the skinny on soft baby skin

It doesn't take a lot of scrutiny to see that Garrett looks an awful lot like his papa: the round face, the adorable cheeks, the cleft chin, pouty lower lip, and smiley mouth. It also doesn't take a genius to see that he inherited both his blond hair and fair skin from his mama. Not too long ago, I came to the realization that it wasn't just skin color that he inherited from me; Garrett has unfortunately also acquired my skin's temperament.

About a month ago, I started noticing a scaly, bumpy, but decidedly not red rash developing on his legs. Before too long it had spread to his arms. Thinking it was a heat rash caused by my tendency to overdo it with blankets at night, I not only lessened the amount of blankets I tucked him in with, but, in an effort to keep the sweat glands from getting clogged, I also stopped putting baby powder and lotion on his body after his nightly baths. This did not help. In fact, the bumps got worse and ultimately consumed the entirety of both arms and legs. At this point, Blake suggested that I take him to the doctor. While I seriously toyed with the idea, the rash, while concerning, just didn't have the look of something to get too worked up about. Falling back on my mother's instinct, I told Blake I wanted to wait a few more days before taking such drastic measures. "I don't want to spend $20 for a co-pay just to have the doctor tell me he's got dry skin or something," I said.

And then it hit me: dry skin. What if this rash wasn't a rash? What if it was just very thirsty skin? It is winter, after all, and I, his DNA-bequeathing mother, get horrible dry skin problems at this time of year. With a fresh point of view, I took up some new tactics to bring my baby's sweet, soft skin back.

Even though I've been told that too much contact with water can strip skin of hydrating membranes, I didn't want to deprive Garrett of his nightly baths. He loves the water too much and by 6:00 in the evening when we're all worn out from the day, the only place either of us want him to be is happily splashing in the tub. So the bath routine stayed. I did, though, start using my bar of Dove soap to wash him. My skin's become addicted to its gently moisturizing qualities, and I didn't think it would be such a bad idea to let Garrett's skin have a taste.

I also started searching the shelves of my local drugstores for some heavy duty baby lotion that I might use to lock in what moisture his skin did have. I initially didn't think there'd be much of a market for cure-alls for dry baby skin. After all, aren't all babies supposed to have soft, supple skin? But it turns out that there is. Because Aveeno, with their natural colloidal oatmeal-including formulas, has helped my skin in the past, I ultimately purchased some Aveeno Baby Soothing Relief Moisture Cream. And let me just tell you: this stuff is fabulous! I began by slathering it all over his arms and legs two or three times a day, then eventually to twice a day (morning and after-bath evening). Now I'm just using it once a day, after he's out of the tub. It's been only a week and Garrett's skin is sweet and soft again. Not a sign left to indicate that he ever had scaly, bumpy, dry, dry skin.

So Dove and Aveeno: you make great products. I'm a fan. You've fixed my baby's skin (and, let's be honest here, you've done much to fix mine, too). And if you ever need a new spokesperson, I'm your girl.

Anyway, I'm glad that I was able to fix this little problem. It was sure a lot cheaper and less embarrassing than a trip to the doctor. But I feel kinda bad that my innocent, unassuming little boy inherited such a nasty trait from me. It's sad, too, to realize that he'll probably sunburn (and by "sunburn" I mean "burn to a crisp") after only 10 minutes outside in the summer sun, with or without sunblock. I will, however, consider us all very lucky if the skin problems stop at that, rather than developing into embarrassing teenage acne and cancerous moles like they did for me. My fingers are eternally crossed for you, Garrett. And in case that doesn't work, just know I've become somewhat of a trailblazer when it comes to temperamental skin and, when it comes time, I'll be happy to find you a good dermatologist.