to expect a father of grown up children to know

[Madinitials]

that you don't have to wait for a baby to do a poo before you change its nappy?

His children were born in the late 70s which makes me wonder if dads were that hands-off just 30 years ago.

Small question for a Saturday night.

Don't think my dad is that ignorant, but I know that he never changed my nappy and I was born in 1979.

You probably are being UR! I am late 1970's baby and my dad never really changed a nappy! In fact, I remember my mum saying once when my dad looked after my brother and he pooed, he removed the nappy and cleaned him up and left him nappy less til she got home!

Many dads were discouraged from being actively involved in the care of their babies.
My grandmother was horrified that OH and I shared the load.

Having said that, I do think my dad knows that a nappy needs to be changed even if they haven't done a poo! One of my friends though only changes her baby's nappy in the morning and at bedtime and only if they do a poo in between times, which one of her children used to do at around bedtime so would be in the same nappy all day (this was when they were about 9 months old).

My DH used to take our DS1 to his parents' house on the days that I worked. I remember him bringing my son back with his disposable nappy literally disintegrating because it was so full of wee and had been on ALL DAY! Couldn't believe that not one of the three adults looking after him had thought to change that poor boy's nappy.

Also, it's amazing what people forget about raising their own children. So you probably are being UR.

I wonder if this relates to when disposable nappies originally came in to the market, I'm not sure when that was but I know as a baby in the late 70s my parents didn't use them.

With real nappies you obviously have to change every time they are wet or the baby gets nappy rash, but with disposable nappies the advertising, even now, is around being able to leave them on for 12 hours etc.

FWIW yes I do change my baby's nappies more often - whenever I notice they are wet! - but maybe when disposables came in they were sold as a wonder product in this respect and that was how people used them to justify their high expense?

I know lots of people who only change their children's nappies when there is a poo.

Gosh Toffee, seems that your DH and ILs were having waaay too much of a good time to notivce a sodden nappy!!

It seems that "fathering" has developed a lot although the late seventies still feels very recent to me.

I thought those ads for 12 hour nappies were only telling us that that baby could stay in one all night long, as opposed to all day long - how uncomfortable when the baby is awake. DD pees loads and I can feel the saggy, full nappy though her trousers so I change her regularly. Maybe she pees more than most babies.

It is my experience that babies should be changed around 3 hourly if they haven't pooed. Much more and they just grow and grow until they are seriously weighed down by them!

When my son got to a certain age, I couldn't leave him too long, he was drinking a lot on his own by that stage and could consume 500ml or more of liquid before lunch. If I didn't strategically change him just as we were going out somewhere, he'd be wet through to his clothes at some point which was never good. They do these massive toddler wees by a certain age.

12 hours is all very well but that's when they've had a final drink but not been fed any further fluids througout the night to "come through". So they can handle a bedtime milk plus a bit of extra.

However I'm a tight assed bitch thrifty cow and sometimes dont change my daughter the minute she wakes - her nappy isn't that huge first thing - I wait 20 minutes or so until her first milk triggers the first poo of the day. The amount of times in the early days I'd change her only to change her 2 minutes later. Soon learned!

I could easily get away with only changing ds's nappy when he poos. 4 times/day at 10 months [smiles] and holds nose.

My Dad isn't too keen on babies but I've heard that he was very good with me when I was a baby, mum said he always got up at night to change me after mum had fed me, and laid out cloth nappys in the airing cupboard to warm them for me, he was at the time (1978) a pretty hands on Dad, but he is completely baffled at todays generation, things like why would men want to be in the delivery room, midwife appointments etc..

My Dad has never changed a nappy in his life - 3 children and 2 grandchildren later. He was a great dad and was very involved with us but never did anything like that. He wasn't in the room when my mum gave birth either - and that was the way she wanted it too. And I am only 31! Amazign how much things have changed in 30 years!

I got flamed on here for suggesting that many babies/tots don't need changing routinely every 2-3 hours! I tend to leave it as long as I dare, too.

My dad changed my nappy (1967, preen). He was a student and my working mother supported the family of 5, he even learnt to cook!

I don't have a problem with not changing every 3 hours, but the 12 hour thing is only overnight, surely. During the day they drink and are active, and so is their bladder!

Ds1 had to be changed at least 5 times a day because he had pooed, so was mostly changed because he had pooed! Ds2 I had to remind myself to change him when he was younger as he mainly only pooed once a day, so once he was on 3 meals a day I changed him in the morning, then lunchtime and bedtime, then changed him when he pooed. If I left him longer than 4 hours in the day, he would leak I found!