Why I Created the “Safety Inspiration by Liz” Shop on Zazzle

Hello, my name is Liz and this is my fist blog post. In this post I am going to share with you my personal story. This story is the reason I created Safety Inspiration by Liz, my online shop for safety reminder products. In the Safety Tips blog section, my main focus will be to educate people about child safety and pet safety challenges, and to offer good safety tips in hopes of helping people form good safety habits. This first post is a bit lengthy, but through it I hope to raise awareness and help prevent unnecessary deaths and injuries of precious children and pets. First I will share with you some statistics on heat related deaths in hot vehicles, and then I will share with you my own eye-opening story.

Update 09/2022 – I have since created a new shop called The Liz Daniel Emporium, because I found I also enjoy designing uplifting inspirational products to help bring some joy and positivity to our lives. However, I’ve brought the safety reminder products over too by creating a Safety Reminders collection in the Liz Daniel Emporium shop on Zazzle.

Some Background Research on Heat Related Vehicle Deaths 

In the fast-moving pace of work, daily routines, and regular destinations, it is easy to want to leave a sleeping child in the car when making short pit stops. However this has all too often proven to be a costly mistake. The Injury Facts website states that

“on average, 38 children younger than 15 years old die each year from heatstroke after being left unattended in a hot vehicle... in both 1998 and 2019, 53 children died after being left in a hot vehicle – a record high number.”

Injury Facts website: https://injuryfacts.nsc.org/motor-vehicle/motor-vehicle-safety-issues/hotcars/

According to TheZebra.com:

“From 2018-2019, 78 pets died from heatstroke in a hot car.  Especially susceptible are dogs with broad, short skulls, as are breeds known to be intolerant of heat such as pugs and bulldogs, and also dogs with health concerns including heart conditions and being over or underweight.“

The Zebra.com, “Hot Car Death Statistics in 2020” by Taylor Covington

My Story: How I Became Aware of the Dangers of Hot Vehicles

Since 2007, I have been very aware of the issue of children and pets dying while left unattended in hot vehicles. It was this issue specifically that got me started on my mission to do what I can to help raise child and pet safety awareness. Before then, the safety of children and pets was not high on my list, as I expected that I and other parents would automatically do the right thing, that we would never endanger our loved little ones, that we would never leave a child or pet unattended in a vehicle. But then one day….

I was running late for work one morning. I arrived at the babysitter’s house late. During the twenty-minute drive to the babysitter’s house, my daughter was quiet, sound asleep in her car seat. My mind was focused on my job and the projects I had to complete at work. My day was already not going well, and I was rushing; rushing to get to the babysitter’s house, then rushing to take stuff from the car into the house, locking the car doors out of habit, and making small talk with the babysitter. I was totally unconscious of the lapses of time. 

Upon returning to the car, I realized my daughter was still asleep in her car seat. I thought I had taken her into the house! I had locked the car doors out of habit, but in my rush I forgot to remove the keys from the ignition. Panic set in!

I calmed myself down, and called the police. Thankfully, they arrived quickly and unlocked the door. I was so grateful, relieved, and lucky that there was a police station close by. The police warned me about the danger of leaving a child unattended in the car. I was not cited, but if my daughter had been seriously injured – or even worse – things would have been very different.

I’m Not A Bad Parent, But I Am A Lucky One

Afterward I was overcome with guilt and emotion as my mind flashed to a story I had heard of an administrative worker who had accidentally left her child in the car while she went in to work. By the time she remembered her child was in the car, it was too late. Sadly, her child had succumbed to the heat and died. 

This woman was not a bad person, nor was she a bad parent. She loved her child! But it was a change from the normal routine of simply driving to work, while her husband took their child to the babysitter. She did not usually have the child with her when she drove to work. Our habits are strong, and when the woman drove to work that day, she did the same thing she did every day – parked her car, got out, and went into her office. The child was fast asleep in the back seat and didn’t make a sound.

The mother’s mind was already on her work. It was an all-too-easy mistake to make, and the consequences were dire. This poor woman was devastated – she had lost her child, and she was wracked with a most horrible guilt that she would live with for the rest of her life. She would never forgive herself.

It Could Happen to Anyone

This happens more than I want to believe, and it happens to even the best parents. We are creatures of habit and routine, and somehow, we can forget even the most important things in our lives when they are outside of our normal routine. This does not mean we are bad people, or bad parents, caregivers, or babysitters. It just means we are human. And it means we must be more alert, and must proactively take steps to ensure that the safety of our children and pets is paramount.

I learned my lesson that day so long ago at the babysitter’s house, when I was scared out of my wits. I learned it could happen to anyone, even to me. This is why I created SafetyInspiration.com, and this is why I opened my online shop, Safety Inspiration by Liz. It is my hope that my blog posts will help raise awareness and education about common child and pet safety issues, and that the safety reminder products and visual aids in my shop will help parents, caregivers, babysitters, and everyone else to form good safety habits. I’m happy to report my beautiful daughter is all grown up, and now has children of her own. When my first grandchild was born, so was my mission to help ensure the safety of children and pets. 

I hope you will join me in this mission!

In my shop, you will find many safety reminder items that make great gifts for new parents and pet parents, grandparents, caregivers, babysitters, pet sitters and anyone else who is entrusted with the care of a child or pet. Below you can see a small sampling of the types of safety reminders and visual aids you will find in the shop. Each photo is a link to the shop where you can find the items shown in the pictures. Help your friends and loved ones to protect their precious children and pets with safety reminder gifts. Together we can save lives!