Random Things I've Figured Out - Diaper Edition

I don't have a ton of advice about diapers, they tend to be pretty straight forward.  But here's a few odds and ends.

Cloth Diapers

We're trying to use some cloth diapers but with butts this small, it's difficult.  They are just too damned bulky for preemies.

The velcro kind fit better than the snap kind.  Most of mine are the snaps and while they look really cute, I need a good snug fit so that the Snuza alarm will be next to the skin.  Sometimes I can't get them the right amount of snug with the snaps.

If any of the cloth is peeking outside of the cover, you will have a lot of leakage.  Make sure it's all tucked in.

So far, I like the covers with kind of pockets on both ends with prefolds.  By tucking the ends of the prefold into the pocket on either end, you avoid the peeking problem.  When I was pregnant, I couldn't figure out why anyone would choose anything other than the all-in-ones, but those aren't fitting well, they take forever to dry, and if a prefold gets stained, you can easily replace it and not have to deal with all the sunning and special detergent and crap.  The kind with the pocket that's the length of the diaper - pain the ass to stuff the diaper in and make sure it's not squinching weird.  I don't even bother with the snappies when using the prefold and cover, I just tuck the prefold into the cover and put it on like a regular disposable.

Disposable Diapers

Have some.  Your babysitters will thank you.  To the environmentalists out there, the majority of the diapers causing the landfill problems are adult diapers, not baby diapers.

Fancy Schmancy = chemicals and potential diaper rash.  We've changed to the Whole Foods brand diapers and they are actually pretty cheap.  If you order by the case (300 diapers), you get 10% off.  Full price is 20 cents per diaper, so 10% off is 18 cents per diaper.

Double check that the diaper is going around the butt and that the side thing isn't going up the butt.

Diaper Rash

This has been a battle around here.  I'm not going to claim to have it figured out, but at the moment the girls seem to be clear so I'll tell you what we're doing now.  K and I are each doing something differently.  Perhaps it's the combination of the 2 methods that's working or maybe one is working and the other is being tolerated, I don't know.

Corn starch - before using this, make sure that yeast is not the issue.  If it is, corn starch will feed the yeast and make things worse.  K is wiping corn starch over the butt with a cotton ball to soak up any extra moisture.

Coconut Oil - I'm using this in place of petroleum jelly.  Apparently it has some antiseptic properties that can cure diaper rash.  I don't know if it's a cure or not, but some sort of barrier on the butt helps prevent poo from sticking, so that's how I'm using it.

Desitan - I smear this on over the coconut oil.  The combination of the two is working better than when I was using desitan alone.  It's the zinc that's the medicinal part, so the brand doesn't matter.  The stuff the doctor gave us had a 34% concentration.  I think maximum strength desitan is 40%, but I just got the generic brand and will start using that when this tube runs out.

Wipes 

To each their own on this one.  But in an attempt to get rid of chemicals, we've switched to shop towels which are basically thicker, softer paper towels.  Since I never used the peri-bottles for my own crotch cleaning, I keep them filled with water at the diaper station.  Rip a shop towel into 4, wet one and use that for basic cleaning, use another to blot the butt dry (even if you think it's dry, blot it anyway to make sure), then another one for applying the coconut oil and desitan.

Set up and Safety

EVERYTHING WITHIN REACH!  In the safety class we took, he said the most common baby injury is when the parent realizes the wipes are a few feet away and they take 3 steps to get them while the baby rolls off the counter.  If it's not within reach, pick up the baby and take it with you those 3 steps to retrieve whatever you need to retrieve.

The safety straps on the diaper changing pad are pointless.  You'll never actually bother to strap the kid in, and I would think it's more of a strangulation hazard than an actual safety measure.  Besides, if you're leaving the baby long enough that you want to strap them in, you're leaving the baby too long.

I don't know what they're called, but I got a collection of water proof cloths about the size of wash cloths.  I thought they were just small burp cloths, but they are actually for diaper changing.  Put a stack of them under the babies butt to catch the inevitable pee and poo that happens during a diaper change.  Then just toss the top one into the laundry and put the butt back down on the clean cloth underneath.  Another option is chux.  These are the pads that you probably sat on during OB appointments.  They have a million uses so I recommend getting them in bulk.  Choose the size that works best for you.

Our changing table is a dresser.  Easy to keep stuff within reach and will serve a purpose when diaper changing days are over.

Put a mobile over the changing pad.  Sometimes it distracts the baby and ends the crying.

Here's my set up.  We bought a house with a wet bar built in and as non-drinkers, never had a use for it until now.  Now we're spending a great deal of our day behind that bar.  I really like the U shape of the station because it keeps a ton of stuff within reach.

From left to right - swaddles ready to put a baby in, extra diapers, stack of chux (can't really see them) coconut oil, mobile, changing pad on top of the dresser, cloth diaper instructions on the wall, shop towels, water filled peri bottles, corn starch, a few extra products on the shelf.  Not pictured - diaper pail on the floor to the right, laundry basket goes behind the peri-bottles on the left, and a sink.

In the top drawer of the dresser.

Disposable diapers, onesies, jammies, cloth diapers.  The drawers below store more diapers and wipes, and changing pad covers.