Cloth Diapers, Nappies & More

Babies get through nappies at a startling rate and, as they grow so quickly, they seem to be constantly changing clothing size. With babies growing at different rates and being different sizes to start with, how can you ensure you get the right fit of nappies and baby clothes?

Nappies
These days there are so many different nappies on the market that it’s hard to know where to start! The two main types of nappies are disposable and real cloth nappies, but within both these types there are all sorts of different sizes, fits and cuts.

Some nappies are sold to fit babies from birth to potty training age, whereas others have different age guidelines on them. Although the idea of one size fits all from birth to potty training may work for some, it’s inevitable that as babies grow, the fit of a nappy will change and it may be better and more comfortable to move to a bigger size.

Buying the most suitably sized nappy for the age of your baby will help you make sure you get the right fit. The sizes used on nappies vary depending on the manufacturer, as different brands use different sizing. As a rough guide, some of the big nappy manufacturers use numbers to represent the sizes and tie it in with the weight of a baby. For example:

Size 1 – suitable for newborn babies weighing 2-5kg / 4-11lbs

Size 2 – suitable for newborn babies weighing 3-6kg / 7-12lbs

Size 3 – suitable for babies weighing 5-9kg / 11-20lbs

Size 4 – suitable for babies weighing 8-14kg / 18-31lbs

Size 5 – suitable for babies weighing 12kg+ / 27lbs+

The above should only be used as a rough guide, as you’ll find the exact weights and sizes do vary considerably between different brands and different types of nappies. In order to achieve the best fit of nappy for your baby, it’s worth trying out some different brands and seeing what seems to work best. Then as your baby grows, you can move up through the different sizes until they eventually grow out of nappies altogether.

Baby Clothes
On the surface, baby clothes may seem a simple matter. Like clothes for adults, they’re sold in set sizes, but with more increments and different sizes available. When your baby is newborn, you buy newborn clothes, and as they grow you move up to the next size.

In theory, it sounds easy, but like adults, babies grow at different rates and are born weighing varying amounts. So what fits snugly on one baby, may not fit so well on another.

The key to getting the right fit with baby clothes is to be guided in part by the clothes sizing, but not rigidly. If you’re buying clothes before your baby is born, try and avoid buying tons of items for 0-3 month olds, as it’s hard to know exactly how big your baby will be when born. Whilst some tiny babies happily wear age 0-3 month clothes for the full three months, others may quickly grow out of them or even find they’re not that well fitting when they’re first born.

By all means do stock up on some essential items, but don’t go mad and buy loads, as you may find they don’t fit rather more rapidly than you’d imagined. Choosing some 3-6 month old clothes may be worthwhile and give a bit more growing space.

Some parents feel a bit embarrassed to be buying clothes aimed at older babies when they’re still young and nowhere near the size guideline. However, there’s no need to feel embarrassed. It’s better that your baby wears comfortable, well fitting clothes, rather then being squashed into something that doesn’t fit, and if that means purchasing items aimed at older babies, then so be it. After all, the sizes are only there as a guideline and can vary considerably between different clothing brands and styles.

What Is In A Name?

This is an interesting piece on how ghanainas have different names. 1 individual can have about 6 names. I myself is an example of that. I have about 6 names that I would have to do a blog post on it to explain it all. Read this peace by Nana and how she does not even know the real name of her hired house help.


Source http://www.obaatan.blogspot.com/

At my mother’s inaugural, she talked about the peculiarly Ghanaian habit of having 50 names: the school name, Christian name, pet name, home name, nick name, and sometimes hidden name, all this before the surname. The school name is the name on your school’s register, the Christian name is what you get at baptism, especially true of Catholics. Your home name-what they call you at home- often a day name. Your hidden name- you don’t really hide it. Its just so deep into the arrangement that it doesn’t come up in casual introductions. It is considered your “real” name. Then comes your surname and finally your nick name. So you have Clarence John Kofi Abaka Egyir Sackey alias (SWAGGA). Add to this length our puzzling hobby of rearranging the names every so often for no particular reason. So that John Abaka Sackey, Clarence Kofi Sackey, John Egyir Sackey, Clarence Kofi Egyir Abaka Sackey are all the same person. We all laughed as she talked about the kind of confusion that this causes. I don’t know about others but I haven’t done anything about my own name puzzle. My trip to the bank this week gave me reason to remember this lecture and this time not with a chortle.

I always encourage my help to save. We open an account and they deposit however much they want in it every month. I got a new girl two months ago and last week I finally got round to taking her to the bank. As she is illiterate I had to help her fill the form. That is when I discover that the young lady I know as Maame Afia Nyarko is not called Afia at all. In fact she is not even Akan. She is actually called Fatima Iddrissu. I felt really rather betrayed. When I hired her I asked her name and she told me Maame Afia Nyarko. I assumed ‘Nyarko’ was her surname. It could as easily be her middle name. Its one of those few unisex Akan names. She did tell me she was Northern but was born and raised in Kumasi and I was content to leave it at that. So I guess it serves me right if I learn her real name only thanks to a bank form.

I’ve since been reflecting on our relations with domestic staff. Guess what? I find I don’t know the name of my father’s watchman beyond Razak. His gardener is just Divine. I know his housekeeper’s full name. But I don’t know where she lives and she’s been with them for 3 years. My gardener is Alhassan. My nanny has a guardian here in Accra whom I know. But beyond vague hand gestures and area names, I have no idea how to find her.

I don’t know that this bad behaviour is typical of Ghanaians/Ghanaians with domestic staff. I do know that it is typical of me. Usually I know the names and surnames of my help. I take a picture of them so if they ever go missing –or run away with my children- I can make an effective report. But I think now that perhaps I am not sufficiently informed about who they are.

I wonder, is this a remnant of the trusting nature that small town life has bred in all of us? Or just a lapse in vigilance and courtesy? These are after all people who come into contact with my family, my person and my food. One would expect me to have a more vigorous screening system and a bit more interest in their life stories. Whatever it is. It has to go. It is great folly indeed.

As if to drive home the lesson, she ran away only a few days later. Since my aunt had asked me the day before her great getaway if I knew she was pregnant, I have taken that to be the reason for her hasty departure. But the point it makes is this. Had she ran off while alone in the house with one of the boys, could I have found her? The answer is no. I didn’t know her real name till only a few days before. I certainly didn’t know where she went off to on her day off. The person who found her for me didn’t know her either; she was referred to him by a work colleague, on a construction site. Where would I even have begun?!

A scare - even to the foolish- should be enough. And indeed it suffices for me. Pressed as I am these days for time, I will go with Veronica soon to her aunt’s house. And when I find a replacement, I will do the same with her too. It’s a wonder and blessing, we’ve escaped tragedy for so long. But from now, it’s a new order. I am going to invent a screening and tracking system so tight the CIA will want it. It’ll take some work around here. But no worries, I’ll get around the obstacles. If ever you hear I’ve helped the Police track my former staff who stole my headgear and ran off to hide in the Wassa area, know that is wasn’t by sheer luck.