Since the trend is for most people to have kids, and since moms are in the target shopping audience for advertisers, I think it would be very beneficial for more large stores to include them. If I knew for sure that if I just could get to the store, that there was a place where I could comfortably feed her, change her diaper, and chill out for a moment, I would make the trip to a lot more stores. I would spend a lot more money at a lot more retailers.
On a recent adventure to Target, the changing station was in the doorway and next to the hand dryer. Hand dryers scare Lily right now. We walked to the store, and we eventually needed a place to nurse before heading back. We found a spot in a small, semi-crowded food court area of the store.
Ikea is always a good place to go. Not only are there many places to stop and sit (displays) along the route, but they have a mother's room, too. It has two changing tables, some kids toys, two comfy chairs, and it's own restroom. So, you can pull your stroller in and use the restroom. Or, older kids can take turns using the restroom and sitting in comfy chairs while you change a diaper.
The best mother's room was at Babies 'R Us in Seven Corners, VA. There is a couch, coffee table, two rockers, and two foot rests. There is also a changing table. There's plenty of space for 5ish moms to be the room without stepping on each other. I spent considerably more time at this Babies 'R Us, and it really set the bar for me. Having this space has made all the difference for us. When we're freaking out about the trip to the store, we can just take as long as we need to regroup before shopping or before heading out on the road again.
I think it was the Buy Buy Baby in Springfield, VA that has a comfortable spot, but the space isn't well set up and the changing station is across the store in the bathroom.
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| Mother's Room at Buy Buy Baby in Rockville, MD |
The worst mother's room I have seen was at the Buy Buy Baby in Rockville, MD. They converted a dressing room into a nursing room. There were two comfy chairs, no foot rests, and I could put my feet on the wall if I wanted to. There were several signs on the walls that said not to change diapers in the mother's room, that diapers were to be changed in the restroom. The restroom was on the other side of the store, and it was just a standard restroom. It had one of those changing stations that was attached to the wall. I hate those things. Lily hates those things.
On our adventures, I have really appreciated when there is an actual changing table available, opposed to just a changing station attached to a wall. Not all the changing stations are as stable now as they probably were when they were first installed. When there is a changing table, there is usually a place near it to place the diaper bag. Often, I have to juggle the diaper bag and the baby, as I don't want to set the bag on a bathroom floor. The changing stations are at different heights, and some of them come out of the wall horizontal, while others are vertical. Many of them are awkward, and Lily sometimes freaks out when placed on them. The idea that a mom would grab tissue paper to have a clean surface is long gone. I have never seen any sheets in any of those things. And, most of the safety belts are broken. So many people have so many kids, I cannot believe that this is what we're left with. Though, I sometimes feel lucky that there is even a place to change her diaper. And, we're always happy to find one of them in the men's restroom, since Daddy is on diaper duty. It is frustrating for me to almost always have to be the one to change her diaper in public, because I'm the parent that feeds and naps her, too.
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