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The word-of-mouth parenting advice has always existed. Some come as grandma’s tales, as pearls of wisdom from our mothers, as trivia from other experienced women in the neighborhood, and as the never ending list from friends of friends too! Then we are gifted books on parenting at our baby shower day. We subscribe to the best parenting newsletters. We watch out for the latest parenting magazines when they hit the book stands. Phew! Exhausting! Despite the horde of information available out there, one can safely say that there is nothing that can beat your common sense! There is nothing that can defeat what other mothers tell you from their experience. Here are a few baby care hacks from several moms that may find really useful:
- When your baby is gassy, you might want to lay her on your legs. Face her towards you and peddle her legs like a bicycle. It is one of the best things you can do when your child is irritated with colic.
- When you are trying to soothe a colicky baby, sometimes mollycoddling doesn’t work. A loud or harsh noise can distract her well enough. Try a turning on a vacuum cleaner, TV, food processor, or a fan. Your baby would be distracted from the colic uneasiness.
- Does your baby fall asleep while nursing? When I asked my doctor, I was advised to tickle her cheeks to wake her up. The other useful tip I received from a friend is to tickle her feet if she falls asleep while nursing.
- Bathing your baby needs so much care. You would want to test the temperature of the water. While there are baby bath thermometers in the market these days, the practical way to do so is different, especially when you have no access to instruments. Try the elbow (and not your fingers) test to know how hot or warm the water is.
- If your baby cries at the sight of a dropper, because she had been given her medicine through it, you have made the mistake of not getting her used to it. Use a clean dropper to give your baby water as often as possible.
- Fingernail clippers might best be avoided. They can irritate your baby. Instead, bite your baby’s toenails and fingernails, ideally after your baby is out from the bath because her nails would have got more supple with some amount of soaking in the water.
- Remember the waterproof pads you used in the hospital? Get as many of them as possible with you so that you can use them for your baby. Place the pads under your baby before going off to sleep. While your baby will be on diapers, just in case there is diaper leak or your baby needs a change, but you are half asleep to change, simply remove the diaper and allow your baby to sleep on the sheet. I would also recommend the waterproof sheets in case your baby suffers from diaper rashes.
- You don’t know what good use you can put the jelly-fold diapers to. You can always use the pre-fold diapers as burp rags because they work as better absorbents than the actual burp rags.
- If your baby is drooling, place a stack of bibs held together on the back so that your baby’s chest doesn’t get chapped up from the drooling.
- Feeding and burping your baby also means changing some dirt on your clothes. Your clothes don’t have to catch the dirt. Simply use your privacy to feed your baby naked, so neither your clothes get dirty, nor does your laundry pile up.
- Lullabies work. No rock music, please!
- Putting your baby to bed early means they will be up early. So you adjust their biological clock. This does not, however, mean that you keep them up late! Remember, that baby grow best when they get their required sleep.
What most useful parenting advice did you receive? Write us back!
