This post and giveaway were made possible by iConnect and Dreft.
I was compensated for my participation in this campaign, but all opinions are 100% mine.
When my kids were little, I was constantly cleaning up their messes and doing everything I could to avoid having them be messy. There were times when I just let them play with their food (because let’s admit it, they make great photo shots and memories)! We can all agree that babies are messy, right? Did you know that studies show that smashing, throwing and playing with food actually helps babies learn? Plus, science has confirmed what kids seem to instinctively know – that playing in the dirt and mud is fun! However, did you know that it actually helps soothe, calm and relax children? In short, playing with mud can make kids happier!
Recently, Dreft conducted a survey with Wakefield and found that 87 percent of moms frequently encourage their children to pick activities that are unlikely to get them messy over ones that are, even though 81 percent agree that their child learns more when they make a mess and 89 percent agree that children are happier when they make a mess! The survey also showed that 88 percent of moms have let their children play in only a diaper specifically so they don’t get their clothes messy! And 80 percent of moms have thrown out clothes specifically because they felt the mess wasn’t worth washing out.
Rather than sweating the small stuff, parents should rejoice in the fact that a messy baby is a sign of a happy, well-adjusted one and not worry that it may reflect poorly on them as parents. Parents can brush off the spaghetti stains on the party dress and the grass stains on pants and enjoy every moment while Dreft tackles the mess. Dreft is excited to launch the Dreft America’s Messiest Baby Contest, inviting families to submit photos of their favorite messy baby moments for the chance to win prizes, including the cover of the May issue of Parents Magazine! With Dreft, parents can stop worrying about the messes and enjoy all the beautiful and memorable moments they have to share with their little ones.
Parents can enter to win Dreft’s America’s Messiest Baby Contest for a chance to have their little one featured on the cover of Parent’s Magazine by submitting a photo of their favorite messy baby moment at www.parents.com/dreftmessiestbabycontest or posting their photo on Twitter or Instagram using the hashtag #messiestbabycontest. Winners will also receive a supply of Dreft laundry detergent of course! The submission deadline is November 30, 2016.
On October 25th, Actress Molly Sims got a little messy with the little ones and helped Dreft launch their nationwide search for Dreft’s America’s Messiest Baby at the Dreft Messy Play Date Party in New York City. With two children and one on the way, she understands the value of messy play and has embraced the messy journey of #amazinghood in her own personal life!
As the #1 baby laundry detergent choice of pediatricians and a trusted brand for more than 80 year, the Dreft product line meets the different needs of growing babies and their families. Parents of messy babies can rely on Dreft Active Baby detergent to help remove 99 percent of baby food stains and other outdoor messes, but Active and the Newborn line are still formulated to be gentle and hypoallergenic on baby’s sensitive skin. Dreft’s portfolio of products is awesome because it’s specially designed to meet your little one’s laundry needs at every stage of babyhood. Dreft Stage One Newborn’s hypoallergenic formula is gentle on newborn baby’s skin and Dreft Stage 2 Active Baby is specially formulated to tackle stains after baby starts eating solid foods and crawling all over the place. And don’t forget Dreft Blissfuls, which are safe on all fabrics and can release freshness for up to two weeks! You can use these scent boosters on any load of your family’s laundry, even with baby clothes. Dreft really does have you covered – all of you! Dreft products are specially formulated to be hypoallergenic, gentle on skin, tough on stains, and with a fresh baby scent.
For more information, be sure to visit Dreft online or the brand’s social media channels on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
As part of the #MessiestBabyContest campaign, Dreft is partnering with Dr. Dyan Hes, Medical Director of Gramercy Pediatrics, who was recently named a 2013 top doctor by NEW YORK magazine. She also sits on the board of the American Board of Obesity Medicine and is double boarded in both pediatrics and obesity medicine. As a pediatrician AND as a mother, Dr. Dyan Hes knows that cleaning your little one’s clothes with a gentle hypoallergenic detergent, like Dreft, is a great way to help keep baby comfortable and tackle the everyday messes.
Parents should create memories with their families, not stress about the mess, so it’s important they seek out products that are gentle on baby’s sensitive skin but tough on stains. Since clothes are in direct contact with baby, Dr. Hes suggests washing clothes with a specially-formulated product such as Dreft, the No. 1 baby laundry detergent choice of pediatricians and has been trusted for over 80 years to be gentle and hypoallergenic on baby’s skin. Dr. Dyan Hes has the following tips to bring out your baby’s messy side and embrace that being messy has its developmental benefits.
Developmental Benefits:
- Count the fun and use your fingers: Use your little one’s food as a fantastic way to learn how to begin counting. When snacking, start counting with your little one and encourage them to use their fingers. Also, this is a great time to use food to help them learn how to properly grasp things. It will take time and practice so let them get a little dirty with their food and practice, practice, practice!
- Throwing practice: Throwing food can definitely be messy, but did you know it helps with their development? Little ones are also still developing object permanence, which means that they don’t know that when they throw things, they won’t come back to them. So throwing food or dropping in on the floor can actually help them learn this basic lesson in physics! Maybe just lay a mat on the floor to protect carpet or allow for easy clean up.
- Load up on bibs: Bibs are a great way to capture those messy food moments. Once your little one is done with meal time, throw the bib in the washer with Dreft Active Baby to easily tackle the mess so you can do it all over again. The mess went way beyond the bib? No problem—throw that outfit in the washer too!
- Dress baby right and care for the fabrics: When you expect a mess, dress baby with a fabric, such as cotton, that can easily be cleaned up effortlessly. When it comes to fabrics, it’s also extremely important to seek out a gentle and hypoallergenic detergent to care for the items that touch baby’s sensitive skin. Wash baby’s items with a specially-formulated product such as Dreft, the #1 baby laundry detergent choice of pediatricians to be gentle and hypoallergenic on baby’s skin that has been trusted by parents for over 80 years.
- Splish, Splash in the Bath: Bring fun toys and activities into the bath and let your child splash around and have fun. Make sure to use warm water (vs. hot) and use a mild cleanser to keep skin soft and itch-free. Gently pat skin dry and end with an after-bath moisturizer to seal in moisture and protect baby’s soft skin.
- Get outside: It’s great to get your little one outside to learn and embrace nature and all it has to offer. Little ones tend to start creeping (pulling their bodies with their arms) before crawling and this can get their clothes quite dirty. This is all part of their learning process though, so feel free to let them explore and point out animals, plants, and the various sounds they may hear in nature so your child starts learning new concepts while having fun!
Be sure to join the Dreft #MessiestBabyContest Twitter Party on November 14th from 9PM-10PM EST. Be sure to RSVP HERE! There will be some really great prizes, incuding an iRobot Roomba!
GIVEAWAY
1 lucky winner will receive a “Messiest Baby” prize package, which will include:
- $50 AMEX Card
- Dreft product
What do you do when your baby makes a mess?
Do you let him or her play with his food?
No baby. I’m not a very messy person.
Thanks for the contest.
If my grandson gets messy I just get him all cleaned up.
It was a quick trip to the tub when my babies made big messes.
we just clean it up and keep it moving.
I just smile when the kids get messy and I get them all cleaned up for the day, but it will happen again.
I think birthday parties are the messiest!
My daughter makes a mess when she has baby food. She likes to stick her fingers in it.
I let kids get messy and then soak their clothes before washing
When my grands make a mess, I do just as I did with mine—take the clothes off as quickly as possible and put them on to soak in a little detergent. Dreft is #1 choice for the babies.
When my grandson makes a huge mess, he usually gets stripped down and put in the bathtub. I immediately wash his clothes so I can get the stains out.
I just laugh because it happens and then I use Dreft on her clothes and clean the other mess with Clorox.
I laugh and then clean it up. I don’t sweat the small stuff.
Usually a mess isn’t a big deal. We just clean it up.
I use baby wipes ALL the time – they’re gentle and don’t leave too many chemicals behind and have a gentle smell so mess away!
thanks!
Playing in the sand makes quite the mess. But my kids have fun so that is whats important.
try to use a suitable stain remover
If it’s an especially good mess, I’ll take a photo!
call over the dog to clean it up 😛
We start with the puppies helping… then get the paper towels.
My daughter’s messiest moment was when she ate cake for the first time for her 1st birthday.
i say o lord to myself and go help him clean it up as i would hope anyone would do and then somedays i even get messy myself its fun when they grow up and leave you soon relize all the dont and stop to them kinda means nothing its all about love so have fun get involved sometimes that is the only way you can help them learn and i use wipes all the time
My “babies” are not babies anymore, but when they make a mess, I clean it up immediately before it becomes even harder to clean. :O
I get kids to help with cleaning up .
I commented on https://www.themommy-files.com/2015/03/i-am-back-and-married/ (Deanna).
Mess happens. We have a lot of baby wipes stocked up. Its quickest to clean with!
My son always makes a mess, but that’s what kids do. We just clean it up.
i let them have a bit of fun with it then out comes the wet wash cloths and baby wipes and hope that the dog gets what fell on the floor
I grab wipes or wet paper towels and wipe everything down.
I get my niece to help clean up the mess with me. That way she learns to not be so messy, otherwise she has to clean it up.
I get paper towels and help clean him off and usually give him a bath if it’s bad enough.
When my little girl would make a huge mess as a baby, I would go straight to the tub. Once my daughter dumped baby powder all over the living room (and herself) and it took me standing with her in the shower to get it all off of her.
breathe and than clean it up
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Usually I just strip her clothes off, put them in the washer and put her in the bathtub.
I cry a little inside and I clean it before it sets in.
I take a picture and then I clean it up
I usually laugh, take a picture or video and then put him in the bath!
I sometimes have my nephew, I just laugh it off, well unless it is poop then I almost get sick and clean it up and he goes in the tub. Luckily there havent been much of the latter and more of the former.
If my niece or nephew gets messy when eating I first take a photo or video.. laugh and then help with the clean up.
When the babies made a mess I cleaned things up without much fuss on my part.
thank you
I pretreat their clothes!
I look at it as a learning moment.
Give them a bath!
I give them a bath and then I clean the house
I let her finish up whatever she’s doing and then come in after and clean it all up!
just clean it up as that’s part of having a kid.
I clean it up as quickly as possible. lol Thank you!
When my kids were babies, I kept washcloths and wipes near by to clean up their messes.
We usually go straight to the bathtub when my baby makes a mess!
I grab as many wipes and towels as I can.
When my daughter was young,instead of yelling and making her scrub I would say, “Let’s clean this up before we (insert next activity here).”
We clean it up and get back to playing
I just get them cleaned up – baby wipes are the best
It depends on the size of the mess, wipes or hand towel for something small or paper towel, if it’s crazy though, I say stick them in the tub!
When my baby makes a mess, his wife clean it up! Or she makes him do it!
I start cleaning fast so the mess doesn’t get messier.
try to relax with a cup a tea, no stress
When my son makes a big mess we usually head for the bathtub to get cleaned up.
When my grandson gets messy – he is cleaned up and starts all over again.
I don’t stress out about it. Kids are messy, and that’s okay. Once the mess has been made, I clean it up and go about what I was doing. Thanks.
partymix25(at)hotmail(dot)com
When my grandson makes a mess i use wipes and give him a bath
I commented on a non giveaway post here
https://www.themommy-files.com/2016/10/best-buy-helps-prepare-holidays-kitchenaid-appliances/
We go right to the bath and then treat the clothes with a pre-wash stain remover.
When my grandson gets messy, I break out the wipes and change his clothes.
I usually take pictures. She is a cute kid even when she is being messy 🙂
I use baby wipes for as much as I can and then give them a bath. After the bath, I soak clothes if I’m worried about stains.
I use lots of baby wipes and stain remover!
We go through lots of baby wipes! I have a messy kiddo!
We clean it up with paper towels!
I release the hounds! Seriously, dogs can clean up everything but the baby 😉
This would be a gift for my friends who has toddlers! When they make messes she tries to keep calm and clean up the mess.
First we call in Emma our dog, fondly referred to as hover. She cleans up the big stuff off the floor. Then we trow the kid in the washer, just kidding. All our dirty laundry goes into our front load washer.
As long as it was an accident I clean it happily. But they get a big talking too when it’s an on purpose
Try to relax, baby wipes are the best.
I just clean it up. Babies are messy! Thanks for the chance to win
A mess is a mess, I clean it up.
She gets wiped down or given a bath.
My son makes a mess with jello and pudding.
Depending on the type of the mess, I start with a wipe and if that doesn’t work then a quick wash off
I try to clean it up as soon as possible before it becomes a bigger mess.
I clean it up.
Messes? We just quickly clean it up and keep moving. No time to waste!
First I roll my eyes and say Again? Then I clean it up.
I take a picture to capture the memory and clean them up! It’s part of life and growing.
When my baby makes a mess, I grab a ton of paper towels and pray for the best!!
just clean it up and keep it moving.
When babies make messes all you can do is clean it up.
I always keep baby wipes handy
Sometimes depending on how bad the mess is i either have a mini panic attack or just have to laugh as Im cleaning it up.
Baby Wipes are a saving grace at my house, from cleaning up my kids to wiping off their seats
I don’t have a baby, but I do have a little nephew. Haven’t had to worry about any messes when he visits aside from messy hands.
I just smile and clean it up.
I keep my cool and clean up and wash the offender off.
After cleaning up the floor and high chair, I change her clothes and clean her up soak her dirty clothes in baby detergent and water for a couple of hours before washing them.
Roxi (the dog) usually tries to clean up any messes while we are running a bath to clean it up. Sometimes the easiest way is to run a bath. While he is in the bath with his Mom, I usually am putting the rest of the messy dishes in the sink to wash up.
I would head straight to the bathtub when they were young. They had many many baths 🙂
I try to cleanup the area and give my son a quick bath to clean him up.
I GO THROUGH A TON OF BABY WIPES AND THAT NORMALLY HELPS ALOT 😉
My youngest is 9. But, I do have grandchildren and when they get messy, I clean them up in the bathroom and try to wash their clothes for their mom.
I panic a little on the inside and then clean it up! 🙂
I clean it up, sometimes its frustrating but it is part of a mom’s job 🙂
First I’m shocked and then I try to clean it up step by step!
After my children make a big mess. I soak their clothes in water and a little tiny cup of Dreft then I use all my energy to clean up. Thanks for the chance to win such an amazing giveaway.
I take a deep breath and hug her telling her we all make messes sometimes. I then clean them up and have a nice cup of hot tea with a Oreo cookie.