Family Watchdog

As a new mother I want the best for my family, especially when it comes to keeping us safe. We have an alarm system in our home (Jon says it's the best money spent) and I am always aware of my surroundings in the neighborhood.

But there is always the feeling that you never REALLY know the person living in the house next to you. We have sweet neighbors, but I don't know anything about them.

I watched a Dr. Phil episode that featured the story of Jaycee Dugard. One tool he gave to families was the website Family Watchdog. It is a free website that you register your address, and they give you a list of all the sex crime offenders in your area on a map. You can look at names addresses, what the convictions were for and a mug shot. They also email you if someone moves in or out of your neighborhood.

As many of you were I was shocked to hear the story of Jaycee Dugard, but I was even more shocked to find that she was living in the backyard of her kidnappers for 18 years! One thing her kidnapper had against him was that he was a prior convicted sex offender.

I wish we could trust everybody and know that our kids are going to be safe, but we don't live in that kind of world. We need to be a step ahead.