Bath Seats

[shannonG]

My son is 8 months old and too big for his infant tub. I'm wondering what everyone here uses for older babies. Did you buy a bath seat? How long do they last? I wonder if it's just a waste of money. I have put my ds in the bath without the infant tub and of course I have to hold him very carefully. This makes it impossible for him to splash and play...so I'm guessing I need a bath seat. What should I do? Thanks!!

[ellies mom]

I bought DD one of those inflatable tubs from Target. They had a yellow duck one and a Blue's Clues one. I had both (the cat killed the Blue's Clues one) but I liked the duck one better. DD could splash and play in it just fine. They run about $10-15. I'd give you a link but neither Target not BRU seems to be showing it.

[Saartje]

I used to bathe DS in the sink sometimes, when I didn't want to bother with the infant seat. Other times, I would get in the big tub with him, and let him play with me there to cushion him from the sides and make sure he didn't slip under the water.

These days, though, he does bathe by himself in the big tub (under close supervision, of course). Why do you feel you have to hold your son so carefully? If he doesn't sit up as well as Ishie, I can understand why (Ishie's very, very good at sitting up); but might you be underestimating what he's capable of? (I know my DS could have bathed alone in the tub a while before I let him, so that's why I'm wondering if your DS could, as well, since they're relatively close in age.) It's not like it matters if he moves around in the tub, as long as he doesn't slip under the water or bang his head on the side (or stand up, since that would put him at risk for falling).

[KrisM]

We moved to using a mat on the tub to make it non-slip. It took a couple times for DS to learn that if he reaches too far, he gets a face full of water, but he's done great with just the mat. Of course, now he tries to stand up in the tub...

[amp]

Nope, we never used one. We started in the sink (no baby bathtub here) and when he got too big for that, we showered while holding him or used the big bathtub. Until I was sure he could sit well in there, I put a bath towel on the bottom of the tub in case he needed it for traction as well as padding if he slipped. He handled it just fine. I had to steady him a few times, but he's never fallen in there.

If he isn't steady enough yet, he will be. I don't think the bath seat is necessary at this stage.

[mom2aidan]

I'm using the Eurobath for my DS who's 9 months. I transitioned him to this when he was 6 months since he also outgrew his infant tub then. The eurobath is like his own "jacuzzi". He has a lot of room to splash and play. He can probably use this until he's 2 years old since it's big enough.

[shannonG]

Thanks! I guess I just assumed that the bath seat was the safest...I'm glad to see that most of you don't use one since I'd rather not spend the money. Nathan can sit completely without assistance, I was just worried about the slipping. Our place is pretty small and we actually got a inflatable ducky bath from my baby shower but I've never used it since I felt that it would take up too much room and be a pain to blow up if I deflated it each time. Also, I really wanted the Euro bath and I decided not to reister for it because our bath tub is small and it seemed so big!! At this point I figure it's probably not worth investing in since he's already 8 months old. I think I'll look into some kind of a non-slip mat or do what a pp did and stick a towel in there!! I do bathe with him often and that works real well, but sometimes I'd rather not especially since I like my baths real hot!! Thanks for the insight...I'm pretty sure I'll pass on the bath seat!!

[lmintzer]

I think it really depends on the activity level of the child. Both of my boys are (were) so active that a bath seat was the only option for solo bathing (we could swing bathing just in the big tub with both of us there, one literally to hold him/watch him and the other to do the washing). Joshua crawls, tries to stand up, slips, twists, flips, etc. In the seat, he is containable, and I feel safe bathing him without help. I know bath seats are said to be dangerous and can lead to drowning. Well, I'm sure this is true, but I think the product can be used safely if the person bathing doesn't (under any circumstances) take his/her eye off the child. I never leave the room when bathing Joshua, and we've never had any problems.

When Jack, our very active 1st, got too big for the bath seat, we did get one of those huge, non-slip mats. It covered the whole tub. That was a good solution once he was a stable walker and not as likely to slip and fall if he stood up.

[KrisM]

We got our non-slip mat at Target. It's a big, orange fish. It's cute. And it makes us smile when we shower - it hangs on the wall between baths.

[Jennamax]

We used this - http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/stores/detail/-/baby/B0000D9SR8/qid=1109681367/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/102-8976837-9088943 until a few weeks ago.

It let DS sit in the big tub, and get used to it, but he was supported and couldn't slip around.