Mom Tip--Best Public Place to Change or Feed a Baby in Atlanta

Here's another tip for the moms out there--or for anyone who finds herself at Atlanta's Phipps Plaza and in need of a place to change a diaper or feed a babe (or ... more than likely ... both!). The women's restroom at the Phipps Nordstrom has an outstanding area for taking care of baby business.

Nordies has done an excellent job of providing a private area for mothers to nurse and change babies--it's in a separate room within the women's lounge area. And it is nice. As you can see from the photo, the room is equipped with a padded changing area with a sink, paper towels, and trash receptacle right next to it. The room also features two comfortable chairs--a great place to feed baby and take a breather from shopping.

If I am at Phipps and need to change Kate or give her a bottle (not too much longer of that, though!) ... I will go out of my way to go to Nordstrom just to use their facilities. Word on the Mommy Street travels fast, and I have heard and seen the "mommy chatter" regarding this great changing area. I bet the store gets more traffic because of the inviting and clean atmosphere it provides.

This isn't part of the "room for mothers," but this is another sitting area just inside the women's restroom at the Phipps Nordstrom store.

Across the street at Lenox, I usually visit the women's room at Macy's to feed and change Kate because of its sitting area. When you first walk into the restroom, there is an open sitting area with a kind of circular walkway with a small wall in the middle. It's kind of hard to describe here (and I'm in a bit of a hurry), but trust me when I say that it is a confusing layout. When you walk in, you think the restroom is going to be one direction--but you end up walking around this wall in a circle to get into the restroom. I have done it myself. More than once.

ANYWAY ... When I would give Kate her bottle at Macy's, I would be sitting in this particular area (usually with other moms), and it was amusing to watch how many women would walk in, go the wrong way, and then realize the layout, etc. Perhaps one could liken it to gluing a quarter to the floor of an arcade and then watching the fun ensue. (Remember that old trick?) It really is a bad design. And speaking of quarters, if I had one for every gal I've seen go the opposite direction of the restroom because of that layout ... I'd be a richer woman!

Back to Phipps and Nordies ... looks like someone in the sign department needs a lesson in consistency. Take a look at these photos--both examples of what you will see just outside of the room for mothers. Technically, either of these could be correct--as could "Mothers Room" (sans apostrophe)--but they should be consistent.