Babyproofing 101

I am at a loss as to how I'm going to babyproof this house! It's massive and babyproofing stuff is really expensive. Mady is getting quite adventurous lately with her crawling and I want to make sure that I don't overlook anything that might be dangerous to a baby. We got some plug covers and I'll be installing them in the living room and kitchen because she crawls there the most. We need more baby gates, definitely one at the top of the stairs. I will need some cupboard latches so she can't get into the chemicals or garbage (also great for keeping nosy beagles out of the cupboards) and also some of those buttons for mini-blind cords, though I haven't seen any anywhere. We also have to look into a hot tub cover safety latch. Steve read about a little baby that opened up the hot tub cover and drowned not long ago. Our hot tub is flush with the top of the deck, so it's quite dangerous. Actually the whole deck is dangerous... I guess I need to crawl around on the floor and try to get Mady's perspective so I can see what might pose a threat to her safety. One thing that is a bit of a concern to me is our gas fireplace in the living room. There's no hearth so it would look silly if I put a cage around it. Not sure what we'll do other than watch that Mady doesn't go close to it when it's on.

I'm not one of those people, however, who believes that everything that's breakable or valuable should be removed from a baby's reach. It doesn't teach the baby to respect items and to be careful with things. For instance, I have these blue vases that were given to me from Steve's aunt. She told me that she reserves the right to ask for them back if she decides she wants them again and I agreed to that. However, they are on my living floor right now, right there for Mady to get her hands on. I don't make a big deal about them, I just tell her to be gentle when she goes near them. That's not to say that I won't move them out of her reach if she's particularly rambunctious one day. But that's where they belong and that's where they'll stay. I hope Mady can learn to respect them. Also, my guitar is on its stand in the living room. My guitar that I've never learned to play... Anyway, it's there and Mady doesn't pay it any attention right now and I hope it stays that way. So far, so good! I would be very sad if it got damaged but it's a chance I'm willing to take to teach Mady about respect and being gentle.