Which aspects of looking after a baby did you just not *get*?

I never quite "got" snowsuits for that reasom moom - I used blankets instead!

How much clothing a baby should wear and what a safe number of covers is. My baby was born premature and in the winter and I could never work out how many layers he should wear.

It was especially difficult for me when coming back inside to a heated house after being outdoors when he was asleep in his pram. I always picked him up and tried to strip off his snow suit inevitably waking him up. But I'd had the fear of god put into me about over heating him, that I'd thought he'd die if I left him in his snow suit indoors.

Also information on febrile convulsions. Another instance when I thought my child was going to die!

Sounds stupid, but it took one of my friends to tell me that I just just pull my top up rather than take it off my shoulder to bf!

Yes to swaddling. A very kind doula in hospital told me what to do when I was a crying mess.

Something about moisturizing the peeling skin of a tiny baby and also cradle cap - Olive oil worked wonders for both and I think I picked that tip up from here.

Breastfeeding latch! Took me weeks months with dd1 and lots of pain too.

Baby equipment that requires einstein to decode the instructions, rather than sleep deprived mum and screaming baby trying to collapse pram, tighten straps on carseat, attatch sling etc.

I did have a fab midwife who showed me nappies and envelope necks. I only worked out the double cuffs on the babygros being mitts too late...

I had small emery boards with the baby clippers which were great for little fingers and tiny nails.

YY to opening and folding major brands of buggy and pram, and getting car seats into and out of car/adjusting straps. Don't forget double buggies. It would have helped my parents too - I think a lot of grandparents struggle with this stuff...although whether mine would be able to play a video I don't know (but at least I could have written down the steps and told them).

Seriously?!! Those little folds in the shoulders of vests are there for a reason?

That makes so much sense, id read envelope vests before but I thought it was those poncy ones with the Velcro that don't go over the head at all!!!

Amazing.....DD (5 weeks) can poonami away....

Typos = 1 handed typing on phone

Re nails, cut them while the baby is asleep. I wish someone had told me that newborns don't sleep silently - I was alarmed at the noises mine made and even took him to the drs because of it - I thought he had bronchitis or something.

I never got the advice at the time that all food equipment and water had to be sterilised for a year when DS was crawling round the floor at six months.....oh and sucking the handlebars (if I didn't get in quick) of a Tesco trolley.

I was a health visitor at the time too. Didn't "get" that bit of advice then and still don't get it now.

From six months all DS's stuff went in the dishwasher and his water came out of the tap.

Changing a nappy quickly and without the faff of a change mat.

Put a clean nappy under the baby BEFORE you take off the wet/ dirty one. This way you don't need to use a change mat.
Open old nappy, clean baby's bum thoroughly and place all used wipes into the old nappy, roll it up, lift it out, and close it using the Velcro straps of the nappy. For boys who like to pee, put a wipe over them, and then roll it in to the old nappy.

Baby is in clean nappy with no poo anywhere. (Make sure the ruffles are all out to avoid leaks.)
My sister showed me this and I've shown it to others and they cannot believe how neat and quick it is, also, everything is to hand.

I used to carry one or two nappies and a small ziplock bag of wipes in my handbag when out. No change bag and faffing about for us!

Breastfeeding was the one I just couldn't get.
I would be in tears at 3am, poring over photos in a NCT leaflet and wailing helplessly at my inability to latch my baby on.

I had loads of people try to show me, shoving DD's head around and yanking my breasts, arms, hands, breasts again into position, tugging on my shoulders and bellowing "relax your shoulders, you need to relax".

They were probably right, as if by some miracle I managed to get her to latch on, I would then remain totally rigid and immobile in case I made her slip off again.

It took me weeks and weeks to get the hang of it.

My other one would be, how to tell if your baby has tongue tie.

What to do if you think you have PND.

That they cry for no reason.

Apparently babies come pre-loaded with different types of cries. Except mine didn't, or I could never work them out.

How to breastfeed a baby that won't open its mouth.

What a good bf latch looks like.

How to hand express.

Bathing a tiny newborn, and how to quickly and properly dry all those nooks and crannies.

How to breastfeed safely in a baby sling.

How to give a baby massage that will make them sleep through the night

How to clean up chunky toddler sick from her bedding/carpet/hair without vomming yourself (me at 5am this morning ??)

Elesbe - my mother had me in the late 70s. She was completely shocked when they released me after an emergency c section after 2-3 days.

She thought I needed to recover, but more importantly she thought I hadn't been taught how to do anything! She hadn't a clue about meconium when I was cleaning her as "the midwives did all that!"

Opening and closing prams and buggies

Opening and closing stair gates

This thread is making me feel so sad. I nursed in the 1970's before having my four DC's. In the week that a new mum stayed in hospital after having their precious baby most of the skills that are being requested were demonstrated and advised on. Where have we gone wrong? I can't believe that midwives and health visitors are not even allowed to show how to make up formula these days!

All their differnt types of cries. Try as I might, they all sounded the same for the first few months!

That you might get a baby that doesn't sleep more than an hour. And need feeding every hour or two. That this might last for 6 months.

Everyone said "get through the first 6-8 weeks, then they'll sleep."

YEAH RIGHT.

Getting the lovely sleeping baby from your arms to the Moses basket or crib so you too can sleep.

Tongue tie.

That it is completely normal for them to STILL be waking at night several months in. Somehow I didn't realise that was part of the deal.

Tongue tie

Silent reflux

How to put nappy on

How to feed lying down. If baby wakes up at night, feed it lying down in the dark, so that it goes back to sleep and you get some sleep too (seems so obvious now; wasn't so obvious then)

How to bottle feed, including sterilising etc

Yes to redkites' suggestion - I also thought crying= hunger, and didn't know about the earlier signs of hunger