Paranoid Much?

When it comes to the safety of my family I consider myself a pretty paranoid person. My kids don't get to play outside without me, they don't get to play with the neighbors unless I know them, they don't get to go inside anyones house unless I have been there and know their parents, they don't get to go around the block, or walk to the park, my house is locked up like a fortress, everything is always locked, my windows aren't open, I double check and triple check all the locks and windows, even though I know they are locked and closed just in case. All these things are for my own piece of mind. You can never be too careful. But, there are no guarentees. My friend's house was broken into recently and posted on her blog some tips that can help us keep our families and our home safe. In the 3 years we have lived here, I know in my neighborhood there have been 2 break in's. 1 was during the day just like my friends was. Between 9 and 10am. Who ever thought this was possible? Broad daylight. So, I thought I'd share her tips so we can all be aware and keep our famiy and homes safe.

*Always, always lock your doors, even if you are home. Even if your just running to the neighbors for a bit, or down to the school. Cause let's face it, "a few" can become an hour real quick.

*Never keep your purse or car keys in your car. Even if it is in the garage. It only takes a moment for someone to come into your garage and open a car door.
*Vary your routine!
*When you leave if you have one, set your alarm!
*When you leave, lock the door from your home to your garage.
*Install double deadbolts. Those locks require a key to open- even on the inside. So when you remove the  key, you can't get out.
*Look like you are home. Make sure you get that paper off the driveway, and those dang adds off our door. Thief's really do look for that sort of thing. There is a really easy way to have your mail put on hold when you go out of town go to the USPS.com site and it's there. Turn on the lights on the porch, front AND back.
*Know your neighbors. Have a contact for them just in case. I'm not saying you gotta have a block party, but know you can get a hold of someone if there's a fire, or you see something funny, or their dog gets out.
*Keep your garage closed! Be a good neighbor, if it's dusk and your neighbors garage is open, go close it for them. How many times have you pulled away and thought if you shut the door or not? This is also where the locking the interior garage door comes into play.
*Be aware. If your neighbor's lawn guy always comes on Saturday and you see a landscape truck there on a Tuesday, maybe give your neighbor a shout. What can it hurt? When ever you leave if you see someone on the street, make eye contact with them. If you live in a circle where you know what cars should and shouldn't be there, don't think its retarded to keep a little notebook with plate numbers.
*Be in the Know. They have security cameras now that can be hooked to a DVR and you can check them on your Iphone or Blackberry. Check out companies like Lifelock and Carbonite to protect your identity and anything on your computer.
Now, as far as helping the Police recover things that are stolen here's what you should have in a perfect world (although in a perfect world you'd never need it)...
**A home inventory list. Go room to room with a camera and take pictures of everything. Open drawers, pictures on the walls, garage too. I can tell you first hand, when they are asking you what is missing your mind goes blank- until 3 am and then you start remembering the most random stuff...
**Make digital copies of any important papers, irreplaceable documents ect. ie birth certificates, Passports, High School Diplomas and on and on...
**Be able to prove what you have! In order to aide in the recovery of things, you need to know the serial number and have a description. For insurance you need (if possible), the value or a receipt. Everything has a serial number, your iPod, your cell, computer- shoot even the baby monitor does. Write it down, and keep a file at your residence and somewhere else. If it was a gift, make a note of it. If you keep cash on hand- they have those handy numbers on them for a reason. Knowing a bill number isn't just for banks.
**Pictures Please! When an officer is showing you stacks of photos of piles of jewelry, and other things--trust me when I tell you its a WHOLE lot easier when you can pull out a picture you have and say, "yep that's mine'. Otherwise it's, "well, that looks like the side of that bracelet maybe." Not so helpful. And when you are trying to remember what a ring that you got when you were 10 looks like, your memory gets fuzzy.
**Kids Stuff too! Our kids have so much crap. Ok I mean things... and some of what was taken was theres. So don't forget to write down their electronic stuff too. ie, their DS and all the games that they had.
**Collections- DVD's, CD's, golf balls, you name it. If you have a lot of them you will never remember them all. Think video games, tools ect ect.
Just use common sense. Be aware. Don't be afraid to call your local PD if something doesn't seem right. They have an 'non emergent' number for things just like that. I know it seems like a lot to remember, but being on this side of it, it would have been 100 times easier to do any of these things than to be calling, emailing, a million places to try to put your life back and pick up the pieces like we are.

I'll be getting deadbolds and making a household inventory this week. Another tip is to not keep your garage door opener in your car. You can get a garage door opener that clips right onto your key chain. That way thieves can't break into your car and open your garage door and if you have 3 cars and only 2 garage door openers like us, you won't have to keep switching it from car to car. That's all folks! Have a safe and happy week!