Baby Proofing our Home
*UPDATED OCTOBER 18, 2022: I wanted to provide some updates to our Baby Proofing products months after installing them. A couple pieces we actually decided to replace! Hoping that by testing/sharing updates on our products for you here, you avoid some of the mistakes / replacements we had to pay for.
This might be my biggest challenge yet in our home… baby proofing while keeping my sanity for all the not cute things we’re about to drill into our walls.. ha! After so much research, I came to the realization that it will not be perfect. What’s important now in this stage of my life is safety and function for my babies! But I did try to find items that weren’t TOO offensive to my taste.
Before I purchased anything, Zack and I went room by room in our house and evaluated our needs. We talked through all different scenarios and how each room functions, because every room is SO different. For instance, we have three different types of baby gates in our home depending on what we needed that gate to function for. We asked some questions like: Do we need it permanently in one spot, or would it be helpful if it’s somewhat moveable? Will it be mostly kept up or taken down? How easy is it to open for us? We did the same exercise for every type of baby proofing product before purchasing. And even after some things arrived, we decided that some things just did not work the way that we wanted them to.
I’ve listed everything we’re using below, along with some photos and some of my honest pros/cons so far for each! We’ve had these up for a little over a week. Like I said before, none of these are “perfect” but rather we had to find the products the functioned best for our home and ones that we felt safe with.
S H O P T H E P O S T :
I also did research beforehand to make sure we might not be forgetting or missing anything on our baby proofing list. Here are some of the websites I checked out:
Baby Gates
Retractable Baby Gate in White
These baby gates have been up in my house since Saylor was born, and they functioned as a doggy gate for us too. I love the look of them since they blend in with my white walls to the point that I barely notice them!
Pros: minimal/ sleek look. white color blends in with walls / decor.
Cons: requires drilling into walls/trim. not the safest- Saylor has figured out how to unhook the bottom part and could technically crawl out! So good for wrangling her to one room when we’re around, but not the most secure for safety.
*UPDATE 10/18/22: since we needed a gate that would prevent Saylor from opening/ crawling out the bottom, we installed this soft-close, 180 degree gate instead. It has been so secure and easy to use these last few weeks. We highly recommend!
XL Metal Superyard gate
We got this super yard gate for our basement and I intentionally got the color black to go with the vibe of the room. We have the playroom and the entertainment/TV area on one side of the room that Saylor plays in but on the other side we have gym equipment that is NOT safe for baby to climb around. This gate blockades off the room into two parts, and the black blends in with our accent walls / the gym equipment. This one was NOT cheap but worth it I think. It screws into the walls (or you can use it in a circle format and not screw it into the walls). It’s also super sturdy for baby and at the same time easy to get in and out of for adults (swing gate).
Pros: higher end, black look. long for big spaces. really sturdy/ seems safe for baby. easy access in/out for adults.
Cons: requires drilling into walls/trim. heavy and bulky in a room.
*UPDATE 10/18/22: still a great investment in our basement to keep Saylor on the one side.
Toddleroo Ergo Baby Gate
We got two of these doorway gates to barricade our stairway. One of them at the bottom of the stairs (that can be moved to also barricade the entrance to our kitchen right next to it) and the other for the hallway upstairs to prevent Saylor from somehow escaping her bedroom and getting to the stairs. This gate is a total eyesore, what you typically think of when you think baby gates. I did get them in an ivory color (I couldn’t find a true white available, which I would have preferred). But they seem really sturdy/ secure with the adhesive wall caps and kind of moveable to any door entryway if we need to temporarily.
Pros: moveable to other doorways when needed. really sturdy with the wall caps / seems safe for baby. no drilling required.
Cons: eyesore. kind of a pain to open/ close for adults.
*UPDATE 10/18/22: the arm that locks this gate into place got finicky with use over time. We spent a little more $ to replace it with this one. The locking system is MUCH better, and no issues after about a month of using. It feels sturdier, and I actually like the look of this one more too. You get what you pay for I guess!
Stair Mounting Adapter
We bought this stair mounting adapter and installed it at the top of our stairs because we have a railing there that doesn’t allow us to install a baby gate that extends to a wall. But, we actually decided against keeping it. We realized we had the ability to use the Ergo baby gate in the hallway before the stairs versus right up at the top of the stairs, which just feels much safer anyway. Saylor’s room is at the end of the hallway, so she would be blocked even before getting to the stairs that way. But I did want to mention/ include this product in case it makes sense for your space! It does seem pretty secure if installed properly.
Cabinet Locks
After a lot of deliberating over options, we decided to go with adhesive magnetic locks for our kitchen cabinets, and so far so good. We only installed them on the low cabinets with not safe items inside (under the sink and where I keep some nice platters or appliances). We did not bother with our regular pots/pans cabinet as even if she got into those she wouldn’t really harm herself. The adhesive sticks really well in our cabinet. I am not able to force those cabinets open myself, but I am sure if my husband tried he could pop them off – ha! It comes with 2 round magnets that unlock them and we keep those by our sink. The cabinet does relock as soon as you close it. We’ve been using these for about a week and no issues so far! Saylor has even tried opening these with no luck too 🙂 (pictured below).
*UPDATE 10/18/22: these are still working great for us! And have stayed in place.
Edge/ Corner protectors
There are a few corners that need protecting around our home, namely coffee or end tables with sharp corners. I love these clear rounded corner protectors from Amazon. They are subtle but give a softer edge to those sharp corners.
*UPDATE 10/18/22: still working great / stayed in place!
Outlet Covers
Self explanatory. Here are the ones I got!
*UPDATE 10/18/22: still working great
Non-slip rug pads
Now that Saylor is walking, it’s definitely important that the many rugs around our home stay put and don’t slip out from under her as she moves. I already had rug pads under most of them and where I didn’t, I added these.
*UPDATE 10/18/22: still working great
Furniture Anchor straps
We got these furniture anchor straps to secure some bedroom end tables that are small and could be wobbly. We have not actually gotten around to installing these yet!
*UPDATE 10/18/22: have not used yet
Stove Knob Covers
Saylor is able to reach out stove knobs and has tried turning them before. We knew we had to do something to prevent that from happening (hello, gas leak). We got these clear stove knob covers that are *kinda* discreet and easy to open for us adults. My husband does a lot of the cooking, is a tough critic on function, and he gives these his approval !
*UPDATE 10/18/22: still working great
Door knob covers
Last but definitely not least, as these might be MVP of our baby proofing, are these door knob covers. We particularly use this for our basement door in the kitchen that leads right to the stairs down to our basement. Last thing we want is Saylor to open and go tumbling down! She can’t open it but we easily can by sticking our thumb through the hole and turning the knob. Hopefully she doesn’t figure this out one day but for now these really work well!
*UPDATE 10/18/22: still working great, might need to add more once she starts reaching other knobs around our home.
That pretty much sums up our baby proofing adventures! I have a strong feeling the baby proofing will need to evolve as Saylor gets older, but we feel good about where our home is right now for her and the baby on the way.
Any questions for me, leave them in the comments below!
