Newborn Care hacks for new moms

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Newborns are joyful and overwhelming at the same time. For new moms with newborns, it gets hard and challenging to keep up with something new every day. However, these baby hacks will help you get it easy on your motherhood journey.

For new parents, these baby hacks will save you time and sanity. Also, you will be able to get some sleep at night when a straight three hours of sleep is like a dream.

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Newborn care hacks for new moms

1. Trim nails while baby sleeps

Nail trimming is one of the daunting tasks for me as a mom. Always have your vision glasses on if you wear them on daily basis, also, make sure there is enough light in the room while trimming the baby’s nails.

2. Use mittens to prevent scratching or bodysuits with cuffs

Newborns’ nails are fragile and you cannot actually trim them. Usually, newborns are hardcore scratchers, so to make sure they don’t scratch their face, use mittens. If mittens are running too big, use bodysuits with in-built mitten cuffs to prevent scratching.

Using nail filer like this for babies would be much safer option.

3. Using the bum spatula or tush swiper

Use a bum spatula for diaper cream – try not to make your hands messy if you are using diaper cream in a jar instead of a tube.

However, if you are using a tube cream, this tush swiper you might want to try for even application and less wastage.

4. Umbilical cord care

Wait for full bathing until your baby’s cord comes off. Either sponge bath or full bath, try to be super careful not to have the cord wet. This will delay the drying process of the umbilical cord.

Fold diaper or cut diaper in order to prevent it from rubbing against the cord.

5. Gas drops for sensitive babies

Breastmilk is fairly easy for babies to digest, however, some babies take time to adjust to breastmilk as well as formula. Keeping gas drops handy is essential. Use gas drops every night for babies who get gas more often.

You can use either of the following, both work 99% of the time.

Nighttime gripe water by mommy bliss

little remedies gas drops.

Related: How to effectively deal with gas issues for babies.

6. When you start solids give gas drops at night 

When you start feeding solids to your little one, you can give a dose of gas drops every night until the gas issues resolve. Babies’ digestive tract takes time to mature and get used to with every type of food. Giving a dose of gas drops before bedtime would help with gas issues at night.

7. Swaddle the right way

Swaddling is very comforting for newborns and they sleep better as they feel cozy and warm like in the womb. Swaddling ensures better sleep and minimizes startle reflux which is quite common in newborns.

Related: Find out the best ways to swaddle your baby in this sleep ebook, so they can sleep better.

8. Use herbal body lotion or organic oil for the baby’s skin to avoid over-drying

How do you know when newborns feel itchy?

This might be an old wives’ tale – if you notice your baby is spitting or making bubbly saliva around her mouth, most significantly baby is feeling itchy somewhere on the body. This might be due to dry skin or other unknown reasons.

Massage baby’s skin with extra virgin coconut oil or olive oil before or after bathing the baby helps with dryness and itchiness. This will help to keep her skin soft and hydrated without making it itchy and dry.

Earth Mama organics have the most gentle products for babies. Get this calming lotion for babies to keep baby skin moisturized and loved.

Get Earth mama’s organic Herbal body lotion and get 15% off by using the special code Rainbow.

9. Use baby soft combs to avoid cradle cap 

Once you start seeing a dry patch on your baby’s scalp, make sure you comb every single day after massaging oil or after a shower and gently scrape dry skin off from the baby’s head.

Related: how to get rid of the cradle cap fast.

10. Use body wash with lavender extracts

For a nighttime bathing routine, try to use Earth Mama’s Organic body wash with lavender extracts to ensure a soothing sleep at night. Ideally, lavender extracts help babies sleep better, especially if you bathe babies before bedtime.

Related: find out baby bathing essentials.

11. Baby acne

Baby acne is quite common among newborns. Most of the time, it will go away on its own in a couple of weeks. You don’t need to apply any medication on baby’s acne; however, you can apply breastmilk as it is found to be extremely effective in treating baby acne faster.

baby acne

Do not hesitate to talk to your doctor about it if you have concerns.

Read more

Baby’s skin conditions to expect during the first several weeks after birth.

22 things new moms want to know about newborns before they arrive.

12. Flip sides while you put your baby to sleep

Babies tend to develop flat spots on their heads due to extensive laying down on one side. To prevent flat spots on your baby’s head, make sure you switch sides when you put them to sleep in the crib or bassinet.

Also, adding tummy time to their everyday activities is equally essential to prevent babies from developing the flat head syndrome.

You can use these flat head prevention pillows to avoid flat head syndrome.

Related: how to prevent the flat head syndrome

13. Do not wake up the baby from a nap

During the day, if your baby is sleeping in the car, take out the infant car seat and let her nap for a little while in your living room.

Make yourself a coffee and enjoy a few minutes of ME TIME.

Related: Tips on how to go out with a newborn

14. Do not wake up a sleeping baby at night

If your baby has fallen asleep hungry, you need to wake her up and feed her. Not to mention, if your baby is healthy and gaining weight – eats well during the day and sleeps at night at longer stretches, you would not want to wake her up for every two hours feed. This will help you train the baby to sleep through the night.

So to speak, waking up your baby every 2 hours is a personal preference and highly depends on the baby’s feeding requirements, including weight gain, enough wet and dirty diapers, etc.

However, if you are struggling with milk supply in the early days of childbirth, then you might want to wake her up every 2 hours to ensure better and faster milk flow.

Read more about sleeping mistakes you might be making with your baby.

Food that helps increase milk supply for breastfeeding moms.

15. Do not wake up baby for diaper change at night unless it is a huge blowout

If your baby seems wet and she is not awake due to a dirty diaper, just let her sleep or else you can change in the night light. Do not make the room bright or wash her at night. She will be wide awake, and that is the last thing you want, being sleep-deprived already.

Use Danni’s diaper extender to protect diaper blowouts for babies in the car seats or lay down for an extended period. Using these blowout blockers can give babies uninterrupted sleep and save their clothes from getting poop stains.

Related: Tips and tricks to prevent baby’s diaper blowout.

How you can prevent diaper leaks at night for babies and toddlers.

16. Get a night light for nursing

Get a night light for nursing sessions in the middle of the night so you won’t wake your baby up.

Related: 40+ breastfeeding tips for nursing moms.

17. Put Pack and play in your main area

If you have a single-family house or a townhouse, you might want to have a pack and play in your main living area so you can watch your baby at all times without having to rush up and down.   

It comes with a diaper changing pad which is super helpful.

Read more

Everything about the art of baby diapering for new parents.

18. Use a white noise machine

I cannot recommend that enough, It is a must-have even if you are co-sleeping or have a separate nursery for your baby. For light sleeper babies or you have too many cracking floors around, you need to have the sound machine.

My most favorite is the sound of rain in this one. It is portable and travels with me everywhere.

Related: How moms can manage sleep deprivation with a newborn.

19. Dream feed 

Dream feeding is when you feed your baby while he is asleep. So babies don’t wake up crying when they get hungry. That would help you and your sleep better through the night.

Learn more about dream feed and see if it works for you.

20. Backpack instead of a diaper bag

You need to keep your hands free when you have a little one to hold. You need a diaper backpack instead of a diaper bag. Wearing a diaper backpack is a versatile way to freely move around as a mom with a newborn or toddler.

Related: Diaper bag essentials for a newborn a toddler.

21. Not buttoned onesies anymore

Use onesies with a zip, not buttons. babies feel more cozy and comfy.

Related: Newborns clothing essentials and accessories – how much you need.

22. Prefer Footed onesies over non-footed for night

For night time you do not need a baby’s hat, however, you need footed onesies so they do not get cold on their feet.

Baby’s first-year clothing and accessories essentials checklist for new moms.

Baby bathing essentials you must have for your baby.

23. Use convenient bodysuits that button up or down

Tabeeze makes these amazing cotton bodysuits for babies that button up at the shoulders as well so you don’t have to worry about messing up everything with poop in case of a blowout. More convenient skin to skin for mom and the baby. And most importantly fuss-free slide up through feet.

24. Use dock a dot if you are co-sleeping

If you choose to co-sleep your newborn, use a co-sleeper or dock a dot to make sure that you do not flip over on the baby in your sleep.

25. Avoid nighttime diaper leaks in an easy way

You can avoid having diaper leaks at night with one simple trick to go one size up. If your baby is wearing size 6, move on to size 7 for the night. Although It will be expensive, however, it will save you some sleep at night with no diaper leaks.

For heavy wetters, you can use booster pads in baby’s diapers in order to have her sleep peacefully.

Use Danni’s diaper extenders to avoid pee leakage at night. These extenders can be used in the front or back of the diaper to prevent any leakage.

How to prevent diaper leaks at night.

26. Point baby boy’s penis downwards when diapering 

When you close your baby’s boy diaper, try to point it downwards to avoid awkward leaks at night. You might notice the whole diaper is all clean an dry and mysteriously leaking from somewhere.

27. Diaper caddy on every level of the house

Well, keeping a diaper essentials caddy on every level of the house would be an energy saver. Imagine you are changing diaper 8 to 10 times a day and feels like running a marathon. Keeping it on every level is an ideal situation. Although you do not need a diaper disposing pail everywhere. However, diaper sacks are a must-have to dispose of in bathroom trash.

28. Baby pooped? wait for 10 minutes

Unless you are in a real hurry, do not change a newborn’s diaper right away to survive unpleasant surprises. Wait for five to 10 minutes and let it flush out thoroughly.

29. Use oil for sticky poop

Use coconut oil or olive oil to remove sticky meconium (baby’s first poop) easily.

30. Clean diaper under the dirty one

While you change the baby diaper, always put the clean diaper underneath the dirty one to avoid surprise sprays and mess all over.

Fold the diaper and use the stick on to close the dirty diaper and throw it in a diaper sack in order to avoid smelly rooms.

Related: Baby diapering guide for new parents.

31. Cut a hole in pacifiers to give baby medicines 

For babies who take pacifiers, you can make a bigger hole to feed them medicine an easy way. Get this medicine pacifier for your baby for an easy dose.

32. Using a medicine dispenser

Moreover, you can use this medicine dispenser kit for your baby. While using a syringe for medicines, always dispense gradually on a side, inside of a cheek.

Related: Baby’s sick days’ medicine kit essentials you must have.

33. Make Breastmilk popsicles for teething babies 

If your breastfeeding baby is teething, you can have breastmilk popsicles for them. It will be soothing on gums and healthy.

Read more on the Reasons why your baby is refusing a bottle or not nursing.

Read about when is it okay to use a formula feed for your baby.

34. Have a designated area for baby stuff

In your kitchen and your room, you should always have a designated area for your baby’s stuff, like bottles, pacifiers, plates, bowls, etc.

35. Use space for storage under the crib

To utilize the maximum space, for your newborn baby is to get under the crib storage or get a crib with drawers storage underneath. It will help you not only occupy the room with heavy stuff but also you can efficiently utilize the space.

How to get more storage ideas for your baby’s nursery.

36. Keeping an extra outfit

Although newborn babies are unpredictable. some never stop throwing up until they are a few years old. So get to know your baby and always keep an extra outfit for yourself and the baby with you at all times (preferably in the car).

37. Getting hooks for bibs

You can use command hooks on the back of your baby’s high chair to store them easily. Now you know where to find them.

38. how to Treat baby rashes fast

If your baby is having too many diaper rashes, check for lactose intolerance. Use breastmilk to treat rashes, and another effective home remedy is using mustard oil with a little bit of water.

Learn more about how to treat diaper rashes effectively.

39. Baby’s itchy skin

For baby’s itchy skin, you should try Curel itch defense lotion. You would never go wrong by using this lotion if you notice your baby is scratching too much. It works like a charm.

Read

Baby head handling – everything related to eyes, nose, face, and skin.

40. extra sheets on crib for Sick days

For sick days when your newborn baby is throwing up or having unexpected diaper leaks due to too much liquid intake or some other accidents, this is how you can prevent it. Have a few fitted sheets layered on your baby’s crib mattress. You can remove one instantly at night(in case of throw-up or a diaper leak) without having them wake up and change.

Related:

How to treat cold and flu in babies and children.

41. Secure baby toys, and pacifiers with safety straps

You can use these safety straps to make sure your baby’s toy, teether, pacifier, etc would not fall on the floor.

Read more helpful tips to make motherhood easy for new moms.

42. How to relieve Baby’s constipation

Applying a vaseline to the baby’s butt hole works for constipation. Apply vaseline on a Q-tip and gently insert into the baby’s rectal area. The same way you do a rectal temperature check.

Read more remedies about constipation remedies in babies.

43. Saving your breastmilk while nursing

While nursing your baby from one side you may notice a heavy leakage from the other side. Save your gold milk with this Haaka Breast pump. It is a must-have for breastfeeding moms – either you are exclusively pumping or breastfeeding.

It comes with a stopper so you can save it and it is not going to spill. A genius product every mom should have.

40+ breastfeeding tips for new moms.

First-time parents mistakes with babies that need to be avoided.

Things you need to know while going out with your newborn.

Struggles of breastfeeding for new moms. How to survive painful breastfeeding after birth.

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