childproofing at grandparents

[bababelle]

How much childproofing do you think is reasonable to expect grandparents to do? Just spent stressful weekend with DD (11 months, crawling and cruising) at PIL trying to keep her away from Wedgwood china on low TV unit, cactus with prickly spines on floor, unidentified houseplant on floor, modem cable trailing across living room and display unit with decorative plates just waiting to come down if bumped...as well as ungated stairs, medicines in low kitchen cupboard etc. Admittedly we don't visit that often due to distance but AIBU to hope that there might be a little preparation for the mutual protection of DD and grandparents' house?

i didnt even childproof my own house
no cupboard locks/stairgates etc
just teach them
its not difficult

It's a big deal to childproof, and many people don't realise or forget what they have in their house that could be an issue. You just have to keep really vigilant. Seeing as you only visit once in a while I wouldn't expect them to change their furnishings. I'm a bit like nailpolish, I haven't child-proofed our flat, apart from covers on 2 electric sockets and an elastic band tying the tv unit shut (crap, I know). We just police all activity, and most of the time dd (12 months) stops when we say "NO!!"

If it was family, I would just wade in and say "oh you don't mind if I stack these up so DD doesn't get them, do you?" and "I'll just pop this cactus on your windowsill shall I?" and use a chair on its side at the top/bottom of the stairs. I wouldn't have expected them to have done anything in advance though. Surely it's unlikely your DD will be in their kitchen cupboard though?!?

we will be spending xmas at both sets of grandparents - they have bought a fireguard and will move anything valuable/sentimental out of reach. I think this is the bare minimum anyone should do.....One set have also bought door stops as ds1 has a thing about slamming doors.

We haven't bought a stairguard yet - figure we should be able to keep a handle on that one with all of us around.

What nailpolish said. Didn't do my own house either.

Oh I spend ages going round my mum and dad's moving all their beautiful china and glass that's lovingly placed at toddler height. I wouldn't expect them to do it to be honest though. Their very steep staircase is in the kitchen/dining room where we all tend to congregate, and there's a hard stone floor at the bottom of the stairs (old house, so very unchild friendly) and I have a heart attack every time I see ds clambering up the stairs. It's just a case of saying NO! all the time I'm afraid, although when we go and stay over at Christmas I will take a stair gate to stick at the bottom of the stairs. He can break all the china he likes but I don't want him falling the full height of the stairs on to a stone floor.

What bramshott said. Neither my parents or my PIL have childproofed their houses, but if they had multiple high-value breakable objects at DS's level I'd move them myself if it looked like he was going to keep making a beeline for them.

otherwise we just have to keep a more vigilant eye on him than at home. Still to educate my MIL to do this though.... She was watching him for us at my SILs recently, which is particularly un(small) childproof, with lots of tiny bits of toys around, easy access to front door, stairs and tv/video, and she didn't quite get that he needs more watching in that environment than he does at home where it's relatively safe not to immediately chase after him wherever he goes.

Well I think it does depend on the child. ds was completely unstopable in a new p;lace and would open a all new cupboards and draws etc and throw contents onto the floor, pull things down etc. Of course it was possible to stop him at home but it was easier to move a lot of dangerous stuff out of the way.

At he eventually he got bored of our cupboards as he knew what was in them etc, No way could i have " taught" him to stay out of my parents' stuff at that age given that we didnt visit often enough for it to become familiar to him. Of course I kept taking him away etc, watched him like a hawk and my parents are besotted by him so really didn't mind in the least.

It was however exhausting for me especially as my parents are very elderly so I would obviously want to keep everything tidy for them so that they didn't have any unecessary work.

I do sympathise but tbh I think expecting a vist like this to be anything other than exhausting for the parent with children this age is a big unrealistic. It will improve as your dd gets older,

I moved things up and told parents and in laws I was doing it " so boy can't pull them over/ brake them/ make a mess"
to be fair inlaws have a dog so nothing delicate at low level in their house any way, but video etc & plenty of stuff to tug at on tables. He did make a few messes before they stoopped useing a table cloth when we visit. We supplied a few socket protecters and put them back in when we go to stay.

I just move the expensive glass vases that MIL stores at toddler eye level up onto a high shelf as soon as we get there. She never remembers so I consider it's easier all round for me to move them than for one of them to get broken. Plants on the floor I wouldn't bother about so much but ds isn't one for putting things in his mouth.

Ungated stairs - well, my parents have put up stairgates but they decided to do that so that the dcs could run around upstairs without them worrying too much. MIL decided not to and just keeps an eye on them. And with medicines - I'd prefer they weren't kept there but I'd keep an eye on him.

In other people's houses I keep a close eye on the children anyway - even my in laws. I'm 100% confident my parents' house is child proof but anywhere else I would be very careful while they're young. Some friends lost their son in a very tragic freak accident in someone else's home a few years ago, and it made me conclude that it's always a good idea to keep an eye on them until they're old enough to know what's safe and what's not.

Really depends on the child IMO. None of mine were too bad (mainly due to lack of physical skills), but I've known others. With the last child in my extended family, my parents, with their 50 years of experience of childminding, found themselves child-proofing places they had never contemplated child-proofing before.

My parents' house would be impossible to childproof, and the most they ever did for us as kids was use socket covers and fireguards. With four kids still at home though, there is always someone to watch ds, and he is very confident on his feet so I'm not too worried about trips etc.

My parents are the same: they basically dont child proof at all (except for stair gate across stair case) and so the first thing I do is move everything that they value which is breakable out of little baby/toddler reaching range (our DS is pretty good at asking for things and if we say no,he's not allowed to play with it as is not a toy he'll accept it - for now)

When Dnephew was about a year old, he burnt his hands on my mum's wood burner in her living room. He has permanent scars on his hands and arms. 2 days later he fell down the stairs and hit his head on her slate floor. He went home with both his hands in bandages and a black eye. His parents were understandably livid. To be fair to my mum, she was new to the house as well as grandparenting and hadn't cared for a baby for 30 years. When I was pg with DS I bought her a firecguard and a stairgate. She took them, no questions asked.

The only absolute for me is fire/woodburners - such longlasting pain and damage from a moment's inattention... Stairs and cupboards, well, you can watch. Or jam doors shut.

People who don't childproof have easypeasy toddlers - (I had one of each). We have spent many exhausting weekends visiting family you just have to accept it. Mind you I did loose patience with my stepmum who shouted'don't touch that its an antique' to my 18mnth toddler!

My mum looks after dd two days a week while I work (I'm very lucky) and is extremely houseproud. She has a cream carpet, ungated stairs, and has just taken delivery of a glass dining table - all glass, even the legs.

We have agreed that she will look after dd in my house now, as it was becoming so stressful watching her every move, particularly now with the bloody table.

I would never expect them to childproof their house for dd, but I must admit, I avoid going to their house as I have to literally follow dd everywhere she goes. Much better to invite them to my house, which dd has definitely put her stamp on!

Can't you put the travel cot up in a corner and use it as a playpen for half and hour or so every now and then to give you a break? Much less intrusive than moving everyone's possessions and trailing round after your child for hours on end.

DD has only just started crawling (10.5 months) but the only thing we have done is to move breakables and to put those socket covers in, oh and a stair gate at the top.

However she is still quite slow at crawling so I could be in for a shock!!

I would expect GP's to move breakables. Isn't that just common sense?

I bought both sets of GP's socket covers (but they live nearby)

My MIL is buying a fireguard, thats her own choice.