Baby Daze

When I see my granddaughters raising their little ones, I often hark back to my days as a young mother.

First of all if one was not able to nurse (I couldn't), there was the time-consuming preparation of formula (we used milk and added 'stuff' to it).  Then the glass bottles had to be sterilized - that brings to mind the image of my husband heating a needle over a flame, puncturing a hole in the rubber nipple, then testing the warmth of the milk on his arm.  Once the formula was consumed all the bottles had to be washed (by hand) and the whole process repeated.

We mothers used cloth diapers and plastic covers or knitted 'soakers' (an appropriate name, and the only thing I could ever knit).  We had diaper pails in which the semi-clean diapers soaked.  I had to fill my washing machine with buckets of water and then empty it by turning a little tap at the bottom of the tub to allow it to drain into the bucket, then rinsed the diapers by the same method.  My daughter often sat at my feet during this process, and stirred the dirty water with her hands.

My machine thankfully had a wringer, many did not.  The whole process was followed by a trip outside to the clothesline, in all kinds of weather.

It seemed to take most of the day just to complete feeding and washing.

Mothers invariably placed the baby buggy on the front porch so baby could breathe in fresh air for the requisite four hours (prescribed by the famous baby doctor Dr. Benjamin Spock - not to be confused with Mr. Spock of Star Trek). I know I was forever checking to ensure some neighbourhood cat had not joined my precious bundle for a nap in the buggy.

In those days some mothers were naive enough to park their prams outside a store while shopping.  I was not one of them.  Nowadays, babies are often carried about nestled safely in snugglies close to their parents.  How very wise to create that early bonding.

The other thing that interests me is the drastic change in baby clothing.  Our babies wore warm little undershirts and long nighties, split open down the back for easy access to diapers.  These days, undershirts are discarded in favor of little t-shirts, bare arms, tiny blue jeans and even smaller running shoes.  

I well recall our son Mark being swathed and swaddled in a blanket secured by a giant safety pin (like the ones used on kilts).  The poor kid couldn't move even if he wanted to.  Here is a photo of him at one and a half months, still looking mummified.

I didn't know any better, and Dr. Spock said 'keep the baby secure'.  I took my instructions seriously.

I did note that Kate and William's Prince George was well swaddled when he left the hospital - that makes me feel better.

My granddaughters seem to be able to create time for extra-curricular activities with their babies - which I think is wonderful.  I recently read an article about a young mother of three who just happens to be a practicing dentist.  One of their family activities is geocaching - I had to ask my daughter what the heck that meant.  In our day we would have called it treasure hunting but I sure didn't have time for anything like that when my two were little.  My idea of a treasure would have been just a few minutes for myself.

The good old days were okay - but they sure could have been a lot better.