Victoria the Water Baby

Its summertime in the northern hemisphere of our wonderful home and with the beauty of the weather, we all want to go out and play. What? You say babies can't? Oh they certainly can (with a lot of precautions). The leaves on the trees have finally emerged from their deep sleep, the bees (although very scarce) are buzzing around the flowers hoping to get pollen and spread it around. I guess that is why I love bees so much. There is a light breeze flowing in the air and the sun seems to dance around a few cirrus clouds in the sky. Yes, summertime is finally here for us to enjoy, even for babies.

When I gave birth to my daughter, it was the middle of summer in South Florida. It was hot, humid and I was miserable. My only daily ensemble that I wore was a tank top with shorts (and as most natives do) wore nothing but flip-flops. The only comfort that I could find would be in a room with an air conditioner. That was it. That was all I needed. Fortunately my daughter gave birth right before spring. The days were often over-cast with a cool breeze at night. Given the earlier phenomenon of the Polar Vortex, the predictions of the weather haven't been simple to forecast. The seasons are now upon us earlier on the East Coast of the US than before. But what about that hot sun? Isn't it funny that the sun is only in it's “middle-aged” years but to us, we often feel like a newly hatched egg on a hot sidewalk cooking ever-so-slowly? Last saturday, my daughter and Victoria were invited to a pool party. This was her first time without any parental advice and had to go at it alone. Understandably I was scared, but not as scared as I thought I would be. My daughter was well-equipped with mothering information. After all, she is the one with the instinct so why should I butt in? My daughter proved to me that she can tackle this 'mothering skill' and I have to have more faith in her. Getting her things together from room to room, I was following her with a mental checklist offering advice of what I would think she might need. After the advice was given to her, she prepared Victoria's diaper bag that has Winnie the Pooh across the front. A family member bought her some “swimmer” diapers for Victoria to wear while she was in the pool. Donned with sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat, my grand daughter was almost ready to go to the party. With a full diaper bag of regular size 2 diapers, wipes, 5 empty bottles, powder formula and a bottle of drinking water, she was set into her carrier that is also “Winnie the Pooh” print. Her ride (from a family member) finally came to pick her up. She was so excited that she can finally get out of the house and spend some quality time with family. Of course I was texting her every five minutes to ask if the air was on in the car on the way, was she too cold if the air, in fact, was on too much. I would ask if she was hungry or if it is time for her next feeding. Or even if she needed a diaper change and I am not there to do it. Still, I am only the grandmother. But my daughter came to her baby's rescue. I was happy to learn that she only had her in the sun for approximately 5 minutes, (just to take a few pictures) that she was indeed in a pool setting. Dressed in her long onsie, hat (that covered her neck as well), sunglasses and sunscreen, my daughter walked with her across the shallow end of the pool. She knew that you shouldn't keep a baby out in the direct sun and stayed for the next 10 minutes under the overhang of the pool deck. As soon as she got

home, Victoria was whisked away to a bath. My daughter knew that sunscreen wasn't good for baby's skin so she carefully washed it away with a wash cloth. After careful examination, Victoria was 'lotioned up' and fitted with a brand-new onsie as she sat in her lounger (better known as her throne).

A very helpless feeling

Here I am. The grandmother of a 10 day old infant. Although I have been getting enough sleep, the 'every two-hour' feeding time has not yet bothered me. Looking at her face mesmerizes me every time I hold that little bundle of joy. She is such a good baby; always sleeps, never cries and has a great little disposition as of late. Both families are truly blessed with her. I am in charge of cleaning and preparation of the bottles. My daughter has decided to breastfeed but also use formula. We have already gotten the 'green light' from the pediatrician to do this. She seems to be satisfied with two ounces every feeding: one ounce of formula and one ounce of her mother's milk. But we have noticed something missing: it has been ½ a day since she has had a regular healthy bowel movement. I know this is not something one should blog about. If anything, I would love to hear some advice. I am in route to the store to get her some Karo syrup for her tummy. We tried gas drops last night but still little pellets are found in her diaper. She is having so much trouble staying comfortable that she seems to always lay on her side. Imagine what my little grand baby is going through....still...she doesn't cry about it.

On the hunt for the perfect nappy

Seeing how there are so many disposable diapers on the market, we are lucky to live in an age where we can choose what we think would be best for our babies. My mother had the choice to use disposable diapers with me, I had an even better choice to use (and choose) what disposable diapers I wanted to use with my daughter and finally she will have a better choice of the disposable diapers for her daughter. Isn't that the way it always is?

Let's see....off the top of my head, I believe my mom had to use Pampers with me. They are durable and absorbent but does

Pampers

not have any available to protect your baby while sleeping throughout the night although they do have a bed-wetting protection called Underjams. Created in 1961, they come in a variety from preemies to size 7. Size 7 is the only size for Underjams and Cruisers. Having several sizes of pampers to choose from, Swaddlers and Baby Dry are only for newborns and infants. Baby dry is also for toddlers as well as Cruisers. They even have their own disposable training pants called Easy Ups. Pampers promotes more baby products such as disposable bibs which they call Bibsters and their own brand of baby wipes. A good friend of mine told my daughter that she really likes the way that Pampers feels but the price is way out there. There are some generic brands that have the same feel but without breaking the bank.

Huggies

Designed in 1968, Huggies brand was introduced to the market from Kimberly-Clark. The company, based in Irving, TX is one of the biggest producers of mostly paper-based consumer products in the world. They had developed another type of diaper different from Pampers that are unique in size and quality. My little sister typically uses Huggies products because of the feeling of the baby wipes. As I have stated before, most of the population like the feeling of Pampers while Huggies are known for their texture in baby wipes.

So. On one hand, you have Pampers which are extremely expensive and on the other hand you have Huggies which are very reliable in the absorbent area. So what do you do? Do a little research and you will probably find out that Target brand Up and Up is probably the most reliable diapers with the most affordable prices going around.

http://www.pampers.com/home

http://www.huggies.com/en-US

http://www.diffen.com/difference/Huggies_vs_Pampers

http://www.target.com/p/up-up-baby-diapers-bulk-pack-select-size/-/A-14043501