Keeping Our Kids Safe is so important. You don’t need to be a parent of a young child to have felt that pang of outright terror upon witnessing an oblivious toddler or preteen walk towards traffic.
However, if you do happen to be a full-time parent, you’ll know that the ‘Dodo’ scene from one of those Ice Age films (I can’t remember which one), where each and every one of the birds seems determined to find accidental and inventive ways to bring their time on this world to an abrupt end isn’t entirely based on fiction – it rings quite true to parenting.
Because when it comes to staying safe, children are the bottom of the class. They need our help. And that means we need help knowing how to help them. Follow? Good. Here are some tips!
Keeping Our Kids Safe-Prevent The Unthinkable
Speed Limit Sign
This one is golden. Anywhere that there are a public fence and the likelihood of small children being near to – or crossing – the road, you can put up a speed limit sign. Will the local authorities mind? Perhaps. But then there’s more than one sign up your sleeve and more than one place to hang it.
With enough local backing, the authorities will have to get on board (or continually waste their time removing the latest sign, the choice is theirs). Check out this website for instant ideas on all manner of speed limit signs and other associated road safety signs. Get out there and make the streets safer for your small one. This is a great step in Keeping Our Kids Safe!
Choking Hazards (food)
If you’ve ever been surprised and privately a little embarrassed at accidentally choking on your food, you’ll know how easy it can be done. And that’s with years of eating experience on your side. Avoid giving children chokable-sized hard or round foods.
This could include chopped hot dogs, whole grapes, popcorn, and virtually all chopped veg. You may not have taken the time to consider this, but stringy foods also represent a choking hazard. I have read too many stories of little ones (and bigger kids!!) choking on their food!!
String beans and long candy are two common culprits, and try to remember to cut meat across the grain – your child may separate the meat into long chokable strands while chewing otherwise. But no matter how hard you try, sometimes mistakes happen. Try to sit with your child and supervise each meal to reduce the risk of choking and make sure they are taking their time to chew up their food! Keeping our kids safe is the first priority!
Stranger Danger
The danger is different now. Or at least, it seems that way. Perhaps it’s just because there’s more news coverage on the topic of stranger danger these days, but it certainly feels like the carefree childhood days I experienced, exploring the great outdoors (meaning the local park and about two or three streets either side of it on our bikes) are long over.
Nevertheless, high-profile cases involving the dangers of online predators and the like cannot go unnoticed. Teach your child never to give out personal information. Also, teach them to come straight to you if an adult that they don’t know asks for help or offers to take them somewhere.
Don’t assume that your child is smart enough to recognize when an adult is being disingenuous – half of the adults I know can’t even spot when they’re being tricked. Teaching our kids how to keep themselves safe is important. Child safety is something that needs to be taken more seriously, now more than ever!
Even in grocery stores or whenever you are out and about, make sure your child is either holding on to your shopping cart or your hand! Every week there is a story where a mom is shopping and she finds out someone is watching her child or baby from afar in the store! Stalking her and her child until they find the right moment to grab the child and run for it! SO frightening!!! It is so sad that this world that we live in, is so scary and that there are SO many freaks out there waiting and preying on your little kids!!! So, always be aware of your surroundings, always.
There are SO many missing kids in this world and it makes my stomach turn! One missing child case that I have been following since the beginning is little Kyron Horman. He was last seen at his school. His stepmom and her friends NEED to talk to law enforcement because I have no doubt in my mind that they are responsible for his disappearance! His family is still searching for him and it has been missing since June 4, 2010! So heartbreaking and sad 🙁
Internet Safety
This is also a big one! Allowing your child to visit the internet without your supervision or without monitoring is just like taking your child to a huge city and leaving them alone for the day! Can you imagine??? So, why would you let them surf the internet, unmonitored? There are SO many sexual predators and dangers on the web! Monitor your child or children and keep them safe online too! Parents need to be vigilant and pay attention! Here are some apps that may help you.
Bullying
Bullying is another thing that sickens me to no end! When other kids gang up on your child or another child and harass them so much that they think they can’t take it anymore. Watch for signs of bullying in your child. TALK to your child or children about bullying and make sure they are NOT being a bully to some child at their school. Keeping Our Kids Safe is of utmost importance now, more than ever.
Be there for your child and advocate for them if they are being bullied. Go to their school, and talk to the supervisor/principal or teachers. Get involved and do NOT stop until that bully is dealt with! Too many precious kids are committing suicide or having their lives forever changed because of some bully that never was confronted and dealt with! Be there for your precious kids.
Swimming
Swimming can be so scary! Especially if your child doesn’t know how to swim! When you are around a pool or any body of water with your little ones, PAY ATTENTION! Don’t sit there on your phone, WATCH them!
Make sure that your child has arm floats on or a much better option is a life jacket! I have heard of THREE friends who have lost their little ones to drowning! Each time was SO heartbreaking and just too much to think about. Those poor parents, I could NEVER imagine the pain and sorrow that they are going through… One child drowned in a swimming pool, one in a bathtub, and the other one in a river. I just can’t.
Then, on almost a daily basis, when the sun comes out and the weather starts turning warmer, you hear about drownings in rivers, lakes, and swimming pools. That is almost a daily occurrence in the summertime! So please, make sure your child is wearing a life jacket!! You NEVER know, you just don’t! Keep those children SAFE!
There are SO many ways to help keep your child safe and out of harm’s way. It is a constant battle, but that is what parents do, that is WHY we are here! Advocate for your child, keep them safe, and always talk openly with them. Let them know that they can come to you for whatever reason and let them know they won’t be judged for what they tell you.
These are just some ways to Keeping Our Kids Safe online and off. Be there and be available for anything your child needs. Don’t coddle them but be the parent you need to be to keep your child or children healthy and safe!
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