The safety of family, home, and belongings is critical to all of us. Being prepared and alert can save time, injury, and possibly your life. Here are some things to do to help keep your family safe around your home.

• Store medications and small items such as jewelry and coins where toddlers can't reach. Be alert for items that would stick in a child's throat.
• Lock unloaded guns in a secure place and store guns and bullets in separate places. Do not let children see where the guns or bullets are stored.
• Put razors, cosmetics, and other health and beauty items out of reach.
• Do not leave hair dryers, curling irons, or other grooming appliances out after use or unattended while cooling.
• Install child safety latches on cabinet doors and drawers.
• Do not store prescription drugs in the bathroom. Find a cool, dry spot in the house that is out the reach of chidren and check for childproof safety caps for all medications.
• Set your water heater at 120 degrees Fahrenheit or lower to prevent burns and scalds.
• Turn pot handles away from the outside edge of the range.
• Store cleaners and chemicals in their original containers in places where children can't get to them. Never store them under the kitchen or bathroom sinks, even if the doors are protected by child safety latches
• Keep knives and other sharp objects out of the reach of children.
• Tuck away cords of electrical appliances so that small children cannot grab them.
• Replace electrical cords that are frayed or cracked or that become hot when the electrical appliance is being used. Do not overload outlets and extension cords. Never run electrical cords under carpets - hot electrical cords could start the carpet on fire.
• Put safety caps on all unused electrical outlets.
• Place house plants out of reach of children. Some plants are poisonous if eaten and others could injure your child if a heavy pot fell on the child.
• Secure bookcases to the walls to prevent toddlers from pulling the book cases over.
• Keep tools and garden chemicals out of the reach of children.

The National Crime Prevention Council offers the following advice to keep your family and property protected.

• Check your locks: Door and window locks in most homes today might keep out someone who just rattles the knob, but they won't stop a determined or professional burglar. In more 40 per cent of residential burglaries, the thieves came in an unlocked door or window.
  
  Every exterior door should have a dead-bolt lock with a one-inch throw. If you have a key-in-the-knob lock install an auxiliary lock--a vertical bolt, cylinder dead-bolt, or horizontal bolt model. And if you moved into a new house or apartment, rekey the locks. You never know who may still have old keys. Also, do not hide your keys in mailboxes, planters, or under doormats. Give a duplicate key to a trusted neighbor instead.
  
  Secure sliding glass doors with commercially available locks, with a rigid wooden dowel in the track or with a nail inserted through a hole drilled into the sliding door frame and projecting into the fixed frame. Lock double-hung windows with window key locks or by sliding a bolt or nail through a hole drilled at a downward angle in each top corner or inside sash and part way through the outside sash. Consider grilles for basement or street-level windows if you live in a high-crime area.
  
  
• Check your doors: Locks lose their effectiveness if they are installed in flimsy or weak doors. Make sure outside doors are solid, at least 1.75 inch metal or hard wood. Doors should fit tightly in their frames and hinges should be on the inside. Double check the door between your house and the garage since this is a common entry spot for thieves.
  
  Install a peep-hole or wide angle viewer in all entry doors so you can see who is outside without opening the door. A short chain between the door and the jamb is not a good substitute because the chain can be broken easily.
  
  
• Look at your home from the outside: To discourage burglars from selecting your home, make sure that any shubbery around doors and windows is pruned so the shubbery will not hide anyone tampering with the entry points. Cut back tree limbs that could help a thief climb into second story windows
  
  Keep your yard well-maintained and store ladders and tools inside your garage or basement when you're not using them. All entrances and porches should be well lighted.
  
  
• Consider an alarm system: If you live in an isolated area or in a neighborhood vulnerable to break-ins, explore the costs of an alarm system. The simplest in-house alarm system sets up a small electrical circuit across door locks and from window to frame. When this current is interrupted by someone opening the door or window, the alarm sounds. More sophisticated systems include devices that set off a siren when an intruder disturbs a field of continually moving sound or radar waves. Advanced alarm system can be monitored by a central station which alerts the police if a thief breaks in. These systems can include smoke/fire/CO₂/sump pump alarms as well as "help" or "panic" buttons to signal a medical or other emergency.
  
  
• Have a family plan: Remember that your goal is to avoid any confrontations with a burglar since there is a good chance that he or she may be armed. If you find a door ajar, a slit screen, window pane broken, or telephone line cut when you come home -- DO NOT GO INSIDE YOUR HOME. Call the police from your cell phone or from a neighbor's home.
  
  
• Prepare when you leave town: Notify a trusted neighbor that has a view of your house about your out-of-town plans and schedule. Ask the neighbor to pick up your mail, deliveries, and newspapers. Put lights and a radio on a timer to create the illusion that someone is home. Leave shades, blinds, and curtains in normal positions and arrange to have your lawn and garden maintained, if you will be gone for an extended time period. In winter, ask your neighbor to remove snow from your sidewalk and driveway and to leave footprints around your home to make it appear that someone is around.
  
  

For a small investment of time and money, you can greatly reduce your chances of being a victim of a home burglary. For more information on home security and safety, contact your local police or sheriff's office.