My baby mermaid (Huggies Little Swimmers)

Member Name: abbadabbado

Product:	Huggies Little Swimmers
Date:	30/04/09 (144 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: makes swimming hygienic

Disadvantages: costs a lot

I have been determined to introduce my toddler to the swimming pool from when she was a young age. As a result of this we have been going swimming on an almost weekly basis to get her confident in the water, and hopefully swimming at a fairly young age as well.
Besides all the swimming gear and floatation devices we have come across on our travels, we have also gone through a fair few packets of little swimmers nappies.
When my older daughter was born there was no need for extra protection in the pools and babies would go in without nappies. Obviously due to hygiene reasons, this isn't a practical solution when you have a pool full of babies, children and adults alike.
The solution on the market is little swimmers manufactured by Huggies. I am quite surprised they have cornered the market well with their swim nappies but no doubt it won't be long before something bigger and better will appear in competition.

When I first bought a pack of these nappies, I wondered how they would work any why I just couldn't put my daughter in one of her own nappies.
After reading up on them, I discovered that unlike normal nappies that expand when in contact with moisture (urine), the little swimmers are made with an absorbent material that doesn't expand like regular nappies.

This all sounds well and good, but if there are excessive leakages from your baby or toddler, where will they all go? Well in a nutshell they will stay in the nappy until you take it off, but if your baby has produced something other than a wee, then be prepared when you take the nappy off as it will still be there large as life, just like normal nappies.
On the positive side of this, the nappies can be removed simply and easily by pulling a tab at the side which almost rips the side of the nappy, making it easily to realise there are "extras" included in the nappy should you need to remove them.

The design of the nappies is done in an attractive way containing mainly Disney Winnie the Pooh or Finding Nemo designs. My daughter does prefer her Winnie the Pooh swim pants and can get quite upset when she has to wear Finding Nemo. I have to sneak them on her quick when I run out of Winnie the Pooh.
Due to their colourful designs you don't have to put a costume over the top of small babies if you don't want to. I have always added a swimming costume on top for personal preference. I don't think it looks quite the same without.

We've been using these nappies for months now and I find them a great thing for swimming. The nappies fit snugly around the baby's legs to hold in anything that might need to stay inside the nappy. They appear comfortable and my daughter never complains at them or tries to get them off.
Unfortunately they are disposable and they will take just as long to degrade as a standard disposable nappy. This doesn't make them very eco friendly, but I'm sure there will be something new o n the market to combat this one day. Unfortunately for me I want my baby to swim more than I would stay away due to not degrading the nappies.

The down side to these nappies are the cost. You can buy them in three different sizes to suit your daughter and they come in packs of 10-12 depending on size and will cost just over £5. This does work out quite expensive, but worth it to be able to indulge in one of the most important sports children can partake in.

Summary: a great idea for babies in water