Pet Food Nightmare

My friend’s11 month old nephew is the subject of today’s blog. This baby boy tried eating the family cat’s food! The little boy sat on the rug next to the cat’s bowl as he normally does when his mom fills them. She put the lid back on the cat food container, turned around to put it away, turned back to see the cat walking away from her bowl and the baby crunching on cat food. The mom asked her son what he was eating and he grinned. Every child should have a pet, but just make sure your child doesn’t eat the pet’s food!

Multiple Uses for a Great Idea

Being a new mom, again, just this July... and having a 3 and 6 year old it is hard to believe that we will be re-baby proofing in just a few short months. Before you know it, our littlest will be crawling around getting into his big sis and bro's things. I feel like we just had gotten beyond many of the safety issues with our 3 ½ year old. It seems like I am not alone in this problem. I recently got an idea from a mom in this situation. She gates off a section of her family room- kind of like a large playpen area that is a “Safe Zone” for her littlest- what a great idea. Since then, I found out that my neighbor does the same sort of thing while camping. She packs her gates and makes a big circle and lays blankets down for her 9 month old to play on. He loves it and it gives her piece of mind knowing her baby is protected.

Rub-a-Dub… Baby in the Tub

Last week, my mom was babysitting my nephews: ages 1 and 3 ½ years old. After a long day of play, my mom gave them a bath together. She took the 1 year old out of the tub, dressed him and then proceeded to get the 3 ½ year old out. She got distracted for just a moment when the little one ended up going back into the bathroom and fell into the tub while reaching for a toy- pajamas and all! Thankfully, my mom was not far behind him to fish him out of the tub. I can only imagine how scared both my mom and my nephew were! So, remember to drain the tub after wash and play is done…. immediately!

On the Go

I am always on the go. And, now with a third baby, we needed a new car for our growing family. We got a Saturn Outlook and it is really great. However, when I went to change my little baby boy’s diaper while running errand for the first time with all three kids, I thought I was going to cry. He kept rolling back into the seat making this diaper change- messy, messy, messy in my brand new car! But, the BackSeat Baby Changer is a great solution to this problem. A foam wedge helps even out the seat making it easier to change baby. Problem solved!

Pool Safety

This week, we visited friends who have a backyard pool where my kids love to play. A pool on a hot, humid day is a wonderfully refreshing thing. However, it is important to be safe in and around the pool. So, I thought this would be a good opportunity to review the American Academy of Pediatrics pool safety tips.

1. Never leave children alone in the pool.
2. Practice “Touch Supervision.” Kids under 5 should be within arms reach.
3. Put at least a 4foot tall fence around the pool making sure to separate the pool from the house.
4. Keep rescue equipment and phone by pool at all times.
5. Don’t use air filled “swim aids” as substitute for life preserver.
6. Remove all toys from pool after use.
7. Secure pool after swim is done.
For more, check out www.aap.org/family/tipppool.htm

Hot, Hot, Hot

Yesterday, I took my kids on our annual trip to Winterthur. It is a beautiful museum and garden in Delaware that has special childrens' programs on Tuesdays in August. We spent the entire day exploring the gardens, playing in the fields, having our picnic lunch, visiting the Touch Room and listening to story time. It was fun but we were hot, sweaty and miserable by the end of the day! So, when we got back to the car, I wished that I had a Car Seat Sun Shade for my kids’ car and booster seats. The Car Seat Sun Shades keep your car seats 26 degrees cooler. That would have come in handy! Instead we had to stand outside of the car for what seemed like forever waiting for the car to cool off. Note to self- get some sun shades before next years' trip!

Protect The Baby

My friends that have more than 3 kids often have the best advice. One day, I was visiting with a friend and noticed that she had her infant in a bouncy seat and the bouncy seat was in the pack-n-play. I thought that was kind of odd… and asked why she did that. She said it was to protect the baby from her 2 and 3 year old. Okay- that makes sense. What a great idea! And, now, having a newborn surrounded by lots of kids- both my own and their friends, I realize this advice is something I will be using to protect our newest family member!

Car! Watch Out!

I live on a cul-de-sac and, since we don’t have sidewalks, the kids love to ride their bikes in the street around the circle. Often, you hear the moms yelling, “Car! Watch Out!” We have to be especially vigilant about the cars during “rush hour” when the moms and dads are coming home from work. Kidproteq has the perfect solution to this potential problem. The Driveway Safety Net helps keep cars out of the driveway and the Driveway Safety Signs alert drivers that kids are at play. Both of these can help everyone stay safe on these beautiful days.

These Hot, Hot Days of Summer

95 degree days with a heat index over 100 are miserable… especially when you forget the sippy cup while running errands. So, you stop and buy a bottle of water for your three year old. Only problem is you are likely to have water, water everywhere! So, why not buy a Sippin’ Spout or two for emergencies like this one. Easy to use, you just place the spout over a standard water bottle and problem solved! Stay cool and stay safe on these hot, hot days of summer!

Grocery Cart Get-Away

It is amazing how difficult it is to manage three children and a cart full of groceries. Then, I saw the “Cart Stopper” on the Kidproteq website. The Cart Stopper has a suction cup that sticks to your car and a metal piece that hooks to your cart. This prevents your cart from rolling away as you unload your kids and your bags. Whoever invented this one is a genius! Now, if someone could invent a gadget to unpack the bags and put the food away…. A mom can dream, can’t she?

Choking Hazards

This weekend, my husband and I got the 0-12 month toys down from storage for our little baby boy. The bin was full of shape sorters, teethers, stuffed animals and stacking toys. It was so much fun reminiscing with our older kids about when they were a baby, what their favorite toys were and funny things they did. But, then I started thinking… all of these toys are safe for our littlest… but our 3 and 6 year olds’ toys certainly aren’t safe for our newborn! It seems like the magic “cut-off” is 3 years old. Most toys are labeled “Not intended for children under 3.” So, we are going to come up with a solution in our house. No little parts out while the baby is awake. And, a good check is “The Kidproteq Tube.” If a part can fit inside the tube, it is a potential choking hazard to any child under 3. I plan on showing the tube to my older children so if they ever are wondering if it is safe for the baby, they can check it firsthand with me and “The Kidproteq.”

Lost and Found

During our vacation, we took the kids to the rides at the boardwalk. Now, there are 3 kids and 2 parents… and no one can be in two places at the same time. Thankfully, our littlest is a newborn so he was “stroller bound.” But, in the future, my husband and I need to think through a strategy to make sure our kids do not get lost. And, if they do somehow get lost, we need to arm our kids with a plan. That is when I immediately thought of “IdentaKey.” IdentaKey is a means to store all of your family’s vital information in case of an emergency. Information is kept in a small container that attaches to your keychain. You can store pictures, fingerprints and emergency contact information which is protected with a username and password. If your child was lost and you needed to give police information, you’d have it right away by plugging IdentaKey into any USB port! Hopefully, you’ll never need to use the information stored, but isn’t it good to know you have it just in case.

Vacation… All I Ever Wanted…

I love to go to the beach. And this year, our family rented a great house by the bay in Delaware. It wasn’t relaxing but it was fun… until my 3 year old was stung by a jellyfish! He was hysterical and, after 6 hours of crying, my little boy finally settled down. Never having a “run-in” with a jelly fish before, I did learn a couple of things from the experience. First, jelly fish are typically out in the morning so be alert. Second, if you get stung do the following: Pour vinegar on the site. Then, lather shaving cream and rub area. Next, scrape off the shaving cream to remove the jellyfish “poison.” Lastly, apply anti-itch cream. It did work for our son. So, here’s wishing you a “Jellyfish-free” vacation!

Rental House

Wouldn’t it be great if the house you rented for your beach week was child-proofed? It would- especially if you have children under 3 years of age like we did! My one year old nephew got into everything but the thing he liked the most was climbing up and down the stairs. So, if you are renting a vacation house this year, here is a reminder. Ask the rental company if the owners have done any childproofing. If not, find out if there are stairs- perhaps you could bring a pressure mounted gate, if the area is suitable. Also, pack outlet covers, loop cabinet locks, toilet locks, bedrails and nightlights. You can never be too prepared. This goes for hotel rooms too! Have happy and safe travels!