Better, and Babies

[ailbhe]

I'm a lot better today. I only woke twice in the night, and I could sort of speak when I woke this morning. It's really just my nose - the pain in my throat is almost all gone. So I went to my antenatal class.

Today was Babycare. We started with a Road Safety bit, whcih was all about carseats and seatbelts. Then we did How To Bath A Baby. Then we did Nappy Rash and Other Scary Skin Weirdnesses.

Getting a carseat is going to be a pain. Generally, one should get one which fits one's own car. They aren't generic. We don't have a car; we wanted a generic one, for taxis and Rob's parents and that kind of thing. Oops. Luckily, immediately after class one woman offered me a lift to Mothercare so I could ask them for help and advice, and there is one seat (not the cheapest) which will fit most carseats. I also discovered that fitting a carseat is something my arms won't be capable of most of the time, so I'll always need help.

Bathing a baby is more or less as simple as I thought it was, and Mum's right, one doesn't need soap, though it's helpful for washing off the meconium. One also doesn't need a baby bath, and I'm glad they told us so, because one or two people have expressed dismay that we intend to use a plastic washing-up bowl.

The Rash bit was the weirdest. I live in West Reading, where there's a pretty high proportion of non-white to white people. The pictures they showed us of skin yukkinesses were all on white babies. Weird. Also, I've had a look for pictures online of non-white babies with rashes, and I can't find any; I used to have some, but they've gone. Double weird.

I'm glad I'm getting better; it means I'll be able to enjoy tomorrow's party. And I suddenly remembered my Ebay responsibilities, and posted off a parcel and a couple of cheques. The weather continues charming.

Comments

[clanwilliam.livejournal.com]

I've never seen a baby bath at my sister's (for varying reasons, she's the only one whose house I've been in at baby-bathing time). And a plastic washing up bowl sounds excellent - when the baby outgrows it, then a shallow bath will be just fine too - after all, the poor kid isn't going to be left alone in it.

My sister just uses an old jug to wash her baby - it's not an economy thing so much as a "why spend money on something like that" thing.

Re car seats - yes, they're worth spending money on. What are you doing pram-wise? Another sister has an excellent contraption that's basically a detachable carrying cot so that it doubles up for everything - costs a bit more than a standard pram or adapatable, but is much cheaper overall, particularly as she spends time travelling over to Ireland to visit the family.

[ailbhe]

Pram-wise: I spent a long time, early in the pregnancy (16 weeks), looking for a pushchair which I could collapse with one hand, which I could carry on a bus, and which I was physically capable of lifting. None of the 2- or 3-in-one things qualified. I've got a Maclaren Citilite (it might be citylite; it's definitely a kreative spelling) which weighs less than 6 kilos and I can manage with one hand if my hands are more or less working. We bought it a while ago because there were rumours that they were going to stop making it.

The things with detachable bits are great for people with slightly larger hallways than we have, and with functional arms. They just take more space and effort than I have available...

And then there are the multi-terrain transformer-babies-in-disguise SUV models. Those are just funny. I've only ever seen them in use inside shopping centres; I suspect that getting them anywhere else is too complicated.

A.