Crawling Baby, Walking Toddler - 10 Safety Tips for Your Little One

That first step your little one takes is one of the biggest and most exciting

milestones for you as well as your child. However, as exciting as it may be, it comes

with its set of risks. Once a baby starts crawling or walking, you would be surprised

at how quickly the skill is mastered and how quickly they gain speed! They can go

from one corner of the room to another in just a few seconds. However, as quickly

as they may gain speed, it takes them a good long while to be able to balance well.

So watch out for frequent tumbles and wobbles. In short, if you think you can take

your eye off them for even a few seconds, you are sorely mistaken.

Your baby’s newfound mobility brings along with it excitement and pride for you but

curiosity for your baby. He is excited to try his new skill out all the time and explore

every corner of the house. That’s where babyproofing comes in. Child safety is

kicked up to a whole new level once your baby starts moving independently.

Now, it isn’t always necessary to call in an expert to baby proof your house. You can

buy child safety kits and baby proof your home on your own, too.

So here are a few easy safety tips and tricks you can use to make your home safer

for the baby to explore.

Keep Dangerous Stuff Out of

Reach

Most of us have specific places for all our stuff.

When your baby is crawling, anything hazardous

or even potentially dangerous has to be stored

out of reach. Find tables and other surfaces that

are at least 3½ or 4 feet high to keep your stuff.

Chemicals like cleaners and bleach should be out

of sight in a lockable cabinet.

Phone chargers, laptop adapters, ashtrays,

money, candles, fragile decorative ornaments,

and anything your child would potentially use as

a “teether” should be well out of reach.

Get Rid of Floor Lamps

and Vases

Once your baby is crawling, it is time for

decorative household items like floor vases

and lamps to go straight into storage. You

don’t want your baby to get tangled in the

lamp wire or knock over the vase and get cut

on broken glass.

Clear out Some

Furniture to Make the

Room More Spacious

Once your baby is crawling, it makes sense to

rearrange your furniture in a way that there is

plenty of uninterrupted floor space for your little

one to crawl around. You don’t have to do this to all

rooms, just the one in which your baby spends

most of his day. Relocate some furniture to other

rooms, or put some furniture away into storage.

This will significantly lower the chances of your

little one bumping into things or knocking his head

on the corner of a table. 

Bring Back the Furniture

to Support

Your Walking

Baby

Once your baby graduates to the walking

stage, it is time to bring back the furniture.

Walking babies will initially need support to

stand up. While they learn to balance while

walking, they will often stumble and having low

furniture around will give them something to

grab on to (thus preventing falls and potential

injuries). 

Baby Safety Gates are a Must for Homes with

Staircases

If you have a staircase in your home, you

have to get a baby safety gate . There are no

two ways about it. A crawling baby can easily

tumble down the stairs if left unwatched

even for a second. Walking babies may

attempt to climb down themselves and get

seriously injured in the bargain. 

Lock Away

Dangerous Tools

This one is a no-brainer. Especially if tools

are in the garage, and the garage door is

left unlocked, you don’t want your baby to

get anywhere near them. You could

consider having a lockable toolbox or

cabinet to store your tools. 

Hanging them on the wall may also be

dangerous once the baby learns to climb

onto the work surface. 

Secure Heavy

Furniture

Babies go from walking to climbing in no

time at all. They will attempt to climb

everything in sight and it is therefore

imperative that all the furniture in your

house that could potentially topple over, be

secured to the wall or the floor. You don’t

want your bookshelf toppling over on to

your precious little one. 

Cover Your Pool

with a Net

If you have a pool, you have to be extremely

cautious about pool safety. Covering your pool

with a net should do the trick (provided the net

is tightly fastened to poles near the pool).

Another option would be to install a fence

around the pool with a lockable gate so that

even if your toddler did wander outside

unattended, he would be safe. 

Consider Investing

in a Foldable Play Pen

If you have tons of work to catch up on and need

an hour or so of uninterrupted time, consider

buying a foldable play pen. You can block off one

area in your home, fill it up with safe toys, cushions

and blankets and let your baby play in there. You

know that he/she is safe and can’t get out unless

you let him/her out. These play areas are

particularly handy if you have more than one child. 

.

Childproofing Is Not a One-time

Thing

It is very important to understand that

childproofing your home is not a one-time

thing. As your baby grows and learns new

skills, you will realize that more and more

things need to be kept out of reach. Be

alert to your child’s habits and skills and

anticipate ahead of time what could be a

potential hazard so that you can eliminate

it before anything serous happens. 

In all honesty, no amount of babyproofing or

setting up fancy baby-safe equipment is going

to guarantee that your child will not get hurt.

Babies and toddlers are bound to bump their

heads or take a tumble once in a while, with or

without babyproofing. The best home safety

you can provide is constant, vigilant

supervision.