What If Bed Bugs Could Fly? About Toddler Safety

I thought about this title last week when I realized that sometimes we are powerless in protecting our children from everything, and that we can’t sit around thinking about “what if’s” all day.  Not a fun realization as a mama superhero!  No, Lucas didn’t get bit by a bed bug.  He went springing off the couch while I was standing two feet away and landed on his head.  It was the first fall that was “my fault”.  If my sister-in-law or sister are reading this they are cracking up. They both have 2 year old boys.  They’ve seen more bumps and bruises than I’d know what to do with.

As I realized he was fine and checked every inch of his head, neck and back, (no bruising, no horns!) I couldn’t help but wonder, what if his neck had snapped?  Broken leg? Brain damage?  A wave of horror and fear trampled over me and I started crying!  Didn’t I realize that parenthood could be this scary (Uh, yes!)?  Was I really prepared to fight the evil monster of … what?  Chance?  Bad luck?  Just living? There is a villain lurking and my child is my kryptonite!  I think I was hyperventilating at one point.  Hold on, hold on – I’ve already started to fight this villain…

After Lucas went to bed that night I made sure I had really taken every precaution to keep him safe.  Action was the only thing that could help me feel like a superhero again.  The baby proofing had been done.  But what about toddler proofing?  I found a list from Dr. Sears about how to toddler-proof your house.  It’s VERY different than the easier task of baby proofing for a little one that can’t climb, jump or turn knobs.  I had covered most of the things on his list. I had to:

• Remove the crib guard because Lucas is trying to climb out of his crib in the mornings
• Made sure that there was nothing on either side of the couch that could harm him
• Am going to buy a walking child safety harness.  Lucas wants to walk independently outside, and he isn’t steady enough to avoid a bad fall quite yet.

Dr. Sears does mention using mesh for guard rails to make sure the kids can’t squeeze through them.  We had an extra challenge because ours were designed stacked, and a baby could easily climb them or slip underneath (see pictures below).  We installed this clear banister guard when Lucas started rolling over to protect him, and it remains my favorite safety product in the marketplace.  Also stops a lot of toys from getting thrown down stairs!

I know that we can’t stop every accident from happening.  No, I am not going to cushion my entire living room with pillows in case he falls. And no, bedbugs can’t fly (I looked it up).  But even if bed bugs flew, would it stop me from doing normal things, like going into New York?  Probably not.  I’d find an amazing, organic bug spray and shield my family as best as possible.  That’s all that’s expected of us… and really all that we can do.

Car Seat Safety & Winter Coats Warning

Accidents.com posted an important warning about winter coats and child car seat safety today.  What was most surprising to me when reporting on this was that child car seat accessories are NOT government regulated, and could therefore cancel any warranty from your car seat manufacturer.  Parents, read this article, and the original article on About.com for a SIMPLE TEST that will help keep your child safe.

The Mommy Kit – Car Accident Safety Tip

As a mom, do you keep a ‘mommy kit’ in your trunk in case of an emergency with your vehicle?

My corporate site, Accidents.com, posted an article called “Auto Accident Advice That Saves Pain Later”, which provides a quick list for you to read BEFORE an accident. Well a fellow mom posted a great comment that I want to share with you…

Shane said “I also keep extra baby Formula, water bottles, one extra baby bottle and non-perishable snacks for my older kids in my trunk in case we have car problems. I call it the “mommy kit”.”

Read more:
http://www.accidents.com/top-auto-accident-advice-tips.html#ixzz160iM0EwO

I think that is great advice – and plan to create my own mommy kit asap. I plan to add diapers and wipes to that list.

In case you aren’t aware: my company operates the site Accidents.com, which focuses on accident safety, distracted driving solutions and connects consumers with attorneys, chiropractors, and other pain management specialists.

Child Safety Week Passes and Concerns Get Bigger

So for those of you that don’t know, I am the CEO of a start-up media agency that owns the site Accidents.com. We’ve been crazy busy following distracted driving laws and more importantly, building our Distracted Driving Education and Resolution section, which launches soon.

We are looking for any technical and non-technical solutions to the distracted driving problem, particularly texting while driving. Also looking for any bloggers or writers that are already writing about child safety and accident prevention on the road, in parks, etc. Anyone in this category can get featured on the site at no cost, so please use the “Bat Phone” form on the top right to get in touch with me personally.

My own personal eye opening day…..

When we started to focus on this, my husband and I both became more aware of how much we were putting ourselves in jeopardy over such a stupid decision. We would never drink and drive, but we both admitted to glancing at our phones for “a quick second” when something popped up on the screen. This made us change that habit: when traveling at 55 MPH, a driver texting for 6 seconds actually looks away from the road for 4.6 seconds of it. The car can travel the LENGTH OF A FOOTBALL field in that time! You can read the details on that here.

So moms and dads, I hope that convinces you to stay off your handhelds while you are driving! Our kids need us to be role models in this. Please forward this to anyone you know that might be interested in partnering with us to fight this growing problem.

Distracted Driving Now Deadliest Road Hazard – Accidents.com

Here is the article that I promised I’d share when it was completed.

Eye opening: According to a 2009 study by Virgina Tech Transportation Institute, when traveling at 55 mph, a driver texting for 6 seconds is looking at the phone for 4.6 seconds of that time and travels the distance of a football field without their eyes on the road.

http://www.accidents.com/distracted-driving.html

Child Safety & Technology – Cell Phone Texting and Driving Can Now Be Stopped

Where do you draw the line between protecting your child and giving them privacy and freedom? How do you control the use of your child’s cell phone?

This blog entry is being driven by a new article I am researching for a work website. I’ve known that this cell phone tracking/managing technology was coming for a while, and I have been drooling to hear which side of the privacy issue people will sit on. Me?

FACT: Every year texting and driving injures 2X more teens
THAN DRUNK DRIVING

FACT: 25% of fatal car accidents involve a cell phone

FACT: 20% of teens admit to texting nude pictures of themselves

Folks, let me start by saying that I would probably chip my kid – that’s right, like you can chip a dog – if they’d let me. I know, I know that sounds terrible. I’d let him turn it off when he was 18 or 30, or something. Nobody wants the villains to know (which of course they would) that your kid is traceable and try to carve out the chip and cause them harm… you can see I’ve thought about this. It’s would be a tough choice. But we can’t do that – well, now we kinda can. Read on.

Here’s the deal – for $10 per month, parents can now STOP TEENS from TEXTING and DRIVING. This CellSafety* technology apparently SHUTS OFF the phone if it senses movement while your teenager is driving (or in a moving vehicle). It has a SPEED ALERT (and you are notified immediately).

There’s more. Using keyword technology (same as other web safety services that are in the marketplace), it can tell if teens are texting about nudity, cyber bullying, guns, suicide, porn. You can block texting in certain areas (like the classroom). Last but certainly not least (and here’s where there might be more on that ‘chipping’ debate), it uses GPS technology to tell you where your kids are, and where they have been.

Thing is fellow superheroes, there are sick bastards/villains in this world that want to harm my child and I know how easy it will be for them to find him. Particularly now that kids are plugged in all the time. Imagine what the future will look like? Nobody likes to hear about those Amber alerts. So if you could buy some extra time, find them faster – would you? What if you could teach teens that what they are doing is putting them in harm’s way in real-time?

Spousal Disagreement!
My husband and I completely disagree on this issue. He hates when I mention the “chipping” idea. Probably because (shut your eyes mama-in-law) his parents would have locked him up if they knew half the things he got away with. Yes, I know that we have to let our kids learn a lot on their own. He believes that sometimes you just have to ‘let them fall’. And so do I to a certain extent (see last blog entry). My husband survived all the craziness, and so did my brother. But I think they GOT LUCKY. Don’t get me wrong, that GPS technology would have probably kept me out of by high school bo’s house many a nights!!!! Or not? ;-)

So, how DO YOU manage your teenager’s cell phone (and internet) use and will you start taking advantage of child safety technology as it enters the marketplace? I am very curious about your points of view on this. Please comment!

*NOTE: TBrightgeist Media (company I run) WILL BE PAID if you sign up for this offer. That’s how I found out this product was coming into the marketplace. This isn’t a pitch for the product. I am writing about this because I think its important,. I just like to be transparent when there is any financial gain (even when it’s not directly to me) on product links or offers. They also offer a very good WEB SAFETY product that provides similar controls. Ditto on the financial gain thing.

I’ll publish the http://www.Accidents.com when we finish it. Follow Accidents.com on Facebook for other accident safety articles. Yep, THAT was a shameless plug!