A well organized and furnished nursery is perhaps a testament to parents’ excitement over the arrival of a new family member, and their desire to provide everything that heir baby may ever need.
Before parents even consider looking into the latest baby furniture designs and buying the most recent baby toys and accessories, parents should keep in mind that the baby’s safety in the nursery is of paramount consideration. It may be fun to stock the nursery from wall to wall with everything a baby may want or need, but even the most adorable piece of furniture should go if it posses potential danger to its little occupant. Remember a baby may not immediately be able to appreciate the matching furniture and complain about the arrangement or color combination.
By nature, babies learn to go from lying down on their backs to rolling over, crawling, standing and walking in a span of just a few months. It is also understood that once babies find their knees and feet, their cribs and then their rooms become attractive places to explore.
The room itself therefore should have minimal danger zones. Electrical outlets should have very secure guards to prevent crawling babies from picking the guards off and sticking their fingers into the outlets. While the room should be well ventilated its windows should have secure locks to keep babies from climbing and falling over. Furniture should not be placed directly beside windows since babies may also climb over these to reach the window and fall over.
Cribs should have secure side latches and should have an adjustable bottom that can be adjusted down when a baby learns to stand up. The mattress on the crib should fit tightly to prevent the baby slipping into a gap and getting stuck or injured. Although it may be nice to have cushions and toys around the crib, babies may use this to step up and over the crib. Small crib toys may also pose as choking hazards.
The changing table should preferably be lower than normal height tables and should have a belt or strap to secure a baby when changing.
Other pieces of furniture like storage cabinets should be beyond the reach of babies and should be securely closed to prevent items from potentially falling on the baby. Overhead cabinets are perfect for storing baby toiletries and medicine which may prove hazardous to babies when ingested. Furniture grounded on the nursery floor should not have sharp edges or should at least have corner guards. If there are movable pieces of furniture, it is best to secure them firmly on the floor. Toy boxes should not have heavy lids that may fall on the baby who might decide to rifle through the box.
Other room articles like window blinds should have cord which can be kept out of reach. Mobiles and other hanging toys should also be kept when a baby starts to support himself on his hands and knees.
Of course the best safety precautions are vigilant parental supervision and keeping to the essentials.