Best baby tips? Would you let your dog lick your baby?

[PeterPan]

Wanted to open the floor here to your best baby tips... I don't need anything general like trust your heart and listen to your gut, because I tend to do that already. And remember I've already done this once, just a LONG time ago, hehe, feel like I've forgotten a ton. So if there's something you've done that works really well or something you think I ought to think about or whatever, shoot! I'm open for any category, anything that applies say the first 3 months. Could be how you handle post-partum, changing to a regimen after 7 babies of co-sleeping and attachment parenting, whether I'll want a changing table in the school room, what not to do, how to store dirty diapers or baby's clothes, anything...

 

I tried checking out some books from the library. Thought this Baby Whisperer thing was going to be good, but she doesn't click with me. I nursed on cue, co-slept, had a fine milk supply, and don't think it made my dc demanding at all, nor did it give her sleep problems. And yet I'm open to the thought that I'm a little TOO loose and freewheeling in my life, hehe... And I've wondered if there were things I didn't do right with dd that mattered little but still weren't "right" like how often you're supposed to bathe a baby or something. (I bathed dd when dirty, girlfriend did it every night as part of bedtime routine. Both kids survived.)

 

And most importantly, would you let your dog lick your baby? We have a very affectionate lap dog that ADORES little ones and will kiss back and forth for 20 minutes if you'll let him.

 

So I'm almost 30 weeks, have washed the swing and baby seat, and am gearing up to think baby. Tell me your best tips! Get me to thinking about things I've forgotten! :)

[Tracey in TX]

Not a fan of attachment parenting, but I would definitely let my dog lick the baby's face. The dog is part of the family and he kisses me, so why not the baby? After all, his mouth is supposedly cleaner than a human's mouth.

Regarding the AP, it's just not my style. Nothing wrong with it, just too claustrophobic for me.

[kat19]

I personally wouldn't let the dog lick the baby~some might. We don't have a dog so I don't have to worry about that.

 

As for advice, I'm clueless.. My youngest was 11 when her brother was born so I started all over :001_smile:

 

I don't have baby on a schedule(bad parent??) and he's gonna be 4 months on the 21st. I let him nap when he wants, eat when he wants and so on...

He is sleeping longer at night(I'm so glad) and I'm trying to cut out the night feedings.

I just bought him a crib mobile at Target on clearance~and it works wonders :001_smile: It's by Fisher Price~Sweet MoonDreams. It comes with a remote so I can just lay in bed and when I hear him fuss I can click the remote and the mobile turns on with stars and moon reflecting onto the ceiling and it has different music~Bach, Mozart, Beethoven or Lullabies(we use this at night). Plus it has a little dog on it sleeping on a moon that is a night light.. Love It~glad I found it :001_smile:

 

Can't wait to see what others say since I'm pretty new to this again.

[Sandy in Indy]

This recipe was a lifesaver for me...sure cure for diaper rash when even the prescription stuff wouldn't work!

 

Butt Mudd

 

Mix equal parts Mylanta (or Maalox), Desitin (regular) and Lotrimin (generic works great). Apply after each change.

:D

 

It helps to nix wipes as well. I used a stack of baby wash clothes that I had just for that purpose.

 

My last ds had to have massive antibiotics just after birth and ended up with horrific diaper rash right away. After a couple of weeks and two tubes of RX stuff that didn't help, I posted a plea on a mothering board. A net friend posted this recipe for me, and we saw improvement in hours.

 

As to all the other stuff...that's exactly how I parented my kids. So far they seem to be reasonably well adjusted and unharmed from the experience. :)

 

Dog licking??? I don't do dogs, so I can't answer that one! :001_tt2:

[JudoMom]

I would just say be prepared to ditch everything you learned from your dd about mothering a baby if needed. I was surprised when my second was born how different 2 new humans could be.

 

My boys have always been bathed when dirty--much to my mother's dismay :D.

 

My dogs have licked my babies. It wasn't my favorite thing for the dogs to do, but I figured no harm would come of it. We did discourage open-mouth kisses :ack2:, and when they were brand new we tried to limit the dogs to licking the baby's feet.

[Laurel]

Best way to hold a fussy baby: Rest the baby's tummy on your right forearm (so baby is laying face down horizontally), with your arm between baby's legs. Hold baby's chest with left hand. (I know I am explaining this poorly, but it is really simple, and walking around with baby like this tends to calm most babies.)

 

Oh - and 5 minutes of bare-butt time a day is usually enough to prevent diaper rash.

[PeterPan]

Ooo K, you're like me! Of course yours are 11 years apart and mine will be 9 1/2. So what things did you forget or what hit you the hardest with the change? Did it all come back to you, or did you find yourself scrambling on certain things?

[3lilreds in NC]

I would let the dog lick the baby. When I had Emma, my bff's dog LOVED to lick her head. It really skeeved me out at first, (remember I was pregnant with Abbie by the time Emma was 3 mos. old, so hormones were a factor too) until I remembered that my entire family owns labs and I was just going to have to get over the whole dog slobber thing. Jazmine used to lick Emma's head to the point that she'd come home with crispy hair! Jazzy's not really a licky dog, but she sure did like to lick that baby. She must be part Finnish, LOL!

 

One thing I told myself I'd remember if I had another baby (and I did! Yay!) is that babies really like to be held. A lot. Probably more than you'd like to hold them sometimes. But, I think it's really important to hold them and hold them and kiss them and hold them some more. :D

 

I'm not a co-sleeper, and I was the sleep/schedule nazi with the girls, but I've not done that with Schmooey and he's turning out just fine. He naps when he's tired - and lo and behold, pretty much at the same intervals each day - and eats when he wants to. I do usually feed him when he wakes up, so he's awake, then plays, and then sleeps, which I think makes for a good routine.

 

I have to run for the moment but if I think of anything profound, I'll come back and add more.

[VaKim]

I believe in making things as simple as possible and not making any extra work. Like you said, bathe when they are dirty. Babies don't need a bath every day. As a matter of fact, it can dry out their skin. If absolutely necessary, give what I call a "hiney bath." Don't wake a sleeping baby (unless there is reason to believe they are sick or something, of course). Don't bother with clothes (just jammies) for the first 3 months (except for special occasions) and no shoes until they can walk. That's all I can remember right off. :)

[PeterPan]

That's hilarious Sandy!!! And this is a question I had, don't laugh, but is a warmer for diaper wipes worthwhile?? I didn't have one with dd and I don't recall it being an issue, BUT... (no pun intended, hehe) Maybe it's one of those things to swangle money out of new expecting, exuberant parents? :)

[VaKim]

That's hilarious Sandy!!! And this is a question I had, don't laugh, but is a warmer for diaper wipes worthwhile?? I didn't have one with dd and I don't recall it being an issue, BUT... (no pun intended, hehe) Maybe it's one of those things to swangle money out of new expecting, exuberant parents? :)

 

I had one of those warmers. All it did was dry the wipes out before I could use them. :glare:

[Rich with Kids]

Dogs lick their hineys. That's enough science for me to vote against baby licking by a dog. :tongue_smilie:

[Alenee]

After my first dd, we changed a few things. I didn't nurse #1 more than 10 days and dh wouldn't allow co-sleeping. With #'s 2 and 3, we co-slept and nursed and I was much more sane and so was dh. The 2 later dd's napped in their own cribs and were put down for bed at 8pm in their bassinet next to my bed but after I went to bed, when they woke up for night time feedings, they came into bed with me. I could sleep while they nursed and all was well. That's why I say I was sane. I got my sleep, they got their milk...it's all good!:D Around 5 months when they began crawling, they went to their cribs for safety but were still brought to bed with me for nursing. I slowly (before 1 year) got them to go back to their cribs after night feedings. Dh was great for that. He'd go get them and take them back for me.

 

Diaper storage was a joke imo with those diaper genies. I finally started to just take them out to the garbage in the garage.

 

Yep, I'd let the dog lick.

 

Unless you have a bad back or a hard floor in your school room, I'd just keep some diapers and wipes in there in a basket and do it on the floor.

 

Can you tell I like to buck the system?:D I just think there are so many things out there that people say you need that you just don't, unless of course you need everything perfectly organized. I'm laid back and didn't need all the *stuff*.

 

With dd #1 we bathed every night. Later down the road we realized this was not necessary so we try to get them all bathed every other day, unless they've been playing in the mud.:) I will say however, that routines (especially night time ones) are a wonderful thing. My kids are lost without a routine and get themselves in a lot of trouble w/o one (research about kids needing routines backs this up, saying kids are more secure), being left to find things to do on their own. Every parent ***I've personally ever known*** that did not have some sort of night time routine (meaning set bed time, everything the same every night for winding down), ended up with tired, cranky, disobedient kids.

 

That's my 2 cents! Hope no one's offended.

[PeterPan]

VaKim, that's a really interesting idea on the clothes, hadn't thought of that. As I think about it though, we did spend a lot of time dressing, only to have the clothes get pooed on in those early weeks. There's certainly nothing unacceptable about sleepers on a baby. Well cool, I'll have to remember that while I'm shopping! This month I'm working on furniture, so next month I guess we'll be clothes. We don't know the gender, but all I could think of was the terrible inconvenience of pulling pants on a teeny tiny baby... I like your sleepers idea much better! :)

[PeterPan]

Well you know, I'm trying to figure this out, because our outdoor dog does some "personal" licking... The indoor dog doesn't really though. I think it's because of the dachshund in him, too long to reach. Or maybe he's too arthritic to care anymore, lol. ;)

[Jenny in Atl]

:lol::lol: Mine both shared their food with our Maddy Mo. Bananas were her favorite. That dog could smell one being peeled a mile away. Best advice, relax and enjoy. They are little for such a short time. I miss having a nursling in a sling next to me through the day.

[dirty ethel rackham]

Gee, this post right after the one about Butt Mudd and diaper wipes - I had to think "Which hiney is she talking about?" ;0

 

Anyway, I agree with the keep it simple idea. I wouldn't go with the wipe warmer, just get a ton of baby washcloths. Keep a small tub for water near a sink. On the way to the diaper change, I would pass the sink and wet a couple cloths with warm water.

[Tatt2mama]

Having to do with sleep-put the baby down for a nap 2 hours after they wake up for the day-that's when they should be ready for a nap. Then put them down for a nap 2 hours after they get up from the first nap. This should start to work anywhere in the 3-6 month range-worked like a charm with both of my kids, and helped me keep ahead of their sleep needs. I know it's a lot of "napping" time, but in the experience I had, it totally worked-they never got overtired. And then as they got older, the number of hours lengthened, but the principle still worked. When my son dropped his morning nap, he then needed to go for a nap 4 hours after he got up-then after a while it was 5 hours, then 6.

 

And we're not "baby schedule" people-we did the whole AP bf on demand, co-sleeping (we're still co-sleepers, actually) thing. But this one thing made my life so much easier, not having to deal with a strungout tired baby.

 

And about the dog-I don't know. You know your dog. I wouldn't let my dog lick ANYONE's baby, and I don't let him lick me-but I know for a fact that he eats poop. So, no thanks!

[PeterPan]

Ok Flo, I'm listening here but I have a question, and don't laugh. How do you put the baby down for a nap? Not only has it been a long time, but I can't figure out if I really did just nurse and hold her all the time or what... I know I held her pretty much non-stop for the first 3-4 months (till she started crawling). Might not be practical now. So were the babies TIRED when you started putting them down like this? Did you have a specific place or routine? It makes sense to me, but I'm not sure how to do it.

[Dawn E]

Co-slept and fed on demand with #1. I tried to be more scheduled with #2, but soon fell back into familiar patterns. While I am opposed to rigorous scheduling, I think that some structure is good for them. As Flo said, being proactive about naps is a very good thing. It helps avoid the meltdowns that come with baby being overtired. Sawyer goes down much better when he just starts to get tired than if I wait much longer. Currently I rock him and sing. But I have just started letting him cry a little in his bed. I'm hoping to gently encourage him to be able to go to sleep without me.

 

I would advise you to brush up on latching techniques and troubleshooting tips re: breastfeeding. I made the mistake of thinking that just because things went so well the first time they would do so this time. Sawyer was what they call tongue-tied and had trouble latching on properly. I was so sore, felt like a failure and almost gave up. However, after a little coaching from Dh who did some research on the computer, things got much better.

 

I purchased a hand-made Moby-like wrap. It was great for those early months and even helped tremendously when we traveled by plane later on.

 

I don't think the baby wipe warmer is necessary. Lots of burp cloths--I bought a package of cloth diapers for this--and lots of onesies are helpful to have on store. Zout is really good at getting the baby poo out.

 

Be prepared also to take your time getting back into the swing of things postpartum. Recovery was better for me the 2nd time around (mostly because I had some idea of what to expect), but I jumped the gun a bit and assumed I was recovered when I still needed to give myself a little more time.

[nmoira]

* olive on on baby's butt keeps meconium from sticking

* I used to nurse the girls to sleep then put them down for a nap; when #2 was very young, we used a moses basket

 

AND/OR

 

* slings are terribly convenient when you have to be somewhere or do something outside with older siblings -- wraps are ideal for newborns

* don't blame kids, dogs, fate, whatever when baby wakes up -- it would have happened anyway. When we're sleep deprived it makes us more likely to seek a culprit and assign blame.

* I'd let the dog lick the baby if the baby doesn't mind

* As far as books, I rather like Penelope Leach's Your Baby and Child, but with co-sleeping added in

[Jennifer in MI]

That's hilarious Sandy!!! And this is a question I had, don't laugh, but is a warmer for diaper wipes worthwhile?? I didn't have one with dd and I don't recall it being an issue, BUT... (no pun intended, hehe) Maybe it's one of those things to swangle money out of new expecting, exuberant parents? :)

 

If you do decide to get one, try thrift stores. I got one for my dd for $3. We use cloth wipes and they did not dry out before we got to use them. But, then again, I only moistened a few at a time!

 

My best advice? Gather all your baby items and then give away 1/2 - 3/4 of it and you'll be fine!! Really, I think I finally got it right with my fourth. With my first, I thought I needed every single gadget out there. With my fourth, I bought NOTHING!!! We didn't have a swing or anything. Of course, there was always someone willing to hold her, so we didn't need one! I found I needed my sling, cloth diapers, car seat, and my arms. That was it. We bathed her in the kitchen sink (still do sometimes!).

 

Anyway, have fun starting over. It's really fun! And, I hope you find that you're more relaxed this time around! It got easier and easier for me with each one!

[Soph the vet]

repeat...Do not let the dog lick the baby.

Dogs mouths are NOT cleaner than ours...that is a MYTH!

 

Your dog eats things, and licks things, and sniffs things that are better just left out of this post. If it is a young dog there is a risk of passing roundworms to your child. The transmission is feca-oral and humans become an aberrant host for the roundworm larvae which can migrate anywhere but especially to the retina resulting in ocular larval migrans which means potential vision problems for the child. It is rare but not worth the risk, IMO.

[Sandy in Indy]

Wipes warmer....I had one but I didn't put wipes in it! I put water in it to have warm water for the butt clothes. (My changing area wasn't near a bath.) I cleaned it carefully on a frequent basis.

 

Olive oil or vaseline right after birth is a great thing (as mentioned above). Helps all the sticky meconium slide right off!

[3lilreds in NC]

When I put the Snort down for a nap, he's tired. He yawns, rubs his eyes, and is generally cranky. Like his is now, for instance. You can tell when they're tired. I am not so much a baby wearer, although I don't mind it, but I like babies to sleep in their own beds. Schmooey just nurses to sleep, for the most part. He doesn't do that so much anymore, but he knows when I lay him down in his crib, it's time for sleeping, and he doesn't protest for the most part.

 

Of course, the baby will probably sleep just fine in your sling. It just depends. Sometimes it's nice to be able to put them down.

[Tammyla]

:iagree: Listen to the vet.

 

Park next to the cart return. Trust me, that will make your life easier.

 

repeat...Do not let the dog lick the baby.

Dogs mouths are NOT cleaner than ours...that is a MYTH!

 

Your dog eats things, and licks things, and sniffs things that are better just left out of this post. If it is a young dog there is a risk of passing roundworms to your child. The transmission is feca-oral and humans become an aberrant host for the roundworm larvae which can migrate anywhere but especially to the retina resulting in ocular larval migrans which means potential vision problems for the child. It is rare but not worth the risk, IMO.

[NicksMama-Zack's Mama Too]

I would just say be prepared to ditch everything you learned from your dd about mothering a baby if needed. I was surprised when my second was born how different 2 new humans could be.

 

My boys have always been bathed when dirty--much to my mother's dismay :D.

 

My dogs have licked my babies. It wasn't my favorite thing for the dogs to do, but I figured no harm would come of it. We did discourage open-mouth kisses :ack2:, and when they were brand new we tried to limit the dogs to licking the baby's feet.

 

Pacifiers (if used) can be "sanitized" by sticking them in your mouth before replacing them in your baby's mouth. No need for boiling those silly things.

 

I've let familiar dogs lick my babies. I have video of a very affectionate lab trying to slurp up Nick. Germs can be your friend (see next story...).

 

You toddler will live after ingesting a discarded piece of pretzel covered in dust bunnies from a dirty food court in the mall. In fact, your toddler may grow to eleven years old having suffered through only one cycle of antibiotics. Said eleven year old refers to the pretzel as his "super-antibody pill."

[Jennifer in MI]

You toddler will live after ingesting a discarded piece of pretzel covered in dust bunnies from a dirty food court in the mall. In fact' date=' your toddler may grow to eleven years old having suffered through only one cycle of antibiotics. Said eleven year old refers to the pretzel as his "super-antibody pill."[/quote']

 

Wow!!! I wonder if my ds did this when I wasn't looking! He's 12 and had only one round of antibiotics (for cellulitis!). Hmmmm . . .

[Sasharowan]

If its a boy, cover him as soon as you open the diaper and keep it covered until you are putting on the next diaper.

 

Signed victim of many baby "showers" :)

[PeterPan]

Y'all are so funny! I'm making notes of everything you're saying. Thanks for the great ideas and I'll keep checking back for more!!! :)

[CactusPair]

:iagree: about the dipe over the boy parts! What a fountain! But he was so cute....awww. Everything he did was cute--for a while.:)

 

Ointment made out of Lanolin helped a lot with nursing soreness. I can't remember the name of it. It comes in a purple tube and is something like Lansinoh???

 

If you use a binky (pacifier) in the beginning get rid of it as soon as possible so Mr. or Miss Baby won't get too attached and refuse to give it up.

 

My dc used them for a few weeks only and then I pulled the plug.

 

Yesterday I saw a cute munchkin about 3 yo coloring her ABCs in a workbook and still sucking away:tongue_smilie:.

 

As a tiny babe ds loved to play in his gymini gym. loved it! DD couldn't be bothered with it. She didn't like the swing either. Ds loved it.

Ds liked to be swaddled. Dd didn't care one way or the other.

 

The poster who said kids are different is so right!

[neesek]

Elizabeth, have you ever seen this CD? My sister used this with her dd, then we used it with all three of my dc. It is wonderful for soothing a fussy baby! In fact, I even played it when I was in labor with my 2nd dc to help me relax. I wore out my first one with my first 2, so it was on my "definitely must have" list for my third.

[Amy loves Bud]

 

Diaper storage was a joke imo with those diaper genies. I finally started to just take them out to the garbage in the garage.

 

Yep, I'd let the dog lick.

 

Unless you have a bad back or a hard floor in your school room, I'd just keep some diapers and wipes in there in a basket and do it on the floor.

 

 

 

 

I heartily agree with these three points. Excellent advice.

 

Not a fan of changing tables - we put a changing pad on the bathroom counter and call it good. But if we didn't have enough room for that, all our diaper changes would be on the floor. They seem like big clumsy pieces of furniture, and I'd personally rather change a diaper where soap and a sink is handy than in the nursery.

 

I'm also pretty laid back with my schedule, but bedtime is hard and fast. I need to have my some unwind time before I go to bed. So, in my case, it's the mommy who is grumpy and ill-behaved without the strict bedtime routine. :blush:

 

Baths when dirty. Bud heard a radio report when Luke was a baby that daily baths could psychologically damage a baby. I was skeptical, but was happy to forgo the daily bath routine!:D

 

That's all I've got for now. Just enjoy this baby. Mine just turned 1 and I can't believe the first year is over. :sad:

[Osmosis Mom]

OhElizabeth, I am still so happy for you and your baby. Hope things go smoothly.

 

Dog licking the baby, the thought just grosses me out, but to each his own, of course. I just can't stomack the thought of all the potential germs. I won't let my 6 month old touch our cats for fear of provoking allergies, but probably he will in a few months' time.

 

Actually what I learned the hard way was to be slightly over-protective of the newborn the first 6 weeks or so. I know I used to get claustrophobic and have a need to go out (with baby, of course). Had one daughter catch a serious cold at 2 weeks (she has asthma now, something I think is due to this) and a ds who caught almost-fatal pertussis from a kid at the playground when he was around 3 weeks old as well. So, I tend to stay home this first period of time and am pretty strict about people in general being allowed to ever touch my baby and I don't let my kids lovingly hold his hands when out and about due to their germs as well and him stuffing his hands in his mouth after.

 

You are *only* having one baby, so no worries, but I know with my twins I had a changing basket next to the couch so I could easily get to it.

 

In general if you prepare yourself that the first month is to establish your milk-supply and also to keep baby germ-free/healthy, then you'll have a much easier time just sitting there feeding away and drinking/eating good stuff while not going anywhere!! After this month your milk will do much better and will adjust easier according to stress etc.

 

 

 

Good luck!! Do you knwo what you are getting?

[Stacia]

Agree w/ the no changing table thing -- we hardly ever used ours. I ended up buying disposable bed protection pads (like you would use for incontinent adults), generic brand at the drugstore. Those were my diaper changing pads & they're easy to carry along w/ you too. After one or a few uses, just toss.

 

We had a big sponge type thing that we used for propping the babies in when we bathed them in the kitchen sink. Got it at Babies R Us & it was super handy, esp. w/ a slippery, wet baby.

 

Love, love, love baby sleep sacks. They stay covered up, but can't get tangled up in them. I recommend sleep sacks to everyone who has a baby or toddler.

 

Good advice I got once & it applies from babies through childhood. For a sick or bed-wetting child (or whenever you may be changing sheets & pads in the middle of your already sleep-deprived night), make the bed w/ 2 layers. Mattress pad, fitted sheet, another mattress pad, another fitted sheet. That way, you can just rip off the top 2 layers & the bed is already made.

 

Hmmm, if I remember anything else, I'll post again. LOL.

[kat19]

Ooo K, you're like me! Of course yours are 11 years apart and mine will be 9 1/2. So what things did you forget or what hit you the hardest with the change? Did it all come back to you, or did you find yourself scrambling on certain things?

 

It all comes back to you :001_smile:

At first it was hard.. I wasn't used to getting up every 2 hours(and man do I need my sleep) but it got easier. My husband takes the weekend shift and I get to stay in bed and sleep and sleep in, so that helps a lot!

Carseats, toys, everything is so different then it was then. Everything requires batteries :lol: to work. With my other kids, I would just wind up the swing, now I have to turn it on and hope the batteries don't run out :lol:

 

The kids did great with it all and they are a BIG help!

 

I'm sure you will be fine.. Just don't stress about it :001_smile: and enjoy!!

[PeterPan]

Denise, I hadn't seen that. Thanks for the tip! :)

[PeterPan]

Nadia, no, we don't know the gender. Sure makes it interesting! :)

[PeterPan]

Stacia, thanks for the cool tips! You know, in all my years of parenting (ok, only 9, haha), it had NOT occurred to me to double the sheets and put the pads between them!!! That would SO make life easier with a wet crib at night!!!!!