Bath Time

Every night, the bed time ritual begins with a bath. Emerson loves a bubble bath. . .just like her mom. But bath time can be challenging with a child who can't sit up or hold their head up once they outgrow the standard baby bath tubs that offer complete support. Having the right tools is important to make bath time enjoyable. I get asked about how we deal with bathing all of the time, so I thought I'd share the ingredients for our bath time here.

First and foremost, you need a good bath chair that suits your child's specific needs. These aren't cheap and sadly often aren't covered by insurance as they aren't considered a "medical necessity". I think everybody is entitled to a bath! We were fortunate enough to be gifted with a Tumble Forms Starfish Bath Chair and it has been awesome for Emmy. It's very adjustable and has all kinds of bells and whistles for strapping, support, etc. We actually don't use any of the straps because Emmy is quite content just laying on it (with supervision, of course).



One challenge is how high up the chair is in the tub, so we have to fill the tub very full in order for her to actually be soaking in the water and not sitting above the water. Our bathtub isn't very deep, so I found a nifty little gadget called an Overflow Drain Cover that allows us to overfill the tub and ensure she gets to soak in the bubbles.



Another challenge I faced was the prospect of kneeling by the tub with one very bad knee. I also knew this wouldn't be an ideal situation for my back and lifting her in and out of the tub. So I found a folding Tubside Seat that allows me to sit instead of kneel. And it folds and tucks neatly out of the way when not in use, which is key in our tiny bathroom.

Lifting her out of the tub is not easy and needs to be an organized and coordinated endeavor. I found a Bathtub Elbow Rest which allows me to comfortably rest my arms on the edge of the tub for support and leverage to safely lift her out of the tub. Then she sits on my lap to get dried off and ready for transfer into her room for lotion, massage and jammies.



Finally, I spend alot of time pouring water over her to keep her warm and happy. We have a fun game where I ask where she wants the water, and she lifts whichever arm or leg she wants me to pour the warm bubbly water on. I find this Munchkin Shampoo Rinser to be the perfect tool because it holds a good volume of water, has a handle and is nice and flexible so you don't have to worry about bumping their sweet little heads when rinsing shampoo.



Now don't forget the bubbles!!