Dressers & Changing Tables
When it's time for a change, you'll be ready
While a tiny baby doesn't need a lot of furniture in those first months, you will definitely want a convenient, comfortable place to change diapers up to a dozen times a day. And even the tiniest clothes need to be stashed somewhere. Blankets, sheets, waterproof pads, and diapers need a home, too. Unless your nursery closet is spacious and outfitted with drawers or shelves, you'll probably need some sort of a dresser or armoire.
Luckily, the trend on the furniture side is away from short-use, stand-alone changing tables toward dual-purpose items -- dressers whose tops start as changing tables and convert to hutches (or just plain dresser tops).
You can pay as little as $100 for an assemble-it-yourself unit at a baby superstore, or as much as $700 for a high-end European model. Or you can create this effect yourself by simply using any hip-height dresser and fastening a contoured changing pad on top (they snap onto the back of the dresser with included hardware). Be sure that the dresser/pad combination is at a comfortable height for the person who will be changing the most diapers; bending over can be especially painful for new mothers who have had a cesarean-section delivery or epidural anesthetic.
The most important safety feature of a changing table is not straps or a raised side, as you might think; these features may lull you into a false sense of security when, in fact, you should never leave the changing table's side while your baby is on it. No, the most important precaution you can take is to have everything you need for the change within arm's reach -- waterproof pads, clean diapers, a dirty-diaper bin, wipes or water, diaper creams, clean clothes. Be sure you arrange the space in and around the changing area to accommodate these supplies.
An option for families with a large bathroom counter is simply to make part of that room "diaper central." The surfaces are probably easier to clean, disposing of the diaper contents could not be handier, and warm water (a cheap, healthy cleanser for the baby's bottom) is in plentiful supply.
Finally, when you choose your changing pad, look for raised sides to keep your baby from rolling over in mid-change. Also, check on the availability of cloth covers. Do they come in colors that work for your nursery? Are they a standard size or by special order only? You'll want to have two or three covers, as well as a dozen or so small waterproof pads so you can place a fresh one on top for each change.
Diaper-changing surfaces
A changing table can lead a very short life. Even though some children wear diapers well into their fourth year, few parents bother hoisting them up onto a changing table beyond age two.Luckily, the trend on the furniture side is away from short-use, stand-alone changing tables toward dual-purpose items -- dressers whose tops start as changing tables and convert to hutches (or just plain dresser tops).
You can pay as little as $100 for an assemble-it-yourself unit at a baby superstore, or as much as $700 for a high-end European model. Or you can create this effect yourself by simply using any hip-height dresser and fastening a contoured changing pad on top (they snap onto the back of the dresser with included hardware). Be sure that the dresser/pad combination is at a comfortable height for the person who will be changing the most diapers; bending over can be especially painful for new mothers who have had a cesarean-section delivery or epidural anesthetic.
The most important safety feature of a changing table is not straps or a raised side, as you might think; these features may lull you into a false sense of security when, in fact, you should never leave the changing table's side while your baby is on it. No, the most important precaution you can take is to have everything you need for the change within arm's reach -- waterproof pads, clean diapers, a dirty-diaper bin, wipes or water, diaper creams, clean clothes. Be sure you arrange the space in and around the changing area to accommodate these supplies.
An option for families with a large bathroom counter is simply to make part of that room "diaper central." The surfaces are probably easier to clean, disposing of the diaper contents could not be handier, and warm water (a cheap, healthy cleanser for the baby's bottom) is in plentiful supply.
Finally, when you choose your changing pad, look for raised sides to keep your baby from rolling over in mid-change. Also, check on the availability of cloth covers. Do they come in colors that work for your nursery? Are they a standard size or by special order only? You'll want to have two or three covers, as well as a dozen or so small waterproof pads so you can place a fresh one on top for each change.
