Homestead Baby Care

Adding a baby to the homestead has presented new challenges in our quest to live simply. When it comes to baby care, I ask myself the same questions I ask about other homestead care: how can we create the least amount of waste, save some money and minimize our environmental impact? Here are some of our strategies for natural, simple baby care.

Disclaimer: I’ll mention a few specific brands in this post, but these are not the only good options nor am I receiving any incentive (monetary or otherwise) for mentioning them.

Instead of disposable diaper wipes, my sister made us some cute reusable cloth ones. Since we use cloth diapers, it’s no added work to throw them in the bin with the used diapers and wash them all together. My sister made them with a flannel material so it’s soft on baby’s bum. Excellent baby shower gift idea and requires only the most basic sewing skills.

Every few weeks I make a batch of baby wipe solution, which takes about five hot seconds. I put it in a sprayer and mist it onto her reusable flannel diaper wipes. It’s all natural and works great.

Homemade Baby Wipe Solution

• 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
• 16 oz. distilled water

Directions: In a reusable sprayer, combine vinegar with water. Mix gently. How easy is that?

I was overwhelmed with all the bath wash options and spent a lot of time scratching my head when reading the ingredient lists. This seemed like a great place to simplify things by making our own. We would know exactly what’s in it and save lots of money by making our own. Here is the recipe I am making every month or so.

Homemade Baby Wash

• 1/4 c. baby castille liquid soap
• 3/4 c. distilled water

Directions: In a reusable foamer, mix one part soap to three parts water. Mix gently. The soap won’t lather quickly, which is why using a foamer will help greatly. It’s not tear-free, so use caution when rinsing baby’s hair. Tip: write the ingredients on the back of the foamer for easy reference when you need to make more.

I used distilled water for the first few months when her skin was so sensitive and new to the world. Since then, I mix the castille soap with regular tap water. She’s getting rinsed with tap water, so I don’t really know that using distilled water in her soap made any difference.

Dr Bronner’s sells a nice, unscented liquid baby castille soap. It runs about $30 bucks for a 32 oz. container. That would be enough to make 128 ounces of baby wash from the recipe above, or sixteen batches of baby wash. You will be hard pressed to find a cheaper natural baby wash.

Do you have any secret or not-so-secret recipes you use for your family? Any tips or tricks for keeping life simple with little ones? Tell me about it in the comments below!