A Parents Guide to Safety Proofing the house for a Crawler
When a child becomes mobile, it’s time to start proofing the house so that they are safe. While you can’t avoid all tumbles, bumps, and bruises, there are some things that you can do to help make sure your new crawler doesn’t have any major accidents.
Let’s start in the living room. Get down to your baby’s level and look around the room. Are there items that the baby can reach that she can accidentally pull down on herself? Check your TV stand is it sturdy enough that it will not fall down on the baby? If you have a DVD player or VCR you will want to put it behind a cupboard that can be kept shut so that baby won’t pinch his fingers. If you have a glass topped coffee table you may want to consider getting a new one. Not only is the glass unsafe if it gets broken, but you will also spend a lot of time wiping off little handprints if you decide to keep it. Make sure tall furniture is on an even floor, and not partially on a rug. You will probably also want to anchor tall items such as bookshelves to the wall. Put up gates if you have any stairs.
In all rooms of the house you will want to put plug covers in all of the outlets. Keep electrical cords out of the baby’s reach, as well as cords from blinds and drapes. To keep electrical cords out of little hands, you can secure them to the floor or gather them in an area and wrap them together with a rubber band or large twist tie. Everyday you will probably also want to do a check for any small items the baby could choke on.
You will also want to protect your little one from sharp corners, by getting covers for table edges. In the kitchen move all potentially dangerous items, such as cleaning supplies, knives, heavy appliances and anything with sharp edges into high cupboards. Get cupboard locks to keep the baby from getting into anything they should not be in.
In the bathroom get a device that will keep the toilet lid shut. It is always best to keep the bathroom door shut to keep the baby safe from the many hazards to room presents such as hard tile floors, sharp corners, and standing water.
Baby proofing can help prevent many accidents, but nothing can replace good supervision. In a matter of minutes your baby can get into wastebaskets, pull things off of surfaces, and find small items. Your baby also will learn new skills quickly, one day they may just be crawling and the next they can pull themselves up to standing. So be sure to always be watchful.
