Drop-side Cribs to be Banned in U.S.

http://www.youtube.com/user/USCPSC

The above link will take you to the Consumer Product Safety Commission's Youtube website where they have a vast selection of videos that I highly recommend that everyone take the time to watch.  If you are an expecting parent, babysitter, hands-on Grandparent, or just interested in safety and babies in general----then please, please, please----pour a cup of tea, sit down, and watch a few of these.  It could truly mean the difference between life or death...or serious harm.

The bottom line is that most of this can be prevented by taking the proper precautionary measures and not cut corners because you are in a rush.  You just may regret those moments that you can never undo.


CBC News message posted December 15th, 2010

The following is an exert from this post:

The U.S. government is outlawing drop-side cribs after the deaths of more than 30 infants and toddlers in the past decade.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission has voted unanimously to ban the manufacture, sale and re-sale of the cribs, which have a side rail that moves up and down, allowing parents to more easily lift their child from the crib.
Around for decades, drop-side cribs have come under scrutiny in recent years because of malfunctioning hardware, sometimes cheaper plastics, or assembly problems that can lead to the drop-side rail partially detaching from the crib.
When that happens, it can create a dangerous "V"-like gap between the mattress and side rail where a baby can get caught and suffocate or strangle.
On Tuesday, a consumer safety bill passed in Parliament in Ottawa. When it comes into force in the next few months, the federal government will be able to order the recall of unsafe goods such as drop-side cribs.
Currently, the Canadian government can only request a voluntary recall from manufacturers or distributors.
© The Canadian Press, 2010

~My two cents~~There will always be those that want to criticize about the 'new' parenting advice and will say things like---"oh, how did any of us survive with those cribs?  my gramma told me she slept in a basket or a dresser drawer".....bla bla bla.....You get the hint!

Well, be as judgmental, defensive, or snide as you want to be, but let me say this.  I have given birth to 6 sons and only one of them is currently healthy.

~Now please bear with me while I share a bit about my own experiences.  I can honestly say that I have faced the odds and struggled with a lot of things that were completely out of my hands to prevent.  (Stepping on my soapbox now!)

My eldest son was struck by a truck when he was 4---(and no, he wasn't in my care when it happened but that's besides the point)---my second and fifth sons have a rare blood disease (2nd son had his spleen and gallbladder removed due to this)---my third son was stillborn---my fourth son was born healthy and still is----(I count my blessings each and every day)----and my 6th (last) child was born with Trisomy 13 and passed away at 8 days of age.  I also lost my husband, marriage, business, and future family life due to my (ex) husband's brain injury while on duty as a firefighter on December 19th, 2002.  He did not pass away, but he will never be the same man I married.

I do not play the lotto because life is a big enough gamble already and I truly just feel grateful enough to be able to sit here and write this with my sensibilities still intact!

The moral of this story----don't take risks when we know what may happen.  I cannot turn back the hands of time, and would rather look ahead and feel confident with the smart choices that I have made when it comes to family safety, than have to live with a future regretting the educated decisions that I chose to ignore because I thought "it could never happen to me".  Please, don't be that person.  If it happened to me, or it happened to someone else---it can happen to you or to someone you know.

Arm yourself-----be safe.  Most of all.....be happy.

Love, Peace, & Nimkee-Blessings to all this holiday season and every day.