Kitchens

Ok, so this is probably a rather random question, but DH and I are in the process of getting a new kitchen (YAY) and we want to make sure that its relatively kid-friendly because this is the house we intend to have a young family in.
So I'd be interested to hear your thoughts as to what is and isn't a good idea in a kitchen with small children in. We are planning to get a stove with dials on the top rather than the front so toddlers can't reach them.
I also thought it would be sensible to have the microwave above bench height, rather than under the bench, but when I mentioned this to the guy designing the plans he said "Nah, you just slap their hands a couple of times and they learn" and then went on to say that its great that his 5-year-old can reach their microwave because he makes his own 2-minute noodles which is handy for the parents!! He then continued with his plans to have the microwave under the bench. Now I have no intention of slapping my children, especially for little things like touching the microwave (easy to say pre-kids anyway ). I'd have to rely on me telling them not to.
So is it worth arguing to get the plans changed for things like that? Or is there really no need to worry about making the kitchen kid-friendly? FYI, my little brother was borderline ADHD and mischeif with it so maybe I've got a skewed idea of how little kids behave

Ditto - if you want it above bench height, that's what you should get. It's your kitchen, design it how you want, not how he wants you to have it. The only thing we've decided with our new kitchen is not to have an island - simply because children can run around it and kitchen and running don't go together (and we all know that sometimes telling them no doesn't work). We (well, me) are also looking at an electronic cooktop - has touch buttons to turn it on etc, that run down the side of it (as you're looking down on it I mean) so that there's NO bits to pull on/play with and they're out of reach. DP's Mum has one and I it.

Hmm, when I bought this house I didnt think about how kid safe it was - and it totally isnt. My solution is that I've purchased a gate so the little person wont be able to get in and out of it :P I have a massive gas cooker with dials on the front etc, but I'll be turning it off at the bottle when i'm not using it just in case, and flicking the power to the oven off when I dont need that as well!

nikkiwhyte wrote: But in saying that, it has been an absolute necessity to have a high cupboard to put things like the cleaning products, dishwasher powder etc to keep little fingers out. We keep all dangerous stuff in the cupboard above our fridge.

Or I was going to say otherwise make sure you choose handles that you can put kiddie locks on for the poisonous stuff

Our microwave has an automatic childlock feature on it too. I didn't know about it until it kicked in one day when Benjy got a chair and had a play. So impressed with that!
I second what Bee said about having your oven up off the floor. Much safer when you've got toddly ones around your feet and so much more user friendly.

Hehe - they're actually not tooooo expensive - range in price from $700 through to $2,700 (they were in a Harvey Norman catalogue last week....).

taine still plays with ours. despite being told numerous times not to. we just keep it turned off unless we are using it (really annoying when cooking rice to have it changed every few minutes). Dishwashers - turns out you can tip them over if you open them and stand on them. not too much damage - unless all the plates and glasses are in there. Fridges - fridge down the bottom - freezer up top - less chance of leaving the door open and deforsting - well less damage if you do so anyway

Ah yes, multiple children. I forget people are insane enough to have more than one!

My neighbour had a kitchen that she literally fenced off for about 5 years. Worked a treat - no tripping over kiddos while making dinner - and she got a great workout climbing over it all the time too!!

The oven is the problem in our kitchen - Ella tries to come over and see what I'm taking in or out of it, (she's not allowed to touch the oven, but that doesn't stop her with a lot of things) and I'm dreading her grabbing hold of one of the racks one day, 'cause lord knows she sure tries.  I've been known to check the meal in the oven while holding her at bay with a foot stretched out behind me, moving it about wherever she goes    But then, unless your oven is really quite high, that's a difficult issue to avoid.  Our kitchen is open-plan and I love it, but that said, there are many times I wish I could just stick a kiddie-gate across it.  And the microwave - insist on putting it where you want it!  It's your kitchen after all,and you'll be the ones using it. 

I definitely second the touch button cooktop. (again we have a Fisher and paykel one) also has a lock feature on it too..

But my goodness, kitchens can get soooo expensive!!!

We were without one for 6 weeks when we did our renovation, and it was in winter so couldn't really use the bbq! LOL It was ummm interesting, but so worth it!