prevent children from shutting their fingers in drawers and also keep children from access sharp and dangerous objects.
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Cabinet guards will secure poisonous cleaning solvents and small electric items from your child.
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Window guards are essential to protect your child from falling out of your home or apartment.
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Outlet covers help children avoid electric shock and should be placed over all unused outlets.
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Cord covers should be placed over any wires or cords in your home.
Make an Inventory:
* Instead of placing two or three orders on the Internet or running to the hardware store a dozen times, count and recount your outlets, make a list of the cords and drawers you need to lock and then place your order.
* The best time to do this is when you can have a friend or spouse assist you as you travel room by room in your house.
* Friends with older children can proves especially adept at this task, as they've already been through the child proofing process.
Next?
After you've tackled basic disaster prevention, it's time to get to the specifics. Here are the products design to protect your child from very specific injuries.
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Misc. Living Room devices:
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eHow.com site to double check your home.
Misc. Bathroom Devices
* Make sure all your medicine is in
childproof bottles.
* Affix nonslip bath mat to your tubs to prevent your child from a soapy spill.
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Step stools are handy for washing hands and getting into the tub.
* Check out
Dr. Spock's complete guide to bathroom safety.
Misc. Nursery Safety Ideas
* Once your child is in a
bed rails to prevent nasty night time spills.
* Always use the belt on your
changing table.
* Don't hand any heavy picture or mirrors over the crib or bed.
* Another checklist! This time from
The Baby Corner.
Misc. Kitchen Proofing
* Consider moving all toxic cleaning supplies to a locked closet.
* Small appliances, think toasters and microwaves, should never be reachable by toddler hands.
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Good News for Family Carea guide to baby proofing your kitchen.
