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How do you toddler proof?
Filed under: Just For Moms, Toddlers Preschoolers, Health & Safety: Babies, Feeding & Sleeping
I wasn't very good at babyproofing the house. I tentatively moved some cords around, and inserted some plastic doohickies in the light sockets, but in general I didn't think about the stuff that mattered: my pen tray on the desk, leaving my juice on the coffee table. I learned as I went.
I am dreading Nolan's transition into a toddler bed. He hasn't fallen out of his crib since that horrfying night, but I have been mentally preparing myself for the transition. He is too big for his crib, even if it weren't a little unsafe.
But how do you babyproof a toddler room? There will be no crib bars to contain him in a toddler bed, and he knows how to open doors. I envision him stealthily sneaking out of his room while I sleep: meandering in the kitchen to eat some dog food, perhaps swirling his hand in the toilet at a leisurely pace, relieved for the lack of indignant Mommy telling him "no, no, no!"
Also, I am finally getting 7 hours of sleep a night and I am so unwilling to part ways with them. I envision Nolan creeping into my room at night, pulling my hair, inserting his finger into my eye socket at 3:22 AM.
Any suggestions, dear readers? How did you toddler proof your kid's room? I am worried it cannot be done.
I am dreading Nolan's transition into a toddler bed. He hasn't fallen out of his crib since that horrfying night, but I have been mentally preparing myself for the transition. He is too big for his crib, even if it weren't a little unsafe.
But how do you babyproof a toddler room? There will be no crib bars to contain him in a toddler bed, and he knows how to open doors. I envision him stealthily sneaking out of his room while I sleep: meandering in the kitchen to eat some dog food, perhaps swirling his hand in the toilet at a leisurely pace, relieved for the lack of indignant Mommy telling him "no, no, no!"
Also, I am finally getting 7 hours of sleep a night and I am so unwilling to part ways with them. I envision Nolan creeping into my room at night, pulling my hair, inserting his finger into my eye socket at 3:22 AM.
Any suggestions, dear readers? How did you toddler proof your kid's room? I am worried it cannot be done.
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ReaderComments (Page 1 of 1)
2-27-2007 @ 1:13PM
AdrienneB said...They have these little plastic thingies that you can put on doorknobs that make it impossible for little ones to open. We put one on the inside of Elanor's door and continued using her baby monitor so we could hear if she called us.
Reply
2-27-2007 @ 1:03PM
Ann Adams said...I'm not sure it can be done completely. There is a thingie that fits over a standard doorknob that little hands usually can't operate. It spins for them but not for adults with larger hands.
We put hooks on the outside of the bathroom doors out of reach of the girls until they were old enough to stay out of trouble.
Reply
2-27-2007 @ 3:12PM
wookie said...if the plastic doorknob cover is too easy for Nolan to open, put a hook/eye lock near the top of the door on the OUTSIDE of the room. You'll be "locking him in", but until you're looking at toilet training, that might be a better solution than him wandering the house at night and possibly silently accessing your knife drawer while you sleep.
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2-27-2007 @ 1:54PM
Kim said...Oliver sleeps with his bedroom door open so when he went to a toddler bed a couple of months ago we put a baby gate in the doorway. Keeps him in and the dogs out. For other rooms, we have the knob protectors. Sometimes I think those are adult-proof too!
Reply
2-27-2007 @ 1:55PM
Tiffanny said...We use a baby gate w/ a foot pedal from First Years.
http://www.amazon.com/First-Years-Hands-Free-Gate/dp/B000058CC7
A good deal of downward pressure needs to be pressed on the pedal, so when our 30 lb toddler tries to imitate us, he can't put enough on it to open.
We haven't moved to the toddler bed yet, but when we do, I think this gate will keep him safely in his room until morning.
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2-27-2007 @ 1:58PM
LS said...I use those doorknob thingies... they make the doorknob bigger than usual, and they take some getting used to, but they work well (the side benefit is the entertainment of watching a guest try to use them!). I put them on the "risk" doors of the house - the one to the stairs and the two that lead outside. I didn't put it on his door. I babyproofed only for safety - the outlets were plugged for a short time, and there's nothing sharp in there. But for the most part, his room is his, for sleeping and playing in.
When it came time for the toddler bed, it took a few start-and-stops, but he finally understood that he is to stay IN BED until I come and get him in the morning and after a nap. He may call me if he wants to get up or needs something - I'll hear him through the monitor - but he understands that he stays in bed. All it takes is a firm hand, and consistency... for example, every time he climbed out of bed, I was right there to put him back in and tell him what's what. Toddlers are pretty smart, and they catch on quick.
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2-27-2007 @ 1:59PM
LS said...I use those doorknob thingies... they make the doorknob bigger than usual, and they take some getting used to, but they work well (the side benefit is the entertainment of watching a guest try to use them!). I put them on the "risk" doors of the house - the one to the stairs and the two that lead outside. I didn't put it on his door. I babyproofed only for safety - the outlets were plugged for a short time, and there's nothing sharp in there. But for the most part, his room is his, for sleeping and playing in.
When it came time for the toddler bed, it took a few start-and-stops, but he finally understood that he is to stay IN BED until I come and get him in the morning and after a nap. He may call me if he wants to get up or needs something - I'll hear him through the monitor - but he understands that he stays in bed. All it takes is a firm hand, and consistency... for example, every time he climbed out of bed, I was right there to put him back in and tell him what's what. Toddlers are pretty smart, and they catch on quick.
The key is that you have to have confidence in your own skills, or you will be sunk! Even if you don't have confidence, fake it. They won't be able to tell, and it's amazing how, if you fake it long enough, eventually it's there, and you don't have to fake it anymore.
Good luck.
Reply
2-27-2007 @ 3:33PM
Laura AS1 said...All great ideas, but it seems nothing shy of constant vigilance works for total toddler-proof play. Not exactly an easy task!
http://www.artisticsensations.com/
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2-27-2007 @ 3:38PM
Amanda said...My daughter, at least once a week, gets out of bed. She always comes straight to my side of the bed and climbs all over me. I always make sure before we go to bed that things are picked up and put out of her reach.
One time I woke up and found her in the middle of my bed covered in cheese dust and a half eaten bag of cheese puffs all over the bed spread.
We keep locks on all doors and drawers and those annoying plastic thingys in the outlets.
I'm lucky, she hasn't discovered the joy of swirling toilet water yet :)
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2-27-2007 @ 5:49PM
Tara said...Good topic! We're moving to twin beds soon (I have 29 month old twins) They are still in cribs. I imagine I will remove all toys from the room and lock the door to keep them contained to the room. It's too dangerous if they were to roam the house when I'm sleeping. I still use the baby monitor as well.
I have been buying twin bed sheets with characters the twins adore. We have care bears, hello kitty, elmo, thomas the train, disney cars etc. They know these sheets are for their big beds (which we haven't purchased yet) I think it's important to get them excited about the transition.
Good luck!
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2-27-2007 @ 5:53PM
Alison said...Don't forget to secure all your furniture to the walls: dressers, bookcases, bedside table. My daughter is a climber and everytime she is left alone in her room she ends up on top of the furniture. Saftey straps are pretty straight forward to install. They keep her from crushing herself under her large furniture as well as keep her small bedside table from wobbling over if she stands on it. Which, of course, she does.
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2-28-2007 @ 6:03AM
Jessica said...When I moved my 2 year old to his bed when he was 18 months old I put those bed rails from one step ahead on his bed. He can still crawl out of bed on the ends but at least I didn't have to worry about him rolling out (he is an active sleeper). He is a tall boy so the crib was definitely getting too small for him, I was worried about him climbing out, and with his baby sister on the way we knew we were going to want to use the crib in another room.
He has no lights in his room (we've always had him sleep in a dark room) and I keep his bedroom door closed so he stays in his bed. It did take us awhile to get him to nap in his bed (we had a few months of pack n play naps) but now he happily climbs into his bed at nap time. We also have the door knob protectors so he can't open the door out of his room (or into his bathroom, or into his closet). I keep a handful of safe toys (blocks, etc) in his room and I actually can stay in bed a little longer now because when he does wake up, he'll play in his room for a bit before asking to come down. We do still use a monitor.
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2-28-2007 @ 9:02AM
Heather said...As far as the toilet swirling goes: have you tried a toilet lock? It keeps our 19-month-old from stuffing her paws in the toilet. Also, a gate at his bedroom door should keep him in his room. Make sure it's securely attached to the doorframe. You can find them at pet stores, Wal-Mart or Target. Although, I hear Canada doesn't have Target...that's criminal!
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