The Parenting Journal
Room by Room
How to Baby Proof Electrical Outlets in Every Room
Every outlet in your home is a hole in the wall at a toddler’s eye level. That’s not a metaphor. It’s a physical description of what your child sees when they’re 28 inches tall and curious about everything.Approximately 2,400 children...
Room by Room
High Chair Safety in the Dining Room: Straps Placement and Cleaning
Key Takeaways Keep the high chair at least an arm’s length from tables, walls, and any reachable surface. Buckle all five harness points at every meal, no exceptions, and check the fit with one finger. Adjust shoulder strap height every...
Room by Room
Pool Alarms and Covers: Layered Water Safety for Families with Babies
Every summer, a child drowns in a backyard pool while an adult is home. No screaming. No splashing. Just silence, and then a frantic search that ends in tragedy. Drowning is the leading cause of unintentional injury death in children...
Room by Room
Kitchen Table and High Chair Safety: Preventing Falls at Mealtime
About 9,400 children under age 3 are treated in U.S. emergency departments each year for high-chair-related injuries (CPSC). That number stopped me cold when I first read it, because I know exactly how those moments happen. You turn around to...
Room by Room
How to Baby Proof a Built-In China Cabinet
Every china cabinet looks like a display case to an adult. To a two-year-old, it looks like a challenge.Built-in china cabinets are one of the trickier baby-proofing jobs in any home. They’re fixed to the wall, often finished in paint...
Room by Room
How to Baby Proof a Pull-Out Pantry
My younger daughter was 18 months old when she figured out the pull-out pantry. I heard the familiar rumble of the drawer gliding open, then silence. By the time I crossed the kitchen, she had a box of pasta in...
Room by Room
How to Baby Proof a Medicine Cabinet Properly
Every 15 seconds, someone in the U.S. calls a poison center about an exposure, about 2.1 million calls in 2024 alone, according to America’s Poison Centers. A significant share of those calls involve children who found something they shouldn’t have....
Room by Room
How to Baby Proof a Lazy Susan Cabinet
Most cabinet locks work on one assumption: the door opens from one spot. A Lazy Susan breaks that assumption entirely.The rotating tray inside means your child can push the door open at any angle, reach around the edge, and spin...
Room by Room
Living Room Outlet and Cord Safety: Hiding Hazards in Plain Sight
The living room looks safe. Soft couch, low coffee table, maybe a basket of toys in the corner. But the outlets clustered behind the entertainment center, the lamp cord snaking across the baseboard, the window blind cord looped over its...