How often does your 4 year old bathe? - Page 2

[just__angel]

Top-n-tail nightly, bath once a week.

[weliveintheforest]

bath frequency changes for us based on what's going on. Sometimes its every night, sometimes its every 2-3 days. Shampoo is only once a week.

[karanyavel]

When DD was 4, she was climbing into the shower with me a few times a week and pretty much just rinsing off. Occasionally she asked for me to squirt a little body wash in her hand and would use that.

She's 6 now and takes baths almost every day. She has oatmeal soap to use if she wants to, and hypoallergenic bubble bath (she has eczema). A lot of times she just soaks/rinses in plain water. I can't recall the last time her hair was washed with shampoo. It has been months, I'm sure.

Interestingly, DD has much nicer skin and hair -- and smells nicer -- than anyone else in our family and the rest of us wash with soap and shampoo our hair every day. She *does* wash her hands with soap and water several times a day (after using the bathroom, after eating, etc.). DD looks, feels, and smells clean so I don't worry about it. I'm not sure if this is an effect of not using soap very often and almost never shampooing, or if it's just because she hasn't hit puberty yet.

For now, though, less seems to be more.

--K

[EdnaMarie]

I am hoping once her little sister can sit in the tub she they can bathe each night and give me a break!

That's when mine started daily baths. They love it. Before that she just showered with me or when needed.

[mizzoh]

we do it every night - it's just part of our bedtime routine and helps ds get in the mood for sleep.

i don't use soap every night though - only if he is really dirty or had sunscreen on or something like that. we wash hair maybe once a week, tops.

[Llyra]

Mine aren't quite four yet-- but I'll answer anyway. It varies by season. In warmer weather, when they're outside a lot, they bathe as needed, which usually works out to be every day, or at least five days a week. But in the colder months, they don't need to be washed that much. I guess maybe twice a week, or possibly three, but I sometimes just let them play in the warm water, and skip the soap and shampoo. They do get soaped at least once a week, though.

Before potty training, they got washed more, because of poop.

[Alyantavid]

5 nights a week. There are 2 nights we skip completely (Monday and Friday) but he takes a bath every other night of the week although I only wash his hair every other night.

Baths have always been part of our bedtime routine and my kids love them. They could spend hours playing in the tub.

[teeg1973]

Thank you all for your input! Also, I apologize....I should have left it open for a larger age range. I am not too stuck on only age 4, just was in that mindset since that is how old DD is (even though she just turned 4).

I realize that this topic spans quite a range of responses, which is expected, I am just reassured that I am not crazy for not giving my child a shower/bath every day! DH believes that she needs a bath every day. This is how he was raised and even when kids are at his mom's house to this day, they get a bath every night. I don't think it is necessary for most kiddos. Plus, I honestly have not made room in our daily routine for it....I could if I had to, but I have not. Personal preference I guess.

I typically bathe DD 2-3 times a week....occasionally more or less as needed. Summer time or when she is sweaty or grimy, she gets them more frequently. I will have her wipe down her vagina/bottom most mornings with a wet wash cloth.

Anyway...thanks again for the reassurance.

Tracy

[busymama77]

I say every other day right now, but during the summer months, it was everyday because he was outside sweating, in the dirt, in the rocks, touching things, being around other kids... It just grossed me out. Now, that the weather is getting cooler, he isn't outside as much. Winter, it'll be every other day if not 2-3 times a week.

[Qbear'smama]

I said 2-3 times a week, but this past summer it was every day, DD was waaaaaay too dirty, like caked in dirt, each day. Now she's not getting quite so dirty so it's a few times a week with surface cleaning as necessary.

[ChetMC]

I Said Other

Our kids aren't bathed on a schedule. They are bathed when they are dirty, or when there is some reason for a bath (it's hot, they ask to play in the tub, etc).

The maximum duration between baths is seven to eight days. The greatest number of baths one child has had in a single day is four. It probably averages out to twice a week for a four year old.

[lonegirl]

DS turns 4 in one month....he gets a bath about every 5 days...of course if he is playing in the sandbox or mud puddles then more often. He starts his bath with a hair wash....then he can play (usually a good 15-20min)

[mamadelbosque]

I think I voted every 2-3 days (voted a couple days ago...), but tbh, ds1 has had one bath in the last... nearly 3 wks. BUT! Thats cause' he broke his leg (and no, we couldn't get a waterproof cast - and yes I asked.), and he hates baths besides, and its not like he's running around outside getting dirty - we're sitting around, coloring, painting, playing with playdough, etc. But normaly every 2-4 days he gets a bath. DS2 gets slightly mroe as he gets them w/ ds1 and occasionally with me...

[JustVanessa]

My 5 and 2 year old boys get bathed every night....the 2 year old because he is usually dirty in some sense. The main reason its every night is to help relax them for bed and I believe its a good habit to get into. One day they will be pre teens/teens/men and I don't want my kids to be that stinky guy no one likes.

[Cascadian]

*

Edited by Cascadian - 6/2/11 at 8:36pm

[ssh]

My almost 5 year old DD bathes or showers whenever she wants. That can be as often as twice a day to 3 times a week. Getting wet makes her more alert so it's not a bedtime thing. If she gets dirty, sandy, or covered in paint she washes off. She uses soap on her hands a few times a day and sometimes her feet. She doesn't use shampoo very often but her hair is still shiny and looks clean. Maybe using shampoo makes a person need to use it or maybe it's just not really needed until puberty.

[Kuba'sMama]

i said once a week

Plus one day shower at the pool after swim lesson. In the summer, we went to the pool everyday, so that'd be it. I noticed that her eczema (and my ds' too) went completely away once we stopped daily baths. It might be a coincidence, although I suspect it has something to do with it.

[eepster]

I voted 2-3 times a week, b/c that is what is currently working for 4yo DS. My philosophy on baths matches ChetMC's:

Originally Posted by ChetMC

Our kids aren't bathed on a schedule. They are bathed when they are dirty, or when there is some reason for a bath (it's hot, they ask to play in the tub, etc).

The maximum duration between baths is seven to eight days. The greatest number of baths one child has had in a single day is four. It probably averages out to twice a week for a four year old.

There have been times when DS was getting a daily bath, and there have been times when we went quite a while between them for various reasons. My sister, whose basic philosophy is the same as mine, would bathe my nephew twice a day when he was 4 yo, b/c DN was a dirt magnet who loved baths anyway.

[mizliz72]

Well, SD is nearly 7, but she showers nightly except weekends or days off from school and then we are more lax. She shampoos and conditions and washes with Aveno body wash. I think when she was under age 5 it might have been a bath every couple days (and hair washed). She sometimes forgets to wipe after peeing, so I think washing every day is important. There have been weekend days when she hasn't washed, and she happened to be in her underwear lounging on the sofa, and I caught a wiff of her privates and was grossed out. I am trying to teach her the importance of being clean and dry "down there" because she's had chaffing/redness and itchiness in the past. Granted, I am probably not as informed about more "natural" ways in relation to bathing for kids or adults, but personally I like to bathe every day and think she should nearly every day too. Her maternal grandmother however doesn't make her shower daily (I think she just doesn't want to bother), and SD has said that Granny doesn't wash her hair because she doesn't want it wet when she goes to bed. That irritates me because it's not a big deal: either have her shower in the morning before the day's activities, or do what we do, braid her hair after the night-time shower.

[major_mama11]

Every other day in winter, every day in summer (but not soap/shampoo each time).