Bathing your Little Ones

As a nurse and a midwife I've shown many parents how to bath their baby - it's a scary thing to do for the first time, I can definitely appreciate that and had those same feelings when I first bathed Eli {our eldest son now 11}. Jeremy learned to bath him first while we were in the hospital, I can still remember the face of the kind Health Care Assistant who showed him how. Here are my tips on bathing your baby;

1. Warm the bathing area - this might be the bathroom or if you have a portable bath it might be in the living room or kitchen. Have the space toasty and free of draughts and where possible have the bath at a comfortable height for you. There's nothing wrong with a bath in the kitchen sink when they're still teeny tiny!
2. Be prepared - have everything you need ready to go, hooded towel, nappy, creams, clothing and have it all within arms reach
3. Check the temperature - always start with running cold water and then adding hot water. I learned to check the temperature by dipping the inside of my wrist in the water but a bath thermometer is much more reliable
4. Start with the head - a hooded towel is a must have IMO, I like to start with washing the head. Keep the baby wrapped in towel while you wash their head with a wash cloth, drying it well before submerging the rest of their body in the water
5. Master the hold - baby's are slippery and I teach the same hold the kind Health Care Assistant taught us. Place your arm behind the neck and your forefinger and thumb wrapped around the armpit. 
6. Other tips - I like to time bathing for witching hour, it's a great wind down activity and something to pass the time. I also like to add a drop of oil to the water to help with their dry skin - something like Nature Baby's Sweet Almond Oil or coconut oil also works well too.

When Seb our 2nd son {now 5} was about 7 months old he and I discovered shallow baths where he could splash to his hearts content without being held but under my watchful eye. He absolutely loved thrashing around like a whale, water still gives him a lot of joy - one year he got a retractable hose for Christmas that he still loves to squirt and he holds our family record for the longest hot swim {at Lake Taupo Holiday Resort, a favourite of ours}...SEVEN HOURS he swam for, can you believe that?! For children 12+ Boon have created aesthetically pleasing essentials for feeding a bathing your little one. These bath toys will make bath time fun but when accompanied by Honeysticks bath drops or bath crayons you have a match made in heaven! 

Photo Credit - @michaela_inselman