Please, Be Gentle

Growing up, my family did not have much money.  Perhaps for that reason, my mother was very careful when it came to doing the laundry.  Stains were painstakingly removed.  Most everything, with the exceptions of towels, socks and bedding, was washed on cold and hung out to dry.  Appropriate cycles and settings were always used.  My little sister was much younger than me, so we didn't do hand-me-downs in-family much, but when I outgrew clothes they were taken to Goodwill or given to other families we knew, and they were practically in mint condition.

After a brief stint of "put everything in the same wash and dry cycle" in college, I cultivated many of those same habits as an adult.  Everything was washed on cold, and shirts were always hung up in the bathroom.  My stuff was typically washed on gentle.  Sometimes I was lazy about letting laundry pile up, but when it was eventually done, it was done properly.

Well, now I have a baby.  Most baby clothes say that they should be washed on cold, in the gentle cycle.  No problem, right?  Well... but what about when said clothes are totally covered in spit-up or baby poop?  It's from breastfed milk, so it should be entirely water-soluble, but still.  Cloth diapers are washed on hot for a reason, right?  And just because Thumper's wrecked clothes can be washed on the same setting as my clothes doesn't mean I necessarily want them in the same load...

The Yeti is even more squeamish than I am about this and would happily wash everything in hot if it's been pooped on.  And he'd probably give himself a Silkwood shower if he was involved, as well.  After Thumper was born the Yeti actually did quite a few loads of laundry while I was in bed, and he even stuck to whatever setting I told him.  But after awhile, he started questioning my "rules" and offering "suggestions."

Whatever the cause, laundry has been somewhat relaxed now.  Here's what I do:

Thumper's clothes, burp cloths, blankets, etc, tend to get thrown into one load.  Often my clothes get thrown in too.  A typical load is washed on cold; depending on my mood and how dirty I feel stuff is it's either on gentle or normal.   Some of my shirts get hung up, but most everything else goes in the dryer on low or medium (a lot of stuff now goes in the dryer that never used to).  If I'm tired I purposely leave out anything I'd have to hang up, so I can just transfer the whole load without thinking about it.

If there's been a poopsplosion anything affected goes in the washer immediately.  Washed on warm, normal.  If there's a dramatic spit-up that sort of stuff will go in as well, to be washed on warm.

The Yeti's clothes get washed on cold, normal, and I still hang up his shirts.  Often I'll throw in my own shirts that need to be hung.  Yes, it means they're not washed on gentle but who really cares anymore.  I don't wash the Yeti's stuff on gentle because his thicker t-shirts and other shirts would weigh a hundred pounds.

Recently we've had a new situation: at night a few times Thumper's wet through his pajamas, sleep sack, and crib sheet.  The crib sheets specifically say wash on gentle and dry on low, and I don't want to deal with a fitted sheet that has now shrunk, so I've gone with warm and gentle in that case.  Yep, I'm aware I'm gambling a bit on that one (as it's the hot water that really shrinks) so it depends on how squeamish I'm feeling.

clean pajamas, sleep sack, and sheet... for now

I'm not doing much for the longevity of Thumper's clothes, but he outgrows them so fast and soils them in horrific ways anyway.  I know I'll save a few things, for nostalgic purposes and because I haven't decided if he'll be my only child, but the vast majority is just going to have to take a beating.  This is also why I shop primarily at Ross and Old Navy; the stuff is cute, and I'm not shelling out a ton of money for something with a limited lifespan.

Oh!  Another thing that's changed: when it comes to my own clothes, I might've worn something new without washing it first, but anything Thumper comes in contact with gets washed first, religiously.  And I've switched to Tide Free and Gentle, and Downy Free and Sensitive for everyone.  Now it's strange when I pull something out-of-season out of a drawer, and smell the old detergent.

If anyone has any suggestions to further consolidate laundry or other household tips, I'm all for listening.  I'm well aware I'm operating with half a brain right now and the less housework, the better!