I once heard someone complain that their children would scream and carry on when it was bath time. They were uncontrollable and afraid of bath time, even hysterical.
When I had the opportunity to care for these children, for a few months, I found the children to be quite happy at bath time, especially after the first few times that I bathed them. Even the first time was not that bad. It made me think, and I realised that the parents and carers of these dear children had no idea of how to care for these precious treasures, let alone how to bath them.
Caring for your children should be a natural motherly tendency. If you genuinely love your children sacrificially, like God loves us, then you will want to care for them well. Here are some things that I have learned, and want to share with you, about bath time for your tiny tots.
If they are learning to sit, put them in a small round tub that is just big enough to sit them in with a little water around them. In this way, they can hold onto the edge of the tub for balance and not fall over into the water. My tub had handles on the edge, like a laundry tub, which my children used to poke their toys through. Flannels make great toys too.
Children must sit when they are in the bath. Letting them stand up will lead to slipping and nasty falls. Once again make sure that the toys etc. in the bath are soft. If your child does fall into the water, they won’t hurt themselves on something hard or sharp.
Bath time is a fun time. Give your children toys that are soft and not so small that they can be eaten or swallowed. As you children grow older, they will love to play with simple plastic bowls and utensils from your kitchen cupboard. They’ll have a great time cooking up something in their imagination. Let the children splash. After all, bathrooms are supposed to get wet and so are the children. Enjoy it with your kids. Get a little stool and relax next to the bath. Have a rest and enjoy watching your child/children play. Show them how to play, they will copy you and have heaps of fun. They will want to squirt Mummy, so be careful!
Beware of the tap and water faucet. Taps are usually very close to the bath and in reach of the children. They are hard and sharp and nasty if your children fall towards them. Once again teach your children to sit. Taps can be very hot too. Try and run the hot water first and then cold water last, so that the tap cools down. I wrap a towel around the taps and faucet so that it is a soft landing for a fall and no one can be burned. Also, the children cannot turn the tap on to let more water into the bath. Obviously you need to teach your children about this, as they grow older.
Baths can be very slippery, even when your children are sitting. The base of your bath may be a bit cold or rough for a little baby's bottom. After a play in a sandpit or a visit to the beach, there can be quite a lot of sand present on the base of the bath. I would take a towel, drench it with water and place it under the child.
Teach your children to care for each other. Your children are watching you. If you genuinely care for your children, they will learn to care for each other. Reinforce this teaching with reminders. Your children will be of different ages and capabilities. They must watch out for the younger ones. If you have more than 2 children in the bath at once, place the youngest child between the edge and your eldest child. The eldest child will be the most responsible and caring, and the child will have a bath edge to steady themselves. Make your children stay in their own spot in the bath. Don’t let them swap places or push past each other. They need to respect each other’s space. Give each of the children sufficient toys, so that they can all have a good time.
Always watch your children. God has given you an awesome responsibility and a great treasure. Don’t shirk the responsibility and don’t miss out on the treasure of watching them grow and enjoying their antics. From observation on my part, children usually always get hurt when Mum isn’t watching and she hasn’t taken sufficient action in preparing a safe place for her children. Even when they are out of the bath, always know where they are, check them regularly, and be constantly listening for happy sounds or disturbing sounds.
Never pour water over your child’s head without warning. It is not natural to enjoy water pouring over your head. It sends a person into survival mode and panic, as the water runs into their mouth and they cannot breathe. Do not use hot or cold water. This is cruel and not safe.
When you need to wash your child’s head, teach them slowly.
Firstly, do it with warm water from the bath with no soap in it. Just pour a little the first time. Teach them to tightly close their eyes, so that the water does not sting their eyes. You may wish to pour water from your jug in front of the child first, so that they can see what you are doing. If the child is old enough, you can explain that you are going to pour a little on their head. Get the child to put their chin on their chest, so that the water will not run over their face. After their eyes are tight shut (you can show them how to do it by tightly shutting your eyes for a moment), put your hand over their eyes so that the water will run over your hand and not over their eyes. Only do a very little bit of water and let the child open their eyes. They will learn to trust you and the water and it will become fun. You can slowly pour for longer and longer. Eventually you can even take your hand away and the child may let the water run over their face. No soap is involved yet.
Secondly, use soap sparingly. Often water is enough for a good clean. If your children learn to enjoy the bath, they will get so soaked that they will be squeaky clean by the end of it. When soaping your child’s hair, just put a tiny bit of soap on your hand and rub it gently on their head, like a soft massage. Use a safe, chemical free soap sparingly (For us, we make a lovely homemade body soap from coconut oil). Make sure their hair is not dripping wet, so that the soap doesn’t straight away start to run down to their face. Have their chin down and the your other hand over their tightly shut eyes. Don’t take too long. Get it over and done with. Rinse the hair with the water from the bath, like you did in the first step. Make sure there is no soap on their face. If your child gets soap in their eyes, it will sting. Rinse the eyes thoroughly.
As your child becomes confident they will learn to pour water over their own heads and wash their own hair.
Don‘t let your children pour water over each other’s heads, unless they have your permission and the permission of their sibling.
Getting out of the bath can be quite a trial. Bath walls are high for little children, and quite an effort to get over. You may have to lift them out or teach them to use a stool that is not slippery. Place a mat or towel under the stool so that is doesn’t move when they step onto it, or rather scramble onto to it. The towel will also soak up extra water and give a non slip surface to stand on.
When I had the opportunity to care for these children, for a few months, I found the children to be quite happy at bath time, especially after the first few times that I bathed them. Even the first time was not that bad. It made me think, and I realised that the parents and carers of these dear children had no idea of how to care for these precious treasures, let alone how to bath them.
Caring for your children should be a natural motherly tendency. If you genuinely love your children sacrificially, like God loves us, then you will want to care for them well. Here are some things that I have learned, and want to share with you, about bath time for your tiny tots.
If they are learning to sit, put them in a small round tub that is just big enough to sit them in with a little water around them. In this way, they can hold onto the edge of the tub for balance and not fall over into the water. My tub had handles on the edge, like a laundry tub, which my children used to poke their toys through. Flannels make great toys too.
Children must sit when they are in the bath. Letting them stand up will lead to slipping and nasty falls. Once again make sure that the toys etc. in the bath are soft. If your child does fall into the water, they won’t hurt themselves on something hard or sharp.
Bath time is a fun time. Give your children toys that are soft and not so small that they can be eaten or swallowed. As you children grow older, they will love to play with simple plastic bowls and utensils from your kitchen cupboard. They’ll have a great time cooking up something in their imagination. Let the children splash. After all, bathrooms are supposed to get wet and so are the children. Enjoy it with your kids. Get a little stool and relax next to the bath. Have a rest and enjoy watching your child/children play. Show them how to play, they will copy you and have heaps of fun. They will want to squirt Mummy, so be careful!
Beware of the tap and water faucet. Taps are usually very close to the bath and in reach of the children. They are hard and sharp and nasty if your children fall towards them. Once again teach your children to sit. Taps can be very hot too. Try and run the hot water first and then cold water last, so that the tap cools down. I wrap a towel around the taps and faucet so that it is a soft landing for a fall and no one can be burned. Also, the children cannot turn the tap on to let more water into the bath. Obviously you need to teach your children about this, as they grow older.
Baths can be very slippery, even when your children are sitting. The base of your bath may be a bit cold or rough for a little baby's bottom. After a play in a sandpit or a visit to the beach, there can be quite a lot of sand present on the base of the bath. I would take a towel, drench it with water and place it under the child.
Teach your children to care for each other. Your children are watching you. If you genuinely care for your children, they will learn to care for each other. Reinforce this teaching with reminders. Your children will be of different ages and capabilities. They must watch out for the younger ones. If you have more than 2 children in the bath at once, place the youngest child between the edge and your eldest child. The eldest child will be the most responsible and caring, and the child will have a bath edge to steady themselves. Make your children stay in their own spot in the bath. Don’t let them swap places or push past each other. They need to respect each other’s space. Give each of the children sufficient toys, so that they can all have a good time.
Always watch your children. God has given you an awesome responsibility and a great treasure. Don’t shirk the responsibility and don’t miss out on the treasure of watching them grow and enjoying their antics. From observation on my part, children usually always get hurt when Mum isn’t watching and she hasn’t taken sufficient action in preparing a safe place for her children. Even when they are out of the bath, always know where they are, check them regularly, and be constantly listening for happy sounds or disturbing sounds.
Never pour water over your child’s head without warning. It is not natural to enjoy water pouring over your head. It sends a person into survival mode and panic, as the water runs into their mouth and they cannot breathe. Do not use hot or cold water. This is cruel and not safe.
When you need to wash your child’s head, teach them slowly.
Firstly, do it with warm water from the bath with no soap in it. Just pour a little the first time. Teach them to tightly close their eyes, so that the water does not sting their eyes. You may wish to pour water from your jug in front of the child first, so that they can see what you are doing. If the child is old enough, you can explain that you are going to pour a little on their head. Get the child to put their chin on their chest, so that the water will not run over their face. After their eyes are tight shut (you can show them how to do it by tightly shutting your eyes for a moment), put your hand over their eyes so that the water will run over your hand and not over their eyes. Only do a very little bit of water and let the child open their eyes. They will learn to trust you and the water and it will become fun. You can slowly pour for longer and longer. Eventually you can even take your hand away and the child may let the water run over their face. No soap is involved yet.
Secondly, use soap sparingly. Often water is enough for a good clean. If your children learn to enjoy the bath, they will get so soaked that they will be squeaky clean by the end of it. When soaping your child’s hair, just put a tiny bit of soap on your hand and rub it gently on their head, like a soft massage. Use a safe, chemical free soap sparingly (For us, we make a lovely homemade body soap from coconut oil). Make sure their hair is not dripping wet, so that the soap doesn’t straight away start to run down to their face. Have their chin down and the your other hand over their tightly shut eyes. Don’t take too long. Get it over and done with. Rinse the hair with the water from the bath, like you did in the first step. Make sure there is no soap on their face. If your child gets soap in their eyes, it will sting. Rinse the eyes thoroughly.
As your child becomes confident they will learn to pour water over their own heads and wash their own hair.
Don‘t let your children pour water over each other’s heads, unless they have your permission and the permission of their sibling.
Getting out of the bath can be quite a trial. Bath walls are high for little children, and quite an effort to get over. You may have to lift them out or teach them to use a stool that is not slippery. Place a mat or towel under the stool so that is doesn’t move when they step onto it, or rather scramble onto to it. The towel will also soak up extra water and give a non slip surface to stand on.
Here's to having a fun bath time and enjoying your little treasures.
Written By Guest Blogger
Mrs Evelyn Hair
(Our Precious Mother)
0 comments