Yummy Mummy Hailey from Toronto asks:
How do you change a squirmy baby's diaper in public? I'm always afraid my kid will fall off those narrow pop-down change tables in public washrooms & it's becoming more of a balancing act as she gets older.
Mummy of 6, Julie Cole answers:
The question is, how squirmy are you talking? There are a few diaper change location options, but let’s face it – changing diapers out in the real world can be awkward at best, and unsafe at worst!
If baby is wiggly but not a big, strong, powerful and stubborn toddler, I will use those fold down diaper change tables in a public washroom. But for safety, I always use the strap, and I don’t take eyes or hands off child for even a second. If possible, I find an alternative. My babies are regularly dragged around to conferences, offices and meetings – many of which don’t even have a diaper changing facility. I’m pretty good at finding an empty conference room, or even a quiet corner in a stairwell to do the job. Quick change, then a wash up in the bathroom and you’re good to go. For the real squirmers, the floor is the safest spot to do the deed. Be sure to always have a change mat or towel to throw down. Some of my toddlers have been so squirmy that I have to do the pin down with one leg maneuver. There’s nothing graceful about it, but it gets the job done and no one is falling off of a change table. It does beg the question though - what happened to these squirmers back in the good old days when pins were used to fasten diapers? Perhaps babies just wised up early to the fact that being still and quiet meant no one was going to get hurt!
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