The Nappy Diaries Entry 13

Please note that any opinions/brands discussed here are my own opinions, and not endorsed by the council.

Entry 13

Apologies for not having written again for a couple of weeks - all the best intentions...

In all the time I've lived in Gloucestershire I have been lucky enough to avoid visiting the doctors more than a handful of times - and most of them have been trips with Teen 1 regarding various rugby accidents...but this previous week and a half has seen me lurking in the oppressive sickly doctors waiting room far too often! Each of the children have needed a trip - I'm beginning to worry that the lovely doctor I see has me down as one of those unfortunate attention seekers who has some "by proxy" illness as I appear yet again with one offspring or another!

The Teens fortunately were in and out rather uneventfully, though with the inevitable red faces that appear when they have to talk to an 'official' adult in my presence (it's the same at parents evening - it seems having mum there renders them inarticulate grunters!). Little Macs though was set to give us all a scare!

The poor little chappie had had a dose of the 'runs' for a couple of days over the weekend, with record numbers of poops popping out to test many many nappies (more of that later!) - we were at the washing machine a fair bit that weekend! It was a balancing act between letting his little behind breath un-nappied, and avoiding poops splattering out all over the place! Anyway - on the Saturday I noticed a small bruise-like rash on his thigh...mulled it over a while - but he seemed super happy despite his active insides (and outside!!) - so resolved just to keep an eye on it. Sunday it was still there - and there was a very faint similar rash on the other thigh...small dark purple marks - similar to the mottled stains you get after picking blackberries! Again, he was happy, full of beans - giggling and shouting, and feeding well - so I thought there was probably a reasonable explanation - and decided to pop him into the doctors the following morning - more about the runs really, as I didn't want him getting dehydrated...

The expression on the doctors face when she saw it immediately raised my heartbeat...which doubled again as she produced a glass slide and pressed it firmly against his leg - showing the rash still visible through it...every parents nightmare! The dreaded 'M' word - Meningitis was not mentioned, but was thought by all of us in that room - except a chuckling, gurgling Macs. And a rush of guilt slapped me in the face too - because he'd seemed so happy, well and alert, it hadn't occurred to me it could be one of the 'scary' rashes we are always on the look out for when they are ill! The doctor advised us to pop down just to let the paediatrician have a look at him at Gloucester Royal - but assured us that he seemed perfectly well - and it was just a precaution.

What a terrible journey! The Clueless One was silently concentrating hard on driving - fighting the urge to put his foot down with the need for safe driving, not helped by the need to go the long way round due to roadworks! We both glanced at each other occasionally, or squeezed each others hand, but couldn't talk...

Huge thanks to all the staff at the children's centre at the hospital - they were brilliant! Efficient, thorough but reassuring, they greeted us at the entrance, and we were able to return home a couple hours later after full examinations, and Macs' first blood sample (not pleasant in babies...especially chubby ones!). A couple of hours again, and we received a phone call confirming that all was well, and Macs' blood tests showed he was the healthy little man we knew him to be! Phew! The rash was a delayed reaction to the vaccinations he'd had some 2 weeks earlier - and no cause for alarm!

Scary as it all was, it's reassuring to know that the medical experts leave nothing to chance, and acted quickly and efficiently to ensure Macs was okay. Had things not turned out so well, it's good to know he would have received the attention he needed immediately. I really hope I don't need to visit the doctors surgery again soon though...

And so on to the very hardworking nappies! Well they may have had to cope with a rise in poops - but they were being changed so often they were barely on five minutes before being whisked off to the wash! They are also under a new attack as Macs is eager to sit up at every opportunity! It has opened up new dimensions in my search for the perfect nappy - as they have to be flexible, and cope with an increasingly wriggly mobile baby! Although he's not sitting unaided at the moment - he is eager to be upright as often as possible, and even when lying on the floor, there is roll-overs, slug-like backward shuffling, and feet inspections to cope with!

I am definitely finding that different nappies for different times are the answer at the moment! The 2-parts (like the TotsBots Bamboozles, and my current favourite, the Baby Behinds, coupled with a waterproof outer wrap) are best when out and about, or longer spells of nappy wearing - but they are a bit bulky when he's trying to be upright, and as a combination of the millions of poops recently, and the onset of teething (oh joy!), he has for the first time developed a slight nappy rash. It doesn't seem to be bothering him too much, but I find the 2-parts, whilst best for no leaks, do keep his bottom damper - or more humid perhaps - so maybe not best at the moment. (I haven't yet tried the fleece outer wraps, and am still on the hunt for affordable wool wraps - both which reportedly reduce this 'humidity' - updates as I find them!!) I do run the gauntlet and leave him nappy free as much as possible - I have resigned myself to the fact that the rug may end up having a slight eau-de-piddle...it can always be cleaned! So this may have cut down nappy usage - but we go through at least 3 sets of clothing every day, as that inevitably gets wet as he's rolling about spraying! The added bonus is that he loves being 'free' - think he'd happily do away with nappies altogether if he could!

The soft, fleece-lined pocket nappies like the BumGenius, Wonderoos, and PeaPods definitely seem to allow his skin to breath a bit more, but they are all (even the beloved BumGenius!) prone to leakage these days if left too long - not great when you are out and about, and forgotten to bring spare clothes with you! I reckon as he grows ever larger, it stands to reason that his piddles are getting longer - more in volume - and so the pockets are struggling to cope - even when I add boosters. But they are first choice when in the house. They are also generally quite slim, neat and compact, with the inserts tending to focus padding between the legs - and not all over - so quite useful when Macs is striving for action-man status!

Having talked to a friend at my local postnatal group who also uses real nappies, I also think that the shape of each baby has a big impact on which nappies perform best. But I've just realised I've once again twittered on for ages, so more on this next time.

Hopefully chat more in the next week or so...child-illnesses permitting!

Email me about The Nappy Diaries