Baths: Nightly or no?

[seagan]

We give our 27-month old a bath pretty much every night. It's part of our bedtime routine, etc., and works fairly well, though the transitions in and out of the bath can wear me out after a long day ("I don't want to take a bath! Want to play!" then later "I don't want to get out of the bath! Want to swim like a little seal!").

I also wonder if it's necessary to be so clean (probably not) and if it might be better at this point to have bedtime have more variation to it -- that is, so he doesn't need a bath to be able to relax, sleep, etc. I'm also wondering if it wouldn't make life easier for babysitters -- if we ever go out again, hah, I can dream can't I?

So: how common is it to do the nightly bath, and am I scrubbing unnecessarily?

Thanks, all!

darcy

[khrisday]

We do a nightly bath, it's a part of our routine and it helps to settle the kids, they also really enjoy it. I don't always wash them really well, and I definately don't wash their hair every single night. A consistent betime routine will actually help a sitter, IMHO.

[ladylee]

Isabel has never cared for baths--I wash her hair once a week & give her a thorough scrubbing. The other nights it's just tushie and toes .

[Monica]

We bathe every night because my 3 year old NEEDS it every night. We spend our days trying to get as dirty as we can, and we don't want all that sand between his toes in our bed!!! Sometimes that bath happens before dinner if we are really really dirty and if we are really really really dirty, it happens in the sink in the garage!

Baby in the morning, usually daily, but often we skip a day, depends on how stinky she is in the morning - poopies and sour milk you know.

[ebethmom]

DH gives our son his bath every night as part of the bedtime routine. This is my breather before I nurse DS to sleep. My job is to get the Fuzzi Bunz and the next day's outfit ready during bathtime. I usually manage a few minutes of computer time, too!

Hair only gets washed every few days. We hardly ever use soap. But the bath books and toys go in every time! We have to make sure that all nonsubmergibles are off the bathroom floor - everything within reach goes in the tub. (He nearly baptized Prayer Bear tonight!)

Sometimes DS gets two baths. Sometimes he insists on it, sometimes it's just a diaper explosion. He truly loves bath time.

[USAmma]

We do a daily shower, only because Abi insists on being in there with me. After I wash the essential places I use a flat drain cover to trap the water in the bottom of the shower and she plays while I shampoo my hair. Sometimes I soap her down but mostly I just let the water rinse her off.

Darshani

[nikirj]

It's kind of more recreation than anything else on some days, on some days it's just a wind-down, but on most days she needs it. DD is a pretty sweaty kid, and we try to at least do something outdoors each day. Plus, she usually bathes with her younger brother, and chances are that one of the two really needs a bath on any given night.

[earthmamafor3]

Thanks for this thread...I can work out some of my guilt

Poor baby #3...Indie only gets a bath about every third evening or so....It's soooo busy in the evenings, but I am really working on trying to get her one each evening to provide more of a routine and a smoother bedtime as we wean from nightime feedings. For awhile there last summer it was once a week, but yea, we swam a lot

when the other two were little they got one religiously each evening. probably where the guilt comes in. can you believe how much guilt we put on ourselves...??

whew, oK, thanks!!

[Liz]

A note in support of babysitters: I babysat a little girl when I was a teenager whose parents had me give her a bath every time I babysat. Either she had a bath every night or they saved them for the babysitter. She always wanted to wear her bathing suit in the bath tub so it was a big battle every time. I hated babysitting her. The other kids I babysat for always had their baths before I got there. I think this is the considerate thing to do personally.

(okay she was a total brat, too, so that may have had something to do with it!

[sleepies]

we usually do it in the morning

i give him a bath after he eats his breakfast EVERY morning.

i know a lot of people don't think they get "dirty", but i can't see how you could be more "dirty" than sitting around in poop and pee all day...as well as playing on floors etc. yuck.

besides, he loves his bath time and it is fun. i have never thought it was hard to do.

i guess it isn't life or death, but i think it might prevent some germs from taking "root" . who knows.

ps. i would not have the babysitter give them a bath. just do it before they get their sometime that day. or do it the next morning. or even skip a day. babysitters should be able to focus on just playing with and keeping baby safe.

[monpetitfils]

Ds gets a bath pretty much everyday. If he falls asleep in the car or we get home too late (which is rare) I just skip a day. No biggie. But yeah, I do like to give the otherwise constantly diapered areas a breather so to speak. I just fill the tub up to belly button height and add a little mild soap. I do wash the hair almost everynight too, but I think that's a personal thing with me. I never feel clean unless my hair is washed and I guess I am projecting my neurosis onto my ds. :LOL

DS is a very sweaty kid -- in the summertime he sweats so much that his hair (what little he has of it) is dripping wet and his feet stink! Plus, he LOVES to get dirty. He will roll that little sweaty head of his in the dirt if has the chance. :LOL Plus, he is learning to feed himself (for the past few months) and that is quite the messy process. At first it was very, very messy and we started with dinner only since a bath followed.

Our bedtime routine is bath, jammies, book (if not too tired) boob and sleep. It works well.

And lastly, he loves his bath.

[jjdoula]

we tend to do at least a quick dip in the kitchen sink every night, though typically every other night for a tub bath..depending on how entertaining the self feeding was that night..

We usually strip him to a diaper before putting him in his chair, so his favorite thing to do at the end of the meal is to stand in his chair so I can unhook his diaper,,the we do the "Naked Baby Flying" chant as he zooms to either the sink or the bathtub..

I have recently caught him trying to get his leg over the bathtub to climb in during the day..that's all good until he figures out how those magical faucets work too!

If I or Daddy hop in the shower downstairs he will side open the shower door and come in, usually wearing his nightshirt/diaper and socks,,,,I have learned to strip him when I strip just incase he decides to join me! Interestingly, when Josh climbs into the shower, his kitten Aslan will come in too! he will sit in the corner for a minute or so,,then slink out..anything to be with his baby!

[Mallory]

Well none of us take many baths and even when we do the amount of soap used is very little. A bar of soap lasts us a long time!

When I babysat alot I didn't mind giving baths. They usually didn't get too soaped, but I think that it can be a fun thing to do.

jjdoula

I have recently caught him trying to get his leg over the bathtub to climb in during the day..that's all good until he figures out how those magical faucets work too!

this is funny. Yesterday we were outside and ds#1 got dirt in his eyes, we were standing in the bathroom getting a wet cloth and ds#2 who is 17 months climbed in the tub and turned on the water I think the combination of shoes to make him a little taller and diaper to protect from the door tracks make him just able to climb in by himself. I was sure surprised!

[merpk]

Baths? Every night?

:LOL :LOL :LOL :LOL :LOL



Well, come to think of it, it's more like



Uh ... no.

- Amy

[indiegirl]

Bath every night with shampoo and conditioner (dd has VERY VERY curly hair and without the daily conditioner that we leave in it is wayyyy frizzy and gets ratted out) but no soap.

She loves the bath.

[hydrangea]

Not only do we only give them when necessary, but I justify it by believing that bathing too much dries out the skin. I have actually read that this is true and have seen it on myself. My skin is much healthier when I shower as needed rather than every day.

[indiegirl]

Originally posted by hydrangea
Not only do we only give them when necessary, but I justify it by believing that bathing too much dries out the skin. I have actually read that this is true and have seen it on myself. My skin is much healthier when I shower as needed rather than every day.

Not using soap and then a good coat of lotion keeps that problem at bay for us.

[sunbaby]

halei used to get a bath like 2-3 times a week, but now its every night(we are trying for a routine) plus she loves it and it relaxes her. we dont wash, per say, just sit in the tub. seems like a waste of h2o, but anything for her emotional health, you know? hair wash 2xs weekly.
as for babysitters, do what works for you and the kid. if you think it'll make the sitter's life hell to request bathtime, tip accordingly and be most gracoius. i babysat @ least 2xs weekly from 7th grade on, so i believe im a sympathetic voice- when you're 14, money talks. it is a tiny dose of unusual and much desired freedom to have 2,3,or 4 xtra dollars for lunch.

[Mothernature]

Absolutely not! I can't keep up with that kind of consistency. We bathe if we need it and sometimes that means several times a day but as far as making sure we do it every night before bedtime we most certainly do not. Also, dh works nights and that leaves it all up to me. By that time of day I really am worn out. We're doing good to get the teeth brushed and the story read.

[DiaperDiva]

Kailey and I shower once a day. Sometimes in the evening, depending on how dirty or how tired I am, or in the mornings before we go into work. If Kailey stays home with daddy he gives her a bath or she showers with him during the day.