Dad 16 week old baby dirty nappy changing area in the ladies!

stee.mc79

Hi,
I was out today with my wife and 16 week old baby girl in a town in Galway county, did a few bits and pieces around town.
Anyway while we where doing the shopping my daughter needed to be changed. So while my wife finished off the shopping I took my daughter to change her nappy asked one the shop assisant where I could find a changing area to which I was told there was one in the laidies toilet. Fair enough my wife was with me and could take her and change her not to mention the toilets where down a flight of stars and there was now a buggy& a shopping trollie! My opposition comes is that as a new dad there should be universal changing areas in all stores for all parents to use.
To finish has anybody here had a similar experience?

Lisha

stee.mc79 wrote: »

Hi,
I was out today with my wife and 16 week old baby girl in a town in Galway county, did a few bits and pieces around town.
Anyway while we where doing the shopping my daughter needed to be changed. So while my wife finished off the shopping I took my daughter to change her nappy asked one the shop assisant where I could find a changing area to which I was told there was one in the laidies toilet. Fair enough my wife was with me and could take her and change her not to mention the toilets where down a flight of stars and there was now a buggy& a shopping trollie! My opposition comes is that as a new dad there should be universal changing areas in all stores for all parents to use.
To finish has anybody here had a similar experience?

It is a bit silly, esp these days with so many stay at home Dads about. Often in shopping centres the wheelchair toilet doubles as the baby changing area. As this is normally unisex this can be more accessible I suppose.

stee.mc79

The same store has gone through a big renovation and i did ask the store manager as well and all he said was there anyone with me:(. It was outside the wheelchair toilet aswell, now going into Galway city I go to mothercare they've a good setup at the back of the store I use to change and feed her.
Also if i was on my own the manager was not sympthetic to my cause, as you said in this day and age it's nolonger just mother &child it's as likely dad & child!

Cat Melodeon

If there's no open access changing facility my husband just uses the women's toilet. You'd want to be a fairly odd female to object to a man changing a baby in the toilets. I know it can be intimidating, but just use what's there - baby's needs come first.

binxeo

stee.mc79 wrote: »

Hi,
I was out today with my wife and 16 week old baby girl in a town in Galway county, did a few bits and pieces around town.
Anyway while we where doing the shopping my daughter needed to be changed. So while my wife finished off the shopping I took my daughter to change her nappy asked one the shop assisant where I could find a changing area to which I was told there was one in the laidies toilet. Fair enough my wife was with me and could take her and change her not to mention the toilets where down a flight of stars and there was now a buggy& a shopping trollie! My opposition comes is that as a new dad there should be universal changing areas in all stores for all parents to use.
To finish has anybody here had a similar experience?

You make a very good point and as a mum it is something I never thought about before. My OH has never had to deal with something like this but it does make you wonder. Why are the changing areas automatically placed in the ladies toilets!!

There should def be a separate changing area for children that is neither in the men or womens toilets!!

meg3178

I totally agree that there should be a universal changing area for babies and young children. There are facilities like these in england eg at Bluewater where there are parent and child toilets. These are big enough to bring in the buggy, lock the door and there is an adult toilet and a child height toilet, plus changing facilities for babies. They wouldn't cost much to install and either parent can then have comfort instead of trying to squeeze into a small cubicle and leave the pram outside. Its ridiculous that the larger shops do not provide these facilities or even the shopping centres.

Xdancer

I personally wouldn't object to a Dad changing a baby's nappy in the ladies if there weren't any other facilities available.
I have to say it's fairly good here in Spain. The shopping centres have dedicated changing areas with a microwave and a comfy chair for breastfeeding.

Little My

Its rubbish that business still do this.

There are a good few places in Galway city for changing, Mothercare has been mentioned but boots have a changing room too which less people seem to know about but you just have to ask to use it.

I was in a pub which styles itself family friendly for a family meal recently. When I asked where the changing facilites were a waitress hesitantly said 'I think there's a mat in the ladies'.

I discovered the changing mat in the space between two sinks, overhanging on each side into the sink. Not ideal. Even less ideal was the really old, broken handdryer, right over the mat.

My little boy immediately started to put his fingers up into the rusty old grill of the handdryer. I was pretty peeved at his stage, and looked around for somewhere else to put the mat, but there wasn't anywhere and the floor was filthy.

Carrying on through gritted teeth I realised I had put my changing bag down under the soap dispenser, which had leaked all over the counter and into my bag.

Needless to say I will not be returning there any time soon. I would have said something to staff, but to be honest, in-laws had suggested the venue specifically because they thought it was child friendly so I didn't want to make them feel uncomfortable. (Was also really annoyed they couldnt give us a spoon of mash for a baby, and the waitress suggested I order something from the childrens menu which consisted of sausage and chips type dinners)

stee.mc79

Cat Melodeon wrote: »

If there's no open access changing facility my husband just uses the women's toilet. You'd want to be a fairly odd female to object to a man changing a baby in the toilets. I know it can be intimidating, but just use what's there - baby's needs come first.

Her needs always come first and I wouldn't have had a problem changing her in the ladies, my point is the fact that there's no facilities for dad's with babies to comfortabley change them other then the ladies toilet.
Even for a mum on ther own with a buggy and bags the facilies where down a flght of stairs.

wmpdd3

Thankfully its mostly changing rooms in waterford, the one in city square is a godsend, you can bring in the buggy.

hoodwinked

it happened to us 2 years ago also in the cafe of a recently renovated shopping center in cork city.

myself and my partner went for a coffee, and while there our daughter needed changing, being the weekend it was his turn so off they went to the new toilets/changing area,

he went looking for a changing room but couldn't see one, so he went into the disabled toilet first but there was no changing area so he checked the mens, nothing, he came back to me confused as the sign clearly stated there was a changing area.

we asked a member of staff who replied they were in the ladies, i asked what would have happened if my partner was on his own? and she replied "they didn't think of that"

either way they must of had a few complaints as they have since added a changing area to the disabled toilets,



on the other side a brand new center built locally has excellent facilities,

not only female/male/disabled toilets, but two designated changing rooms, and two parent and child toilets too (not only handy for dads but for toddlers who prefer bathrooms like their home one - the stalls freak out our 3 year old), and two breastfeeding rooms for privacy, with couches and big enough if two or three mum's went together.

we tend to shop there more because of the facilities!

pwurple

We put our own folding changing mat on a table, the back seat of the car, or a patch of grass if there are no changing facilities available. It takes less than 30 seconds to change a nappy anyway, and his body blocks any view. we keep hand sanitiser in the changing bag as well.

Cat Melodeon

stee.mc79 wrote: »

Her needs always come first and I wouldn't have had a problem changing her in the ladies, my point is the fact that there's no facilities for dad's with babies to comfortabley change them other then the ladies toilet.
Even for a mum on ther own with a buggy and bags the facilies where down a flght of stairs.

Hope you know I meant that baby's (and your) needs are more important than the odd woman who might have an issue with you being there, not that I was suggesting you weren't putting your baby's needs first!

In any case, its totally unfair that men should be made uncomfortable by having to go into women's toilets. I agree completely though that there should be better changing facilities that are open access to all carers, not just women.

McDonagh Junction in Kilkenny is good, as is the Crescent in Limerick - both have separate facilities big enough to bring in a buggy and extra kids. The shopping centre in Thurles has a decent enough room - there's a chair for feeding - but again you have to go in to the women's toilets to access it. It also bugs the life out of me when the baby room doesn't have a toilet in it - very difficult to use a normal cubicle for your own needs when you have smallies in tow - even the disabled access ones aren't always big enough.

As for having to go down flights of stairs - that should be illegal and there should be an easy way to report such places as being in breach of planning with the threat of trading licence suspension for non-compliance. Whatever regulations are already in place clearly aren't being enforced - I know lots of new developments that don't even have proper disabled access facilities.

By the way, slightly off topic, the Friends of Breastfeeding group has a 'Baby Friendly Initiative' for breastfeeding families - cafes etc that are aware of the rules and supportive of BF children. I don't know if thos businesses also have decent toilets but I imagine they at least make an effort if they get on the list.
http://www.friendsofbreastfeeding.ie/wp/breastfeeding-friendly-initiative/breastfeeding-friendly-initiative-2/

Davidth88

This is an age old problem .

We had our baby's after christening party in a restaurant recently . i went to change her , the only changing area was in the ladies. ( I just shouted ANYONE THERE and went in )


BTW , the prize for the worst purpose built changing area I have been in is/was ( its a couple of years ago now ) Superquinn Lucan.

Ultraviolet lights to stop junkies , filthy dirty , basically so dark because of the anti shoot up lights that you could not do the job correctly.

Little My , I am a bit surprised the restaurant would not supply some mash ( assuming they had it on the main menu ) , shows very short sightedness on their part IMO. I have generally found restaurants ( and pubs that do family food ) in Ireland to be very accommodating .

aviendha

haha.. our local pub in Cork has the changing table in the men's toilets!
Daddy-cool!:cool: