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Tuesday, December 27, 2011

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Seven Pee-Pee & Poopy Truths

In my pre-child days, I never would have dreamed so much of my time and energy would be centered around pee-pee and poopy. As a mommy of two (one in cloth diapers; the other in cloth trainers at night), a significant portion of my life is dedicated to tending to the “ins” and “outs” of my little ones. And the funny part is, a lot of the time it can downright…comical!

Seven truths that I’ve come to learn so far include:

  1. Keep your mouth closed when spraying diapers! This high-powered contraption is a life-saver for cleaning poo off of diapers before washing. However, even on a modest setting, it can really blast your diapers and shower anything else that happens to be in the vicinity. Yep. Learned this one first-hand.
  2. Compression leaks happen. It’s particularly—how shall we say?—stylish when babywearing and mommy’s shirt becomes the canvas. Thankfully the Moby Wrap makes a very fashionable shaw when leaks of this nature happen in public. Yep. Been there, done that on this one too.
  3. Just because blow-outs are so uncommon with cloth doesn’t mean one should become lax at the changing station. Flailing baby hands are a reality for cloth and disposable users and they invariably land in just the places you wish they wouldn’t!
  4. Girls are masters at the “sneak-a-pee” while being changed. My daughter had a knack for soaking the changing pad without me knowing it. I’d have a new diaper on and be in the midst of getting her clothed again when suddenly I’d realize her outfit was soaked. Boys are much more obvious. My son has sprayed me, my husband, the changing table, the floor, various standers-by, you name it. This is where a stack of pre-folds nearby comes in super-handy. The best pee-pee blockers EVER!
  5. Your bathtub will become home to all sorts of things you never dreamed of. Right now, we make lots of “diaper soup” in ours as it is the perfect place to pre-soak cloth diapers and trainers before running them in our front-loading washer.
  6. You will become intimate with poopy in a whole different way when using cloth. I now understand not just what my son’s “outs” look like when they happen but what they look like at the end of the day when color and consistency give even more clues as to how mommy’s diet, vitamin drops, medicines or the introduction of rice cereal impacts baby. It sounds gross, for sure. But interesting nonetheless. Cut back on the carrots, Mom!
And my favorite for last:

  1. It is inevitable that the potty-learned child will need to go poopy on the potty at the least inopportune moment. Mine is a huge fan of needing my help with wiping at exactly the moment when I am nursing baby. This has made for some interesting juggling, I can assure you. If anyone has the solution to this one (aside from growing a new set of hands), I’m game!
With the recent introduction of solids into my baby’s diet, I’m sure our home will continue to be filled with many new lessons and lots more make-you-belly-laugh, “I can’t believe that just happened” kind of moments!

What are your favorite truths?

by Nicole C.

3 comments:

Celebrate Woo-Woo said...

Thank you for #4! After having 3 boys and having dealt with all the spraying pees that people always feel compelled to warn you about when you tell them you're expecting a boy, I was shocked by these stealthy ninja pees of my baby girl.

MyClothLove said...

you know those laminated place mats? at dollar store and wal mart and such? we use those to help block water spray from the diaper sprayer. stored next to the toilet we just sit it just inside the rim if the toilet and spray diapers off. it's not perfect still protect ur face but its a little less dramatic! for the wiping while nursing maybe try an ergo carrier quick to get on and you can nurse baby while in it youtube is helpful for that. not always perfect but maybe helpful?

Gretchen said...

Practice the one-handed poop-wipe! Your child must cooperate by assuming the position: downward facing dog, or, if you're not a yogi, hands on floor, feet on floor, butt in the air like an upside-down V. then switch baby to your stronger arm, assume your one-handed nursing position (which I know you're already good at because you've got more than one kid), grab the toilet paper (a secure toilet paper holder is key, don't want that tp falling on the ground at this particular time), and quickly wipe. Since you may not be able to manage a good handwashing just now, have some sanitizer near the toilet, and remember to wash them when you're done nursing. Voila! that's about as elegant as you can get. Next step - getting your child to wipe her own bottom! I have no clue how to tackle that one.