Sleater,

So glad you will probably go with the 4' fence. I read your earlier post asking why a 3' fence isn't sufficient and to tell you the truth it scared me half to death. And I am by no means an overprotective mother, most would say I'm somewhat to the contrary. But IMHO there is no comparison between, say, letting a 2 year old climb all over a playscape, risking a skinned knee or at worst a broken bone, and what could happen if your child somehow wandered into the back yard while you were showering, vacuuming, etc. and got into the pool area.

I was reading in our local paper just a couple weeks ago about a 4 year old who was terribly mauled by a pit bull in his back yard. A dog he had grown up with since birth, and who had never shown any hostility whatsoever towards the boy. Nonetheless, his mother made a point never to leave the boy alone with the dog. Unfortunately, just the day before, the latch on the back door had broken and they hadn't yet had someone out to repair it. The boy wandered out while his mom was in a back room. It will take over 20 surgeries to try to repair the damage done.

I truly believe that the only reason any child lives to see its 3rd birthday is by the grace of God. No matter how dilligent the parents, there is always room for human error. Never has the old saying been more true, "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Keeping a close eye on your child, having clear rules strongly enforced, and teaching your child to swim are all definitely important parts of pool safety. But noe of them is nearly infallible as a strong, impenetrable barrier to keep them from reaching the pool in the first place.

At 14 months your little one is just beginning to become really mobile. Ask any parent of a child older than 3, not to mention those who have more than one child (don't know if that's in your future plans, but having friends over surely is), and they will tell you that a 3' fence would probably be sufficient to keep them from trampling flowers, but not to keep them from something really enticing. And your daughter will reach the stage, as my 3 and 4 year olds are right now, where she has learned the rudimentary basics of swimming and thinks she is a lot better at it than she really is. That, IMHO, is the most dangerous phase--overconfidence in one's own abilities, not yet developed a healthy respect for the dangers that water poses, and very little ability to exercise good judgement.

Anyway, I'm glad to read that you are leaning heavily towards the 4' fence. Like I said, we are well-pleased with the wrought iron. We went for the simplest style, endcaps, etc. to keep it as unobtrusive as possible. I wish you good luck in your search for the perfect fence!

Susan