The Great Baby Proofing Wars of 2009

My new weapon in the Great Baby Proofing Wars of 2009?

Duct tape.

No, I'm not using it to hog tie the kids, though there are days when I think that might be the only way to win this war. I'm using it to tape my lazy susan cabinet shut and to supplement the "childproof" locks that my triplets have already figured out how to thwart.

Don't even get me started on lamp cords and my cable connection. (Which is vital to life, as it is my Internet connection.)

I started out with the idea that I could use clear packing tape to tape the lamp cord to the table leg and the floor so it wouldn't scream "BABIES IN THE HOUSE!" from across the room. Not that the crib in my family room doesn't already take care of sending that message.

So subtle, don't you think?

The "experts" actually tell you to do this. HA! It was just sport for the triplets to pick the tape off the floor and try to chew on the cord.

So, out went the table and the lamp.

Next came the team effort to crawl behind the crib onto the fireplace hearth.

New territory: Alex and Isaac check out the hearth behind the crib.

Sam, Isaac and Alex could all get up pretty efficiently, but down was a problem. And I got tired of rescuing one stuck child after another from behind the crib.

But the crib had to stay, so some creative stacking of stuff to block the entrance ensued. Now, they are crawling UNDER the crib to get to the hearth, but haven't figured out how to wiggle up there yet.

All of this brings me back to my original point: duct tape. It's cheap, easy to use, and a great supplement to my current cabinet door locks.

See, before I had these three boys, I had Amelia. And she did not prepare me at all for what her brothers would get into.

When we left the cabinet door locks undone, it bothered Amelia so much she would make us fasten them. Never once did she yank on the locked doors with all her might to pop the locks open. Probably never even considered it. BECAUSE SHE'S A GIRL!

These beautiful boys on the other hand...*sigh*

I'm afraid that this is a war I can't actually win. I'm just hoping to stay half a step ahead so the injuries are minor.

Or, I could follow a fellow triplet mom's advice, "For this stage of triplethood you might need to go with the industrial/insane asylum style of decorating -- just take everything out of the room."
What the heck, we're already well on our way. Here's hoping the boys don't rip the drywall off the walls.