Be Responsible: Lock Up Those Guns!

First of all, no matter what you think about the gun debate going on right now in the U.S., I think there is one thing we can all agree about.  If you own a gun, you need to be responsible.  This means that laws need to be followed, and guns need to be stored appropriately and locked up in gun safes.  This is especially true if you have children in your home.  This includes parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc.

The news is inundated with stories of children easily gaining access to guns.  The stories are often tragic and result in serious injury and death.  I am always horrified when I hear these stories, and I have to admit that I don't understand it.  While I did not grow up with a gun in our home, we did have a gun for a few years in our home in recent times.  I can remember voicing my concerns, but we were certain to double lock it in a gun safe.  We were extremely responsible, and there was honestly never an issue.  (Just so you know, we had the gun because we live in the country, and coyotes were coming into our yard.  Thankfully, that seems to be a thing of the past.)

I believe that when one chooses to own a gun, it comes with great responsibility.  I am amazed at how many gun owners do not take simple safety precautions.  I have heard of parents who had gun safes and padlocks, and they did not appropriately lock up the guns!  What good does it do to have all the safety items for your child's protection and then not use them?  While it does take a little bit more time to go through the process of properly securing your gun, if it will keep your child safe and unharmed, isn't it worth it?

How to Teach Pool Safety to Young Children

Pool safety is one of those things that should become a habit at a young age. There are plenty of pool safety tools such as devices that make a loud noise when something causes waves in your pool or watches that your child can wear to alert you via a remote monitor when your child goes into the pool. While technology can provide peace of mind, teaching the basics of pool safety at a young age is just as important.

Keep It Short

Most young children don't have the patience to sit still for a lengthy lecture on pool safety. If you have a lot to cover, teach pool safety in short lessons instead of lumping it all together. It won't be long before your child starts to drift and they won't retain anything either. If, for example, you start with how to use floatation devices, let your children get in the pool with the floatation devices. Young children tend to be more responsive if they can do what you are telling them to do as you give instructions instead of just listening to you lecture.

Use the Buddy System

Young children tend to learn better when there is someone around their own age with them. This can be a brother or sister or one of their friends. If you invite one of their friends over, invite at least one other parent too. The more supervision you have, the more time you have to focus on what you are trying to teach. Let them get in the shallow part of the pool while you instruct them on pool safety. Let your child partner up with their sibling or friend and have one of them act out what you just said while the other one follows suit.

Be Repetitive

Most young children retain facts when they are repeated over and over. Start by coming up with five basic pool safety tips. It really shouldn't be any more than five. This is why shows like Sesame Street are so effective. Instead of just repeating the facts over and over, try making each point into a song or sing-song verse. This can work even if all you do is sing what you want to say. If you make it fun and repeat your basic points enough, your child should be able to retain some basic pool safety tips.

Make a Game Out of It

Young children tend to learn when it is perceived as being fun. This is the same concept that most schools use for young children, so why not extend it to the pool? Gauge the games you come up with according the age of the child. It can be something simply like let's see how fast you can get your inflatable armbands on. You can also make a little quiz game out of it and ask questions. This works best if you do this with a small group of children. You can even give them a small prize for each correct response.

Teach Your Children to Swim

The best way to be safe in the pool is to know how to swim. If you are not comfortable teaching your child to swim, you can easily find a swim course for parents and children at your local YMCA or other community organizations. Make sure your children know how far they can go in the pool. Even if your child learns how to swim, deeper parts of the pool may be too much for some young children to handle.

Set Family Pool Rules

Children tend to follow the example of others. This is true when it comes to pool safety. Establish family pool rules. These rules should be clearly written out on poster board or a large piece of cardboard so that they are clearly visible. Go over the rules for young children not able to read yet. Be firm and insist that everybody in the family follow the rules. This includes older children and adults too. If young children see that the whole family is on board, they are more likely to follow the rules.

You don't want to make the pool something to fear. You want to make it fun and keep it simple. The idea of teaching pool safety to young children is to instill basic pool safety at a young age to develop habits that will hopefully continue into adulthood.

Author Bio

Bob Quigly is a landscaping and family fun enthusiast

who writes on a variety of blogs for above ground pools from Backyard Ocean.com.

This Day in History September 9, 1966

I am so glad that today's feature happened--really I am!  Ralph Nader had just published the book Unsafe at Any Speed, and people were beginning to get concerned about motor vehicle crashes and fatalities.  So in response, President Johnson signed the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act into law.  For the first time, seatbelts were required for every passenger.  Also, self-sealing fuel tanks, shatter-resistant windshields,, and impact-absorbing wheels were required on every vehicle.   The Highway Safety Act (which came later) regulated better road signs and markers.  These two act together greatly reduced fatal vehicular accidents.

Of course, since then, more legislation has been passed, but at least this was a good start.  I, for one, am glad that this was enacted, and I can only hope that drivers will continue to take advantage of all precautions that cars and traffic safety provides.  But when I get out and drive on a regular basis, I know that people take these things for granted and still continue to be quite unsafe.

For more information:

http://www.forbes.com/pictures/ehmk45ielk/6-highway-safety-act-and-national-traffic-motor-vehicle-safety-act-1966-lyndon-johnson-2/

http://www.enotes.com/highway-safety-act-1966-reference/national-traffic-motor-vehicle-safety-act-1966

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Traffic_and_Motor_Vehicle_Safety_Act

http://famousdaily.com/history/president-lyndon-johnson-sign-law-national-traffic-act.html

TigTagz ID Wristbands for Kids Review

You're heading out the door for a fun day out with the kids...have you considered what to do if you and your child are separated? You could put a sticker on their back with your phone number written on it, but those rub off on the car seats. What about writing your number on their arm? That won't work, it can easily wash off. What about a piece of paper in their pants pocket? Hmmm...that can get lost, and who wants a stranger digging through their child's pants. There really isn't a good solution...until now! 

TigTagz ID bracelets are perfect for anywhere your child might get lost. Really cute styles for boys and girls are fun to wear and impossible for kids to remove. By putting a TigTagz ID bracelet on your child, you are ensuring that your vital contact information will be with your child should you become separated. You can even add a medical alert! TigTagz ID bracelets are tear-proof, sweat-proof, smear-proof, and water-resistant. When put on correctly, the only way to remove the bracelet is with scissors. Kids LOVE wearing TigTagz bracelets and you can have peace of mind knowing that your child has such important information right on their precious little bodies!

I have used safety bracelets before when I have taken my daughter out to a theme park or the like.  I even have one of those safety bracelets somewhere with her information on it.  The drawback I always felt in that was that if the information changed, a new bracelet would have to be purchased.  

When I received these for review, I was glad to find that I was given more than one.  I control what is on the wristband, and I can change it is necessary.  I could put any information necessary.  And I love the fact that my daughter cannot get them off!  Okay, I haven't tested that yet, but I am going to trust that basicially she will not be able to.

Since our weather has been pretty awful lately, we haven't had the opportunity to go out and about much.  But I have these really neat wristbands set aside to use once we do.,  My daughter loves bracelets so this is a perfect thing for her.  She is nearly nine, and she still struggles with all of our personal information.  I know that even when she does completely learn it, there is always the chance that she will be incapacitated and unable to respond to adults trying to help her.  What a great peace of mind to have a wristband that can be displayed so that the adults have the information needed to help.

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I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.