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Childproofing Your Home To make sure that your home is a safe haven for your children - and you - learn to spot and eliminate hazards throughout the house. This checklist will show you how. Register with ClubMom to customize this checklist by assigning due dates, adding new tasks, scheduling email reminders, and more. Register with ClubMom now to customize this list. Safety measures for every room:

	Install child-resistant covers on all electrical outlets.
	Keep dangerous chemicals out of children's reach.
	For strings and ribbons, follow the six-inch rule.
	Always use a safety belt on your baby when she is sitting in a bouncy seat or a swing.
	Shorten curtain and blind cords.
	Place furniture well away from windows.
	Use corner bumpers on furniture and fireplace-hearth edges.
	Place houseplants out of children's reach.
	Know the names of all plants in case a child eats one of them.
	Keep cigarettes, matches, and lighters out of children's reach.
	Safeguard heating and gas systems against accidents.
	Be sure that furnaces, fireplaces, wood-burning stoves, space heaters, and gas appliances are vented properly.
	Place screened barriers around fireplaces, radiators, and portable space heaters.
	Install carbon-monoxide (CO) alarms outside bedrooms to help prevent CO poisoning.
	Install smoke alarms outside each bedroom and on every level of your home.
	Remove the plastic end caps on doorstops or replace the stops with a one-piece design to prevent choking.
	Consider placing plastic guards along the hinge side of frequently used interior doors to prevent the doors from pinching fingers.
	Safety-proof windows and fire exits.
	Make a fire evacuation plan and practice fire escape routes at least twice a year.
	Keep firearms and ammunition safely locked away.
	Secure unsteady furnishings.
	Avoid household water hazards.
	Test homes built before 1978 for lead paint.
	Learn first aid and CPR.
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Hallways and staircases:
	Avoid dark hallways and rugs that slip.
	Safety-proof stairs.
	If possible, install carpeting on stairways to protect from falls.
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Kids' rooms:
	Position your child's crib away from all drapery, electrical cords, and windows.
	Make sure the crib meets national safety standards.
	Make sure the mattress fits snugly.
	Be sure the crib sheet fits snugly.
	If you use a crib bumper, make sure it's firm (not fluffy) and secured tightly with at least six ties.
	Remove mobiles and other hanging toys from the crib as soon as your child can reach up and touch them.
	Place infants under one year on their backs to sleep.
	Never use an electric blanket in the bed or crib of a small child or infant.
	Place night-lights at least three feet away from the crib, bedding, and draperies to prevent fires.
	Always use a safety belt on your infant when you have her on a changing table, and never leave her unattended.
	Provide padding for falls.
	Check age labels for appropriate toys.
	Be vigilant about choking hazards.
	Use side railings for children just getting used to "big kid" beds.
	If bedrooms are on second or third stories, be sure to have a fire-escape ladder in each room.
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Bathroom:
	Put a lock on the medicine cabinet.
	To prevent poisoning, lock away all vitamins and medicines.
	Install toilet-lid locks to prevent drowning.
	Lower the household water temperature.
	Always test the water first before bathing a child.
	Make sure bathtubs and showers aren't slippery.
	Use electrical appliances carefully.
	Install ground-fault circuit interrupters on outlets near sinks and bathtubs.
	Never leave a young child alone in the bathroom.
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Kitchen:
	Keep knives, cleaning supplies, and plastic bags out of children's reach.
	To avoid fires and burns, never leave cooking food unattended.
	If stove knobs are easily accessible to children, use protective covers to prevent kids from turning them.
	Teach your kids how to respond to fire.
	When they're not in use, unplug electrical appliances.
	Replace any frayed cords and wires.
	Keep chairs and step stools away from counters and the stove.
	Keep activated charcoal (helps absorb some poisons) and syrup of ipecac (used to induce vomiting) on hand.
	Beware of foods that children can choke on.
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Yard:
	Store tools, garden, and lawn-care equipment and supplies in a locked closet or shed.
	Don't use a power mower to cut the lawn when young children are around.
	Don't allow children to play on a treated lawn for at least 48 hours following an application of a fertilizer or a pesticide.
	Know the types of trees on the property in the event children ingest berries, leaves, or other plant life.
	If you have a swimming pool, install a fence (with an automatic childproof gate) that separates the house from the pool.
	When you barbecue outdoors, never leave kids unattended around the grill.
	Store propane grills where children cannot reach the knobs.
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Other resources for childproofing your home:
	To find outlet covers, cord shorteners, cabinet latches, and toilet-lid locks, check with your local hardware store.
	For consumer-product and home-safety information, contact the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
	For details about child and home safety, contact the National Safe Kids Campaign.
	For information about child lead poisoning, read the "Lead Hazard Information" pamphlet from the department of Housing and Urban Development.
	For information about safe drinking water, contact the Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Water.
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Important Information for Your Babysitter Whether you occasionally hire a sitter to watch your children or you have full-time in-home childcare, this checklist covers everything a caregiver needs to know so she can keep your kids happy and safe when you're not around. Before you go out, fill it in, print it out, post it on the fridge, and rest easy as you head for the door. Register with ClubMom to customize this checklist by assigning due dates, adding new tasks, scheduling email reminders, and more. Register with ClubMom now to customize this list. General Information:

	Our names:
	Our home address:
	Our home telephone number:
	The name, phone number, and location of where we'll be:
	The time we plan to return home:
	House key is kept:
	Car key is kept:
	First-aid supplies are kept:
	Medications are kept:
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When to contact us:
	If a child has been crying for more than 20 or 30 minutes and you can't figure out what's wrong.
	If a child develops a fever, vomits, or is injured (more than a superficial scrape).
	Anytime a situation develops that you feel you can't handle without help.
	Mom's work and/or cell phone numbers:
	Dad's work and/or cell phone numbers:
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In an emergency, if we can't be reached, here's who to contact:
	(Input name, relationship, address, and telephone)
	(Input name, relationship, address, and telephone)
	(Input name, relationship, address, and telephone)
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Emergency help numbers to call:
	Poison control:
	Police department:
	Fire department:
	Hospital or urgent care:
	Pediatrician's name and number:
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What to do in case of a fire:
	In the case of a small, contained fire (on the stove, for example), the fire extinguisher can be used if you already know how to operate one. Our fire extinguisher is located:
	In the event of a larger fire, gather all the children immediately and usher them out of the house via the nearest door or window.
	Test doors before you open them. Kneel down, reach up as high as you can, and touch the door with the back of your hand--at the knob and around the frame. If there's a fire on the other side, it will feel warm on the knob and around the cracks.
	If the door is warm, try another escape route.
	Exits are located:
	Take the kids and go straight to a neighbor's house--preferably one who is on the "in case of emergency" list--and call 911 from there.
	Call us, or one of the above alternate contacts if we are not reachable.
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Health insurance information you may need:
	Insurance company:
	Group/policy number:
	Policy holder's name:
	Policy holder's identification number:
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Details about our children:
	(Input child's full name, age, weight, height, nap and/or bed times, plus special instructions--food allergies, medical condition(s), names of medication(s) and dosages, special instructions)
	(Input child's full name, age, weight, height, nap and/or bed times, plus special instructions--food allergies, medical condition(s), names of medication(s) and dosages, special instructions)
	(Input child's full name, age, weight, height, nap and/or bed times, plus special instructions--food allergies, medical condition(s), names of medication(s) and dosages, special instructions)
	(Input child's full name, age, weight, height, nap and/or bed times, plus special instructions--food allergies, medical condition(s), names of medication(s) and dosages, special instructions)
	(Input child's full name, age, weight, height, nap and/or bed times, plus special instructions--food allergies, medical condition(s), names of medication(s) and dosages, special instructions)
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House rules and routines:
	Television programs and movies that are acceptable or unacceptable:
	Foods that are acceptable or unacceptable:
	Guidelines for outside play:
	Guidelines for company:
	Bedtime routine:
	Special considerations:
	Our discipline philosophy:
	Never leave children unattended with food.
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Special requests: Please write down details about your day/night with our children.
	What and when did they eat?
	What time did they nap/go to bed for the night?
	Were they well-behaved?
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Follow general safety rules:
	Avoid giving: raisins, hot dogs, raw carrots, celery, grapes, nuts, hard candy, gum, popcorn, raw pears and apples to children under age four years. For ages four to six years, be sure to peel and cut apples, pears, and carrots.
	Never drink or eat anything hot while holding a baby or young child.
	Never leave a child unattended with food. Make sure any food given to children under age four years is cut into tiny pieces (about the size of a fingertip).
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Pregnancy No-Nos Pregnant? You already know to steer clear of alcohol and cigarettes. Here are other hazards to avoid. By Leah Hennen http://www.clubmom.com When I was expecting my first child, threats to my baby's health seemed to lurk everywhere. I knew, of course, that alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs of any kind were off-limits. But what about those lattes I'd chugged before I knew I was pregnant? Did I need to get rid of my beloved cats? What sort of environmental hazards was I unwittingly exposing my fetus to? Nine months of caffeine withdrawal, cat avoidance, and breath-holding-around-noxious-odors later, my strapping baby boy arrived. Unlike me, you don't have to be paranoid when you're pregnant. "You can't put yourself in a glass bottle during pregnancy—all you can do is avoid known risks," says Dr. Robert Resnik, a professor of reproductive medicine at the University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine. Since some women, such as those with high blood pressure or gestational diabetes, need to take extra precautions, talk to your doctor about special circumstances that relate to you. Also steer clear of the following: Too Much Caffeine For java junkies like me, the research on caffeine during pregnancy has been maddeningly contradictory. Some studies point to problems such as miscarriage and low birth weight, while others show no such relationship. The latest consensus is that only excessive amounts of caffeine (more than 300 milligrams a day) are likely to cause these problems, says Dr. Kathleen Bradley, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist and assistant clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the UCLA School of Medicine. The caffeine content of different brews varies, but you should be able to stay under the 300-milligram mark by limiting your daily quaffing to one or two 5-ounce cups of coffee or tea or a few 12-ounce cans of soda. (Since even non-colas can pack quite a caffeine punch, check the label before you imbibe.) And while chocolate does contain caffeine, it typically has much less—1 to 35 milligrams per one ounce—than coffee. Cat Litter Cat feces may play host to a parasite that causes toxoplasmosis. The symptoms (fever, fatigue, and sore throat) are similar to those of a garden-variety flu, but the results (miscarriage, preterm labor, or serious health problems in the newborn) can be devastating. Even so, having a baby on board doesn't mean you need to send your puss packing, says Marion McCartney, a certified nurse-midwife and the director of professional services at the American College of Nurse-Midwives in Washington, D.C. It simply means you should put your mate on litter-box duty for the nine-month duration. It's also a good idea to wash your hands after heavy petting sessions with the cat and after handling raw meat. Don't feed yourself or the cat undercooked meat (which can harbor the parasite). Wear gloves when you're gardening and avoid children's sandboxes. (Roaming cats may use these as litter boxes.) Certain Foods Beware, foodies: Uncooked, soft cheeses (such as feta, Camembert, Brie, and blue-veined varieties), unpasteurized milk and the foods made from it, and raw or undercooked meats, fish, and poultry may contain listeria bacteria. During pregnancy, listeriosis (symptoms include fever, chills, diarrhea, and nausea) can cause miscarriage, preterm labor, or stillbirth. Some seafood may also contain high levels of mercury, PCBs, and other toxins. If these foods are consumed during pregnancy, the baby is put at risk for developmental delays. (Your local health department may be able to tell you which fish to avoid.) Experts recommend that expecting mothers limit their servings of shark and swordfish—which contain higher levels of mercury than other fish—to one three-ounce serving a month. Finally, lab tests have linked heavy consumption of saccharine to cancer. Though you're not likely to swill enough of the artificial sweetener to equal several times your body weight, you may still want to forgo those little pink packets for now. Aspartame (NutraSweet, Equal) appears to be a safe sugar substitute. Herbal Remedies You know that many prescription drugs are off-limits during pregnancy, but the natural remedies you can pick up at health-food stores are okay, aren't they? Guess again: Herbal remedies can have a potent effect on your body—and your baby's—cautions McCartney. Don't take anything without running it by your health-care provider first. She'll most likely tell you not to use any during your first trimester. Throughout your pregnancy, steer clear of goldenseal, mugwort, and pennyroyal, all of which have been associated with uterine contractions (which could possibly lead to miscarriage or preterm labor); Asian ginseng (which interferes with metabolism); and feverfew (though popular for migraine headaches, it has unpredictable effects on pregnant women). It's also wise to avoid herbal teas that purport to have medicinal benefits. Home Hazards If you haven't been gripped by that famous pregnancy cleaning-and-nesting frenzy, chances are you will be soon. Safety tips for those 3 a.m. floor-scrubbing and nursery-decorating sessions: Read labels carefully. Wear gloves and work in well-ventilated areas. And avoid aerosols (which disperse more chemicals into the air than pump bottles do), oven cleaners, paint fumes, solvents, and furniture strippers. Although frequent, heavy exposure to chemicals in the workplace (home workshops count, too) has been linked to birth defects, Bradley explains, home use of most products is more likely to make you feel faint or nauseous—not a great proposition when you're nine months pregnant and perched high on a ladder or wedged behind the toilet. Overheating Soaking in the hot tub or relaxing in a sauna may seem like the perfect way to pamper your pregnant body, but raising your core temperature—especially during the first trimester—may boost the odds of birth defects. It's safe to soak in a lukewarm bath, though. Just make sure that the temperature is not above 100 degrees and that you get out after about ten minutes, Resnik advises. Sustained exercise in very hot, humid weather can also raise your core temperature. When you do exercise, be sure to drink liquids before, during, and after, and if you find that you're heating up, take a five- or ten-minute breather. Lead Lead exposure has been linked to miscarriage, preterm labor, low birth weight, and mental and behavioral problems in children. Residue from the toxic metal can lurk in places you might not suspect: houses built before 1978 (the year lead paint was banned), tap water, even calcium supplements. A few precautions will reduce the amount of lead you come into contact with: Call in a lead-abatement specialist if you live in an older home with chipping or peeling paint. (Whatever you do, don't try to sand or scrape it off yourself.) Filtering your water may help, or have your tap water tested. (Call the Environmental Protection Agency's Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 800-426-4791 for a testing lab in your area.) Finally, if you take a calcium supplement, ask your doctor to recommend one that's low in lead, such as Tums 500 Calcium Supplement. Oral Sex Don't worry, you needn't swear off oral gratification entirely. (After all, when you hit that physically awkward last trimester, there may not be much else you can do between the sheets.) But when he's pleasuring you, your mate should be careful not to blow air into your vagina, if that's something that's part of his, uh, repertoire. Why? Your blood vessels are dilated during pregnancy, and, though the chances of this happening are very rare, a fatal air bubble could potentially enter your bloodstream, McCartney explains. Certain Over-the-Counter Drugs Your back is aching, your heart is burning, and your stomach is roiling—do you have to forgo all pharmaceutical relief? Not necessarily, says Bradley. But since even benign-seeming remedies, such as aspirin, ibuprofen, and certain cold preparations, can cause problems for your baby, don't pop any pill without your doctor's approval. If one medication is off-limits, she can suggest an alternative. Acetaminophen (Tylenol), for instance, is fine. Secondhand Smoke You may have given up cigarettes, but if your mate's still puffing away, your baby's getting hefty doses of the 43 cancer-causing chemicals in cigarette smoke. In fact, exposure to secondhand smoke during pregnancy raises the risk of low birth weight, sudden infant death syndrome, and other health problems. So ask your partner to quit or to cut down—if not for his own health, then for yours and your baby's. And tell anyone who lights up around you to kindly take it outside. Stress Every time you look down, your growing belly reminds you of just how much your life will change once your baby is born. Exciting, yes. Stressful? You bet. Even so, try to take it easy. Stress causes the release of hormones that reduce blood flow to the placenta and triggers contractions, and it has been linked to miscarriage, preterm birth, and low birth weight, Bradley explains. If you hold a high-pressure job, do what you can to scale back. If you're feeling the heat in your personal life, practice relaxation techniques, surround yourself with supportive people, and seek counseling if need be. Vitamin A As is the case with its chemical relative Accutane (a prescription acne drug), high doses of vitamin A during pregnancy can cause heart and facial defects, says Resnik. How much is too much? Some studies have indicated that problems can occur when pregnant women take more than 10,000 international units (IU) a day, while others list 25,000 IUs and even 50,000 IUs as the threshold. You get a fair amount of vitamin A from the food you eat, and though the dose in your prenatal vitamin should be fine, your doctor can tell you whether it's an excessive amount. Leah Hennen is a writer and editor in San Francisco and the mother of two, ages four and one. Copyright © 1999-2001 ClubMom, Inc. All rights reserved.

When Little Kids Curse Cleaning up bad language requires action and creativity. By Jenifer Whitten Woodring http://www.clubmom.com Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me. Unless they come from the mouths of babes—my babes, that is. I'll never forget when my son, Patrick, then a darling two-year-old with angelic curls and adorable blue eyes, began saying, "Damn it, Mommy!" with both feeling and enunciation. How could I teach a toddler who was just learning to talk that some words are better left unsaid? Preschoolers have an uncanny ability to pick up words—all words—that they hear. In my case, I must admit, Patrick probably heard it from his parents. And what kids pick up on TV, on the playground, in the store, or at child care is bound to stick. Eventually, your angel is going to utter something downright demonic, no matter how much you try to shield him. Your little one's first cussing episode may seem funny at first, but don't laugh. "Swearing can get them into big trouble when they go to school. It's better to teach them now so they don't have to suffer the consequences later," advises Kathy Burklow, a psychologist at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. Curbing a Cusser While there are many ways parents can help children avoid bad language, there is no substitute for avoiding it yourself. James O'Connor, the author of Cuss Control (Three Rivers Press), suggests trying alternative exclamations like shoot, blast it, nuts, phooey, for crying out loud, and dagnabit. Silly terms—malarkey, balderdash, hogwash—will get your kids to laugh, making them more likely to want to imitate them. Most children under three won't comprehend that certain words are unacceptable. Often, ignoring the offense may be the best defense when dealing with the very young. But after their third birthday, they're more likely to understand that some words are naughty. So take action. "Get down on your knees, look your child directly in the eye, and tell him, 'That's a word that we don't use in our family,'" recommends Linda Metcalf, the author of Parenting Toward Solutions (Prentice Hall). "Make the words—not the child—the culprit to give him a chance to move away from the behavior." If your child persists in using such language, show him you mean business with disciplinary action. For a four-year-old, that may mean calling a short time-out or taking away a favorite toy. Kids a little older may benefit from time spent in their rooms. Fortunately, Patrick's transgression turned out to be an easy fix: We convinced him to substitute the more acceptable "darn it." It didn't take long for him to start correcting adults who failed to use this alternative. Writer Jenifer Whitten Woodring has two children and lives in Pennsylvania. Copyright © 1999-2001 ClubMom, Inc. All rights reserved.

When Mom Has a Temper Tantrum Two top parenting experts share strategies to help parents stay in control. By Melanie Howard http://www.clubmom.com Each month, my five-year-old son's kindergarten class compiles a "book of days," in which the children share their daily home experiences with one another. The next month, the book gets circulated to all the parents. Imagine my chagrin when James brought last month's book home, and there—between "Mollie and her mom made brownies" and "Jeremy helped his dad take out the trash"—was "James's mom was angry with him this morning." My temper, in writing, laminated and distributed for all the world to see. Worse yet, I realized that almost all our recent mornings had degenerated into Mommy screamathons over seemingly minor matters—dawdling, misplaced gloves, sibling bickering. I felt terrible, and obviously James did, too. How could we break this angry pattern? "Yelling is usually a sign that a parent has no strategy," says Thomas Phelan, a clinical psychologist in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, and the author of the popular 1-2-3 Magic: Effective Discipline for Children 2-12 (Child Management, Inc.). At a loss for what to do, moms may resort to yelling out of anger or frustration. But the end result is that parents feel guilty and children get the emotional message that they are bad. It's because we love our children so dearly that they are able to provoke such strong feelings of anger in us, according to Nancy Samalin, a New York City–based parent educator and the author of Love and Anger: The Parental Dilemma (Penguin Paperbacks). But that doesn't make expressing that anger through hollering or put-downs appropriate—or effective. Samalin, who has conducted workshops for parents of toddlers through teens for more than 25 years, says the key is to feel and acknowledge your emotions but not let them control you and make you act irrationally. Samalin and Phelan recommend drawing on these following strategies when your kids are driving you up the wall: Exit or wait. When you feel your anger getting the better of you, briefly withdraw from the situation until you calm down, Samalin writes in Love and Anger. Phelan agrees: He suggests stepping out of the room, counting to ten, going to your bedroom, and closing the door—whatever it takes to restore your cool. "I," not "you." Avoid attacking your child with "you" statements—"You are such a slob!" or "You'll never learn." Instead, think in terms of "I": "I don't like picking clothes up off your floor every day" or "I get upset when we're not on time." These are less hurtful and inflammatory. Put it in writing. If you are too angry to speak, don't. If your child is old enough to read, express your feelings in writing. Sometimes just the time required to find pen and paper will help you to cool off. Stay in the present. When your child makes you angry, don't work yourself into a tizzy by listing every offense he has committed in the past week and is likely to commit in the future. Stick to the issue at hand. Restore good feelings. When you do lose it, reconnect with your child as soon as possible. That may mean saying you're sorry and giving a hug and kiss to a younger child. For an older child, you may want to offer an explanation of why you were angry along with an apology. Don't worry that apologizing will diminish your authority—it won't. It shows your child that you respect him and teaches him that everyone can be wrong sometimes. Recognize what the problem is. Is it really your child's messy room? Or are you sleep-deprived? Feeling overwhelmed at work? Mad at your husband or mother or boss? Be aware of when you are more vulnerable to anger and resist the urge to transfer negative feelings to your child. Make yourself—and all family members—accountable for lashing out. Institute a "no losing it" rule to make kids and parents aware of the times they go ballistic. But do it with a light touch. For instance, make a chart and tack on a sticker when one of you has an outburst. If one family member is accumulating a lot of stickers, it's time to talk about it. Carry a tape recorder. When you feel yourself about to blow, turn it on. If you explode anyway, play back the tape and imagine yourself as the child on the receiving end. Use cognitive therapy. This technique is sometimes used to calm fearful fliers. Analyze your thoughts and put them in perspective—or, as Phelan puts it, "deawfulize" the situation. (Fliers learn that their fear is of crashing, not flying. And since crashing is unlikely, their fear is not reasonable.) Ask yourself—when your children are fighting, say—if it's really that horrible. Think of the situation as aggravating but normal behavior that merits a calm, rational parental response. Melanie Howard is a writer and a mother of two. She lives in Alexandria, Virginia. Copyright © 1999-2001 ClubMom, Inc. All rights reserved.

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