I partnered with Tide to bring you this post. All opinions are my own.
Our 2 year old is constantly pushing limits and loves to explore the world with his mouth. Sometimes I wonder if this is a boy thing because our older daughter never did stuff like that. A few weeks ago the gummy vitamins got left out after the kids took their daily dose. Our 2 year old got into them and I quickly learned that child proof caps aren’t so child proof. Luckily he only ate a few extra gummy vitamins and since they didn’t contain iron they weren’t a threat to him, but it was still a scary moment since I had never had an incident like that before. It also solidified the importance of making sure that harmful items are out of reach to the kids.
As a mom of 4, I am constantly learning new things every day and each kid does something the others didn’t do. While one may not have eaten glue, another one will and I quickly learned early on that things need to be put out of reach, cabinets locked, and small objects picked up because it’s a terrible feeling when your child eats something that could possibly hurt them. Our 2 year old loves to cause me worry and he’s really taught me the importance of outlet covers, child locks, baby gates, and making sure potentially harmful liquids like laundry detergent are out of reach.
Whether you have a small child who likes to explore (most of them do) or not, it’s really important to child proof your home. You just never know when they will get into something harmful and it’s better to try and prevent those situations as much as possible. Here are some tips on child proofing your home.
- Furniture Anchors – Television stands, shelves, bookcases, dressers, desks, chests and televisions can all fall over and cause serious injury to kids. Most furniture comes with anchors now, but you can also pick up kits from your local hardware store for fairly cheap. When children climb onto, fall against, or pull themselves up on these items they can become severely hurt or worse. Make sure to anchor items to the floor or wall.
- Gate Guards and closed doors – In our home we close doors to the bathrooms and bedrooms, but the kitchen is left exposed. Gate guards help to keep children from entering rooms and other areas that can pose danger. They are also good at keeping kids from going up and down stairs. Look for a gate that mounts to the wall and meets current safety standards.
- Door Knob Covers – These help to prevent kids from entering rooms they aren’t supposed to be in. Attach them to the knobs so they can’t get into rooms that pose danger.
- Safety Latches – For cabinets and drawers, these help to keep kids from getting into chemicals, sharp objects, and other items they don’t belong in. Attach them to all cabinets and drawers that the kids can reach.
- Outlet Covers – Kids like to stick things in holes. Outlet covers help to keep kids from sticking things in outlets and electrocuting themselves. Make sure to use ones that your child can’t easily remove from the outlet.
- Corner and Edge bumpers – They help prevent injuries from falls against sharp edges on furniture and fireplaces.
- The Laundry Room – The kids love to come and help me do laundry. They like helping to sort the clothes, putting them in the dryer, pulling them out of the dryer and into baskets, and helping to pull the baskets to the room where I’ll be folding. Kitchens and bathrooms are always being talked about for childproofing, but the laundry room can be overlooked. Bleach, Fabric Softener, and Laundry detergent may be harmful to children if these products are not stored properly. Cleaning products should always be kept in a childproof cabinet or out of reach. I like to use Tide Pods for their concentrated cleaning power, but since children love to explore, I make sure to keep these products out of the reach of children between every load.
What are some ways you childproof your home?
