When a new baby arrives, it often takes over the parent’s house. Everything suddenly transforms from being about the adults to being about the child. Even the house itself might need swapping out for a newer, bigger one.
However, parents shouldn’t relinquish all their space to their kids. While a new baby requires some room, you also need adult spaces that connect you to the time before family life took over everything.
So, what can you do to prevent your baby from taking over your house? Let’s take a look.
Put Child Safety Locks On No-Go Area
One option is to put child safety locks or gates on no-go areas, like your bedroom or study. Keeping children out of these areas helps you keep them looking the way you want, without having to worry about vases dropping on the floor or plug sockets.
Installing these baby-proof areas is easy, but it depends on your home’s layout. It might be impractical to keep some spaces separate, particularly if you live in a small apartment.
Just remember, you can put safety gates in any door in your home to manage their movement. Even keeping them out of the kitchen can be a great way to help you keep your house feeling like your home.
Supervise Your Baby
You can also keep your home more as you would want by regularly supervising your baby instead of leaving them on their own. Keeping an eye on them means you don’t need to make as many changes to your home to keep them safe. Ensuring they are within arms reach when they are young gives you more freedom to operate your home as you would like.
Delegate Spaces For Children To Sleep And Play
Don’t let play extend across the entire house or garden. Instead, keep areas contained so you don’t wind up with toys and other items strewn across all your floors.
This principle also applies to storage. Keep baby items in a separate area, leaving the rest of your home as it is. Dedicate one or two cupboards to all their items, freeing up everywhere else for your belongings.
Put Harmful Substances Up High
You can also prevent your baby from taking over your house by carefully managing where you keep harmful substances, such as detergents and paints. Putting these in high cupboards or locked attics gives you more freedom to keep the rest of your home how you would like, instead of installing tamper-proof locks all over the place.
Also, remove anything your children could climb on that might let them access items higher up. Remove step ladders, boxes, and steps from your rooms, particularly the kitchen area, and keep them out of the way.
Keep Your Furniture Small
You also want to keep your baby’s furniture as small as possible so that it doesn’t wind up taking up all the space in your rooms. Investing in certain types of bassinets, drawers, and playpens can help keep their overall footprint small if you are pushed for space. You can get slimline furniture that fits neatly up against the wall without intruding too much on the interiors.
Secure Your Curtains And Blinds
You can also prevent your baby from taking over your house by securing curtains and blinds. Infants will often tug on long drapes, which could cause them to fall over or damage your window coverings. Therefore, tie your curtains up or find alternatives that don’t require the same level of care. Blinds are an excellent option for the living room and bedroom.
Teach Your Child About Safety
You can also teach your child about safety and what to do around the home. For example, you could tell them not to go in the kitchen when you aren’t there or put their hands close to the fire. You can also get them to stay in specific rooms unless you are there and can supervise them in more dangerous areas of the home, like the bathroom.
When educating your baby or toddler, be patient. It can take them a long time to understand why they need to follow the rules.
Repurpose Items
Finally, you might want to experiment with repurposing items around your home to make them suitable for your child. This approach can preserve your room’s original look while accommodating the new family member.
For example, you could use storage containers as baby bathtubs or make baby clothes from existing fabric you have in your drawers. The limit is only your imagination.