By Jeana Lee Tahnk
There are lots of things you need when you have a baby, but really only a few essentials. You
need food, clothes and diapers. Lots of diapers. For people who haven't
experienced life with a newborn before, it's hard to imagine a baby
would need diaper changes 10 to 12 times a day, but it's true, and I
have the diaper logs to prove it.
With baby No. 3, it had been a few years since I changed diapers
(and kept the aforementioned diaper logs which tallies how many diapers
baby goes through each day), but it all came flooding back when I was
faced with that little rear end. Like my two others, she was pretty
consistent with the 10 to 12 changes a day, and the one thing I had
forgotten before she came along is how quickly you go through supplies.
I order my diapers and wipes in bulk online. The minute each
order comes in, I place rations in strategic locations all over the
house: in my bedroom, in the nursery, in the living room - basically,
any place where a diaper change could happen.
I don't stop there, either. I have diapers and wipes in my diaper
bag, of course. I also have them in my car, in my husband's car and in
the stroller basket. And once, before one particular airplane trip, I
even had my kids throw extras into their backpacks.
It may sound excessive, but trust me, if you've ever been without
a diaper when you needed one, you realize how desperate that need is. I
never leave the house with fewer than three diapers because you just
never know how many you'll need. Even if your baby just went and you're confident that you're in the clear, it's always a good idea to pack an extra few.
Also important is to make sure you have a surface to change the
baby, no matter where the diaper change takes place. There have been
many times when I've had to do diaper changes on soccer fields, in the
back of my car and even on a wide window sill at a restaurant bathroom
(shouldn't those diaper changing stations be required?), and don't know
what I would have done without the portable changing mat that came with
my diaper bag.
Diapers and wipes are a mandatory part of life with a baby. Be
sure to stock up on these essentials and you'll breeze through each
diaper change like a seasoned pro.