What to Expect the Toddler Years (229 page)

Since families generally spend a great deal of time in the kitchen, toddlers do, too. But because it’s one of the most intriguing—and dangerous—spots in your home, special precautions should be taken to avoid accidents there. Ensure your kitchen is toddler-safe by taking the following steps:

Rearrange storage areas. Try to move anything off limits to young children—glass and china breakables, food wrap boxes with serrated edges, sharp implements, utensils with slim handles that can poke an eye, utensils and appliances with intricate gears that can pinch little fingers (like an egg beater or electric can opener), hazardous cleaning compounds, medicines, or potentially dangerous food-stuffs (peanuts, peanut butter, hot peppers, and bay leaves—which should also be removed from food after cooking because if swallowed whole, they could get stuck and may have to be removed by a doctor)—to upper cabinets and drawers. Keep chairs and stepladders away from cabinets to discourage climbing. Keep “safe” pots and pans, wooden and plastic utensils, canned goods, paper goods, unopened food packages that don’t present a hazard when opened, and dish towels and cloths in the more accessible lower cabinets and drawers.

Install child-guard latches on drawers or cabinets that house dangerous items or items you don’t want your toddler to touch, even if you believe these cabinets are inaccessible to your toddler. If your toddler figures out how to unlatch the safety latches (some toddlers do), you will have to keep your toddler out of the kitchen entirely, when not under close supervision, with a gate or other barrier. Or try doubling the protection by installing two latches per drawer or door, one at the top and one at the bottom (which presumably would be very difficult for a toddler to open at the same time). What your toddler cares to go after and to what lengths (and heights) he or she will go to get it will change over time, so your storage arrangement may have to change as well. Reassess at least every six months, or as needed.

Set aside at least one cabinet (a child’s fingers are less likely to be caught in a cabinet than in a drawer) for your toddler to explore and enjoy. Some sturdy pots and pans, wide-handled wooden spoons, strainers, a colander, dish towels, plastic bowls, containers with lids, and so on can provide hours of entertainment and may satisfy your toddler’s curiosity enough to keep him or her out of forbidden places. If this cabinet is away from major kitchen work areas (not too close to the stove or the sink), your toddler will be less likely to be underfoot when enjoying it.

Many dangers lurk in the average kitchen. Protect your toddler with such safety devices as cabinet latches and a range guard.

Use the back burners of the range for cooking, when possible, and always turn the handles of pots toward the rear so they can’t be reached (and pulled over) by a curious child. If burner controls are on the front of the range, buy or devise a barrier to keep them untouchable (see above illustration) or snap on commercial stove-knob covers. Appliance latches can keep conventional and microwave ovens inaccessible. Remember that the outsides of some ovens (and of other appliances, such as toasters, coffee makers, and crock pots) can get hot enough to cause burns and that they can stay hot long after they’ve been turned off—so keep them out of reach.

Keep the refrigerator, and its potentially hazardous contents, off-limits to your toddler with an appliance latch. Also avoid small refrigerator magnets; they are often appealing and—since they may be choking hazards—dangerous.

Don’t sit your child on a counter top to play while you work, to have a snack, or to wait while you fill a cup with juice. Besides the danger of a fall, you risk finding him or her with fingers in the toaster, hands on a hot pot, or a knife heading for an open mouth in the blink of an eye. You also risk imparting the idea that it’s okay to climb up on to the counter, something he or she may decide to try when your back is turned.

Don’t carry your toddler and hot coffee—or any hot liquid—at the same time. It’s just too easy for a child to suddenly startle or bolt, or for you to falter, spilling the liquid and possibly burning you both. Also be sure not to leave a hot beverage or a bowl of soup at the edge of a table or counter, near your toddler’s place at the table, or anyplace else small hands can reach it.

Keep garbage and recycling in tightly covered containers that your child can’t open or under the sink behind a securely latched door. Children love to rummage through trash, and the dangers—from spoiled foods to broken glass—are numerous.

Clean up all spills promptly—they make for slippery floors.