Toddler bath time help!!

[3timesoccermom]

Mine took baths forever! It got them relaxed before bed-time and I was too afraid of them slipping and falling in the shower. The 19-year old still prefers a bath and looks forward to them when she comes home from college - the showers at school are claustrophobically small.

[Spanelli8706]

Mine took baths forever! It got them relaxed before bed-time and I was too afraid of them slipping and falling in the shower. The 19-year old still prefers a bath and looks forward to them when she comes home from college - the showers at school are claustrophobically small.

We started with showers at the recommendation of our Pediatrician. Our older DD was having frequent UTI issues and we switched to showers while they attempted to figure everything out and run tests. Once she was diagnosed and the showers were no longer necessary, DD told me she liked the showers better because it was like playing in the rain. And quite frankly, I think showers are a LOT easier. Both of my kids are little fish though- they LOVE the water.

[gatosqueak]

Great thread, thanks! Hopefully little man will like water. I don't do baths but my husband loves them. I would prefer to do the shower thing when is oldest enough. The closest I have to compare is our little 12 pound dog. She would freak out when the water was on her.. I get in the tub with her and fill it up a little and then turn off the water. Pour the water over her from the tub.. I think it was the running water that scared her.

LOL.

[JulieDB]

We started with showers at the recommendation of our Pediatrician. Our older DD was having frequent UTI issues and we switched to showers while they attempted to figure everything out and run tests. Once she was diagnosed and the showers were no longer necessary, DD told me she liked the showers better because it was like playing in the rain. And quite frankly, I think showers are a LOT easier. Both of my kids are little fish though- they LOVE the water.

Same thing here. Had to switch to showers. We also noticed a problem with caffeine. That did not cause UTI's but it did cause burning when she urinated. The Dr. said she could have one caffeine beverage per day. She had taken herself off of caffeine totally for a long time but now at 13 and living in the Seattle area, she has discovered coffee.

I don't know why we love our coffee so much here but we do! I started drinking it at 15. We had a coffee machine in our high school. I got it every day.

[ProudMommyof2]

My son is the same way. I just started getting it bubbly with the shampoo and then used a wash cloth full of water to sort of rub/rinse it out. But my husband started using the cup that came with the iron, its a skinny lil cup with a spout and works perfect for rinsing hair. Since we've started using it he doesn't fuss near as much.

[bluechicken]

We have two boys that have been with us for several months. At first, both freaked out and cried bloody murder when there was even a hint of water on their heads. Then one day my husband took them out to play in the rain.They loved it. Ah ha!! Now, it rains on their heads in the tub (we have a handheld sprayer in the tub/shower). Ducky, boat, and any other toys also get "rained" on. At first, it took making sneak attacks to get their hair rinsed off ... "oh, look it is raining on ducky(quick rinse over their heads), now it is raining onthe boats (another quick rinse)." Now, I can get them to look up at me and let me rinse their hair if I don't dilly dally about rinsing it off. The 2 year old is still more hestiant and sometimes tries to stand up. I too am worried that he will fall, so will be a bit mean about it and hold him down if he tries to stand up, while trying to get a quick rinse in and move the water of course.

[~~Who,Me?~~]

My DD2 does the same thing. I'm a mean mom and just go for it LOL. I try really hard not to get water in her face, but if she's flipping out, I just do it because by then it's too late.

Sorry I'm not any help.

Yeah, I hose them down with the shower nozzle. I count to 1-2-3 as I rinse, so that they know at 3 it's over. Sometimes I have to count really slow though Then again, some days they love it. And love it or hate it, when we're done, both my kids say "Thank you."

[niferanderson]

Two more quick thoughts:
1) It could be a control issue, where he just really wants to do it himself. My DD is that way! Once she started pouring a little water on her head, she tolerated it a little more.
2) Another possibility is it's about ears getting wet. DD hates having water in her ears, so she lies down in the tub with her hands over her ears to get her hair wet and for rinsing the front. She sits up and we rinse the back thoroughly.

Now that she has some control in the process and can "protect" her ears, she's perfectly happy to wash her hair, and even demands that we wash her hair. I don't miss the splashing and screaming in our very own torture chamber... er, tub.

[curvygreek]

We have a removable shower head and I've been using it on my son since birth, practically. It has an adjustable flow, and I used to rinse him on the trickle setting when he was an infant.

Who can say if that was a factor in why I've never had water-on-the-head issues with him? Maybe, maybe not. All kids are different--I've certainly dealt with screaming and tantrums at bathtime (moreso because he just didn't want to get in!)

You've gotten a lot of great suggestions and I sincerely hope one of them is the key to ending the bath time drama!! :) I really like the sticker on the ceiling idea and howling at the moon idea!

[qshoppinggirl]

I feel for you. my children liked water so I never had any problems. I wouldn't know what to do!