Baby Proofing: Making The Home A Safe Place For Babies

A task that sometimes slips the parents mind is how to baby proof their home. Babies from the time they crawl up to a big toddler are very inquisitive and curious of their environment. Injuries and small accidents occur in homes with babies every year because the parent does not necessarily see a problem in that home.

The most important tip for baby proofing is to ‘get down to the baby’s level.” Being at their level will help you see the world from their perspective. You will spend one afternoon crawling in your house, your baby will spend up to 2 years at that level.

The kitchen cabinets. Most babies when they start to walk will eventually want to open everything that they can see. Kitchen cabinets will be a major problem especially if you and your baby spend time in the kitchen. Put the heaviest and dullest objects in the bottom drawers. Knives and forks should be placed on the counter top or above the toddlers reach.

Electric outlets must always be off! No matter what kind of country you live in, the plugs on the ground level should not be accessible to children. Phone chargers must be kept away from the child’s reach.

Light furniture and home decorations are very common objects to cause harm. Make sure all items are secured to the wall, or behind heavier objects to stop them from falling over. Toddlers like climbing book cases! Make sure any object that they want to grab is out of sight.

Keep the toys on ground level. This is very important as it will help the baby become more independent in how they access their own toys. It will also avoid them from trying to get any inaccessible toys that could be in a high place.

Carpets. If you have loose carpets in the house just store them away, or secure them with double sided sticky tape which can be bought in any supermarket store.

Electrical wires and curtain ropes/cords. These must always be secured properly. Electrical cords can be stapled to the walls and side skirting’s of the house. Curtain ropes and cords should be removed and sewn back once the child is bigger, or just get new curtains.