cotton wool and bubble wrap?

[sntaylor]

As many others on here I'm a parent(father to be precise) with my son turning 1 on Tuesday we are still using nappies and in the UK our supermarkets have been holding baby events, Morrison's had the best deal on nappies so I went to buy some, sadly deal was so good everything was sold out.

Anyway, onto the actual reason for this....whilst nappies were sold out,I had a look at other items instead and saw they had door stopper things, designed to stop doors from shutting and jamming fingers. Now an i bad person/parent for thinking that he'd learn better by jamming his fingers once or twice instead?

Do people wrap children up too much when babies?I know there have been studies regarding illnesses due to kids not playing in mud, and Scotland rickets has become an issue, possibly cos we don't get sunshine, but kids playing inside too much when do get it?

 

[Clementine_3]

Some baby/toddler proofing is necessary, like the little plastic electrical plug blocks and lower cabinet locks. I do think it can go too far though and think you are right, a pinched finger is a lesson learned. Not everything in the big world is safe and that's a lesson that needs to be learned early on. I'm not saying toss the kid down the stairs but a fall or cut isn't such a bad thing either. Of course, you can't just let them amok with no supervision.

 

[lunatic59]

We put in outlet covers and the little door latches on cabinets that contained cleaning chemicals and of course, approved car seats, but that's about it. As far as I can remember we never had an issue with kids getting into things they shouldn't. I guess if they trust you, they listen.

We didn't freak about typical childhood stuff like scrapes and bruises, or the occasional fever. There was one high fever of 103

 

[olbriar]

I sometimes wonder how I survived my childhood. I grew up without elbow and knee pads and helmets etc. My home was not on lock down. My toys were mostly what I could find.. sharpened sticks.. rocks.. old tires.. ropes in trees..you name it. Safety was not a huge issue and I learned from my mistakes. I have the scars to prove it.

I don't think there is anything as safe as an educated child. You can wrap them up and hide and lock all dangers but there has to be some learning or what's the point. I'm not advocating a turned loose method of education but some wise words passed along as a child grows up has great value IMO. Some lessons will be learned the hard way no doubt but some sound danger reasoning is likely the best protection you can give them.

 

[lunatic59]

My grandfather worked at the Philadelphia Navy Yards during WWII and they did a lot of instrumentation for the ships and planes. In those days they were all mercury gauges. So as a child I remember he would pour out a little blob of mercury on his workbench and we'd push it around with a stick.

When he passed and we sold the house, they had to bring in a special disposal team to empty the workshop that I pretty much grew up in.

 

[shmn]

This reminds me of a cartoon. I guess many parents may not find this funny....

 

[olbriar]

We even played with mercury in science class. Talk about an education.

 

[sntaylor]

Glad it's not just me then. Lol.... Besides there is an easier way to stop kids jamming fingers on doors...... Keep the doors shut ;-)

On another note...... it's my sons birthday today, so happy 1st birthday to him x