changing tables - what do I need?

[edidxb]

Hi,
First time Mum here and I'm a bit clueless.....
We are setting up a nursery in our spare bedroom and we have a cot (for 6 months onwards) in there an Ikea chest of drawers and we have purchased a changing table top to put on top of it.

BUT, the baby will be in our room for the 1st 6 months and I assume they need a nappy changed during the night? Where do I change the baby then? I probably don't want to go into the nursery room as it will wake me up more, have to pad across the hallway etc. Do I just change the baby on the floor in the bedroom and keep a changing mat in there? We have got a Snuzpod ready to go and it has a storage shelf - do I just keep a mat there, get out of bed and kneel on the floor?

Then, in the day, if I am downstairs I can obviously walk up the stairs and go and use the changing table upstairs. Or should I buy a cheap Ikea changing table for the corner of the living room? Or maybe just use the dining table?

I am so confused and I appreciate I am over thinking this far too much!! Can someone please advise what they do and what they think is best.....thank you!

I never had a changing table 🤷‍♀️

Used to change baby on a mat on the living room floor or a mat on my bed through the night! Couldn't be doing with traipsing up and downstairs through the day for bum changes just had well stocked baskets on both room with nappies/bags/wipes/change of clothes/sudocreme.

Do I just change the baby on the floor in the bedroom and keep a changing mat in there?

I would do that and use the changing table upstairs during the day.

*in both rooms

That’s what I did last time, found it easier to keep everything upstairs but I always had my changing bag downstairs if I needed it.

In my room I just changed on top of my chest of drawers or on the floor (on a mat!), in their room I had one of those changing mat things that go on top of the cot. I never had a changing table, I think they are a right waste of space and money!

I kept a change mat, nappies and wipes in the storage pouch of the snuzpod and changed baby on the bed on the mat! When you've just had the baby it's much easier to change baby on the bed then bending down on the floor etc and then we used the change table during the day with my eldest (but we were in a flat so all on the same floor) we didn't have a change table for the others.

I just had a changing mat. They type that has raised foam edges and is covered with waterproof vinyl material. In the night I used it on the blanket box at the end of my bed. During the day on the sofa or any other handy surface. I found the floor difficult due to my physical disability (knees).

Mat on the floor is much safer. Once they can roll/ wriggle lots you don’t really want to change them on an elevated surface.

Also you hopefully won’t be changing at nighttime for too long (around 6weeks for both of mine) so after that you can move changing stuff from your bedroom to somewhere more convenient.

Lots of people on here don't like changing tables, but I love mine. DD is 15 months and we still have one in her room and one in the living room and use both daily. She never tries to roll off it, I think I could probably walk away and leave her there and she'd stay put. Obviously I wouldn't do that, but she is very good there. Changing her on the floor after a bath is a different story, takes forever as she keeps running away!

In the early days we just took her to her room to change overnight rather than changing her in our room. If she needed to be changed, she was awake anyway so it wasn't a big deal. I've heard people on here saying they could change a nappy in the dark without waking the baby but that would've never worked with DD!

We use the changing table in the nursery during the night and downstairs Iv got a changing mat and a caddy off eBay with wipes nappies cream etc. It works perfectly.

I had a little box of stuff under the coffee table, I used washable wipes so just wet them when I needed and changed him on the floor.

Thanks everyone!
Yes, we didn't want to purchase an expensive changing table, hence the Ikea drawers with the top bit for the nursery room.

I think what I'll do having read your responses is get a change mat and keep it in the bedroom for the first weeks and then if I need to change in the middle of the night do it on the floor or the bench which is at the end of the bed.

I think I'll try just going upstairs each time during the day for some exercise more than anything else!!

I would keep a changing mat,nappies, wipes and nappy bags in your room for through the night and the use the changing table while in the house in the day time.

I really did get alot of use out of my changing table.

I think I'll try just going upstairs each time during the day for some exercise more than anything else

I was actually going to say that's one reason why I used my changing table upstairs as it helped me get some exercise, but did not want to get flamed for pushing exercise after birth 😳😳😳

We never had a changing table. When in with you, throw a towel on the bed then the changing mat.

Changing tables get a bad rap on here but I couldn't be without ours. I even made DP cobble a second one together downstairs. No way was I getting on and off floor multiple times a day after my section! DD is six months now and I still use the table for every change. Our upstairs one is just on top of the dresser (Hemnes one from Ikea) and downstairs is a proper table.

I had listened to the MN party line on them when pregnant and not bothered but within 48 hours I realised it was really impractical (and painful). DP much prefers the table too.

We kept a changing mat upstairs and another mat downstairs and just put the mat wherever was easier at the time- sofa, floor, bed etc. We didn't bother with a changing table.

You just need a mat 👍🏻

I had a mat downstairs on the table and nappies etc, then upstairs was a changing mat across the cot. I just got up in the night to change them. You might find you wake up more than you thought. It might not be a quick nappy change, feed and back to sleep!

I think I'll try just going upstairs each time during the day for some exercise more than anything else!!

I was thinking the same, otherwise my lazy arse will never move from the sofa/bed unless I'm hungry There is a nice daybed in DD's room as it was previously the guest room, which might be comfier for feeding as well.

For middle of the night, as others have said I'm planning to keep a changing mat, nappies etc under the snuzpod and change on our bed.

I've just discovered that the changing table wont fit in our nursery so looking at cot top changers or something to go on top of the drawers (ikea hemnes) instead. I'd rather not just put a changing mat on top of the drawers so if anyone has a setup they can recommend I'd love to know more? Thanks!

Never had a changing table, mat on top of the chest of drawers worked fine

I've always changed on top of his changing table in his room, even when he was in with us. I find changing on a bed is the perfect height for ruining my back. The floor is OK, but it's easier on a changing table when they're a newborn.

Changing mat only. I’m tall had a section but found it fine to put it on bed (I sat on the bed too) or sofa downstairs. I kept a stocked changing bag downstairs for changing downstairs and to grab when I went out.
Baby slept in travel cot downstairs for naps as nursery was on second floor.