I think the Style section should be read from the perspective of three glasses of gin.

Okay, people who put up silk Shantung curtains in the babies' room are either too dumb to breed, or too rich to complain about it. Seriously.

msbelle, thanks for the offer, but we're planning to just put up a gate and make the whole kitchen off-limits.

My biggest worry right now is the TV shelf. Like his Mom, Dylan is drawn to shiny blinky things with buttons on them, but I'd rather the Tivo not turn into a teething toy.

I think the Style section should be read from the perspective of three glasses of gin.

Given that I suspect it's written from that perspective, you're probably right.

Still, I'm proud to know that I'm squarely in the prime fine-furniture-buying years. It gives me a powerful sense of identity that I feel my generation has always lacked.

My kids are 11 and almost 18 (!!!!!). We still have child locks on the drawers and cabinets in the kitchen and bathrooms. Now we view them as earthquake safety devices.

Make the volume control inaccessible. Your ears will thank you. D thought it was great fun to stand in front of the stereo, hit buttons until the bass-y-est station came on and CRANK that sucker up and down. And since the tv used the same speakers, you'd unsuspectingly turn on the tv later and practically get blown across the room.

I hate those people. I try to believe I do not share space with them.

Still, I'm proud to know that I'm squarely in the prime fine-furniture-buying years. It gives me a powerful sense of identity that I feel my generation has always lacked.

I think we're pretty close to the same age. Should I mention that I'm now considering buying a purple plastic bouncey ball from the toy section of Target to use as a footrest at my desk?

Should I mention that I'm now considering buying a purple plastic bouncey ball from the toy section of Target to use as a footrest at my desk?

Awesome! I'd steal the idea, but I've found that with the big red bouncy ball chair, feet on the ground is desperately important.

The people who had to remove their designer chairs with "razor-sharp edges" when they had a kid... what about before they had kids, when regular old klutzy people like me came to visit?

Ahahahahaha. People like me would commit accidental suicide on those chairs.

Jessica, the clear DVD guards here worked very well for us at first. They keep the buttons and stuff out of reach of little ones until they figure out how to get past them. We used them for our DVR and DVD player.

Good luck with the mobility. Remember, soon he will be faster than you--and better rested. The object of babyproofing isn't so much stopping them as slowing them down until you can prevent tragedy.