Babyproofing- Part Two

You're glowing with excitement as you ask your husband to sit down with you. You did your hair and put on a little make-up. You've just enjoyed an extra-special dinner, and now, you're ready to tell him the big news: You're having a baby!!! After the initial shock wears off, you start thinking of names and planning your dream nursery. This new baby-world is so crisp and fresh and clean. Little blankies and dust ruffles, mobiles and valances.

No one ever tells you it won't look like this for long.

Keeping your kids from destroying your house is an ongoing battle challenge. As they grow both physically and intellectually, they are constantly getting into more stuff. At the time I am writing this, I have a 10 month old who has just figured out how the latch on the baby gate works. He's not quite tall enough to push it all the way open, but in a few more weeks I'm sure I'll be pulling my hair out once again. While I don't have all the answers, I'll share with you some things that have helped.

Baskets
Baskets are your friend. They are really useful for storing odds and ends that you need handy but out of baby's reach. For example, remote controls, game controls, books you don't want shredded. I keep things like that in baskets up on shelves or bookcases. It looks cute, organized, and you don't get drool on your fingers when you want to watch The Office.

Speaking of bookcases, you can no longer keep books on the bottom shelves or they will be ruined, and you will be forever wondering if Elizabeth married Mr. Darcy (she did). But it looks terrible to have two shelves of books and then emptiness. I solved this by filling the bottom shelves with baby toys and books. Now Luke has things to pull down and a storage spot for his toys. It looks cute, like it's supposed to be that way.

Electronics
I remember finding Caleb cramming pieces of plastic food into the VCR. Why? he was cooking. Now we mostly use a DVD player. Luke loves to watch it open up, and pushes the button so he can grab the tray the disc sits on. He also like to teeth on DVDs. Our TV stand has cabinets, so we installed locks on them so he can't scratch anymore discs. You can also get a plexi-glass cover to protect the DVD player, or make your own with plexi-glass from Home Depot.

As for the computer, if you know how to baby proof it, PLEASE tell me! All the wires, buttons, switches- it's the most un-babyproof thing in my house. The only solution I can come up with is keeping it in an area that's gated off.

Furniture
My couches have been spilled on, peed on, jumped on, and barfed on. I think they're in pretty good shape considering. When buying new, look for fabric that's easily cleaned. Ours is like a tweedy-kind of woven fabric that I can scrub pretty hard without ruining. I use a cleaner called "Simple Solutions" that I get at PetSmart. It's all natural and works on just about every kind of spill you can think of. It doesn't smell awesome but it does a good job, and it doubles as a laundry pre-treater. I also get my couches professionally cleaned once a year.
A lot of people have furniture and carpets scotch-guarded. I try to stay away from chemicals and have never had it done. You know your baby is going to eat stuff off the floor, so why risk them ingesting toxins? I have a little saying- "God made dirt, and dirt won't hurt, but chemicals can kill you". People freak out about babies eating organic matter- dirt, dog hair, grass. I'd rather my kid eat that than who-knows-what in cleaners.
If the couches you already have are not kid-friendly fabric, you may want to look into slipcovers you can toss in the wash. They're a little pricey, but cheaper than new couches should yours meet up with a Sharpie marker.

When we moved into this house, we finally had room for tables in our living room. I shopped around- and bought the absolute junkiest set I could find.
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Because they're going to be ruined in a few years! I didn't want to put money into a gorgeous set when I knew it was going to be climbed on and scratched up. Maybe when my kids are older, we'll save up and buy a really nice set. But for now, I don't have a mini-stroke every time Caleb drives his trucks on the coffee table.

Carpets
Just like the couches, spills happen to carpets. So do muddy shoes and leaky diapers. In addition to having them professionally cleaned, I invested in a Bissell carpet cleaner. I've had it about five years now and it was definitely worth the money. I really don't worry about messes anymore, because I can pretty much clean up anything with it. I consider this a must-have for parents!

Little Artists
Our house is a designated No-Crayon zone. It sounds cruel, and creatively stifling, but it has to be that way. Even Gracie was guilty of coloring on the walls and furniture as a toddler, and Caleb actually left small gouges by scrubbing our walls with a pencil. We finally had enough, and the art supplies were confiscated. Now they are all in a box in a top kitchen cabinet. The kids have to ask for them, and when art time is over, they put them back in the box to be put away.

A Safe Room
It's almost impossible to live a normal life and not own anything that isn't babyproof. We've found the best way to cope is to keep one room a "safe room", where you can keep all the things you don't want ruined.In our house, it's the master bedroom. We keep nice books, pictures, photo albums, and nick-knacks in there. The hallways is gated, so Luke can't get in there, and Gracie and Caleb don't bother with it too much. At the end of the day, it's nice to have an area to relax in that isn't quite so "babyfied".

Sometimes babyproofing to keep your house safe can be discouraging. We all have a certain way we'd like our house to look, and kids can make that almost impossible .Just remember, people are more important than things, and giving your baby room to explore is much more rewarding than living in a Pottery Barn showroom. One day they'll be grown, and we'll laugh about all the things they got into. Until then, good luck!