I have 2 little boys to watch out for...and it's not easy pre-thinking every trouble spot. But there are some baby-proofing basics and tricks to make your days easier and their lives safer. It's what I spent my weekend doing and I'm sure I'll keep adding new ideas to the list.
Author Dagmara Scalise of TWINSENSE has some great suggestions too.
Go room by room and hit the obvious areas, then get down on all fours and crawl so you see at eye level what your baby sees. You might be surprised the out-of-the-way dangers that you can secure before an accident! Here's a helpful list.
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1. Kids quickly figure out how to turn doorknobs so put hooks high up or use door handle covers.
2. Use hair elastics bands to keep kitchen cabinet doors shut.
3. Take out all detergents, cleaners, and toxic items from underneath the sink or put them on a high shelf in the laundry room
4. Put on oven and stove knob covers so your children can't turn them on.
5. If your fridge has water and ice dispensers on the front door, disconnect them so you don't have a constant stream of fluid coming out once your kids see it
6. Clear out several cabinets and fill them with safe, fun cooking utensils your children can play with...plastic containers, wooden spoons, tin pie pans, empty fruit containers, plastic bowls, etc.
7. Put cooking utensils out of reach in a high cabinet especially if you have more than one young child. Nothing worse than someone getting hit on the head with a potato masher or meat cleaver.
8. Use bungee cords to secure the fronts of cabinets or grandfather clocks so that little hands don't open them and pull them over or damage them
9. Put rubber stair treads on wooden stairs or use a secured stair runner 10. Consider using toilet locks
11. Keep pet food/water dishes covered or in a closed room.
12. Keep your computer keyboard far back on the desk out of reach and cover the power strip.
13. Install screw-in gates at the top and bottom of stairs; teach your kids how to turn around and go down the steps if they ever get trapped on the staircase.
14. Put away extra rolls of toilet paper or unrolling them will become a new game.
15. Drape a towel at the top of each door so one small child can't slam it on the fingers of another small child.
16. Remove accessories, books, knickknacks from lower shelves or put Plexiglas over them.
17. Bolt bookcases or tall furniture to the wall so your kids can't pull it over on themselves. Secure the TV. set if it sits out.
18. Put your TV. remotes up high or in a decorative box out of reach so they don't become projectiles.
19. Remove glass-topped tables.
20. Watch for unstable lamps, lamp cords and hot light bulbs.
21. Hang most photos so there is less glass to break and get cut on.
22. Lock your windows.
23. Tape a list of emergency numbers in all the main rooms.
24. Don't keep a 2-step stool around. Use only low stools so your kids don't climb up high and fall off cabinets or tall furniture/refrigerators.
Your kids will be creative and industrious trying to get around your preventative methods...especially if you have twins or several young children working together to outmaneuver you. So check your safety devices and make sure they haven't been removed or broken.
Good luck making your home safe and keeping it fun!
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