This morning I found myself in the now familiar diaper changing struggle. To his credit, Liam is not one to take things lying down. Hopefully he will hold on to this tendency and exhibit it when it’s actually appropriate. As far as diaper changes go though, my writing this entry serves as my admission that I’d prefer it if he’d just lie there and let me get the job done.
I find it quite frustrating to “snappi” a diaper into place on a wiggling, spiraling baby. Liam seems to be taking his surname a little too seriously! The result is a loose fitting crooked diaper which will inevitably come undone before intended. Lucky for me, we’ve got another diaper style which I can make use of in a pinch, which is what I did this morning before grabbing my computer to vent my woes.
Here’s an example of a particularly challenging session on the diaper table, sort of “The Princess Bride” of diaper changes in that this particular session had all the things that a diaper change these days may involve. I put Liam in his bassinet which is now the holding bin (he’s swinging around in there now as I write) to get his outer clothes off, and to prep the table. I get him on to the table and remove the diaper to find an enormous “poopsie” which Liam promptly digs his heels into while flailing about. The diaper still isn’t off and I’ve got poop all over his body to deal with. By some stroke of grace, I keep Liam on the diaper pad, the poop off it, and miraculously manage to clean up every trace of poop on his body. I tell you, my reflexes are quick and my powers of observation are sharp these days. (By the way, Liam got sick of the bassinet so we’re now in the living room where he’s playing with the birthing / bouncing ball. He just had a few moments of sitting and watching the ball as it rolled away and settled into a still position, that was our tranquility for the day I guess, because then he noticed me and crawled on over to pull on the laptop and then the ipad. Now he’s onto the blocks, and books in the shelves. Back in the fast lane). So, back to the story. I’ve managed to get the baby clean, I wouldn’t be surprised if the challenge of it got some adrenaline into my veins, I was energized to say the least. But I was also in need of a break. The previous evening David had come up with the idea of letting Liam crawl around in the tub naked. So off to the tub we went. Liam was happy as a clam playing with all the jet holes in the tub and I was happy to have a breath or two. After a few minutes of that, he peed. Of course. On the one hand, this was good. Just turn on the tap and rinse him off. But I didn’t have a towel and now that he and the tub were covered in pee, the whole enterprise was a lot more dangerous by the slippery when wet nature of the tub. So we proceeded with the rinse, Liam had more fun playing with the water. And then I picked up my soaking baby boy, getting myself all wet, grabbed my towel and headed back to the changing pad. Now to get the new diaper and clothes on. This has become a multi-level multi-room experience. We start with the diaper and cover on the table. Sometimes Liam will tolerate that, sometimes not in which case I’ll start by moving the pad to the floor. Liam likes the ride. I get the body suit over the head, arm one, arm two and by this time he’s sitting up. Snapping the crotch in this position is no problem. Next, the socks. This is typically when it’s time to relocate. Too much time in any one spot is soooo boring mom! Sitting with a toy is the preferred position, but I manage okay with crawling and even standing. For the pants, if I can get him to stand for the final pull up, we’re a real team.
During another challenging diaper change recently I found myself fantasizing about the sweet, docile baby girl who must be waiting in the spirit dimension to join our family. Is that wrong? To wish for a calm little baby who loves getting her diaper changed? The saying, boys get easier, girls get harder, is a constant source of reassurance these days. Don’t get me wrong, I’m having a lot of fun with our little bundle of action. I thank him for that and for providing me with my first round of training should I ever want to compete in a pig scramble.
TGIF, except there is no weekend in the life of new parents. If you have a weekend, be sure to enjoy it extra for us!
Love, Faye
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