You Need to Babyproof Your House With These 7 Products
There he was. My then 8-month-old son, Ames, was standing with his mouth open and lips wrapped around the toilet seat using the cool white porcelain... as a TEETHER! And I’m not talking about lightly grazing. I’m talking full on SUCTIONED and SUCKING. He had gone “missing” for a few short moments in our house that day. When I found him standing there (after shrieking and screaming “NOOOO!”), it was that moment I knew we were well overdue for more baby proofing to the house for our twins. The best time to babyproof? As early as possible!!
Of course, in our house there are some items that we can't easily babyproof (like my husband's large-scale art on the walls!). However, after all we’ve learned and installed in our own home, I've put together a list of my top 7 items that you can easily babyproof with (including the pros and cons to each). You should consider these items, as well!
1. Safety 1st Swing Shut Toilet Lock
PROS:
Prevents curious kids from falling into toilet, throwing toys/other items into toilet, getting their fingers smashed between the lid and toilet seat
Very affordable
Extremely easy adhesive install – I actually installed ours myself in all of our bathrooms without even reading the directions! The adhesive is STRONG, so there’s no chance your littles ones will be able to open it.
It takes dexterity and 2 hands to open the lid once it’s installed. This is a good thing to ward off the curious babies.
My favorite feature of all is that it has an auto-lock. All you do is close the toilet lid and the lock clicks automatically. That way, you won’t need to remember to lock anything.
CONS:
The obvious one is that it postpones your ability to go to the bathroom for 2 seconds longer, but it’s worth it in the long-run.
Not exactly aesthetically pleasing, but no toilet lock really is
You might have to show your guests how to use it.
Overall Recommend? YES!!! This is probably my favorite baby proofing purchase out of all of them.
Cost: $6.65 each. You can purchase them here.
2. Skyla Homes Magnetic Baby Locks for Cabinets and Drawers
PROS:
Prevents kids from getting into cabinets/drawers where chemicals or other dangerous products are stored
Easy adhesive install – no drilling needed. I installed them in all of my house’s cabinets in one night by myself.
Holds very well – haven’t had any issues with them coming off/apart
Magnetic lock very easy to use
Have the option to turn the magnet off if you don’t want to use it temporarily
Can also use them on drawers
Very affordable
Aesthetically pleasing – they’re hidden out of site to keep your kitchen and bathroom cabinets looking like normal (this was a big one for me because we have so many cabinets in our kitchen)
CONS:
Have to remember where inside the cabinet door you placed the lock, otherwise you don’t know where to swipe the magnet
Takes a couple of days to get used to having to use a magnet to unlock your cabinets, but it’s worth the extra step for the sake of safety.
Must keep track of the master key that unlocks the cabinets (we keep ours inside a cabinet with a key holder that came in the kit)
Overall Recommend? Yes, absolutely. I looked high and low for a highly-rated magnetic lock that would be hidden out of site at an affordable price – and I found it!
Cost: $18.95 for a 10-pack. You can purchase them here.
3. Regalo Easy Step Walk-Through Gate (fits doorways 29”-34” + 6” extension)
PROS:
Prevents kids from getting into spaces they’re not supposed to (stairs, laundry room, dog food, etc.)
Can keep bigger pets out of spaces they’re not supposed to be in
Has a lever handle that lifts to unlock the door, but also has a red sliding safety lock to double lock it
Easy to install – no tools required, can be placed in a few minutes
Doesn’t damage your walls
Stays put – even when you have 2 twins leaning against it trying to open it
Has a walk-through door that you can leave open, if gate is not in use
Comes with an extension kit to make it extra wide for doorways. You can also buy additional extension kits for extra, EXTRA wide spaces.
CONS
Have to take the extra step to double lock-it using lever handle lock AND the red safety lock – or else you might witness your babies learn how to unlock it within 48 hours of install like my 10-month-old did. Once the red safety lock is in place, it works like a charm.
If you’re using this for small pets, this may not work for you. My 7-pound yorkie poo can slide through the gate rails.
Overall Recommend? Yes! We use it to keep our twins out of the laundry room where the dogs’ food, water, and toys reside. The days of our kids splashing in the dog bowls and throwing dog food everywhere are behind us now that we have this gate!
Cost: $32 per gate. You can purchase one here.
4. Wappa Baby Outlet Covers
PROS:
Prevents curious fingers from electrical injuries
Don’t have to worry about your infants watching you and learning how to pull these out as they won’t have the dexterity to do so
Extremely CHEAP and easy way to safeguard your kids
CONS:
Can be difficult to remove one once it’s in there (worth it, though)
Must be careful not to leave these outlet covers sitting out, as they could be a choking hazard
Overall Recommend? Yes. There's no way anyone's getting these suckers out. I bought the 50-pack and put them in plugs all over the house.
Cost: $8.99 for a 50-pack. You can purchase them here.
5. Tuut Door Lever Lock
PROS:
Prevents kids from having access to unsafe rooms (like the bathroom/toilet)
You have the option between locking the handle completely (where it can’t lift up or down…OR you can have it only locked one way (this is how we do it). As you can see in the above video, we lock the handle from below so that it has to be lifted in order to open the door. This is because our kids only know to pull down on handles - they haven’t figured out that if you lift it up, then it opens! We have one of these on their bedroom doors, too, which we placed after we transitioned them to toddler beds (keeps them from escaping from their room at night!).
Easy installation - uses damage-free adhesive
Affordable!
Tuut offers a lifetime guarantee - meaning if you end up not liking your lock at ANY point down the road, they will refund you 100%
CONS:
Not aesthetically pleasing
Your guests may not be able to figure it out (and once they’re in the room they might think they’re locked in if they don’t know to lift up!)
Overall Recommend? Yes. This gives me peace of mind knowing our kids aren’t going to escape their rooms in the middle of the night and get into trouble. And it’s an extra safeguard against them getting into the bathroom without us knowing.
Cost: $16.95 for a 2-pack. You can purchase them here.
6. Geddy’s Mom Watch Your Mouth USB Charger Safety Cover
PROS:
Allows you to keep your phone charger plugged into the wall and readily available for a charge while keeping dangerous ends of cords out of kids’ mouths
Prevents electrocutions from curious little mouths chewing the metal end of phone cords that are still plugged into the wall.
Easy to use.
Aesthetically pleasing and comes in 3 different colors (black, white, & dusty aqua)
Can hold up to 2 cords per unit
No small parts (i.e. no choking hazards)
Affordable!
CONS:
Adds an extra step to charging devices when having to put the end of the cord into the safety cover (but this seems worth it considering the risk of electrocution)
Overall Recommend? Yes. If you’re like us and have a mountain of devices that you regularly charge (like phones and tablets), then this is a very easy, smart way to keep your children safe. Of course unplugging the USB cord is the best way to prevent cord injuries, but that’s not always an option for parents living and working at home during the digital age. Plus, I have a promo code below!
Cost: $12.95 for a 3-pack, but you can get 10% off using my code TWINSIDE10 at checkout. You can purchase them here.
7. Skip Hop Moby Safety Bath Spout Cover
PROS:
Protects babies/kids from bumping their heads on the faucet
Dishwasher-safe
Mildew-resistant
CONS:
If the kids get too curious and pull too hard, they might be able to take it off.
Overall recommend? Yes! Before we had this, I always worried about my kids hitting their heads/soft spots on the bath spout (and sometimes they actually did and it hurt!). But, now this solves that problem for us. Plus, the kids are very intrigued by it and think it’s fun to touch.
Cost: $9.59 per cover. You can purchase one here.
BOTTOM LINE: Don’t wait to babyproof! My recommendation is to stay ahead of your child’s development. And don’t be afraid to get on the ground and see the “world” through their eyes in order to anticipate problems before they arise. Plus, you don't want to find your kid sucking on the toilet seat, do you? ;)
