15 Life Hacks for New Parents

Sure, sure, you read the parenting books and the blogs, but there are a lot of parenting tips you don’t know. Here are 15 parenting hacks to help you out. Remember the best parenting hack is to know this: You are doing a good job. You've got this.

Mix one part Dawn dishwashing detergent with two parts hydrogen peroxide for the most amazing stain remover of all time. It removes poop stains from clothes and puke stains from carpets. Also, juice and pee stains. The possibilities are endless. Go forth and clean!

Instead of buying nighttime diapers, just buy diapers one size up. They’ll catch all that nighttime pee, plus they are cheaper and more cost-effective, since you will need them eventually.

Freeze berries or applesauce in an ice cube tray and use them to cool down hot foods like oatmeal.

MORE: 10 Cool Life Hacks for Your Kitchen

For teeny tiny babies, warm up the bath towel with a heating pad to help ease the after-bath screams.

Speaking of heating pads, they are also wonderful for warming a crib mattress to help your baby transition from sleeping in your arms to sleeping in the bed. Just make sure you don’t let the baby sleep with the heating pad. I mean, I know you know that, but I feel like I have to put it out there.

A friend of mine who breastfeeds likes to give her babies a bottle right before bedtime. It helps them get used to a bottle (should she want to go to Target for a long time) and it fills them up a little more so they can sleep longer.

You may have never thought this day would come. You can't wear skinny jeans AND own a minivan, can you? You're still finding your footing as a parent, and counting cup-holders in a seven-seat soccer-mom minivan is NOT where you expected to find yourself. But hey, on the plus side, you will be able to lug the kids to play group, and get all your groceries home in one trip. Positives in the place you least expected, huh?

Life can surprise you. Fortunately, so can an Allstate agent. They can help you with surprising things like saving an average of $3,000 off MSRP on a new car, even if it’s not the one you expected to buy. Just another way the good hands are doing more than ever before.

Washing baby socks in a lingerie bag helps fight their mysterious and ghostly disappearance. And once you see how many stray baby socks you have rolling around, you'll never not do this hack again.

MORE: 10 Clever Parenting Hacks

You know how when you try to take a shower and your baby strapped in the bouncy seat starts screaming the second you step in? The sound of the hair dryer works as some awesome white noise to help soothe those baby screams while you shampoo. Good luck getting clean.

White noise for babies is magic. You can use some great apps from the Apple or Google Play store, or plain old radio static works the best.

Say so long to lost mittens! The other day, a lady in a craft store told me to sew my kids’ mittens to a piece of elastic and string it through their coat sleeves. And guess what? It works. Score one for unsolicited old lady advice.

So, you’d think that if juice boxes are made for kids, they’d make the boxes less sensitive to squeezy hands. Whatever. You can solve that problem by pulling up the flaps on the side of the juice box and calling them “wings.” Tell your kid to hold onto the wings and it will lower the rate of juice box squeezing accidents.

I carry a pair of scissors in my purse for cutting food for my baby and toddler. It’s safer than carrying a knife, and it’s quick and easy to use on-the-go. Food scissors: Use them. Love them.

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Cut a sticker in half and put one half in the bottom of one of your child’s shoes and the other half in the other. That way, your child can match the stickers to put them on the right feet. I just started doing this with my 3-year-old. It works like a charm. Thanks, Internet.

During those terrible teething nights, I like to give my babies some Tylenol before bed. Then, four hours later (when the Tylenol has worn off), I sneak in and give them some ibuprofen to help ease their pain for the rest of those nighttime hours. Another friend of mine uses Orajel instead of Ibuprofen. The results are the same: Merciful sleep.

When traveling, bring extra outlet covers (or duct tape.) I guarantee you, the moment you set that baby down in the hotel room, he will go straight for the open outlets.