The Joy of Bathtime!
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Bath water should be around 37.5 degrees.
In my work as Laura Poppins, I loved to create the ‘Laura baby spa’, this started with making the bathroom warm and cosy, with a heated towel for when baby comes out – music and massage. Its a lovely bonding time for parent and baby. A warm room can make a big difference. If you don’t have a radiator to warm the towel a hot water bottle wrapped inside can be lovely and cosy. (Just make sure you remove it when you wrap baby up).
There is no rush to bath your newborn, that precious vernix on their skin is a magical substance that is there to protect them. I also like to wait until the cord has fallen off and healed. A good ‘top and tail wash’ is all they need for the first couple of weeks. Check back on my site to watch the ‘top and tail’ wash video.
Useful products for creating the ‘baby spa’
Baby Bath – or a bath support to use in the bath, Angel care is great. If you are using the main bath for little one a knee support for you can be a good idea. Or your partner or you in the bath ready to have some special 1:1 time with baby.
Angelcare Soft Touch Bath Support
If you are kneeling over the bath, a knee pad can be really useful. My little charge in Monaco loved counting the dots on this one!
Munchkin Dandy Dots Bath Kneeler
Shnuggle baby bathwith bum support & Cosy foam back support
Such a great product for a really good price. It uses far less water and keeps little one in a good position. It has a padded back support that keeps warm, I think a great option to have when you don’t want to fill the main bath up, or you just want to do a quick bath.
Cuddledry Hooded Towel
This one poppers up around your neck leaving you handsfree!
Bath Thermometer
I like the philips Avent flower
Natural chemical free bath products
I like the brands Kokoso Baby and Child’s Farm – organic and free of nasties. You only need to use a tiny amount.
Kokoso Baby Organic Baby Wash for skin & hair shampoo
Kokoso Baby Plant Based Baby Happy Scalp Cream
Kokoso Baby Natural Organic Baby Bath Konjac Sponge
Dr Bronner’s Organic Baby Castille Soap
I Love this brand and use many different varieties of it, I am yet to try this on my baby but it is one of the purest forms of soap. You only need to use a tiny amount so it will last for a long time.
Muslin
I love to cover little one in this as they go into the birth to prevent the moro reflex, you can use it to lower baby into the water and then take it off once they are comfortable and use it for washing baby.
Muslinz Premium Baby Muslins Squares
Soft baby hairbrush
Depending how much hair little one has!
Kokoso Natural Wooden Baby Brush
Nail clippers or scissor
Best to wait for a couple of weeks until the nails are stronger but good to do after bath as they are softer.
Tommee Tippe Closer to Nature Baby Healthcare & Grooming Kit
Music
Either a music box for them to watch or some lovely relaxing piano music for a lovely zen bath! There are some lovely ‘baby lullaby’ playlists on spotify.
When it’s time to get out of the bath
It is SO natural for little one to cry when they come out of the bath – but if you think about it, its horrible even for us getting out of a lovely hot bath. Warming the towel on the radiator can really help settle one, or you can use a hot water bottle to wrap the towel in before using. Have some cuddle time to settle little one, in the towel and possibly another cosy blanket before getting them dry and dressed.
Drying babies
Drying babies is really important – make special attention to the folds in the neck and also under the arms as this is where skin can build up and then smell!
As baby gets more used to baths and the evening routine, a massage can be a lovely relaxing time, even if just the feet and legs.
Kokoso Coconut Oil – this can be lovely for massage, try a small amount first as a skin test.
Another lovely option for bath time is for little one to bath with one of you, it can be a lovely bonding time. Just fill the bath to 37/38 degrees and pass baby to your partner, they can enjoy some skin to skin time and baby can enjoy the water feeling secure.
This can also be a great introduction to swimming. Simple activities like putting water onto the face and making movements in the water. A great book that I love is;
How to Teach Your Baby To Swim by Douglas Doman.
Be aware that squeezy bath toys can clog dirt inside, Cuddledry do some lovely ducks that do not allow this to happen.
Cuddledry Cuddleduck ‘No Holes’ Natural Rubber Duck Bath Toy & Teether
I also love the company Plan toys that create lovely toys out of recycled materials.
Cups can be great fun for bathtime and useful for hair washing, I really like these by Skip Hop.
Skip Hop Zoo Stack and Pour Buckets
Plan Toys Sailing Boat with Sea Dog
