bathing toddlers only a couple times a week?

[♥ms.pacman♥]

is this weird? my kids haven't had a bath since Sunday night :bag. DH is been out of town all week, they've had swimming lessons every afternoon, and i'm downright exhausted by the end of the day. after dinner every day i have been taking them outside to play in the water, and they get completely soaked again so i feel less bad about it.

Do you think this is gross/unhealthy? we used to give kiddos baths every single night before bed, then early this year in the winter we decided to do every other night, bc i think it was drying their skin out too much. We then realized how it's soo much easier on us to not bathe every night... and lately we got down to once every 3 days or just shampooing them outside as they are playing in the baby pool, bc we figured they are getting soaked multiple times a day already, with swimming, splash parks, etc. when DH is OOT i just slack off and only bathe them once during the week. I feel bad, but i just hate having to kneel and bend over and shampoo/rinse their hair, and then have to deal with naked kids running away from me and refusing to get dressed and not having any sort of "backup" to help me out...

[elliput]

:ROTFLMAO: I figure as long as my kids aren't covered in dirt and/or are stinky, they don't need a bath.

[BDKmom]

I think it's fine, especially since they are swimming and playing in water. We only bathe DS every other day, and that's mostly b/c he plays outside and sweats. When it's not summer, we go to about every three days. And the baby does good to get once a week.

[JBaxter]

2x a week is our standard unless they are visibly dirty

[Smillow]

Swimming totally counts as a bath in my book.

[SnuggleBuggles]

That's how we roll here too. No one has been called stinky and they look clean so I assume it's just fine.

[AngB]

DS hates our kid pool but still just gets baths about 2x a week or so, just depending. If we're outside a lot (sweaty/dirt) or whatever, he gets baths more. But honestly, this summer has been so stinking hot (100+ degrees more days than not), we really haven't spent a lot of time outside, especially since I'm pregnant and high risk. I do actually try to bathe DS the same days we go to the pool just because I don't like the thought of the chlorine on his skin all night.

[scriptkitten]

We bathe nightly unless there are extenuating circumstances. It's just part of the routine. I do let themselves "soap themselves" up about 40% of the time tho and only hair wash 2x/week

[queenmama]

We were that way... really up until the last couple of years, since he got old enough to actually stink.

[jammytoast]

We bathe every night, even after pool (hate the chlorine smell) however, after a pool day bathe = quick rinse off in the showers in the locker room with just a dab of shampoo (or just a dab of leave in conditioner for little miss Long Hair)

[hillview]

Ditto here -- totally fine in my book

[ncat]

DS gets baths only 2-3X per week. BUT - I try really hard to make sure he gets at least a rinse off after going to swim in the pool, pond, or ocean. I do not want chlorine, pond scum, or salt left on his skin/hair.

[jgenie]

DC get a bath here when they're visibly dirty or stinky. Sometimes that's daily, sometimes it's a lot less often. Works for us. :)

[wellyes]

You're all good. Don't give it another thought.

[BabyBearsMom]

We do every other day. DD1's hair gets greasy if we go much longer and DD2 is a sweaty baby and loves the bath. The only reason I wouldn't go longer is that my kids where sun screen everyday and I like to wash that off.

[brittone2]

Ditto here -- totally fine in my book
:yeahthat:

[scrooks]

We are the same way... In fact DH and I had a discussion this morning about when they got their last baths.... Not sure... I think sunday!

[twowhat?]

I don't think it's weird at all.

We do baths daily only because it's part of our (very strict LOL) routine, and because I want to wash off the germs from daycare before they get in their beds. Actually recently we've been doing showers, and I use a really minimal amount of soap just in their hair/face, hands, and butt area and just rinse everything else...it's so fast and our shower is big enough for both girls and me to get in so I love doing it this way...I don't see how that's much different than you letting your kids play in the sprinklers with fresh water:)

[fedoragirl]

Once a week bath in this household for the kids. Never been a problem.

[rin]

We do a nightly bath for DD1 as part of the bedtime routine, BUT we only use soap/shampoo once a week unless there's visible grossness somewhere. DD2 (6 weeks) doesn't really have a bedtime routine; she's getting baths slightly less often than once a week! (We do wipe down her face/neck rolls/etc pretty frequently though, because she's a totally spitter.)

[mom3boys]

I think it's fine!

We usually do baths nightly (that means 2 separate bathtimes, 1 for DS3, another for DS1 & 2), but largely because they all love the baths and get upset when we don't do them. Also, in the summer they do get kind of grimy/sweaty, even DS3 because he is crawling and hates shoes so his knees/feet get dirty.

If we let the older kids stay up late to watch a movie or are coming home late in the evening or something it's with the stipulation of no baths. Also, they are old enough, to save time I will sometimes do a shower instead of a bath for DS1 and 2. Much faster.

When I have all 3 myself I sometimes do 1 bath for everyone or skip one routine (either DS3 doesn't get a bath or DS1/2 don't).

When my older kids were your kids' ages the bath was my LEAST favorite chore. So I would totally skip it sometimes, especially when I was on my own, or do a "sponge bath" if they were a little dirty (basically, wipe them down with a wet washcloth).

[lizzywednesday]

I only wash DD if she's smelly and/or grungy. Or, of course, we're going somewhere special like a party or something like that.

It's been the same since she was a newborn.

I have sensitive skin prone to dryness; I strongly suspected DD would be the same.

It never occurred to me that daily bathing would need to happen.

[ChristinaLucia]

I think swimming counts as a bath

[Ms B]

Sounds good to me!

The Biscuit gets a bath more or less every other night, but we skip Friday baths if he is going to play in the spouters at the park the next morning and other nights if we have something going on, one of us is traveling, etc. But since he started walking a couple weeks ago, we do wash off his feet with a wet washcloth every night at bedtime (so that his sheets do not get dirty).

[deborah_r]

We are usually 2-3x a week here for the kids, but whenever they swim I always make them do bath or shower before bed. I thought it was bad to leave the chlorine on them (and if it is a public pool, I wasn't sure how sanitary it was to not bathe after that.) Sounds like I've been worried about it for pretty much no reason?

[codex57]

We often only bathe our kids every other day. Summer it's more often cuz if their school lets them play outside, they sweat a lot more than if they're just inside (they often keep them inside if it's too hot outside or the air quality is bad).

That said, if they go swimming, they get a bath. There's too much crap in the water. Particularly if it's a swimming pool. If it's a creek in your backyard, well, I'd wanna know what's upstream, etc.

[joonbug]

My 3 yo started taking showers which is a solution if I m tired lol.

[BabbyO]

totally fine IMO. We do every other day for baths...but it often stretches to every 2 - 3 days at the end of the week. I think my kids haven't bathed since Monday...but then they bathed Sat, Sun, Mon because they were filthy! DS2 got a "Navy Shower" on Tue night because he was so dirty from crawling. (Black knees and feet)

[pastrygirl]

My boys have eczema, so they only get a bath or shower twice a week, maaaaybe three times. It's been that way for as long as I can remember!

[Momit]

We don't do baths every day. DS takes a swimming lesson on the weekend and showers after (no soap or shampoo, but a good 5 minute shower in the locker room). The we'll do maybe 2 baths other than that. Usually soap & shampoo only once a week unless he's really dirty and sweaty. It has been so hot this summer that we're not outside much, unless he's in the sprinkler and then I totally agree with PPs that that counts as a bath! Sometimes DS asks to take a bath just because he enjoys it, and he did go through a period where he wanted one every night, but it really doesn't seem necessary to me.

[♥ms.pacman♥]

thanks everyone! makes me feel tons better. :) dh is coming home tonight and the kids will get baths then. i just hate giving kiddos baths, definitely my least favorite chore!!

[lchang25000]

We take DS swimming every Sunday morning and then give him a bath that night. Sometimes that's his only bath during the week, but I usually give him a second bath mid-week. I wash his arms/hands and legs/feet every night after he's done playing outside after dinner.

[mom3boys]

i just hate giving kiddos baths, definitely my least favorite chore!!

When I was expecting DS3, I kept thinking "I can't believe I just signed myself up for 3 more years of baths!" This was worse to me than years more of diaper changes! Although 1 kid in the bath is much easier than two . . .

[Giantbear]

we go every 3 days or so, dd has real dry skin

[mmsmom]

We do baths every other night year-round. DC's are 5 & 3 and they bathe together so that helps. Also DH does the bath... if it were up to me it would probably be less (and it was only 2-3x/week when they were babies). On pool days that are not bath days we do send them in the shower for a quick rinse because the chlorine seems to irritate their skin.

If they seem dirty & it is not bath night we do a "baby wipe bath".... use 2-3 wipes to wipe them down.

[♥ms.pacman♥]

When I was expecting DS3, I kept thinking "I can't believe I just signed myself up for 3 more years of baths!" This was worse to me than years more of diaper changes! Although 1 kid in the bath is much easier than two . . .

LOL, that's so funny, that's my attitude too!! i've been cloth diapering for 2.5 years (almost 1.5 years being TWO kids)...diaper laundry/folding every other day, spraying nasty poop off, etc....and that i don't seem to be bothered as much as giving baths. i really hate having to kneel down and bend over and scrub kids heads and deal with the rinsing, crying, and then chasing down naked toddlers to put their pj's on..at the end of the day i'm tired and at my breaking point. and yeah, bathing 2 kids is harder bc then i have to referee and make sure they don't push each other and knock each other down or steal each other's toys. i consider myself so lucky that when DH is actually in town he always does the baths without complaining.