Mark a Hanukkah menorah "safe boundary" with tape

This year, Hanukkah starts on the evening of December 11. Here's Anna's wise menorah safety hack:

My kids are almost 6, almost 3, and just 1. We involve the older kids in lighting their own menorahs, picking out the candles, helping with the actual lighting, etc. But, there is a lot of time spent saying afterwards, "don't go near the candles!"

I considered gating up the room, but we really wanted to spend some time near the menorahs, singing and enjoying them. So this year, I took some black tape, and made an outline around the table where we light (it's pushed up against a wall, so it's really three lines). It is several feet back from the table. Our rule is--"unless you are with a grown-up, stay behind the line!!" It gives the kids a well-defined, objective rule for where they should be. We still have to watch them, obviously, but this is a step towards independence.

Great idea, Anna. I would suggest using blue painter's tape so you can easily remove it after the holidays.

Other menorah safety hacks, anyone?

Related: Freeze your Hanukkah candles

Comments

[Alex]

We've always put ours on a cookie sheet. Obviously if yours is tall you need more that one little one.

[Saderchick]

We do the same thing on the driveway (with chalk) or on the grass (with a jumprope) to keep the kids away from the hot grill.

[Lori]

We use a similar rule for our two year old for the christmas tree. We call it the "one finger rule" -- you can only touch the tree or ornaments with one finger.