What to Expect the First Year (37 page)

A toasty, draft-free room temperature will be most comfy for baby, especially during those early months. Aim for about 75°F to 80°F (a bathroom can be quickly warmed up with shower steam), and turn off any fans and air conditioners until the bath is over.

Have the following ready before undressing baby:

• Warm water, if you won't be within reach of a faucet

• Baby wash and shampoo, if you use it

• Two washcloths (one will do if you use your hand for sudsing)

• Cotton balls for cleaning the eyes

• Towel, preferably with a hood

• Clean diaper, diaper ointment or cream (if you use it), and clothing

The sponge bath.
Until the umbilical cord and circumcision site (if any) are healed—a couple of weeks, more or less—tub baths will be taboo, and a washcloth will be your baby's only route to clean. For a thorough sponge bath, follow these steps:

Until the umbilical stump falls off, the sponge bath will help keep your sweetie clean.

1.
Get baby ready. If the room is warm, you can remove all of baby's clothing before beginning, covering him or her loosely with a towel while you work (most babies dislike being totally bare). If the room is on the cooler side, undress each part of the body as you're ready to wash it. No matter what the room temperature, don't take off baby's diaper until it's time to wash the bottom—an undiapered baby (especially a boy) should always be considered armed and dangerous.

2.
Begin washing, starting with the cleanest areas of the body and working toward the dirtiest, so that the washcloth and the water you're using will stay clean. Suds up as needed with your hands or a washcloth, but use a clean cloth for rinsing. This order of business usually works well:

• Head. Once or twice a week, use baby wash or baby shampoo, rinsing very thoroughly. The rest of the time, you can just use water. A careful hold (see
illustration
) at the sink's edge can be the easiest and most comfortable way
to rinse baby's head. Gently towel-dry baby's hair (for most babies this takes just a few seconds) before proceeding. Cradle cap?
Click here
.

• Face. First, using a cotton ball moistened in warm water, clean baby's eyes, wiping gently from the inner corner of the eye outward. Use a fresh ball for each eye. No baby wash is needed for the face. Wipe around the outer ears but not inside. Gently pat dry all parts of the face.

• Neck, chest, and abdomen. Sudsing up is not necessary here, unless baby is very sweaty or dirty. Be sure to get into those abundant folds and creases, where dirt tends to accumulate. Maneuver carefully around the umbilical cord. It's okay to gently wipe away any crust that accumulates around the stump. Pat dry.

• Arms. Extend those little arms to get into the elbow creases, and press the palms to open the fists. The hands will need a bit of baby wash, but be sure to rinse them well before they are back in baby's mouth. Dry.

• Back. Turn baby over on the tummy with head to one side and wash the back, being sure not to miss those neck folds. Since this isn't a dirty area, sudsing probably won't be necessary. Dry, and dress the upper body before continuing if the room is chilly.

• Legs. Extend the legs to get the backs of the knees, though baby will probably resist being unfurled. Dry.

• Diaper area. Follow directions for care of the circumcised or uncircumcised penis (
click here
). Wash girls front to back, spreading the labia and cleaning with baby wash and water. A white vaginal discharge is normal, so don't try to scrub it away. Use a fresh section of the cloth and clean water or fresh water poured from a cup to rinse the vagina. Wash boys carefully, getting into all the creases and crevices with baby wash and water, but don't try to retract the foreskin on an uncircumcised baby. Dry the diaper area well, and apply ointment or cream if needed.

3.
Diaper and dress baby.

The baby-tub bath.
A baby is ready for a tub bath as soon as both umbilical cord stump and circumcision, if any, are healed. If baby doesn't seem to like being in the water, go back to sponge baths for a few days before trying again. Here are the steps to take when tub bathing a baby:

Keep a secure grip on your baby in the bathtub. Wet babies are slippery babies.

1.
Before you add the baby, run enough water into the baby tub so that when you place baby into the bath, he or she will be covered with water up to the chest. Test the water temperature with your elbow to be sure it's comfortably warm. Never run the water with baby in the tub, because a sudden temperature change might occur. Don't add baby wash or bubble bath to the water, as these can be drying to baby's skin and also up the chances of a UTI (urinary track infection) and other irritations.

2.
Undress baby completely.

3.
Slip baby gradually into the bath, talking in soothing and reassuring tones, and holding on securely to prevent a startle reflex. Support the neck and head with one hand unless the tub has built-in support or, if your baby seems to prefer your arms to the tub's support, until good head control develops. Hold
baby securely in a semireclining position—slipping under suddenly could result in a scare.

4.
With your free hand, wash baby, working from the cleanest to the dirtiest areas. First, using a cotton ball moistened in warm water, clean baby's eyes, wiping gently from the inner corner of the eye outward. Use a fresh ball for each eye. Then wash face, outer ears, and neck. Though baby wash won't usually be necessary elsewhere on a daily basis (unless your baby tends to have all-over poop blowouts), do use it daily on hands and the diaper area. Use it every couple of days on arms, neck, legs, and tummy as long as baby's skin doesn't seem dry—less often if it does. Apply baby wash with your hand or with a washcloth. When you've taken care of baby's front parts, turn him or her over your arm to wash the back and buttocks.

5.
Rinse baby thoroughly with a fresh washcloth or by gently pouring water over baby's body.

6.
Once or twice a week, wash baby's scalp using baby wash or baby shampoo (or one that's a combo). Rinse very thoroughly and towel-dry gently.

7.
Wrap baby in a towel, pat dry, and dress.

This is usually a pretty painless process with a young baby. But to help head off future shampoo phobias, avoid getting even tearless cleanser or shampoo in your baby's eyes. Shampoo only once or twice a week, unless cradle cap or a particularly oily scalp requires more frequent cleanings. When baby is very young and still getting sponge baths, you can do the shampooing over a sink. Once baby has graduated to a baby tub, you can do the shampoo at the end of the bath—right in the tub.

A careful hold at the sink's edge can make shampooing a baby who hasn't graduated to tub baths easier.

1.
Wet baby's hair with a gentle spray of water or by pouring a little water from a cup. Add just a drop of baby shampoo or baby wash (more will make rinsing difficult), and rub in lightly to produce a lather. A foam product may be easier to control.

2.
Hold baby's head (well supported) and rinse thoroughly with a gentle spray or 2 or 3 cupfuls of clean water. Be sure to keep baby's head tilted back slightly so the water runs back instead of over baby's face.

Baby ears are pretty much care-free. Not only don't they need to be cleaned, but they shouldn't be—not with your fingers, not with a cotton swab, not even with a washcloth. When you wash your baby's face, you can wipe around the outer ears, but don't venture anywhere near the inside. Worried
about wax? Don't be. It's not cute, but it's protective—among other benefits, keeping dirt and debris from traveling into the ear canal. Leave even visible wax alone, and if you're concerned that there's excessive buildup, check with the pediatrician, who can safely remove it if necessary.

As with the inside of the ears, the inside of the nose is self-cleaning and needs no special care. If there's visible mucus, wipe the outside gently, but do not use cotton swabs, twisted tissues, or your fingernail to try to remove goo, gook, or crust from inside the nostrils—you may only push the stuff farther into the nose or even scratch delicate membranes. If baby has a lot of mucus due to a cold, suction it out with an infant nasal aspirator (
click here
).

Although trimming a newborn's tiny fingernails may make most new parents uneasy, it's a job that must be done. Little hands with little control and long fingernails can do a lot of damage, usually in the form of scratches on that adorable little face.

An infant's nails are often overgrown at birth (especially if baby arrived late) and so soft that cutting through them is nearly as easy as cutting through a piece of paper. The challenge is getting your baby to hold still for the procedure. Cutting a baby's nails while he or she is sleeping may work if you've got a sound sleeper or if you don't mind inadvertently waking your cutie. Use special baby scissors with rounded tips (so you don't accidentally poke your baby if he or she startles while you're working) or a clipper designed for the purpose—some even have a built-in magnifying glass to help you get a good view. Still squeamish? Try a baby-size emery board instead. Or do the job when you have a helper available—one of you can hold the baby's hands still (and distract with a song) while the other clips. Want to make trimming even more effortless (and who wouldn't)? Aim to trim after a bath, when the nails are at the softest—and therefore easiest to cut. But don't attempt while baby is still wet and slippery.

When clipping, hold your baby's finger, pressing the fingertip pad down and away from the nail. Gently snip following the natural curve of the fingernail, taking care that you don't go too low and nip the skin. When tending to tiny toes, cut nails straight across. Keep in mind that toenails grow more slowly and therefore require less maintenance.

Though you'll feel awful, try not to worry if you nick your baby's skin—it happens to every well-intentioned mom or dad manicurist. Apply gentle pressure with a clean, lint-free cloth or gauze pad, and the bleeding will soon stop.

Think of it as a last souvenir of baby's uterine stay: the umbilical stump. It turns black a few days after birth and can be expected to drop off anywhere between 1 and 4 weeks later. Since healing will happen faster if you keep the area dry and exposed to air, fold diapers down so they don't brush against the scab, and use wrap-style undershirts for now instead of onesies (or use a onesie designed with a special cutout for the stump). Don't swab the stump with alcohol (that might irritate tender skin, and it isn't necessary for healing), but do stick to sponge baths until it has
fallen off. If you notice signs of infection (pus or red skin at the base of the cord,
click here
) or if the stump seems painful to the touch, call the doctor.