About Us

Founder Michele Spahr- AKA The Safety Freak

There’s a little freak in all of us. For Michele Spahr, it’s “The Safety Freak” that has found its way to the surface.

A highly regarded expert in babyproofing, child safety, and eco-safety, Michele is the founder of Safe Start Baby, the leading childproofing company in the Washington, D.C. area and one of the largest babyproofing and child safety companies in the country. For green freak parents – or those who would like to become such freaks – Michele also founded Safe Start Eco-Baby, a Washington, D.C. area-based consulting company designed to lead families to choose healthier and safer options for a more sustainable lifestyle.

Her goals? To reveal the fun side of safety and take the freaky out of parenting.

The statistics surrounding preventable injuries to children are alarming, and Michele identified a growing need for professional services to help parents identify, prevent, and respond to household accidents. In a freakalicious move, Michele started Safe Start Baby in 2003 and has since dedicated her career to helping parents and caregivers reduce unintentional injuries to children in their home.

But Michele isn’t an alarmist. She’s a realist, the mother of four, a cancer survivor, and a Safety Freak who knows that parents turn to the internet for advice and information when it comes to raising their kids. So Michele got her ultimate freak on by launching The Safety Freak Blog, a relaxed but realistic destination for all imperfect parents to learn about safety topics in a non-judgmental, sometimes hilarious, and always educational way.

Just know this – Michele is a serious Safety Freak and her no-excuses parenting style is a major element of her babyproofing expertise. She’ll tell you what you need to hear, though it may not always be what you want to hear. And that’s a good thing – Michele’s expertise allows you to truly revel in the fun side of parenting once you confidently know that your home’s safety needs have been addressed.

While Michele’s on-the-job experience as a mom has given her firsthand knowledge about what it takes to babyproof a home (her inventive, energetic children have an amazing knack for finding every potential safety hazard a parent could fear), she is also a member of the National Safety Council; a member, authorized trainer, and contributor for the International Association for Child Safety; an authorized provider and instructor for the American Red Cross; and a Green-Irene Eco-Consultant.

Michele has been featured in SheKnows, The Washington Post, Washingtonian Magazine, DC Baby Handbook, Angie’s List Magazine, Holmes Magazine, Express Night Out, Germantown Patch, The Bump, The City Baby Book, and numerous other publications. She has also made appearances on WUSA Channel 9 News, Mommy Cast, Lou Manfredini’s House Smarts, among others.

Parents already judge themselves enough as it is. The Safety Freak has created a freak-proof, judgment-free zone where she simply tells it like it is in the best interest of your amazing, curious children. Join Michele in the name of safety and in the name of freaks everywhere.

Michele can be reached at michele@safestartbaby.com or 888-240-SAFE (7233). Follow her on Twitter @TheSafetyFreak.
 

Professional Babyproofer, Serving VA, MD, and DC

Safe Start Baby, Inc. is dedicated to reducing or eliminating the number of accidental home-based injuries to children through high quality child proofing products and services.

SafeStartBaby.com is an online resource for parents and caregivers of young children. The site offers baby proofing products, child proofing services, and child safety information to help caregivers create safer places for babies and toddlers to learn, grow, and explore.

Safe Start Baby, Inc. is a leading provider of baby proofing services to households in the Northern Virginia, Maryland, and Washington D.C. areas. We offer in-home baby proofing assessments, childproofing products, professional childproofing installation, and private or group CPR and First Aid training.

Company Affiliations & Associations

International Association for Child Safety Member
American Red Cross Authorized Provider
National Safety Council Member
Green Irene Eco-Consultant
 

Safe Start Baby is a child proofing company that offers baby proofing products, childproofing tips, child proofing installation and more. Our child safety professionals will visit your home and perform a detailed child proofing inspection to determine which child proofing products and safety precautions are most important for you.  We carry a large selection of child safety gates, child safety cabinet latches (including refrigerator locks), and much more. Our baby proofing installations are second to none. Safe Start Baby is a licensed contractor and carries only the highest quality child safety products. Our child safety locks, child safety gates, and all of our baby proofing products can be safely and professionally installed by one of our trained child proofing installation professionals. We carry only the highest quality child gates and pride ourselves on our experienced professional child proofing installation so you can rest assure your child gate will be installed safely. The benefits of baby proofing your home are numerous and include the peace of mind knowing that you're taking action to prevent accidents and injuries. Safe Start Baby's child proofing products include childproofing door knobs, refrigerator door locks, fireplace safety gates, self closing safety gates, and hundreds of other child proofing products.