Posted: 01 Aug 2009 12:08 PM PDT

You would think that bath toys that spend all their play time in the bath would naturally be clean. Don't they get soaped and rinsed at every bath? Not always.

Most baby bath toys have ridges and crevasses that can collect soap residue. Unless they are thoroughly rinsed clean at least weekly this residue can build up. Not only is the white film building up on the toy unsightly, it can provide a nice growth medium for mold and mildew. Your baby will naturally chew on the toy, and you certainly don't want mold and mildew in his mouth or contaminating his bath water.

Once a week or so, take all the bath toys out of the tub or storage bag and give them a good scrub. An old toothbrush works well. Those that won't be damaged in the dishwasher can have a good wash there. Allow them to thoroughly air dry before putting them back wherever you store them.

Routinely clean squirting and other toys that can hold water inside with a solution of one part bleach to ten parts water. Suck the bleach solution up into the toy, swish it around thoroughly, and squirt it back out. Then do the same a few times with plain water to remove all the bleach. Shake out as much water as you can and allow the toy to air dry on a towel. This will prevent the buildup of mold and gunk inside the toy.

Store baby water toys in a mesh bag or other container that allows air to circulate. Buckets and other closed containers are not a good idea, because water will pool in the bottom. Toys that sit in this pooled water are breeding grounds for mold, mildew and bacteria.

Don't forget to clean the toy bag every now and then, too. If it's a mesh bag, it can probably go right into the washing machine. Be careful of hot dryer temperatures if your bag is made of plastic or nylon. It would probably be safer to air dry these types of bags.

Keep bath toys for the bath. If your child carries bath toys around the house they will pick up contaminants you really don't want to bring into the bath tub. When you make bath toys "special" it will make bath time itself special, which always makes it easier to get kids into the tub without a fuss.

Keep a regular schedule of cleaning your baby water toys and they'll last a long time without posing a health hazard. It doesn't take long if you avoid letting things build up.

Utility Baby Gifts - Making the Basics Beautiful!

Posted: 01 Aug 2009 11:44 AM PDT

For years, many inspired gift-givers have put together wonderful baskets wrapped in tulle with everything the nursery needs-from Balmex to burpcloths, diapers to diaper cream, Johnson's baby wash to lotions guaranteed to soothe babies to sleep. These baskets are beautiful and as each item is pulled from them, and ooh'ed and aah'ed over, the gift-giver knows that she (or he) has provided the perfect new-baby-gift: one that is appreciated and keeps on giving!

However, not all of us has the time to buy those baskets and search for those items. Speaking for myself, even if I bought the items and had the best of intentions, it is more than likely that the items would be presented in the shopping bag they were purchased in-not beautiful, at all!

I recently, however, saw two "utility" items that were presented beautifully. Let's start with diapers. Till now, the only thing I thought was beautiful about diapers was hearing "Oh no, let ME change that baby's diaper" as I picked up said stinky baby! So when I saw a diaper cake, stacked just like a wedding cake with THE go-to utility item for babies, I thought there you go. Beauty paired with functionality! It's a great gift for a baby shower-pretty, perfect centerpiece-but it's not wasted crepe paper or cardboard. It's diapers. And with anywhere from 35-50 diapers it will last any new parent at least a couple days...for the third or fourth child, that parent can stretch the diapers for at least two weeks!

The other great thing I saw-which can be either a beautiful "self wrapped" gift, or ideal for centerpieces-is baby bunches. Here, all the baby basics-from bib to socks to t-shirt, and more, are wrapped cozily in a bouquet-like presentation in a nursery pail that you can keep forever to store lotions, accessories, or what have you, after the bounty it holds is unwrapped and put away. So it's a pretty presentation, it's a great utility gift that is so needed by those new babies, and it has long-term staying power because of the great pail it's packed in.

These days, many new parents are even more appreciative of getting those basics. I know that one of my favorite gifts was my best friend stopping by with six Hefty bags full of hand-me-downs-including the "basics" like pj's and turtlenecks and tights. Because we had all of those basics provided for us, we could spend our money on "fun" things for our girls-the one-of-a-kind dress or raincoat or what-have-you. So if you can provide the diapers, the layette, or anything that a new baby needs, it's appreciated for what it is and for what it allows the new parents to pick out, on their own...and if it's presented beautifully, you just can't lose.

Skin Care For Newborns

Posted: 01 Aug 2009 09:52 AM PDT

Bringing home a new baby is an exciting moment but as you step into the world of motherhood you have a whole new list of things to worry about. You have to make sure you get the proper nutrients so your baby stays healthy and keep an eye out for anything that could imply they are sick. You also need to have the right skin care for newborns so that your baby is happy and healthy.

You might wonder what skin for newborns has to do with a healthy baby, outside of keeping their skin soft and clean. The reason skin care is so crucial is because the first few months of an infant's life is when they start to develop their immune system. They need to be exposed to bacteria, germs, and the common "bad things" that the body faces every day so that their bodies learn to resist it. If you use lotions and soaps with antibacterial in them then you are killing the germs for your baby's body so that their body won't learn to do it itself. Baby products are filled with "helpful" bacteria killers and sterilizing chemicals so wait to use them until your child is a few months old.

Babies don't get dirty every day. Unlike you, they aren't walking around all day and exposing themselves to all kinds of dirt. They also generally aren't spending all day sweating from overworking themselves or having to wear clothes even on really hot days. This means that you shouldn't be giving your baby a bath every day like you might do for yourself. The oils in a baby's skin differ from the oils in adult skin and your baby desperately needs to keep the oils their skin is naturally producing. When you give your baby a bath you are removing those necessary oils, so the less often you do it the better. Of course, babies do get dirty sometimes so a sponge bath a few times a week is enough to keep them clean while still practicing good skin care for newborns.

Just because you shouldn't wash your baby too often and use antibacterial soaps on it doesn't mean that you can't clean the things that you baby will be exposed to. You should be washing everything that the baby deals with on a regular basis and especially wash new products you bring home for them. Whether you get them from a yard sale or brand new sealed tight in plastic packaging you should clean all the toys you buy for your baby to play with and wash the clothes you get for them to wear. If you buy used items you should definitely use antibacterial soaps because you don't know what those items were exposed to. New items should be cleaned with regular soap and water. All of these things will not only affect the skin care of newborns but half the time they'll wind up in your baby's mouth too. Cleaning the things they come into contact with will help avoid rashes and other ailments they could pick up from touching dirty toys.