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Original poster

DS pulled up a chair to reach the kettle

29 replies

Clarinet60 · 03/03/2004 13:19

At 21 months and playing really nicely, so thought I'd chance nipping to the loo on my own.
Somehow, he'd managed to drag a chair, climb up to the work surface and switch the kettle on. Ds1 ran upstairs to get me and I raced downstairs in time to see him lifting the boiling kettle into the air. It was filled to the 2 cups level.

Everyone was OK, but it just shows how easily these things happen. DS1 never was a climber, so I'm having to learn from scratch with DS2.
(DS1 was praised big time for saving his brother and has walked around with a pleased grin ever since.)

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Original poster

Clarinet60 · 03/03/2004 13:20

Meant to add he wasn't in the kitchen when I left him - was playing next to ds1 in sitting room, looking safe and angelic.

OP posts:

marthamoo · 03/03/2004 13:20

My ds2 is a climber too! Pulled a chair up to the cooker and turned the gas on once. Also climbed on fireguard and smashed stuff on the mantelpiece. Nightmare!

Northerner · 03/03/2004 13:23

So glad nothing awful happenned Droile. How clever of ds1 to come and get you. My ds (23 months) is also a climber, I will now make sure my kettle is totally out of reach.

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iota · 03/03/2004 13:29

Droile
My ds2 now 2.5 has been the most outrageuos climber for months and shows little sign of getting better. I couldn't turn my back on him for a second as he would get into mischief. He drags chairs everywhere, he stands on the work surface, climbs up bookcases and will even climb up me when I'm sitting on the floor.

Thank goodness he's in nursery at the moment.

Mum2Ela · 03/03/2004 13:29

Blimy! I don't often think if things like that and I leave DD downstairs when I nip to the loo often (even though we have a loo downstairs . . but theres spiders in there) - will have to think about things a bit more from now on. Thanks.

marthamoo · 03/03/2004 13:31

Mum2Ela - tell dd if she doesn't behave she'll have to go in the loo with the spiders..she'll be good as gold then

Mum2Ela · 03/03/2004 13:33

Marthamoo - I might just do that - though she may just go in and eat them all! At least then I could use the loo!

Original poster

Clarinet60 · 03/03/2004 13:33

Yes, it's made me think. I started by switching the kettle off at the plug, but then I thought, no, that will make me complacent. I'll just have to go back to taking him with me to every room in the house.

Trouble is, I've got an early meeting tomorrow night and DH isn't vigilant at the best of times. If I swtch kettle off, he isn't going to last all evening without a cup of tea. Oh dear.

OP posts:

Blu · 03/03/2004 13:38

It's a nightmare, isn't it? The other week DS dragged a chair over to the microwave and by the time I found him, the stainless steel cheesegrater was revolving on full power....
I have, however, managed to instil terror into him regarding anything hot or sharp. The 'hot' was learned pdq as the result of touching something, and then we were able to carry it over to 'sharp' too.

Your DS1 sounds a complete star. Bless him!

marthamoo · 03/03/2004 13:39

Can't you gate off your kitchen droile? That's what I've done.

elliott · 03/03/2004 13:43

oh dear. caught ds1 trying to put a plug in light into the socket this morning (I know, I know, we should have had socket covers everywhere, and believe me we soon will) Did my best 'very serious' voice but I don't think it had much impact.....
he does understand about 'hot' but electricity is much more abstract, and obviously not one he can learn by experience...

Original poster

Clarinet60 · 03/03/2004 13:47

That's a good idea marthamoo. Don't know why I didn't think of it. I think I've just got so used to the stair gate that it's invisible and it didn't occur to me to move it.
Thanks! Tomorrow night sorted.

OP posts:

Blu · 03/03/2004 14:06

Until he drags a chair to climb over the gate...

zebra · 03/03/2004 14:09

Related kind of question -- we've just moved into a house with a gas cooker and are terrified the kids will turn the gas on when we're not looking - they have been lecturered not to, and not to press the ignite button, but they're only 2 & 4, so don't think I can trust them, yet. The bathroom is behind the cooker, the backdoor is oppposite the cooker so it would be very difficult to just stairgate the area off! Any advice or experience?

zebra · 03/03/2004 14:10

Should explain -- the gas knobs are right at toddler height on the cooker!

marthamoo · 03/03/2004 14:14

Droile, you're welcome! blu, don't be so pessimistic

zebra, don't know layout of your cooker but you can buy guard thingies that go round the hob/knobs. Think Mothercare do one, also GLTC. Will try and find a link.

iota · 03/03/2004 14:16

Zebra mine are 4 and 2 too. The 4 yr old is fine - understands things like hot and burn - the 2 yr old is a nightmare - he loves the noise the ignite button makes.

We just try to keep them out of the kitchen - not so easy in your case. I believe that you can buy some sort of guard to go over the knobs?

marthamoo · 03/03/2004 14:18

GLTC site is offline at the moment. Mothercare have this

Don't know if it would be any use on your cooker?

zebra · 03/03/2004 14:36

Thanks for the link Martha you know on the picture, if that were my cooker, the knobs would be below the Guard in front of the little girl's nose!

SofiaAmes · 03/03/2004 22:03

DS (my first) was that type of baby. He is 3.5 and I am only just beginning to feel comfortable leaving him alone in a room (never the kitchen). I would just take him with me when I went to the loo. He was crawling at 6 months and climbing ladders by 7 months.

Most good quality modern cookers have "child proof" knobs. You have to push and hold them in for a few seconds before they will ignite. If you just turn them, the gas will not come out. And if the flame goes out, the gas will stop coming out. There is a heat sensor thing that controls the gas.

Jimjams · 03/03/2004 22:29

Droile ds1 has recently started turning the kettle on at every opportunity, and sticking his fingers in the toaster. We just turn the switch off all the time at the wall.

nutcracker · 03/03/2004 22:35

My ds, is 15mths and his most favourite thing at the moment is getting left overs out of the bin. I caught him walking around with the crust off my cheese sandwich yesterday . He thinks it's really funny. I have managed to get him to understand HOT though. He now gently pats the cooker to see if it's on

SueW · 03/03/2004 23:29

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ at OP's request.

bloss · 03/03/2004 23:37

Message withdrawn

suedonim · 03/03/2004 23:59

None of mine were climbers, thankfully, but I have a friend who had two mountaineers. Her ds worked out how to open the oven door, pull out the shelves and use them as a ladder to get onto the worktop. She once found her dd dangling from the curtain in their bathroom! She'd got onto the loo, then the cistern, shuffled along a ledge and made a grab for the curtain which was above the bath.

Another time, her dd and a friend ended up in hospital overnight. One of them scaled a chest of drawers, the other passed up a little stool, enabling child No1 to get on top of the wardrobe. She found an old handbag which had a packet of painkillers inside and the two of them had a picnic.....

When we used to go and stay with them, I'd have my heart in my mouth the entire time, I really did.

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