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Childproofing Your Home
 Children love exploring, especially in the home. They’re curious, fearless risk-takers who yearn to learn and grow and their homes are their playgrounds. If you’re an expectant or new parent, now is the time to start planning and childproofing your home for your little one. Investing that time now will pay off later when you’re busy with a baby. A good rule of thumb is to get down on your hands and knees to view your home from your child’s point of view. Doing so may reveal potential hazards, such as exposed electrical outlets, long window blind cords, and loose power cords, to name a few. Make childproofing your home a priority and regular practice to help prevent household injuries. The leading cause of death for children in the United States is from injuries that happen inside the home, so why not safeguard your family against them now? It’s simple, easy, and affordable. Keep reading for more information on our Baby Safety Tips and some of our Bath Safety Products. You can also enter our contest to win a Floating Bath Pal Thermometer!
Watch Our Childproofing Your Home Video
Click here to watch our new Childproofing Your Home video. In this 9-minute video you'll explore a home full of rooms with childproofing products designed to help protect your children. You'll also learn how to install many of the products, and where to buy them.
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September is Baby Safety Month
 September is Baby Safety Month, which means it’s the perfect time to take a look around your home to check for safety concerns. Whether you’re expecting your first baby or you’re a parent of five, every child is different and every age presents new safety concerns – so conduct periodic inspections of your home. Consider this – approximately 45 percent of unintentional injury deaths in children occur in and around the home.
The good news is many of these accidents can be prevented. While this list is not intended to be exhaustive of all safety tips, our Baby Safety Tips list can help you make your home safer for all your children.
- Never leave your child unattended in a bathtub. Keep a cordless phone with you in the bathroom or let the answering machine pick up any calls. Children can drown in less than 2" of water.
- Babies can begin pulling themselves up on furniture prior to walking. Be sure to have all heavy furniture, including the changing table, secured to the wall with furniture wall straps so it cannot fall down on them.
- All medicines, cleaning products and other toxic substances should be kept in cabinets with properly installed cabinet locks. Be aware that cosmetics and toiletries can also be harmful or toxic and should be locked away. This includes hairsprays, gels, mouthwash, and makeup.
- Never hold your baby in your arms when cooking. Hot oils and boiling water can splash onto her. Be sure to use the back burners when cooking and turn handles away from the front of the stove. Properly installed stove knob covers and oven front locks are helpful products.
- Be mindful of your furniture’s placement. Furniture such as beds, cribs, chairs, chests, and desks, should not be placed near windows as your toddler could fall out or become strangled by nearby window blind cords. Install window blind cord wind-ups to help prevent this from happening.
- Check your baby’s clothing regularly for loose buttons, snaps, etc., which can become choking hazards. Never use strings to attach a pacifier to your baby’s crib or clothes.
- Never place a halogen floor lamp where it could come in contact with draperies, clothing or other combustible materials. Such lamps should be removed entirely from children’s bedrooms. Children may play with lamps or place combustibles, such as stuffed toys or clothing, too close to the bulb which could start a fire.
- Always place your baby on her back to sleep and be sure not to over bundle her to help reduce the risk SIDS. Instead of using a blanket in the crib, consider a wearable blanket. Remove all loose bedding and stuffed animals from the crib.
- Have a car seat inspection done by a member of the police department, your local children’s hospital, or a certified child passenger safety technician (CPST). To find one near you, click here.
- Your child should always be in the back seat, and infants under one year and less than 20 pounds should always face the rear.
- Do not give your young child any toys that may present a choking hazard. A good rule of thumb is to eliminate any toys that could fit into a toilet paper roll.
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Congratulations to Our Winners!
Perfect for jetting around town, the Cosco® Deluxe Comfort Ride® Stroller folds compact for easy storage and travel. It features a parent tray with cup holder (so you can juggle your iced coffee as you navigate the busy streets), a large mesh shopping basket (for storing all those sizzling purchases), and dual front swivel wheels for super maneuverability.
Each person received one of our fantastic Safety 1st® Funtime Froggy Bath Cradles! Click here to check it out and to buy one from one of our retailers.
- Eric Ghodes, Coon Rapids, MN
- Heidi Christy, Newport, RI
- Sharon Cohen, Sacramento, CA
- Ginger Van Dixon, Olean, NY
- Jennifer Freres, Princeville, IL
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Baby Bath Time Safety Products
 Safety 1st® Floating Bath Pal Thermometer
Getting your baby’s bath water to be a good temperature for bathing can be tricky. That’s why we designed the Floating Bath Pal Thermometer. Fun for your baby to play with and easy for you to read, it has a temperature strip to detect temperatures between 90°F and 100°F. Always test the water temperature before putting your baby in the tub. Have fun bathing your baby with the added peace of mind knowing the bath water is a comfortable temperature for your baby!
Click here for more product information.
Available at select specialty retailers.
 Safety 1st® Soft Spout Cover
Help keep your kid from knockin’ her noggin’ on your bathtub’s hard, metal spout with our Soft Spout Cover. It inflates to slide easily over the spout and covers the entire faucet so your little one won’t get any bumps or bruises. Made from mildew-resistant material, it wipes clean making your life easier!
Click here for more product information.
Available at select specialty retailers.
 Safety 1st® Sure Fit Toilet Lock
Keep little fingers from getting into places they shouldn’t be! Our Sure Fit Toilet Lock applies easily with suction cup mounting and auto locks into position when the toilet is not in use. It simply swings out of the way for easy parent access. Now you won’t have to worry about anyone trying to take an accidental “bath,” or Fido drinking somewhere he shouldn’t be!
Click here for more product information.
Available at Babies “R” Us or online at www.babiesrus.com
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Spotlight on Aiden and Olivia!
 This month we chatted with Safety 1st Director of Financial Planning and Analysis, Alton Chen, about what it’s like raising his two children, Aiden, 3 ½ and Olivia, 1 ½. Aiden spends hours playing with trucks, Thomas trains, and digging up the garden. He’s getting ready to start preschool in the fall. Olivia loves playing in the kiddie pool, coloring, and climbing up everything. She’s planning on grabbing all the toys while her brother is at preschool. This summer, they’ve had a blast in their backyard playhouse and on their John Deere® ride-on toy. They’ve road tripped to Vermont to kayak and have taken train rides into Boston to play in Frog Pond. Alton and his wife, Renee, take them bicycling every weekend as part of their designated family time (so cute, and very important!). They also love getting ice cream! With all that traveling around town Alton makes great use of his new Quinny® Zapp™ stroller. It folds small enough to fit anywhere (even in an airline overhead) and it has a great WOW factor when people see it open/close.
See You in October!
Look for us next month with a whole new look! We’ve been working hard on designing new packaging, websites, and our enewsletter and we’re looking forward to unveiling it to you, our devoted readers, next month! So be on the lookout – it’s going to be great!
If you have any questions regarding Safety 1 st products please contact Dorel Juvenile Group Consumer Relations at consumer@djgusa.com. Missed the last issue? Check out the Safety 1st and Foremost archive. |