Monday musing - childproofing for visits

[Sauerkrautsandwich]

Happy Monday everyone!

Do you somehow childproof your homes when someone with kids comes to visit?

Was just chatting with mum and we both have now set ups where we have many, many, unsafe/breakable things in reach of very young kids. DH's side visits usually without kids but if they come with kids they obviously get interested in my low residing dust chatchers. Nothing valuable. Also cleaning products just out there in bathrooms and low kitchen cupboard rather than safe etc.
Mum will soon have to baby proof so swapping things around a bit on shelves and getting cupboard locks, and pointed out that my home must be a nightmare for parents with kids to visit (hence why they probably use me mostly for fun childfree evenings😂) and she would find it too stressful to let young me out of her lap in house like that.
I wouldn't think of childproofing unless it's a ling visit like family staying for week, which due to lack of children in my family never happened. Now I might have to prepare myself for it in few years😂

So yes, do you do things like moving fragile things, hiding toilet bleach and so on when someone with young kids is visiting for evening or a day? Or is your home baby safe naturally? So far the biggest childproofing I did was to put cover on a sofa once....

I was going to light the fire - but duvet, bed and tv are looking far superior!

@HundredMilesAnHour are you sliding out of the bed? Heard silk is slippery and I am a sleep mover.
Slunds like glorious bedroom

@Sauerkrautsandwich Yes indeed it's slippery! Lovely in summer when it's hot but a pain in the neck the rest of the time as the duvet slips off the sodding bed and you wake up cold. I'm a restless sleeper so it's a disaster. So now I just use silk pillowcases and have a 800 thread count cotton duvet cover (Savoy by Richard Haworth if anyone wants a recommendation) which also feels wonderful but doesn't slip off the bed. And the lovely handpainted silk is all relegated to a drawer under the bed. I'm a chronic insomniac so take my bed and bedding very seriously. 😛Because us childfree people (adopts tone of heavy sarcasm) have lots of time to laze around in bed which is why we don't know what tired feels like.😂

The only small kids I know live too far away to visit, so not a problem. I just see them at family get-togethers.

My flat is kitten-proofed though.

It must be over 20 years since I have had a child visitor in my house, but no, I didn't childproof anything. If the child's dad (friend of my partner of the time) had asked me to do anything specific, of course I'd have obliged, but I wouldn't personally know where to start other than perhaps really obvious things like not leaving packets of aspirins on the coffee table.

@Sauerkrautsandwich haha this thread has really made me laugh. I was just joking to my friend that if she bought her kids over I'd move the mini chainsaw on my table! Not very kid proof but I don't think my house was kid proof either when I was young.

I don't ever invite anyone's children over! We have a grumpy dog who hates visitors and having small kids here would be incredibly stressful so it's a good get out.

Packets of aspirin, chemicals etc and fragile things are exactly kind of thing I meant. Of course i wouldn't be putting up child proof locks, but yeah. Just suddenly realised everything is kind of in reach.

Lol don't have chainsaw😂 Just nail scissors in tray on coffee table. Plus medicin and nail hardener😂

I never baby proofed my own home when I had children!

I don't do ornaments, medicines are kept up high and we had a laundry room (usa) in basement so kept the dangerous stuff there. My current house (my kids are grown) isn't baby proofed so when sil comes we just watch the kids, not need for them to be in the kitchen alone and I still don't do ornaments!

Thinking about it, our house would be full of risks for a small child:

Our 'medicine cupboard' which includes the cats' flea treatment etc. is at floor level.

Our main place for keeping household cleaners, shoe polish, furniture polish, disinfectant etc. is under the sink

As mentioned, we have painkillers out on the coffee table at the moment as DH has just had some dental work done so is taking them at intervals

Toilet cleaner sits on the shelves by the toilet

DH's razor is in the tooth mug in the bathroom

My sewing chest full of sharp scissors, needles etc would be easily accessible.

There's a saw propped up by the back door at the moment!

DH's razor is in the tooth mug in the bathroom
Mine keeps it there too. I find it weird😂

Saw, chainsaw... Women👀 the heck😂

Think I have only had one child ever and that's my nephew.

Did nothing to proof anything, he was going through my Xbox games and remarked they all seemed to be 18 rated lol (just looking at box, not actually playing)

I'd expect sister to point out issues or move stuff!

I have a daughter (hope I don't get shouted at for commenting...). When she was young we would often take a bouncer or play pen a.k.a baby cage if going visiting 🙈 So if you are thinking of a particular child, and depending on age, maybe you could find a way to gently suggest that to the parents.... that way they can have the odd break from chasing the kid around trying to prevent accidents

As a parent I wouldn't expect anyone to baby proof, but wouldn't be able to relax much in a particularly hazardous house, so might prefer to meet elsewhere else or get a sitter.

Pre-kids it wouldn't have occurred to us to baby proof for visitors, but equally we'd have been fine/delighted if guests left their kids at home with a sitter!

My friends kids are all older now, but niece now has a very inquisitive toddler. I sellotape all lower level cupboards shut as he doesn't have the dexterity yet to peel off tape and doesn't really notice it. Also have my old Lego collection and a few children's books as distractions. I just remember to take tablets out of my handbag as he's very keen on walking around with/rooting inside that.

What's veg sanitizer? (Is it actually to sanitise vegetables? Or was it an auto correct for hand sanitizer or similar?) <completely misses point of thread>

Or what if it's... vag sanitiser

(Will go back to the mums area now)

If she's sanitising her vag in the kitchen that's a level of flexibility and athleticism I aspire to!

I'm lucky if I can shave my legs in the shower without falling over

It is a vEgetable sanitiser. I am not in uk now and it is recommended to give them a wash.
I am now thinking if vag sanitiser in 5l bottles exists. Or even just exists 😂

I used to work in the uk place which produces veg sanitiser …..!

Ha!!! @Alphabet1spaghetti2 i always assumed things like ready eat spinach were sanitised so not surprised it's made there too.

@Sauerkrautsandwich at school (many decades ago) we were always told to wash all salads and veg. Then years later doing a Saturday job in a ready to eat salad factory, I realised why! So yes, no matter what it says, wash it or at the very least give it a good rinse under the cold tap. (🤢)

Do you somehow childproof your homes when someone with kids comes to visit?

God no. Neither I nor my home is child friendly 🤣

Plus we often have various foster dogs and our own grumpy old git.

It's almost like we are trying to dissuade children from coming 🤔

I go around the house and move anything valuable/fragile out of reach but I don't fully childproof - I tell guests that my house isn't childproof and they need to watch their kids like a hawk to keep them safe.

My childproofing is called "they're not invited and the door isn't opened to them"! I only know one person with a child, and she's never going to visit, so it's hypothetical, fortunately. But children would absolutely not be allowed in my two-room unit to potentially hurt my cats.

Yes, that’s another thing. I’m in a flat too & when I’ve got foster cats staying, I wouldn’t invite any small children round.