Playtex Mommyville's Diaper Diaries (Giveaway)

People have a lot of advice for you once you become pregnant. Then even more people have advice for you after you give birth and are pushing a stroller or hauling baby in their bucket car seat. But none of this advice ever deals with diaper changes.

Thankfully, during the week of Sept. 23, the Playtex Mommyville Facebook page will be dedicated to Diaper Diaries, where fans can share their stories with others, creating a fun and informative dialogue all about the challenges of motherhood. Here’s my story:

When she was very little (but very, very cute), I dreaded changing Hannah in public. She usually cried the entire time and one out of five times she’d urinate while I was changing her. On to her clothes. On to the change table. On to anything the urine could travel to. Thank goodness for packing multiple outfits and for always carrying antibacterial wipes.

I can recall one particular messy and smelly situation that sums up the first six months of Hannah’s diaper changing life quite well.

Hannah, my Mom, my brother and I had gone to our local Zellers (which is now closed – not because of the following incident, but if Target hadn’t purchased it, I may blame it).

We were looking in the cards section when we smelled the poop. Reluctantly, I picked up the diaper bag, took Hannah out of her bucket car seat and headed towards the front of the store to use the family washroom.

I hung the diaper bag on the door handle and retrieved the items I needed for the change – clean outfit, fresh diaper, wipes, changing pad and a few Portable Diaper Genie bags for her clothes and the dirty diaper/dirty wipes.

The poop was a doozy. It had gotten on her onesie and her pants.

I managed to get the clothing off and into a Diaper Genie bag without getting poo on her arms or head. At this point, about 15 seconds in to the change, Hannah decided I was taking too long and began to wail.

While I was cleaning her bottom she decided she had given me four other “good” turns in the public washroom recently, and thus began to urinate – all over the dirty diaper, the new clean outfit, and the rest of the change table – some urine even made it to the floor!

Now, I’m all for being environmentally friendly, but when I discovered there was NO paper towels in this family washroom I almost blew a gasket.

But then I realized something worse. I only have two hands. Where was I supposed to put a three-month old baby who could barely hold her head let alone sit up by herself while I attempted to clean the change table?

Sadly, at this point, I also realized I left my phone with the shopping cart. I couldn’t get a hold of my brother to send my Mom to the front of the store to help me.

So I had to get creative. At this point, Hannah’s wails had subsided. I think she appreciated the severity of the situation.

I pulled my shirt up. Then I picked Hannah up, naked, and leaning backwards, put her against my stomach. While in this awkward position I cleaned the urine off of her. She was now a naked baby, but a clean baby. Through some intricate moves only Cirque de Soleil performers should do I was able to get a clean diaper on her.

Holding Hannah in one arm, I then began to clean the change table. I threw out the dirty diaper. I put a second outfit in a Diaper Genie bag. I dropped the changing pad to the floor. I began to clean the changing table with antibacterial wipes. I cursed Zellers again for not having paper towels in their washrooms. I used a clean Diaper Genie bag to try to wipe the change table as dry as I could. I lowered myself, while holding Hannah, to use some of my precious wipes on the floor.

Hannah was completely silent now. I think she was enjoying the show.

I picked out the final clean outfit from the diaper bag. The change table was fairly dry. I was able to put her third outfit of the last five minutes on without any issues.

Holding Hannah in one arm, I picked up the wet changing pad, grabbed the diaper bag and looked around. The family washroom looked identical to when we first walked in.

I found my Mom and brother in the pop aisle. To me, it seemed like forever had passed, to them mere minutes.

“How did it go?” my Mom asked.

“Changing diapers in public is my LEAST favourite thing to do,” I retorted.

Hannah still cries sometimes when I change her in public. But I am happy to report she no longer urinates while I am in the midst of changing her diaper.

Do you have a story like mine? Remember to share it the week of Sept. 23!

To celebrate Diaper Diaries, one YYZ Bambina reader will win a Playtex Diaper Genie gift pack (Diaper Genie Elite and a Diaper Genie Portable Diaper Bag Dispenser) valued at $50. To enter, use the Rafflecopter below.

  

Open to Canadian (excluding Quebec) Residents who are the age of majority only. Valid entries only. Contest ends Monday, September 30,  2013. For further contest rules, refer to the Terms and Conditions within the Rafflecopter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 © 2013 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.