I partnered with Tide to bring you this post. All opinions are my own.
I’ll never forget the time my son ingested a small amount of liquid dishwasher detergent. He was two at the time, and like most kids his age, he liked to explore and put things in his mouth. On this particular night, I had left the dishwasher open as I cleaned up after dinner. In a matter of seconds, he had dipped his finger into the detergent dispenser filled with detergent and licked it. As a first time parent, I totally freaked out. I immediately called Poison Control and followed their instructions. Thankfully, he had only swallowed a small amount so it didn’t hurt him or cause him to get sick. I was relieved but couldn’t help feeling like a bad parent.
Fast forward twelve years and three healthy kiddos later. My son is now 14 and my twin girls are 6. I’ve learned a lot over the years, especially how to childproof my home. When my twins were little, I made sure our house was extra safe. I had it all — cabinet locks, outlet covers, baby gates, furniture anchors and more. I also made sure to keep harmful products out of reach, such as cleaning products, medicine and small objects.
If you have young children, make sure you take the necessary steps to childproof all the rooms in your home. My advice is to get down on your hands and knees and view your home from your child’s perspective. Take a look around to see what risks you might have and then take the time to fix them. To help get you started, here are some of my tips:
20+ Tips for Childproofing Your Home
Bathroom
- Place a non-slip mat in the tub on the floor beside the tub
- Cover the tub spout
- Install a toilet lid lock
- Store all medicines, vitamins and supplements out of reach or in a locked medical safe
Kitchen
- Install cabinet latches and/or locks
- Keep cleaning products out of reach or locked in a cabinet
- Place knob covers on the stove knobs
- Keep pet food out of reach
Living Room
- Place outlet covers on all exposed outlets
- Mount TV to the wall or secure it to entertainment center
- Make sure all cords are out of reach
- Place padding or bumpers on edges of coffee table, TV stand, etc.
- Install a baby gate at the top and bottom of stairs and between areas you want your child to stay out of
- Cover the front of your fireplace with a fireplace guard or gate
Bedroom
- Place outlet covers on all exposed outlets
- Make sure all cords are out of reach
- Remove crib bumpers, stuffed animals and large blankets from your child’s crib
- Only use a crib that is up-to-date with safety standards and follow the directions on proper use
- Secure dresser, changing table, bookshelf or any other large piece of furniture to the wall with furniture straps/anchors
Laundry Room
As parents, we usually think about childproofing our kitchens or bathrooms but the laundry room is often overlooked.
- Keep cleaning products, laundry detergent and laundry pacs out of the reach of children between every load
- Use a cabinet safety latch as an added security measure to ensure products are not accessible
- After each use, close the container completely and immediately put products away in their appropriate storage location
Childproofing your home can be overwhelming, but it is well worth the peace of mind. I encourage you to watch the video above from Tide to see if you can find all the potential risks the baby could get to in five seconds. Try to find all 11!
Want more to learn more about laundry pac safety? Stay tuned for a new post coming next month that will discuss laundry pac safety tips, as well as P&G’s effort to keep children safe!
Rosie
Saturday 15th of April 2017
This is really good information, as with company wanting to come with little ones, you want to be as careful as possible, so everyone can have a good time!
Carla
Saturday 1st of April 2017
These are all brilliant. I baby proof for a living and I go with the saying "better safe than sorry" because even if it doesn't seem potentially dangerous, you should never take a chance on it. Non-slip mats in the bathroom (a must), clasps to keep draws closed and inaccessible to the kids, all that is necessary! Great find, I'm gonna have to share this around.
Jon Marsiglia
Thursday 3rd of November 2016
Thank you for sharing your personal experience with your readers. I think every parent can recall a moment when they felt like a horrible parent. Especially if it resulted in an injury to their child. However, the tips you provide are very helpful and may prevent some serious injuries from ever occurring. I would love to add that becoming trained in basic First Aid and CPR can be very helpful for those times when little ones get into something they shouldn't or simply get hurt. Thanks gain for sharing!
Keep Your Kids Safe with These Laundry Room Safety Tips - The PennyWiseMama
Tuesday 29th of March 2016
[…] a helpful post containing 20+ ways to childproof your home. If you missed it, you can read it here. Today I’m back to talk more specifically about laundry room safety. As parents, we often […]