New Belly Button - Covered or Uncovered???

As far as how much clothing to dress them in they say to dress them how you dress. They get hot and cold just like we do.

I've NEVER heard of leaving it uncovered I guess it would make sense to air it out. I always had a onsie and clothing on my newborn and her unbilical cord/ belly button was just fine.

I never bothered with leaving it to open air. I never heard of clothing with cut outs. Just fold down the cloth diaper so the cord is exposed but a onsie over it is fine. If you keep it dry it'll come off within two weeks.

I would just like to agree with Sara L. Dress your baby based on how you're dressed. Would you want to be swaddled tightly in a blanket in hot August weather? Probably not. So that's a good rule of thumb to go by. My nurse imparted that little tidbit when I gave birth to my second child.

As far as the umbilical cord, we didn't do anything special except fold the top of the diaper down and treat the umbilical with alcohol *every* time we changed a diaper. It can be covered with clothing or uncovered; whichever you prefer, and weather permitting.

Uncovered! I've not seen onesies with holes, I used snap tees (which stopped at the waist) and a diaper for my August girl -- even if the tee covers the cord, there is good air circulation, and they are perfect for continued use too. I would think any style tee would do the trick. Depending on weight anticipated, you might consider getting a couple of preemie tees (so they stay in place). Mine was 6 lbs (3 weeks early) and the 0-3 shirts were huge on her -- the preemie clothes worked for a good two months.

Re: legs, I kept her swaddled when sleeping in particular, so she was covered. Depending on local climate and a/c use you might not need much more. I did put "real clothing" on when we were out and about, but at home in the summer (we almost never use a/c) I thought swaddling was plenty.

ITs ok to cover it with clothing, such as onesies or sleepers, but just make sure the diaper is not covering it so urine or poop don't get on it.

My oldest was born in June, in Texas, so it was HOT! He wore onesies his whole first summer LOL because it was so hot. I had a lightweight flannel blanket I would throw over him if we brought his carrier into a store, or in the car to keep the AC from chilling him. But he was usually in the sling so it wasn't a problem.

(we are BF'ing, cloth diapering, AP parents too, all but the co-sleeping. We try to live as natural as possible!)

Great that you are into cosleeping, cloth diapers breastfeeding and all mentioned. I'm sure you have researched you diapers but just to let you know the cloth diapers imse vimse are made from organic cotton and are really good diapers. I recently bought some and my friends who use them have all been very pleased with them- Sorry thats not what you asked about but thought i'd send that information on. I love the name Atreyu, Never Ending Story???

To answer a part of your question. We had our daughters belly button uncovered. It dried up and fell off within about a week. we didnt use any alcohol or anything just washed it with regual soap and water and let the air at it all day long. You can try just using 2 piece outfits so air will get in more easily

Hey Carrie, I recognize your profile from Meetup!
I didn't read the other responses, so I'm risking redundancy here but you don't need to do a thing for it. Really it just needs to NOT be under a diaper, that's it. You can always go over to Tao Foods and get a little, oh what was it. My brain. Man. Comfrey leaves. You could make a poltice if you're "needing" to medicate it somehow. But that's not usually necessary.

The little side-snap or side-wrapping under shirts are great. You can have a layer of cotton over the belly, that's just fine. As far as temps go, babies can't sweat when they're little, and they're also very vulnerable to the sun. A light layer and a little light cotton blanket will be fine! If he's too hot he'll pinken up and you'll know from just feeling his skin. But as a general rule, it's the same number/type of layers as you have on, plus one unless it's scorching.

HTH!

While we're talking umbilical cords anyway, a link of interest about not clamping or cutting the cord until it's stopped pulsing, which is usually at the 3 minute mark. You'd be shocked at how often Docs and even midwives don't wait.

http://www.midwifeinfo.com/content/view/61/40/
http://www.news.ucdavis.edu/search/news_detail.lasso?id=7729

My daughter was born in February so she was always covered. Her umbilical cord stump fell off at one week and the doctor asked if I did anything special to help it along. I didn't. She wore long sleepers (it was cold remember) and used rubbing alchol once a day, before bed. Made sure the diaper didn't rub and it fell off and we almost didn't notice, until diaper time.

You don't need to keep their belly open, just don't have clothing that rubs. A normal onesie or one piece cotton outfit would be fine. I don't think you will be wanting mittens or anything like that. It will be summer. You may want warmer clothes for indoors, but don't overheat them. You will get a crabby baby that way. You can always do summer outfits and cover them with blankets indoors or if you keep your home cooled pretty low temps then put them in the long pant one piece outfits. I just wouldn't do 2 piecers until the belly button scab falls off. Make sure to fold the top of the diaper down and use alcohol on a Q tip to spot clean or it will start to stink. (My nurses forgot to tell me this!)

I was told with my daughter to keep it exposed to air or loosely covered...and no rubbing alchohol to dry it faster. Hers fell off within days of bieng home. Of course the fact that she was probably dehydrated somewhat helped the cord fall off so fast. I did not produce enough breast milk and she did not complain much about it...she was a very easy to please baby. The only reason we found out is that she didn't poop...I brought her in and they hooked me up to a pump. The end of my pregnancy was troublesome as was delivery...ended in c-section. Sorry to go off on a tangent here...but I read your "about me" section and have to add that I believe all those problems and thensome were attributed to my gluten intolerance. Right on that it's no good for anyone!! She was at 3.5 diagnosed celiac. Makes ya wonder if it gets into your breast milk if you are intolerant and do not know it!

my daughter was born in the summer too and she was just fine in a tank top styled onesie. ive read that you should dress the baby how you would dress yourself. if its fine outside for shorts then by all means either shorts on the little guy or leave his legs bare. he will be just fine. and as for the belly button. as long as the diaper isnt on top of it then you dont have to worry about it. my daughters belly button is just fine.

Don't worry about it too much. Our August baby was kept primarily in one piece sleepers inside because of the air conditioning. And if outside, a onsie. When they are first born their temperature regulation is a bit off, but I found my son adjusted quickly. The loose fit of the one pieces allow enough air circulation that you don't need to expose the belly button. Make sure to fold the diaper down though. The nice thing about the disposables is that they are designed to avoid the belly button area. Maybe some of the cloth ones are too. Be careful to stay in the shade outside since sunscreen is not recommended until they are older.

We did use a little alcohol on a q-tip to clean the base of the belly button once a day. Too much and it is left too soggy. The belly button healed fast and fell off in a week. It was really no big deal at all. There is some thought now that they do not need to be cleaned with alcohol. Personally, I think it helped dry it out and fall off quicker, plus protecting from germs at the same time.

And then there is the whole cicumcision stuff! But if you are more naturally based maybe this is not an issue.

Mittens are not really necessary unless the scratching of the face is an issue. There is some thought for sensory purposes that it is best not to use them. As scary as it was, we cut the fingernails carefully and dealt with a few scratches here and there. His hands to his face really seemed to comfort him, and I did not want to impede that.

My best recommendation is to keep an open mind about everything. I had such strong ideas about what I wanted before my son was born that when breastfeeding did not work I just about had a break down. And he ended up NOT a cosleeper at all, but needed his own space. They are all so unique and there are so many variables that can happen. Keep an open mind, do what's best for the baby whether it's what you really want or not, and love every minute of it because it goes fast. Please e-mail if you want to talk more!

Carrie:

I wouldn't stress out about this too much and I wouldn't go the extra mile to have velcro opened clothes - that would probably irritate more b/c there would be an edge then to rub against the belly button. Babies can be squirmy and I don't think it would stay in place much anyways. The amount of time that the cord will be there is not much - I don't think any of mine (I have 4) kept thier cord past two weeks. And, within days it hardens up and shrivels - almost like a big scab. The main thing is to remember to keep it clean (use rubbing alcohol on it when you change the baby) and dry (don't submerge the baby in water). Fold the diaper down so it doesn't rub up against the cord but a cotton onesie is soft and o.k. The cord will bleed a little bit (a very little bit) from time to time and you will see a little blood on the inside of the onesie, though. With the baby in the summer, you for surely want to keep him (or her) out of the sun, but remember not to overheat the baby, but keep the baby warm - - keep blankies on hand for when temperatures change or for a breeze. Also to note there are natural cord care remedies that help with the healing. We used one on our 4th child and the cord healed within days. I would check with a midwife to recommend a good one.

Take care,
M.

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