This is a compilation of the ideas from my online group dealing with our babies and their baths...it's easier said than done to have a happy baby during and at the end of a bath it seems...and this is for after the umbilical falls off of course!!
- Make sure that the room is steamy by running the shower a bit before going in there with baby.
- Keep a warm washcloth on baby's belly the whole time - helps to stay warm.
- While shower is running beforehand, throw a dry baby towel in the dryer and then bring it up at the beginning of bath. it is really warm and you wrap that warm towel around baby, making him/her happier at the end.
- Bring clothes and diapers all in during the steaming part of the bath so they are warm too and put on baby while IN the bathroom if possible!
An idea I got from Dr. Sears was to take a bath and then nurse the baby in the bath with you - I did do this once and he really relaxed.
When all is said and done though, they get their bodies all regulated and enjoy the bath (and shower for that matter - sometimes we just hop in the shower with him in the morning if we were short on time the night before - it is very quick and he loves touching the water). For us, he started enjoying very warm water which caused him to poo but hey - at least it is just a baby bath and at least he pooed! (Bath is also a gentle way to help with constipation too!!) He was always happier after that! He still cried at the end for a few weeks and then that stopped. I never realized bathtime could be stressful but it can be until you get the routine down. I did like our bath hammock but it was hard to rinse him a lot in it and keep the water up so he stayed warm. He also just liked the sound of water so during our showers, it helped with congestion and kept him warm to bring him in the bathroom in the bouncy or carseat while we were showering!
I put him in the bouncy every time I took a shower in the morning (figured the steam was good for congestion) and he still goes in that bouncy while I shower - it's like the one thing he really does great - he lets me get a good 15-20min (sometimes) shower!! :) Just a suggestion - he liked the sound of the shower to begin with and well, now he just likes being in there outside the shower with me.
