As baby gets older he will begin to love his bath. If the room is kept warm there is no reason why he should not be allowed a little extra time to splash around and enjoy the sensation of water on his skin and freedom from clothing. Eventually he will like to play with toys in the bath. However, no baby should be left in the bath without someone responsible being there to hold and watch him.
The water can now be made a little warmer so it does not cool down too quickly. Adding hot water when baby is in the bath is not a good idea. Baby can slide under the hot stream and be burned, or can slip over while mother’s hands are busy with the tap or kettle.
When baby is big enough to be bathed in a full-sized bath, sitting him on a rubber mat will prevent him from slipping. You can also get a special bath seat for babies who cannot quite manage to sit on their own. The seat sticks to the bottom of the bath with a suction pad and supports baby with a smooth ring around him under the arms. It will certainly help you to bath him, but it is not safe for him to be left alone in it.
If the doorbell or phone rings while you are bathing baby, always take him out of the bath and hold him in a towel while you answer it.
So how much water should be in the bath? For a baby up to six months, two or three inches of water is plenty, though for those in a seat more may be needed. When baby becomes a toddler, never fill the bath above his waist height – measured from a sitting position. Remember that children can drown in just one inch of water.
If you allow your baby or toddler some extra time to play in the bath, this should be before adding soap and washing him, not after. Some babies’ skin can be irritated from sitting in soapy water for any length of time. So, allow play in plain water, then add soap, wash baby and get him out straight afterwards.
Bath toys are fine for baby to play with while he has his bath. A bath toy can often distract baby while mother attends to the important task of cleaning him. However, babies will usually put such toys in their mouth, so take them out before you add the soap to prevent baby from swallowing chemicals.
Babies often go through a stage where they love to splash their bath water. Removing things like clean clothing that should not get wet will help you to enjoy this stage as much as baby does. Keeping plenty of bath towels on the floor will ensure that it does not become too slippery and pose a hazard for you or other children. Toys can often distract baby from splashing if the habit becomes a nuisance.