too lady t
I was given some baby toys by a friend.
I understand that I can put the ones that are only plastic in the dishwasher, and that I can clean the ones that are only cloth in the washing machine.
But what about the toys that are both plastic and cloth? For example there are some ring-type rattles that have stuffed animals attached...what do I do with these? Or the cloth ones with plastic rings and crinkly parts? How do you ladies clean this type of toy?
Also, do you clean things from the store before you give them to your baby?
What temperature do you use in your delicate wash? Will "hot" melt anything?
Trust me, I'm not going to be a clean-freak mom! I don't believe in anti-bacterial everything for myself, and I don't for my (coming soon) son. I understand antibodies need to develop. Some websites suggest cleaning toys weekly! That is just nuts.
Answer
Well... as for the plastic, I actually don't like the dishwasher since mine doesn't get hot enough to really do any good, and the cleanser we have to use is a powder which can scratch the plastic (making it harder to disinfect.) What I do is wash by hand the first time, after that I use a lemon-juice/vinegar mixed with water solution and let it soak for a few hours, then dump and let dry.
For the cloth toys I use the delicate cycle on my washer. It works very well, and doesn't scratch any plastic that might be connected to it as well. Then line dry. However, if your machine may scratch the plastic, then you can put it in a pillow-case and tie the pillow-case shut or use a piece of cloth to tie it shut. This is what I used to do when I was growing up when things needed to be cleaned, and it worked well.
Word of warning though. Do NOT dry in the dryer. The heat cycle especially is damaging to toys. It's better to have the patience to line-dry them if possible. If you live in a slightly-moldy part of the country, then cool-fluff dry in the dryer.
I do try to clean things off from the store before giving them to my baby, but usually we've never really had to. Used things, always. Brand new... not so much.
Add: My washer, when we push delicate, uses cold water. What I find is that hot, while it's great for disinfecting, tends to warp some plastic doll's heads, their hair sort of melts, and stuffed animals with really soft coats, it burns and curls. Sometimes the washer won't do that, but the dryer does it notoriously. That's why I always air-dry.
My mom worked in a daycare and they washed all of the toys weekly. But in a situation like that, it's sort of needed. If you're having a cold or a flu circulate, then go around again and again, you've got to disinfect. *shrugs* When I go out, I use a lysol on the cart rather than one of those cart-cloth wraps. The reason? The flu is dangerous until they reach a certain body weight, and I don't want to do the flu-shot. (I do go out of my way to get a cart that's been sitting in the sun for a while at the back of the lot. So we walk a bit more... the sun kills most viruses naturally and then I don't have to do anything to the cart. Remember, shopping carts actually test higher for more bacteria and viruses than public toilet seats.)
We use a foam stuff called "Vicks First Defense" on the hands that protects against bacteria for up to 4 hours when we go out (nasty tasting too.) But... my daughter is small. >3% of the population small. If she gets real sick and doesn't eat, she doesn't have much weight to fall back on you know? She's had one minor cold, got over it faster than I did.
And I get a LOT of books from used stores. I just love them. Board books too, even though she chews on them. I just leave them out in the sun after wiping them down to remove any crud on them.
At home, I don't disinfect. Unless it's like that circulating cold. :P But there's overly disinfecting, and then there's going too loose, and there's a comfortable medium. I think every mother has to find it. My friend, her son has major health issues so she's far more careful about exposing him to things. Me? I think nothing of popping a sample of pre-cut cantaloupe when we were in the grocery store today. She LOVED it. :)
Sorry for rambling, obviously tired... I did find one thing though. We have a book with crinkles, plastic toys, and a squeaker inside. I've washed it a few times. The only problem I've run into is sometimes the squeaker gets waterlogged and you have to squeak-squirt the water out inside of the book. The crinkles have never been affected.
Well... as for the plastic, I actually don't like the dishwasher since mine doesn't get hot enough to really do any good, and the cleanser we have to use is a powder which can scratch the plastic (making it harder to disinfect.) What I do is wash by hand the first time, after that I use a lemon-juice/vinegar mixed with water solution and let it soak for a few hours, then dump and let dry.
For the cloth toys I use the delicate cycle on my washer. It works very well, and doesn't scratch any plastic that might be connected to it as well. Then line dry. However, if your machine may scratch the plastic, then you can put it in a pillow-case and tie the pillow-case shut or use a piece of cloth to tie it shut. This is what I used to do when I was growing up when things needed to be cleaned, and it worked well.
Word of warning though. Do NOT dry in the dryer. The heat cycle especially is damaging to toys. It's better to have the patience to line-dry them if possible. If you live in a slightly-moldy part of the country, then cool-fluff dry in the dryer.
I do try to clean things off from the store before giving them to my baby, but usually we've never really had to. Used things, always. Brand new... not so much.
Add: My washer, when we push delicate, uses cold water. What I find is that hot, while it's great for disinfecting, tends to warp some plastic doll's heads, their hair sort of melts, and stuffed animals with really soft coats, it burns and curls. Sometimes the washer won't do that, but the dryer does it notoriously. That's why I always air-dry.
My mom worked in a daycare and they washed all of the toys weekly. But in a situation like that, it's sort of needed. If you're having a cold or a flu circulate, then go around again and again, you've got to disinfect. *shrugs* When I go out, I use a lysol on the cart rather than one of those cart-cloth wraps. The reason? The flu is dangerous until they reach a certain body weight, and I don't want to do the flu-shot. (I do go out of my way to get a cart that's been sitting in the sun for a while at the back of the lot. So we walk a bit more... the sun kills most viruses naturally and then I don't have to do anything to the cart. Remember, shopping carts actually test higher for more bacteria and viruses than public toilet seats.)
We use a foam stuff called "Vicks First Defense" on the hands that protects against bacteria for up to 4 hours when we go out (nasty tasting too.) But... my daughter is small. >3% of the population small. If she gets real sick and doesn't eat, she doesn't have much weight to fall back on you know? She's had one minor cold, got over it faster than I did.
And I get a LOT of books from used stores. I just love them. Board books too, even though she chews on them. I just leave them out in the sun after wiping them down to remove any crud on them.
At home, I don't disinfect. Unless it's like that circulating cold. :P But there's overly disinfecting, and then there's going too loose, and there's a comfortable medium. I think every mother has to find it. My friend, her son has major health issues so she's far more careful about exposing him to things. Me? I think nothing of popping a sample of pre-cut cantaloupe when we were in the grocery store today. She LOVED it. :)
Sorry for rambling, obviously tired... I did find one thing though. We have a book with crinkles, plastic toys, and a squeaker inside. I've washed it a few times. The only problem I've run into is sometimes the squeaker gets waterlogged and you have to squeak-squirt the water out inside of the book. The crinkles have never been affected.
WTF is up with bilingual baby toys?
Due Feb 25
I have a 9 month old son and when I look for a new toy for him I notice that they speak Spanish AND sometimes French. I'm sorry, but this is America!! They are in OUR country and they need to speak English! I bet if we went to Mexico, Spain or any other country that speaks Spanish, that they don't have toys that teach their kids English!
I refuse to buy my son a toy that will speak Spanish to him. I don't care how cool it is. His first and ONLY language will be English. It's bad enough we have to press 1 for English when we call companies.
I had to rant. It's a pet peeve of mine that just gets my blood boiling.
Ok, maybe I should of said this another way. I can understand my son learning a second language later while he's in school. I had to take Spanish 1 in high school and I'm sure a course in a second language is still a requirement.
I just think that until a baby has mastered speaking English well, they shouldn't be confused with other languages.
Yes, I do have a college degree and I have traveled a lot and have lived in Europe three different times.
I'm 28 years old, so I am grown up. I just don't agree with baby toys teaching a second language when they don't know how to speak English yet.
Answer
WTF is up with baby toys that make noise at all? Why all the sudden, are wooden blocks and developmentally stimulating toys without buttons and music more expensive than the ones with? AS far as languages go...its not about making our children learn the language, it is about broadening their horizons in order to expand and encourage their minds to grow and strive to experience other cultures. It is also scientifically proven that children exposed to foreign languages at an early age have higher IQ's later in life than those who don't, but I personally believe that if you children are going to learn something worthwhile, it shouldn't come from a cartoon frog or a Disney DVD brandishing the name of a famous scientist.
WTF is up with baby toys that make noise at all? Why all the sudden, are wooden blocks and developmentally stimulating toys without buttons and music more expensive than the ones with? AS far as languages go...its not about making our children learn the language, it is about broadening their horizons in order to expand and encourage their minds to grow and strive to experience other cultures. It is also scientifically proven that children exposed to foreign languages at an early age have higher IQ's later in life than those who don't, but I personally believe that if you children are going to learn something worthwhile, it shouldn't come from a cartoon frog or a Disney DVD brandishing the name of a famous scientist.
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