Top 10 Safety Gadgets for Childproofing Your Home

1. Cabinet and Drawer Locks

Although adults, with longer and more dextrous fingers, will find it easy enough to operate these locks with one hand, they'll prevent children from opening drawers and cabinets that are off limits. They also serve to protect drawers and doors from being slammed shut, preventing Twin A from crushing Twin B's fingers in the process.

2. Door Knob Covers

Want to keep your multiples in -- or out -- of a specific room? Door knob covers fit over standard door knobs. They prevent the knob from operating. This item is sold in a set of three. Don't forget to protect doors your exterior doors as well, to prevent multiples from escaping outside.

3. Outlet Cover

Outlets have almost a magnetic attraction for young children. They will attempt to stick everything from their fingers (or their twin's fingers!) to their toys into the outlet opening. Unfortunately, the outlets in most homes are right at toddler eye-level, so it's best to cover all of them with a protective shield. This product covers the entire plate, but still allows use of the outlet. Consider keeping extras on hand to carry along when you travel.

4. Configurable Gate

Gates are very handy for preventing access to off-limits areas of the home, or for containing your multiples in a safe area of the house. A configurable product offers much more flexibility of use, so that you can change your configuration to adapt to your family's needs.

5. Baby Proofing Basics Book

Not sure where to start? Buy a book. Popular parenting author, Vicki Lansky ([U]Feed Me, I'm Yours[/u]), presents a comprehensive guide to safeguarding your home against accidents. While not geared specirically towards multiples, a book will give you a checklist for identifying and preventing potential hazards in every room of your house.

6. Stove Guard

The kitchen, usually thought of as the heart of a home, is unfortunately the heart of hazards for families with young children. A stove guard can offer some protection against accidental burns and scalds from a stove by providing a barrier between heated surfaces, putting them out of a child's reach. In addition, consider an oven lock to prevent curious multiples from gaining access to an oven interior.

7. Anti-Tip Furntiure Lock

An incident in England which killed two-year-old twins could have been prevented with this device which secures furniture to the wall so that it won't topple over. This is a must for multiples who are climbers.

8. Blind Winder

The window treatments in your home can pose a huge strangulation danger for young children, if they become entangled in the cords of blinds. In the 1990's, the Consumer Product Safety Comission (CPSC) encouraged product recalls and revisions to reduce the risks. If you have older blinds in your home, there is a simple way to alleviate the hazard without compromising the operation of your window blinds. A retractable blind winder contains and stores the cords out of reach.

9. Sliding Door Lock

Teams of toddlers are much more likely to wander off than a single child on his own. Many a parent of twins or more has been horrified to discover that their children have escaped into the yard in only a few seconds. Often these breakouts occur through a sliding glass door, which is easier for children to operate but unfortunately more difficult for parents to secure. A lock for sliding doors is the answer.

10. Toilet Lock

Young children have great fascination with toilets; unfortunately they don't always use them for their intended purpose. They'd rather throw toys in them or play in the "water." Protect your children -- and your plumbing -- with a toilet lock. It secures the cover so that little ones can't get in, but provides easy access when needed.