The nursery – designed with care and stocked with everything you need to survive the first few months at home after your peanut arrives. After you’ve decorated and filled the nursery, it’s time to get it ready for baby. Here are five essential things to childproof in the nursery so everyone can have sweet dreams.
Make the crib safe.
Ensure the crib or bassinet you’re using meets current safety regulations. Whether you’re purchasing new or using a family hand-me-down, make sure it’s got the following:
- No more than two fingers of space between the mattress and the outside of the crib
- Fixed sides
- Slats that are no more than 2 3/8” from each other
- Corner posts that are larger than 1/16” unless the post is taller than 16”
Anchor furniture to the walls.
As your kiddo grows and discovers the joys of climbing, the furniture in their nursery becomes the playground of their dreams. Use furniture straps to secure the furniture to the walls so you can sleep easy knowing they aren’t getting into trouble.
Remove choking hazards.
As they’re exploring their new world, everything they see eventually ends up going in their mouth. Learning through ALL their senses! Make sure anything small enough to choke on is put away or kept out of reach, wrap up window blind cords, and keep all electrical wires secured.
Keep cabinets and drawers secure.
There’s lots of stuff you need to keep on hand in the nursery – baby's clothes, baby powder, and more. Use cabinet locks and latches to keep little fingers out so you don’t have to refold all their clothes (again) or vacuum up all the rogue baby powder.
Monitor when you're not in the room.
Keep an eye on your little one when you put them down to sleep with a video baby monitor. Even after taking all the precautions in the world, nothing beats the peace of mind you get from being able to check on baby at any given moment without waking them up.
