Comments on: Three Unusual Baby and Toddler Products, Vol. 11: Germophobe Edition

By: David

David — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 18:22:41 +0000

As silly as the germ worries are the babykeeper is a great idea. My son used to only sleep in his carrier when he was sick and sometimes I resorted to hanging it on the bedpost so that I could get a little rest while he slept which worked ok but hooks for a door would have been much better!

By: Lisa

Lisa — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 03:09:02 +0000

i wish i had the purecart at my local supermarket. their carts are disgusting.

why would anyone hang their kid on the bathroom door? the doors in bathrooms are pretty gross.

By: AJ

AJ — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 09:13:59 +0000

Marcy, answers to your questions...

1. How do I feel about germs? Uh, I don't like germs.

2. We use a public restroom in an emergency. The vast majority of our trips are easily alleviated by the house rule of going potty before leaving home.

For the toddler years we have a car travel potty to avoid bringing gear in to deal with the dirty over-sized toilet seat found in restrooms.
http://www.thingamababy.com/baby/2006/12/review_travel_p.html

3. We have two shopping covers (one in each car). There's no need to wipe down a shopping cart. How would you wipe down rust or dried gum or...

4. We don't use Lysol. Take a look at the chemicals in that can. It scares me more than germs.

5. We do keep hand sanitizer or wipes in our car and bring something to a non-home-based event where we know our daughter will be eating.

By: gertie

gertie — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 17:19:36 +0000

I've never cleaned a shopping cart, but I have used a public toilet while holding my (too young to stand) daughter. That was, um, awkward, but it can be done.

My daughter has had two colds in her first two years of life, so I find it hard to get riled up about germs.

I guess I'm really not the target demographic of these marketers. I have friends who would buy these products, though.

By: Kristin

Kristin — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 03:41:13 +0000

I don’t tend to be too germaphobic with my son but I do try to keep him away from shopping carts. I have resorted to one of those covers that goes over the shopping cart seat so that he can’t chew on the handle of the cart. Although lately he has figured out how to pull it off and get to the handle–oh well, I try.

By: Amber

Amber — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 20:52:04 +0000

Given that I worked in a grocery store in a bottle-return state, I can tell you that those carts are crawling with germs–and not just your typical ‘out in public’ germs. Imagine the homeless guy who picks up roadside cans–some peed in, some with chew-spit in them, some with dead rodents in them–he dumps his cans directly into the basket. That’s right, where you lay your unbagged bananas and all the rest of your groceries. Even though most stores have a policy against taking such cans, they usually get to the counter with their ungodly dirty cans before someone smells the stench, looks up, and tells them to bugger off.

Stick your nose up at it if you will, but I for one would choose a cart sanitized in this manner over one I wiped with a wipey any day. Kid or not.

By: Marcy

Marcy — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 17:50:42 +0000

You may have covered this at some point and I missed it, but how do you feel about germs? Do you use public restrooms with your daughter? Do YOU wipe down shopping carts? Lysol things in the store? Carry hand sanitizer with you everwhere?

By: lisa

lisa — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 02:23:10 +0000

Looking at the babyKeeper it suddenly occured to me that i must have not peed for the first year in public anywhere while with my baby. I’m a stay at home mom so i was always with my baby. But no, i did pee of course and baby was in the stroller. HOW STRANGE IS THAT!?!? Always had a Bjorn underneath too if baby got fussy. IS THAT OK?!?! In any case I think this is odd but i’d love the chance to try it out. Have some chuckles at baby’s expense because they do look ridiculous hanging off the wall like that. I’ve been to some bathrooms that have a plastic chair with a harness that is actually attached to a wall for toddlers to strap in while mommy gets busy. I guess this would be most useful if you usually sling or carrier your baby………

By: kidletnation.blogspot.com

kidletnation.blogspot.com — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 23:56:35 +0000

airplane seat covers are a great idea. I've always traveled wearing a hoodie so I can protect my head from the seat-backs.

I trust neither the seats, the blankets or those dodgy pillows.

By: Lindsey

Lindsey — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 19:48:52 +0000

I like cleaning the cart, not only because my son has a weird habit of licking things…but because I don’t like to touch things that have come in contact with raw meat or someone’s snot. I’m fine with the big wipes at the front of the store, and would prefer my supermarket didn’t raise prices to pay for a cart sanitizer.

About the baby hanger….I’m iffy. If it started to fall when my pants were around my ankles, I could see a huge problem. It would, on the other hand, stop my son from unlocking and opening the stall door when I’m sitting there. Talk about embarrassing.