Parents need to be careful not to let their guard down or become distracted while traveling or attending public functions during the holiday season. Tim Kang, actor from the hit CBS show The Mentalist has partnered with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) to help educate parents about what they should be telling their children to keep them safe while shopping and traveling this holiday season.

Parents need to talk with children about safety before heading out to a busy shopping mall or boarding a plane, train, or bus this holiday season. Crowds are greater this time of year and children may easily become separated from their parents, causing confusion and fear. If that should happen, parents need a plan and children should know what to do.

“Unfortunately many adults and children don’t know what to do if they lose each other in a public place or are faced with other unsafe situations,” said actor Tim Kang. “That’s why the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children is offering advice on how to remain safe and avoid panic and potential dangers.”

ALWAYS

• Keep children with you at all times while shopping.
• Accompany and supervise children in public facilities, including restrooms.
• Have a plan in case you become separated, including a pre-designated spot to meet.
• Teach children to look for people who can help, such as a uniformed security officer, salesperson or mother with children.
• Remind children to remain in the area where they become separated.

NEVER

• Dress children in clothing that displays their first or last names, prompting unwelcome attention from people looking for an opportunity to start a conversation with your child.
• Leave children in toy stores or public facilities expecting supervision from store personnel.
• Go shopping or attend a public event with a child if you feel you’re going to be distracted. Make other arrangements for child care ahead of time.
• Allow younger children to shop on their own to purchase surprise gifts for friends or family members.
• Drop off older children at a mall or public place without agreeing on a clear plan for picking them up, including: where, what time, and what to do in case of a change in plans.

If your child is flying or riding a train or bus alone this holiday season, NCMEC urges parents to remember the following travel safety tips:

• When you make reservations for your child, specify that the child will be traveling alone.
• Whenever possible, book a non-stop flight or direct route. Avoid booking the last flight of the day.
• Plan to visit the airport, train or bus terminal prior to departure. Let your child know what to expect, so the experience will not be so intimidating.
• In case of delay or cancellation, remain at the station or gate until the train, plane or bus departs.
• Make sure children travel with proper identification and parents or guardian contact information.
• Always have a back-up plan for the person or people meeting the plane at the destination, in case they are delayed.
• Encourage children not to become too friendly with other passengers or to reveal any personal information.

Yet consider how many people talk (or text) while walking.  Would not the same distractions apply?

Far too many people have a false sense of security when they talk on the phone while walking across campus, parking lots or strolling for exercise.  How can you possibly have keen domain awareness if you’re yapping on the phone?  You can’t.  You may feel safer with someone on the other end of the phone but you’re actually putting yourself in more danger.

There is a win/win solution –

Get your friend or loved one on the phone and provide details as to your whereabouts.  But then rather than continue talking, merely keep the line open, phone in hand at your side and walk to your destination.  This provides a much safer opportunity for you to be aware of your surroundings and notice any lurking threats.  Should you need any assistance, you already have a direct connection to someone who can get emergency personnel to you.

Now that you know the potential dangers, are you willing to try this method of walking and not talking next time you find yourself traveling by foot?

Awareness without action is worthless. – Phil McGraw

If I asked you to provide a current photograph of your child, could you do it RIGHT NOW in 30 seconds or less?

Some of you will say “Yes, absolutely!” and show me your phone which proudly contains a picture of Junior, taken just this weekend.  Or perhaps you’ll open your wallet and hand me this year’s school picture.

Others will tell me they have to get to their computer, desk or fireplace mantle at home before they could provide me with a semi-current photo of their bundle of joy.

Yet others will show me an adorable photo of their little one, taken years earlier.  And still a group of you will sheepishly admit that no, you don’t have a photo of your child readily available.

Consider every parent’s nightmare – an abduction of their child.  No one likes to think about the possibility that one of their children could ever be kidnapped.  All one needs to do is turn on the news or perform an online search, keywords: “child abducted” to find a number of parents who are living this nightmare.

Timing is of the essence in finding a missing child; every minute and hour is crucial.  Can you even imagine receiving the news that your child was taken, and then trying to locate a current photograph of your son or daughter in the midst of the chaos?   Eliminate the possibility that you could waste precious moments on this task and ensure you have a current photograph you could provide to the police within 30 seconds.

On the back of the photograph, or on a separate wallet card if you only have digital photos, list vital, current information specific to that child.  It’s common to list little Johnnie’s name, grade, age and year on the back of school photographs.

Though for the one you will carry, include full name, date of birth, current height/weight, eye and hair color, any visible markings such as scars or birthmarks, blood type, and contact information for your child’s dentist.

It goes without saying that should this horrific situation ever become a reality you will want the authorities to do absolutely everything in their power to bring your baby home safely.  Expedite the search process by having this critical information available and accessible at a moment’s notice.

Wallet or phone photos of babies and young children should be updated every six months, at a minimum. School aged children should be updated at least once each year.

Please take care of this essential issue today; it’s too important to procrastinate.

What you put on your luggage tag could place your home and loved ones at risk

Dear Airline Traveler,

Thank you so much for including your name, phone number and home address on your luggage tag.  I was running out of homes to break into.  I have to support my drug habit, doncha know. But now that you just hopped on an airplane and won’t be home for a while, I can go to your place and rob you blind. I ought to find plenty to take to the pawn shop, sell on the streets or use for trade.  Thanks for that.  Oh, and if you left your teenage daughter or wife at home, that could be a real bonus.  They wouldn’t expect me to be there so I might have to make sure they aren’t able to call the cops after I leave… If you know what I mean.  Or maybe while I’m there, I may just ‘hit that’ sweet thing. She’s probably never had a real man like me.  I just can’t tell you how much I appreciate you sharing such personal information with me.

Love,

Burglar and part-time rapist, attacker and murderer if I panic.

Extreme? Perhaps.  Possible? You bet. Every day countless travelers unknowingly do stupid things to put themselves, love ones or personal property at risk.  Do you feel safe sharing such personal information with unknown gate agents, baggage handlers, valets, or even the stranger standing next to you at the check-in counter? Under what circumstance would you possibly need to include your home address on your luggage?

If your luggage is lost or mis-routed, wouldn’t it make sense to merely have your name and cell phone number on the tag?  At least that way the airlines could contact you for more information.  Or list your name and the phone number where you will be staying once you arrive at your destination if you don’t want your unpublished cell phone number attached to your name.

Interestingly I decided to look up a few airlines to see what their policy was with regard to identification on luggage.  Here are a few, taken directly from their own websites:

Delta: Put your name and the phone number of your destination on the inside and outside of your bag.

United: Each checked bag must have an external tag or label showing the name of the customer who checked it in.

Southwest: Regulations require name identification on the outside. We recommend placing identification on the inside of the baggage, too.

American: Your name and address must be on the outside of your baggage. Name tags are available at all airport baggage check-in locations

TSA: Don’t forget to place identification tags with your name, address and phone number on all of your baggage, including your laptop computer.  It is a good idea to place an identification tag inside your baggage as well.

Delta, United and Southwest seem to have their act together. They inform passengers to list their name and/or phone number.  I was, however, saddened to see that both American Airlines and the Transportation Security Administration both inform passengers to include their address on their luggage tags.  TSA is a government organization, so I guess that doesn’t really surprise me that the information originating from them may not be the wisest; but what’s American’s excuse?  Just blindly duplicating what TSA does?

If you’re already paying the exorbitant extra checked baggage fee, are you really going to convince me that some gate agent would refuse to toss your bag on the belt because you refuse to share your home address with minimum wage, complete strangers? Doubtful.

The next time you travel, I hope your luggage tag contains just the bare bones:  Name and cell or destination Phone Number.   If not, your accommodating self may want to leave some cookies out for the burglars and maybe a cold beer in the fridge.

Make good choices.

Summer is here and kids both young and young at heart love amusement parks.  One doesn’t need to drive too far to find one of many scattered across the country.

Before you go, keep in mind these three important tips to ensure your personal safety.

1.    Use lockers to store valuables or keep your necessities with you at all times. Today’s amusement parks now have some fantastic water rides.  Nothing says cool off better than a trip up the Lazy River or down the Adventure Falls.  Signage warns, “You will get soaked”.   Most parks now have barrels or shelving where you can place your belongings before boarding the water ride.  Anyone with a backpack, cell phone or wallet certainly would not want to have those items drenched; therefore they set their items in a staging area to ensure they stay dry.  However signage also warns, ‘Not responsible for lost or stolen items’.  The staging location is not manned or monitored.  Anyone could walk over to the shelves and grab any backpack or tote bag that looked interesting.  Unknowing ride passengers have just made their wallet, cell phone, keys and personal information available to a complete stranger.  Next time, opt for a zip lock bag to store your valuables, place them inside a backpack and take everything with you on the water ride.  So what if your tote gets wet; your personal information will remain secure at your side.

2.   Have a plan should you become separated from your family.  Even if everyone has a cell phone, still develop a plan.  You never know when your battery will die or phone get misplaced.  Decide at the onset where you will meet if you suddenly turn around and find a family member missing. If after a very brief time of not reuniting at the predesignated spot, contact park security.  Time is not on your side should you become separated in such a large park with so many people.

3.    Keep young children with you at all times. This should go without saying. Yet on a recent trip to an amusement park I witnessed a potentially horrific situation.  An older gentleman, presumably Grandpa, was pushing a stroller with a small tot inside.  Walking just ahead were two young ladies and two other children approximately four & six years old, presumably the gentleman’s daughters and possibly mothers to the children.  The ladies and young kids were enjoying a day at the park while Grandpa was there to get some fresh air and watch the stroller-bound toddler. On more than one occasion, I watched Grandpa leave the toddler unattended in the stroller and walk away 75 feet or more so that he could photograph the elementary aged grandchildren.  This poor toddler was strapped in the stroller sleeping with not a soul watching her. Grandpa was oblivious and clearly not watching the stroller while he waved and snapped photos of the other children enjoying the Frog Hopper ride. In a blink of an eye someone would have snatched the stroller and been concealed among all the other park goers that day.

The summer is a fabulous time for needed rest, relaxation and loads of fun.  Make all your memories positive ones. Pack your sunscreen, laugh much, enjoy and BE SAFE!

Mother walked up to the fitting room with two children – a little girl approximately three years old and a boy who was no more four or five. The mom and little girl went in to try on bathing suits.  They had at least six different suits in hand (this is relevant as it shows they were going to be in there a while).  The mom parked the little boy well out of reach and out of view of the dressing rooms and instructed him to stay in the cart and wait there.  Away mom and sister went – out of sight, out of ear shot and out of reach.  The little boy was left totally unattended.

I understand that mom may have wanted her son to stay in the cart to keep him out of trouble; yet he was a sitting duck. The store was very busy and there were a lot of people coming and going.  It would have been so easy for anyone to grab the cart and sweep the little boy away without anyone noticing.

If you’re thinking that no one could get away with taking the boy because the young lad would make a lot of noise and start screaming, think again.  Have you ever heard a screaming kid in a store?  I sure have.  I have heard kids who won’t stop hollering and I have also experienced this first hand.

I like to remind my teenie bop how the one time she threw an out of control, temper tantrum we were in Target (she was young).  She wanted to get out of the cart and started screaming her little lungs off making a huge ruckus.  As I exited the store to deal with my terrific two year old, you would have thought I was kidnapping her and there was no way I could have been her mother the way she was carrying on.  My point is that it would not have been terribly out of place for a young kid to be causing a disturbance in a store.

Back to the dressing room scene:  My daughter finished in the dressing room and we departed for another part of the store.  We later circled back around to the area near the fitting rooms and low and behold the little boy was still sitting in the cart alone – mom nowhere in sight.

What is wrong with people?

I get that it can be challenging when a mom has a little boy with her – or a dad has his daughter.  Yet there are plenty of work-arounds.

1. She could have brought the little boy into the dressing room and had him turn his back to the corner as his little sister changed.
2. She could have brought him into the dressing room area and had him stand immediately outside the fitting room door. Mom still would have been able to see her son’s feet as he waited.
3. She could have left her son in the cart and parked it much closer to the entrance, selected a fitting room up front, sent her daughter into the changing room while mom stood outside the door able to keep an eye on both of her children.

I hung around long enough to see the mom and sister eventually exit the dressing room and be reunited with the little boy. But what is really sad is that this mom (and countless others like her) saw absolutely nothing wrong with leaving a young child unattended.

How do we create a paradigm shift to change this mindset?

Ever leave a store only to find yourself wandering around the parking lot trying to figure where you left your vehicle?  It’s happened to most at one time or another.

If you’re focused on finding your treasured four wheeled transport do you really think you have a keen sense of domain awareness at that time?  Would you even know if danger was lurking? No, probably not.

Criminal minds love to find easy prey who are wandering around aimlessly looking for their vehicles; snatching a victim has never been easier.  These wanderers are distracted and focused on only one thing at that moment, “Dangnabbit, where did I park?”

I talk much about the importance of not being time and place predictable.  Yet if you find yourself absent minded when it comes to where you park your car, parking lots are one exception to being place predictable.  Though I’d still encourage you not to have the same routine with regard to what day and time you go to certain locations.

I’ve been guilty of losing my car, too.  We simply have so much on our plates and so many things to get done in one day that if I have to take time out to go to the grocery store, rest assured I’m also thinking about the dozen other things that aren’t getting accomplished at that moment.

Weigh your options – is it better to park in a different location each time and risk doing the Wandering Waltz?  Or perhaps if you always park near a certain end of the building (near the pharmacy or garden center perhaps) will you have a better opportunity to then proceed quickly to your vehicle, load it up with your newly purchased treasures and promptly exit?  I choose the latter.

You can never be too busy to practice crime avoidance.  Stop whatever you’re doing at the moment you park your vehicle.  Hang up the phone; stop thinking about what else needs to be done before the sun sets; just stop and pause.  Take a look where you parked.  Where is it in relation to the nearest building?  What row is it in?  Is it near a light post?  Pull a Sarah Palin and write it down on your hand if you need to.  There is certainly no crime in that.

Here’s hoping the next time you exit a store you won’t find yourself doing the Wandering Waltz to the tune of “Dangnabbit, Where Did I Park?”

Be safe!

Two important lessons can be learned from this:

#1 – When you or someone you love is in danger, you absolutely can do what is necessary to protect yourself and your family. The adrenalin will kick in and protection mode will ensue.

#2 – The woman was walking in the woods with small children. This just goes to show you that anything can happen in the woods. Be smart about where you are walking when you’re alone or with small children. Be prepared.

While this story could have turned out much worst, I’m sure the rabies treatment that the woman and child are undergoing is no picnic either! Let them be a lesson to us all!

Kudos to the woman for her bravery~

In the horrific event that you are involved in a vehicle accident and rendered unconscious who will speak for your young children? Include the following information: Child’s name, address, emergency contact (other than you), age, height, weight, child’s photo and medical release signature. Make a wallet sized card on the computer, laminate it and affix it to the seat with Velcro buttons.

This simple step could save time and possibly lives down the road.

Drive safely!

Whether you opt for a quick walk around the block or venture out for an overnight stint with your bundle of joy, taking steps to ensure personal security is equally as important in the planning process as is packing the diaper bag.  With this in mind, there are a few points to consider before venturing out.

Proper Use of Baby Carriers for Personal Protection

Parent have to become octopus-like when it comes to carrying the baby, the diaper bag, groceries, purse, laptop, toddler sibling, briefcase and travel coffee cup.  Though on the subject of personal security – less is best, take trips if you need to. Keep your hands as unencumbered as possible.

If you choose to use a stroller, don’t load it down with everything but the kitchen sink.  Lightweight umbrella strollers are a good way to ensure you travel lightly. Other vehicles to transport babychild are the variety of infant carriers – such as slings, backpacks or Snugli.  (Snugli – it’s a fabric carrier that allows you to wear your baby – not the fleece snuggie blanket with arms!)

The practice of wearing your baby is centuries old.  Mothers around the globe have been swaddling baby close to their bodies for generations.  In our western society, design and fashion have advanced this method to new levels of popularity.  Following the manufacture’s recommendation for use is always a good idea, but there are a few personal security points that manufacturer’s don’t address in their literature.

As a consumer, you’ll have a choice of three designs.  These are: Forward or Front Carry, Rear or Back Carry, and those that offer both.  Seems simple enough; just decide which is most comfortable for you and baby, right?  Read on.

Forward carry carriers have the advantage of keeping the baby within arm’s length and in the front where they may be constantly observed.  This is especially important with newborns and older infants. The disadvantage comes when having to defend oneself from a close proximity threat.  As you face your attacker you inadvertently put baby between you and the threat. This is not the posture you want to place yourself in when defending against physical assault.

I don’t need to remind you that your child’s safety is your first concern.  In this instance, increasing distance from the threat is your immediate defense.  You do so by drawing babychild close to your body for protection and using your feet for what they are intended. Standing to confront you attacker should be your last course of action. (read: get the heck out of dodge!)

Rear carriers—worn in the manner of a backpack—offer the advantage of remaining hands-free. I see dads using these most often in amusement park type venues. Remaining hands free is key as you will be much better prepared to counter if attacked.  The disadvantage of the rear carrier is that your child falls outside of your line of sight; even peripheral vision is strained.  The second disadvantage occurs if an attack materializes. During the course of fending off your attacker, there will be a natural tendency to avoid being struck.  This may involve ducking, pivoting, backing and a host of other counter-movements.  These actions can be harmful to a young child while strapped on your back.  Imagine pivoting to counter a blow while in close proximity to a tree or lamp post and you can see how a tragic accident can occur.

If you must defend yourself, bring one hand up over the shoulder strap. Reach across you body and cinch the opposite strap in your hand.  When done correctly [using your left hand] your forearm will be pressed against the outside of the left-strap and the right strap will be clutched tightly in your left hand.  This draws the backpack close and snug to your body.  Your free hand [right] is available to counter blows and strike back at your attacker if necessary.

Knowing the advantages and disadvantages of the equipment you use around your child can pay big dividends in terms of personal safety…yours and theirs.