When we brought our new baby home, learning how to change diapers was a huge learning curve. A few months in, I feel so much more knowledgeable and wanted to share some things I’ve learned I wish I knew back then.
1. You will change a lot of diapers
This one may be a given, but you may be changing your baby up to ten times a day. You’ll be a pro in no time!
2. You’ll want to track diapers
At the first few doctors appointments they will most likely ask you how many wet and dirty diapers the baby has had in a day. Thankfully a lot of apps have a place to track this alongside feeding trackers, keeping it all in one place.
3. Make sure you’re using the right size
Some diapers have sizing indicator images or lines on the front of the diaper to show when it’s time to size up. Once the tabs aren’t reaching that indicator anymore, it might be time to size up. If the two tabs are meeting in the middle of the diaper, the diaper is most likely too big.
4. Prevent diaper rash early
Using a good diaper rash cream at bedtime is a great way to stop diaper rashes from developing. We love Pinxav and aquaphor creams.
5. Size up at night
Overnight diapers usually are only sold in size 3 and up, so until your baby reaches that point, you can simply size up diapers at night to prevent leaks. Baby G peed through so many sleepers before we learned this tip. No more outfit and crib sheet changes at 2am for us!
6. You don’t necessarily need to change diapers at night
Unless your baby has a dirty diaper, your baby will probably be fine without a middle of the night diaper change. This was a game changer for us. Changing her in the middle of the night would tend to really wake her up. Now she only gets changed if she has a dirty diaper or her diaper feels very full and wet. This is especially true if you use the “size up” trick mentioned earlier. Make sure to use a good diaper cream at bedtime to reduce the chance of diaper rash during this longer stretch.
What other diaper changing tips and tricks have made your life easier? Let us know by commenting!