Welcoming a new baby into your home is exciting, but it can be stressful too. Especially when you realize just how much there is to do before your little bundle of joy starts crawling!
The house is a surprisingly dangerous place for little hands. Things that you may not think twice about, like getting into the cabinet under the sink, can be extremely dangerous for a young child. That’s why it’s so important that you get started baby proofing your home with these four tips.
Make the Blinds Safe
One of the easiest things to forget about baby proofing in your home is the blinds, but they are one of the most important things for you to pay attention to. Injury due to strangulation from the cords on blinds is a lot more common than you think.
Tie up all of the cords, far out of reach of your little one. It’s even better if you purchase new blinds. That’s because new blinds come with child safety features that will eliminate the possibility of accidents completely. You can even find blinds that don’t have cords at all, which are easier to operate, and they’ll provide you with peace of mind.
Cover Those Outlets
We all love to hate outlets. They connect us with a constant supply of electricity that allows us to power all of our devices, but those cords are ugly, and they can be extremely unsafe for your child.
Plug any outlets that aren’t in use, but you also have to make outlets inaccessible so your little one can’t yank the cords out from the wall either. Strategically place furniture in front of outlets and purchase plastic covers to put over the outlets to keep your kid from pulling them out of the wall.
Immovable Cabinet Doors
You can bet that your little one will want to get into anything and everything they can reach. That means you’ve got a lot of cabinet doors and drawers to worry about, especially in the kitchen!
A few ideas for those cabinets and drawers include:
- Installing magnetic locks on the drawers
- Use fasteners to keep cabinet doors shut
- Removing unsafe items from lower cabinets, just in case
Just remember that there are cabinets in other rooms besides the kitchen! Secure cabinets and drawers in the bathroom and on freestanding furniture in the living room and bedrooms too. This doesn’t require any drastic renovations and changes, just a few easy modifications in order to keep your child safe.
Safeguard the Stairs
The stairs are especially dangerous to young children. They are extremely easy to tumble down, which is why it’s important that you install a gate on any level where your child will be without supervision. If they will be playing upstairs and downstairs, you should install a gate at the top and the bottom of the stairs.
This list only scratches the surface, but it’s a good place to get started. Master the four tips on this list and you can rest a little easier at night knowing your baby is safe from some of the most common household dangers.
