It’s Day 5 of the 5th Annual Flats and Handwashing Challenge and it’s time to talk about wash routines! Wash routines are always so different for everyone but when you strip yourself back to the basics, it tends to be pretty clear-cut!
First, you want to make sure you’ve rinsed out your diapers. If you get a good rinse, you’ll be more likely to get the diapers nice and clean since most of the poop particles will be loosened up along with any strong urine. Make sure to use cold water for this process.
Next, get your hot water going and choose your detergent! I’m a Tide girl for the most part but I wanted to test out Country Save this week to see if my kiddos’ bums would be ok with it. So far, it seems to be cleaning our diapers really well and doesn’t leave any strong fragrance. My diapers have had a clean, crisp, fresh-from-the-line smell.
Finally, rinse again! You want to make sure your diapers don’t have a soapy or slimy feel to them. Get that detergent washed out as much as possible to guarantee that your baby won’t feel any irritation when he/she comes in contact with their diaper. 🙂
This washing process has happened twice a day for me most of the week (nap time and bedtime.) It has only taken about 15-20 minutes from start to finish so I can’t say that it’s really put a dent in the way my day goes. I even got the opportunity to go out for a Mom’s Night Out this week… so nope, you won’t miss out on life just because you have to hand wash! 😉
I hope that you’re not intimidated by hand washing… After all, our great-grandmas did it as I’m sure some of your grandmas and mamas did… I know mine hand washed for many years! Sometimes this hand washing routine is even a bit therapeutic for me. It gives me a few minutes to just think and decompress at the end of the day.
Tips on saving your hands from over drying: Use gloves (except for during the rinse, you want to feel the fabric to make sure the detergent is fully washed out.) Also, moisturize after washing (I’ve been using straight Jojoba Oil on my hands.)
~Norm
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