Baby Beginnings Infant Care Class

We took another free class at Valley Presbyterian Hospital called Baby Beginnings Infant Care.  It basically teaches about taking care of the baby from birth and at home.  The lecturer was really good, the best we’ve had so far.  She went over what happens at the hospital, how they clean up, examine and tag the baby.  They give babies a Heb B shot, a vitamin K shot and put ointment in the baby’s eyes to protect against infection.  She also went over how to care for the umbilical cord.  You’re supposed to leave it alone until it falls off but if you need to clean it, you can use rubbing alcohol on a cotton ball.  Every person in the class (besides maybe us because we don’t know) was having a boy so she went over how to care for the baby if circumcised.  You basically put a glob of Vaseline on some gauze and put that on the baby’s penis before putting on the diaper every change until it heals.  She also suggested forgoing nail clippers and just using a finger nail file to shave down your baby's nails.  She said the clippers always end up cutting the baby and it'll make everyone cry.

She also went over all of the symptoms a newborn baby could have that are weird or funky, what to do about it and when it’ll likely go away (cradle cap, Mongolian spots, white heads, acne, cone head, soft spots, crossed eyes, etc.)  She explained and demonstrated (bathing, burping, dressing, swaddling, changing, using a nasal aspirator, etc.)  She went over baby gear and necessities like strollers, car seats, swings, bouncers, toys, etc.  And she even made some suggestions on gear that she recommends (she strongly recommended a swing, an exersaucer and a Ring’O Links).  She also went over feeding the baby and when and how to move to solids. Besides honey and cow’s milk, babies aren’t supposed to have strawberries for a year or peanut butter for two years.  I also learned a couple of things I didn’t know like not to use baby powder because it isn’t necessary and just causes the baby to breathe in the powder which can be harmful.  Not to use mittens because the baby won't be able to suck on its fist which indicates that it's hungry.  Once they get to the stage of crying it's extreme hunger and it'll be harder to calm the baby and get it to nurse.  You're also supposed to give the baby twenty minutes of supervised tummy time a day.  Since babies lay on their back so often giving them tummy time every day helps develop their abdominal and neck muscles.  It was A LOT of information to take in.  I definitely do feel better prepared now.