+1 for all of that.Stock R wrote: ↑We did very little baby proofing. Our constant vigilance method provided very little opportunity for Jr to seriously hurt himself. Potentially serious hazards were addressed. Anything else we just let him learn from it.
Ex. When Jr first learned to climb the stairs, I installed the gate. The next thing I did was teach him how to climb down. We still used the gate but he's almost always been capable of safely climbing up and down.
Ex. We never locked any drawers. We only rearranged them so the sharp stuff out out of the way. We let him take stuff out and chuck it as he wished. Then we taught him to put everything he chucked back into the drawer. Took a while but now he can tidy up. Sure he smooshed his little fingers a couple of times but you learn quickly how not to crush your fingers.
Sometimes the best way to teach your kids is to let them fall.
I also found it best to teach them from the get go what they could and couldn't do. If you baby proof everything in your house then go into another house that is not baby proofed, they could go do anything they want. We always told our toddler she couldn't open drawers without asking, be careful with closing doors, don't play with plugs, etc. so that anywhere we were, she would follow the same rules. She's 2.5 years old now and so far so good, not much babyproofing needed, just common sense and knowing what your kid is doing most of the time.