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Why am I baking my babies clothes? - Page 2

post #21 of 65
12/18/08 at 7:29pm
Something about the image of baking clothing in a paper bag is tickling my sense of humor quite a bit. I've been giggling the whole time I've read the thread.

I would be concerned about buttons melting, but more about the paper bag catching fire. I have never heard of baking clothing. Wash it twice and dry on hot and I call it good enough.

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post #22 of 65
12/18/08 at 7:43pm
Very funny thought, baking clothes. I can't imagine doing it myself. 6 hbs and never baked clothes or towels or sheets.

I have heard of baking the hemostats and scissors etc as part of the sterilization process. But never heard of doing cloth items. I would be wary of anything with elastic in it. The heat would likely destroy it.
post #23 of 65
12/18/08 at 7:53pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Full Heart View Post
I would be wary of anything with elastic in it. The heat would likely destroy it.
I thought of this too, and the fact that I wouldn't even know until too late if there was a problem since it says to staple the bag closed and then throw them in the oven.

Maybe ill ask, maybe ill just do it.

nobody thinks its a coincidence that the midwife is a nurse and maybe that is why she is still so worried about sterilization?

She actually gets on here too, and may be reading this LOL, Hi *B*, You know im just a curious little mind, Not making fun of you. Just had never heard of it before so thought I would bring it up...
post #24 of 65
12/18/08 at 8:14pm
My mw has me have a some clothes and receiving blankets wrapped in foil to "bake". They are, as she told me, to warm them up b/c babe is born in winter here in New England and if you have had a hospital birth warm clothes are put on a babe from a warmer/drawer in the birth room. Makes sense to me. Popping in the dryer would seem easy enough..but we're more organized, I feel, w/ them wrapped up and labeled w/a marker.

Plus i'm gbs+ and we both know that we have to keep babe extra warm.
post #25 of 65
12/18/08 at 8:45pm
my mw has asked me to "bake" the sheets that will be on the bed to sterilize them. she said i could just wash them with a little lysol in the washer and then dry them and put em in the dryer if i prefer.
post #26 of 65
12/18/08 at 8:53pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by amandamcgrady View Post
shanahan, where are you from, this would be a total coincidence but I live in Hanahan in S.C.
I always hear about that town!! My DH's last name is Hanahan - and apparently SC has the largest amount of "Hanahan's" in the country!!


(my login name is really more of a coincidence - my college nickname was Shanahan, after the hockey player - I just also happen to be a Shannon, married to a "Hanahan"!)
post #27 of 65
12/18/08 at 8:54pm
i guess it could have something to do with her being a nurse. personally, i would like to see the blankets and hats at the hospital be sterilized, and am not at all worried about having a baby in my home and then just putting freshly aundered hats and blankets on him/her. i'm not worried about my gems in my house at my homebirth. it's the hospital's germs that scare me silly, esp. since i have no idea whose germs i'm in contact with.
post #28 of 65
12/18/08 at 9:08pm
I've never baked my baby's clothes before.
post #29 of 65
12/18/08 at 9:16pm
wow, that IS very old school. When I first learned midwifery back in late 70s-early 80s, that's what I was taught to tell parents. Haven't done that in a very long time, tho!

I do think that it may well be a nurse being extra careful about germs....not needed in your own home, tho. Nor is the washing twice, high dryer, all that. I mean, clean, and set aside where it won't get messed up--maybe even packed in ziplocks or lidded bins, to keep out dust/animal hair. But you don't have to worry about the germs in your own home. Not even the sheets need to be sterile--now that seems funny to me. I'm trying to imagine all the times multiple people get up on the bed and off again (me, dad, mom, other kids, sometimes the cat....). Those sheets would not be sterile for long!
post #30 of 65
12/18/08 at 10:38pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lemon Juice View Post
My mw has me have a some clothes and receiving blankets wrapped in foil to "bake". They are, as she told me, to warm them up b/c babe is born in winter here in New England and if you have had a hospital birth warm clothes are put on a babe from a warmer/drawer in the birth room. Makes sense to me. Popping in the dryer would seem easy enough..but we're more organized, I feel, w/ them wrapped up and labeled w/a marker.

Plus i'm gbs+ and we both know that we have to keep babe extra warm.
We use a heating pad. We just put the clothes on top of that and cover with a towel. Works really well.
post #31 of 65
12/18/08 at 11:31pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Full Heart View Post
We use a heating pad. We just put the clothes on top of that and cover with a towel. Works really well.
We did the same thing. Had a heating pad on top of a wood cutting board up in my room (quite a ways away from the oven). Ironically, my little guy was actually too warm! It was July, but a cool day, but his temp was up. We had to keep taking it every hour to make sure it went down. Sure enough being mostly naked and without a hat did the trick. To this day he "runs warm" body temp wise.
post #32 of 65
12/19/08 at 3:10am
Last time, my MW didn't tell me to bake anything, but she did tell me to have sheets, towels, baby clothes, etc in *brown* paper bags, stapled shut. Emphasis on brown. Why brown?
post #33 of 65
12/19/08 at 5:45am
My mw never said anything about baking anything or drying it on hot or putting it in *brown* paper bags or even having any towels, sheets or anything kept seperate especially for the birth but what she did tell me (when asked about a matter of a bath after waters have broken - a no-no in the hospital here) was that the baby is going to be immune to bugs in the house unlike the bugs in the hospital so the bath was ok - and no I did not have to bleach and bake the bathtub beforehand - I would take the same goes for clothes and linens and I would not bake anything...
post #34 of 65
12/19/08 at 9:56am
haha. I find it actually pretty funny - the way you worded the subject at least LOL.

I've had 2 hospital births (one baby in the NICU) and 2 homebirths (1 mw assisted, 1 unassisted waterbirth). I'm pregnant again and will have a mw assisted again.

I've never heard of baking clothes haha. My mw had us get a heating pad and warmed up blankets, clothes, and towels with that. They weren't sterile. In fact, I washed them with other stuff we had in the house - kids clothes, towels, etc..

With my UC, same thing - things were only washed and dried with other stuff. I didn't use a heating pad this time, instead hubby ran back and forth to the laundry room with the dryer.
post #35 of 65
12/19/08 at 11:47am
That seems kinda strange. We didn't have any special instructions regarding birth related items/clothing, either.
post #36 of 65
12/19/08 at 12:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by DahliaRW View Post
I've never heard of that. I was just told to wash the towels, dry them on hot, and then put in bags. Nothing about the clothes. I'd be afraid of buttons and zippers melting!
Same here! Just wash in a gentle soap, dry on hot, then seal in a garbage bag till needed!
post #37 of 65
12/19/08 at 12:22pm
Old school/ not needed/kinda crazy/ not totally homebirth friendly IMO.

Needless to say, we don't do that.

It makes no sense.

-Angela
post #38 of 65
12/19/08 at 2:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Full Heart View Post
We use a heating pad. We just put the clothes on top of that and cover with a towel. Works really well.
That sounds like it works too. But then i'd have to buy a heating pad. I have an oven so that's good enough for us We need warm, warm stuff. It's an old wooden floor house in new england...in december w/ snow storm on the way...ice storm after that...and my feet are freezing right now! I can see why a new england mw would do this in winter.
post #39 of 65
12/20/08 at 8:49pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by MsBlack View Post
wow, that IS very old school. When I first learned midwifery back in late 70s-early 80s, that's what I was taught to tell parents. Haven't done that in a very long time, tho!
I was thinking that it sounded like what my mom had to do back in the early 80's when my little brother was born. Very old school. Has this midwife been practicing a very long time? Very not necessary.
post #40 of 65
12/21/08 at 2:31pm
brown paper bags are readily available, something most every household has on hand, sturdy, & easily labeled.

a pan of water is placed in the oven with the bags to prevent scorching. paper doesn't burn until it hits 451 degrees F. (I did attend a birth where the bag in the oven caught on fire--later discovered the dad had turned the oven way up so he could make a pizza, without first checking to see if anything was inside!)

plenty of non-nurse midwives request clean sheets, towels, receiving blankets, hat etc. be prepped this way, so NO I don't think it is a medical background thing at all.

I think 'sterile' is overemphasized--really the purpose is to have clean items for the birth set aside and ready to go, so the midwife doesn't have to hunt for anything or be asking mama lots of unnecessary questions while she's in labor.
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Mothering › Mothering Discussion Forums › Pregnancy and Birth › Birth and Beyond › Homebirth › Why am I baking my babies clothes?