5 Ways to Protect Your Family
My family members are the most important people in my life. As a mom, I am constantly thinking of ways to keep my kids as safe as possible. I have been known to be a bit of a worrier, but I have come to love that specific character trait that I was born with. I want my kids to learn, grow, and play, but I also want them to be as safe as possible while doing it. Here are a few of the ways I plan for their safety.
I received compensation and a sample subscription to facilitate this post. All opinions are my own.
Home Safety- My home is somewhere I want my kids to feel and be safe. I take the standard precautions. Our outlets are covered. Anything hazardous (paint, cleaning supplies, bug spray, etc.) is out of reach or locked up. We have a fire extinguisher and working smoke detectors in our home. Our home does not have gas appliances at all, if it did we would have carbon monoxide detectors as well. We use a security system, I am not particularly worried about intruders as I am about curious toddler escapees. Our system notifies us when a door has been opened, which is a huge stress reliever for my mind.
Safe Play- I encourage safe play. My kids love to ride their bikes but they are not allowed to do so without helmets. The same rule applies to my husband and I as well. If we are going to be out riding bikes, scooters, boards, or skates, than we have to protect ourselves while doing it. I keep an eye on our inside toys, too. Anything that is beginning to break or needs fixing should be repaired or replaced. Any toys with parts that are small enough for choking are only allowed in certain areas or at certain times. For example a marble track would be something we play with during the babies nap time.
Car Safety- Is your child in the right type of carseat? Rules and recommendations for carseats have changed and continue to do so. Do your research and talk to your pediatrician. A safe child is the most important.
Being Smart- I decided a long time ago that “just because” would not be an answer at our house. When I ask my kids to follow a rule and they ask why, I tell them why. If I don’t have a reason than how important is the rule? When I was a school teacher I found that kids follow rules they understand. This understanding helps them think through their actions and make smart decisions on their own. I want my kids to do the same thing. For the longest time my toddler HATED holding my hand in parking lots, but after stopping and explaining that it was for his safety he began saying things to his sister like, “Hold mom’s hand, the cars can’t see you because you are little!” Explaining the why gets old really fast, but it is too important to give up on!
Emergency Preparedness- When it all comes down to it, you can’t prevent everything. No matter how careful or safe you are being, people get hurt, accidents happen, and medical attention is needed. I try to provide the best care for my family by using resources like Footprint ID.
“In emergencies, patients don’t remember details of their current conditions and medical history. And nobody walks around with test results and x-rays. FootprintID® gives emergency responders all of that information on site. It’s simple: the more information a first responder has regarding a patients health history, the better care they can receive in an emergency situation.” ”Dr. Mark A.Merlin
Footprint ID is an affordable, easy to use service that keeps all your most important information in one location. By subscribing to Footprint ID, I can keep my medical history as well as my entire family’s histories on one account. Membership for the first year is $40 for the first member and $30 for each additional member. Yearly renewals are $25 per member. With a quick and easy sign up and use of their form letter you can gather all of your medical information into one secure location. I can keep the ID card with me and easily secure the key ring to my child’s backpack or my husband’s keys. Anytime my information is accessed I am notified, so you always know what is going on.
This resource would be so important if your child was in an accident and you were not with them. Emergency responders would automatically know what prescriptions they were taking, if they had any allergies, or any preexisting condition that might change their treatment plan. This information and the time saved from collecting it could save a life. Footprint ID can be accessed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. You can access everything from their easy to use app that can be downloaded here or here. Wherever your loved ones are, whenever they need it, Footprint ID goes with them.
I purchased Footprint ID and in the short time Ive had it, it has been an invaluable product.
It can save lives and simply make your life so much easier. Its not only for your children, its for YOU and simply everyone.
I’m so happy that I purchased it that I’m on here bragging about it!!!
Hi Staci!
Thanks so much for sharing your experiences with footprintID! If you ever have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact me –[email protected].
Beth Tofel,
President, FootprintID
http://www.footprintid.com
Footprint ID sounds great. THanks for sharing!
HI Marina!
Thanks a bunch! Let us know if you have any questions.
Beth Tofel,
President, Footprintid
All great tips. It’s hard to balance between letting your child grow and learn on his own and protecting them from all that can go wrong.
You are so right with the being smart suggestion…kids/people learn better when they understand why…so teaching them importance of safety and not just “saying” be safe is very effective. Great post!
We do a lot of what you do. We have a home security and also a plan for emergencies. Great reminder for families to talk about these plans every few months or so.
This could come in handy for families! Those with medical conditions, medicines and allergies could benefit
Hi Christie!
I couldn’t have said it better! Thanks for your feedback. If you have an questions, please contact me [email protected].
Beth Tofel,
President, FootprintID
Ssuch a great list saddens my heart when a child is hut because parents didn’t take the right safety precautions
This is a great list. There are so many important things to keep in mind for safety!
I do not have children, but this sounds like a very important way to keep family members safe! It’s great for anyone with an allergy to have things like this in case of an emergency especially if they can’t speak for themselves!
Hi Tracey,
Very well said! We’ve found our service to be a great benefit to anyone from business travelers and the elderly to young children and college students away from home. Feel free to reach out to me with any questions, [email protected].
Beth Tofel,
President, FootprintID
So very important! This is great for keeping your information in one location!
Footprint ID sounds like a valuable service. Very informative post, thanks!
That sounds like a wonderful product worth looking into . I am starting to get more and more worried about things the older I get. We need to get our ducks in a row in case something happens.
Hi Chrystal,
Definitely worth looking into. During a family emergency, I realized I didn’t have a family members’ info, we wasted so much valuable time with unnecessary testing. This experience led me to create the FootprintID service. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at [email protected].
Beth Tofel,
President, FootprintID
Oh my, I am so paranoid, that I am always fearful I am going to be an overprotective parent. However when I see tips like this or even products like this Footprint ID, I feel more at ease and that I could be paranoid enough, but still mask it with products that will help me not be as crazy and still feel my little ones be safe. Thank you for writing about this. It will be a subject of conversation with my husband.
Hi Laura,
As a parent I couldn’t agree more with you! Even as our kids get older, we’ll continue to worry :-). If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at [email protected].
Beth Tofel,
President, FootprintID
What a great way to keep your kids safe. These are things all parents need to look at.
This seems like it would a great resource for families to have. I only think it might be a little steep for larger families. I hope they think about that pricing for the future.
Hi Kendra, Thanks so much for your feedback. It is greatly appreciated. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.
Beth Tofel,
President, FootprintID
[email protected]
Oh gosh what a great post. So much good advice!
This is a great list. The car seat one is so important and in our state they have to be in them for so long that you really do need to keep up with it.
Emergency Preparedness is a HUGE one people slack on or dont keep up on. Knowing meds for each family member, knowing height and weight of little ones, knowing birthmarks etc as wel as where their dental and medical reecords are.
I also am a firm believer in telling them why .
Justt today I told my brother who just got the inteernet to get passwords for his kids accounts- he didnt understand why. I had to tell him if his girls disappeared, many times the first place to look and ask are the facebook friends.
Hi Ellen,
You never know how much we take for granted. Getting your kids passwords is a great parenting tip.
Beth Tofel,
President, FootprintID
This is a great concept. Very handy to be prepared.
This is great! There are so many ways we can keep our kids safe, it is important to talk about this and share ways parents can keep kids safe in this day and age. There are a lot of good people out there, but sadly still MANY bad ones. Thanks for sharing this!
I have not heard of Footprint ID before. I think it is a great idea. I would have used it when my kids were younger for sure.
Hello Ann,
Thanks for your positive words about our service. FootprintID is also perfect for adults including the elderly, solo and business travelers and even college students away from home! Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions at [email protected]
Beth Tofel,
President of Footprint,
Love it! It has been so long since I have had to think about some of this stuff but with a new and first grandbaby on the way I am relearning. Thanks!
Wow yes! Always great to be prepared as parents I make sure we always are but I’m always open to more ways to protect us all and stay safe!
Wow great advice! Always great to be prepared as parents I make sure we always are but I’m always open to more ways to protect us all and stay safe!
Oh wow, this is definitely something that we need. I always worry!
Footprint ID. I’d never heard of it before. I think it’d be a good idea for my kids, too.
Hi WIlliam,
Thanks so much for your positive words. FootprintID is also great for adults–business & solo travelers, college students away from home, the elderly and more. Please don’t hesitate to email me if you have any questions–[email protected]
Beth Tofel,
President, FootprintID
These are definitely things all families need to consider. Being prepared for the worst never hurt anybody!
This is very interesting, very important too.
These are all great ways to help keep your family protected! Making sure your family has an emergency plan is always important!
Whatever it takes to protect my family. Thanks for sharing this great information
You can never be too safe when it comes to your family. To me, home safety is definitely the most important!
Yes absolutely — this is so very important! I am going to share this with other parents!
Hi Melisa,
Thanks for sharing. Let us know if you have any questions.
Beth Tofel,
President, FootprintID
[email protected]
That’s a great list of ways to protect your family! I am going to look in a little more to Footprint ID – I like what I am hearing.
Hi Sara,
Awesome list indeed! Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions–[email protected].
Beth Tofel,
President, FootprintID.com
It is so important to be prepared in case of an emergency. No parent wants to be caught off guard and not have supplies.
This is very interesting. I will have to pass this on to others.
Hi Aimee! Thanks so much for sharing. Let us know if you have any questions–[email protected].
Beth Tofel,
President, FootprintID