The Poop Chronicles

If you follow my twitter/facebook status updates, you'll have noticed a few about Adventures in Babyshitting. This is one of those things new parents can't avoid or procrastinate on. When it comes out, it has to be dealt with. Especially if it's exploding out of their nappy and fast soaking through onto your white pants.
Everyone Poops...I think Jessicsa Simpson made that book famous back in her Newlyweds days. So everyone knows that everyone else is doing it, but I'm not sure if they are aware of the variety of poop out there. You just have to read The Story of the Little mole Who Knew it Was None of His Business to see the variety of animal poops but which book will tell you about the variety of baby poops? I've not found a fun pictoral version.
So, here's the story on what comes out of a baby for the first few months...
Meconium - baby's first bowel movements. A thick, sticky, tarlike dark bowel movement. Totally normal and totally gross looking. If you want a picture, go to the Wikipedia page on Meconium.
Breastmilk poop - watery, yellow, sometimes has a seedy appearance. After the meconium passes, breastfed babies will often poop after each feed. It's not very pleasant to deal with poop 10 times a day, but it's better than when they start saving up their poops for a day or two and then exploding through the nappies. This has been my recent experience with our 3 week old who has had to be bathed or showered and have her clothes soaked in stain treatment overnight after each bowel movement.
Formula poop - strained peas...that's what I hear. A bit thicker than breastmilk poop, and may have a more green or brownish tint. Usually formula fed babies poop a bit less often than breastfed babies because the formula takes longer to be digested. Formula poop is usually smellier than breastmilk poop too.
Solid-food poop - well, around 4-6 months when the baby starts on solids nappy changes get even grosser. Sugars in the fruits and vegetables change the flora and fauna of the digestive tract and the poop coming out tends to be browner, firmer, and way stinkier - everyone in a 5 mile radius will know a poop has taken place. Sometimes the poop is the color of the carrots baby ate or there are bits of undigested food in it; don't worry, that's totally normal.
So, there you have it. Simple, no frills, no illustration explanation of baby poop.

Oh, and I think I know why yellow is the preferred unisex colour now...why oh why do we have so much white in baby Wren's wardrobe?