HOW TO CLEAN BABY

Hope you've been doing well, and you're ready for today's post which to be honest is mixed up with some strange myths (but really what isn't?). Once upon a salon visit I overhead two ladies talking about how in the early days when they had newborns their moms and moms-in-law and practically everyone told them that new borns are not supposed to be washed daily, hence babies were pretty smelly those days, not surprisingly. I felt really bad for all the new parents who missed out on that (life-renewing) innocent and clean new born smell, and remembered how I loved to cuddle tot just to smell him constantly (before he grew teeth to bite me with 😩)

So now for the new parents like me or really those who just can't get over it, the biggest issue was the size cozy new borns are tiny! 😳. Ok this is no breaking news but seriously I don't think I realized how small and soft my baby was until I had to wash him, and then I couldn't figure out how to even lather him with soap let alone how to hold him in the wash basin. They did give me a crash course at the hospital but the nurse did it herself so I went home without a clue as to the practical bit but luckily, my mom-in-law came through and gave me more than enough lessons. I was honestly glad that she liked doing it because it was a headache for me so I was content to sit by and observe, taking mental notes for the month or so that I stayed with her.

But then I had to go back home, alone with tiny tot who still needed baths, and after some trial and error- greatfully minimal error I might add, I came around and I will now share ten of the tips, tricks, methods, techniques etc that I followed to pull through, I do hope it is a helpful and practical list..... Here goes:

Wash basin

Don't buy a fancy baby basin with a seat just yet, for later it will be handy but for now you want a plain and simple one as tot cannot sit just yet, and the grooves and dips which are meant to help will actually be a nuisance, so less is the way to go in the beginning. It is also important not to share his basin and any items coming into direct contact with his skin, as his immunity is not yet hardcore so a simple skin rash from an adult could wreck havoc on him.

Bathing Soap

Get the mildest liquid soap in the market, mild to reduce chances of allergy and liquid for better handle-ability because he's so small, and you will need to constantly support him in the basin while washing simultaneously and also don't want to drop a soap bar on his precious little self or have it slip and slide out of your reach in the middle of a wash.

Wash cloth 

If you will use wash clothes to wash him with (I never used them as I felt they would be too much for his soft skin) then get soft cotton pieces, not textured like a towel. A friend got me a set of them but I would only ever bring myself to wipe him with while changing him, as wet wipes have never been a hit with me, until he got a bit bigger (4 months bigger).

Water temp 

Make sure to check the water temperature before you get him out of his clothes so he won't get cold and start acting up before he even gets into the water, as I came to find that most children who dislike bath time hate some activities associated with it and not the actual bath. Check the temperature by inserting your elbow into the water, if it stings even slightly then it's too hot for toto, it should be lukewarm such that your elbow has a hard time telling it has changed mediums from air to water, to avoid shocking his little system.

Sing

Sing or speak gently to him while you wash him, as it will help him relax as he gets used to the whole idea of being in this cold, cruel world out of the comfort of the womb, and all new experiences that come with it such as bath time. It serves to reassure him that nothing bad is going on and that you are there and are calm and collected because he can pick up on your mood really easily.

Preparation

Have the clean clothes you will dress him in laid out neatly on the surface you are changing him on, as well as the oil, combs, and anything else you will need, so that the transition from bath to fresh warm clothes is as smooth and fast as possible and feeding or sleeping which often follows soon after is easier for everyone involved.

Room temp

Keep the room warm, but not hot. If you are in a cold area invest in a room heater because babies get cold much easier than adults and they can't express it, and most of the time the discomfort they feel from cold will result in a fussy baby who is hard to calm down or even feed.

Formula

Have a formula for washing little one, for example, you could start with his face, then move to the neck and chest, then the rest of the body and finally the face, or whichever format you will have that will ensure he doesn't get fussy and tired of the bath before you are done, and stick to this routine so he gets comfortable.

Get this; While washing him ensure that you don't unnecessarily get water in his face because he holds his breath automatically when he feels water on his face, and making him do this a lot will wear him out and probably ruin his shower mood and probably yours too. 

Be thorough

Make sure to clean easy to overlook places like behind his ears, in the creases between his elbow and thighs, and the line just above his stomach. Also, his arm pits, behind the knees, and of course the tiny hands which may or may not be predominantly in his mouth haha... Make sure you are gentle though, because babies tend to have a lot of skin (does this make them skinny?🤔) and this skin is also really soft, I guess that's enough stress on the soft bit...

Finally

Though this last is a personal preference, I found it best to was him at night just before or after his last meal of the day as he was winding down, and I found that it helped calm him and soon it was a routine that he knew preceded bedtime, so he would be relaxed and start to drowse soon after I had dressed him and nursed him, making it a million times easier to put him to bed at night.

So there you go, that's my list. I used the masculine form in the post because mine is a boy, and it is so much easier to not have to use strokes and hyphens to denote the baby, otherwise I meant no discrimination, and for the record I do hope to get a baby girl at some point 😉. So I hope you enjoyed the post, and it will give you some insight for this week, til next week, adios 🙂