Bathing toddler

When do you start to let you child bath alone?

DS is great in the bath but he stands to get his toys which make me really nervous that he is going to slip and bump his head or something. I have been running out quickly lately to grab his towel if I forgot it or get DD if she is crying but I just cannot leave him to have a bath on his own. SIL has let her children bath on their own since they were a lot younger than DS (they would have been just over a year old). So am I being overprotective? What age was your child/ren when you started putting them in the bath and going to do something else? I haven't posted this for ppl to feel judged by anyone, just curious what other ppl do.

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What age was your child/ren when you started putting them in the bath and going to do something else?

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...umm prob 7 or 8 years - we havent got that far yet. My oldest is 5, but i just wouldnt leave ANY of them in the bath till this age. I may clean the bathroom mirror, or file my nails whilst sitting on the bath edge, but i just wouldnt walk out of bathroom - it can happen so quickly, even to a 5 year old.....

[QUOTE][What age was your child/ren when you started putting them in the bath and going to do something else? I/QUOTE]...umm prob 7 or 8 years - we havent got that far yet. My oldest is 5, but i just wouldnt leave ANY of them in the bath till this around 8yrs...... I may clean the bathroom mirror, or file my nails whilst sitting on the bath edge, but i just wouldnt walk out of bathroom - it can happen so quickly, even to a 5 year old.....

I dont leave Toby alone in the bath at all...He tries to climb out over the edge even when im looking!

My eldest is 2 and is definitely not left alone in the bath for more than a couple of seconds. If I have to leave because I have forgotten a towel, I get him to talk to me until I get back in the room. That way I know he is OK. Luckily he loves to talk.

I would probaby allow him to bath alone when he is about 6 or so but I think I would make sure I am just outside the door. It will be interesting!

MBear: I usually clean the bathroom or fold clothes while I'm in there too if Ashlea isn't in there. I agree it can happen so quickly which is why I'm paranoid about leaving him.

K: Jayden used to try and climb out, but he doesn't as much anymore.

Courtney: Its only ever been a few seconds that I have left Jayden too and even then I get worried! I tell him to sit down (if he had been standing) and I talk to him too if he's not already chatting away to his toys hehe

Most times Ashlea is having a bath too and obviously she can't be left even for half a second (especially with a brother like hers!). There has just been the odd time that I have forgotten the towel or I quickly get Ashlea and bring her in if she has woken up.
Thanks for your responses, its nice to see I'm not the only "over protective" mother.

Gee I'm going to look like a shocking mother - I leave DS in there all the time.... I take DD out of the bath (cos they bathe together) and take her to the loungeroom - which is at the other end of the house - but to be fair its like 8 metres away, I have a tiny house) and I have done this for ages!!! He's right though, constantly chats away to himself, and he doesn't stand up in the bath anymore......

So judge away if you must.... or call me a bad mother... ;)

I trust him *shrugs*

I leave mine too and have for awhile, like Mel I have a tiiiiny house, and if the chattering/splashing stops, I pop my head in. I won't do something I can't leave straight away, like breastfeeding or cooking while he's in the bath though.

Arimeh, if you're a bad mother then so am I :lol:

I have a 7 yr old and a 2.5 yr old, I've started leaving the youngest in there by himself in recent months and it's the same age as my eldest was when I did the same thing. I'm literally a few metres away, in the kitchen doing dishes or in the lounge folding clothes. When I'm in there, he jumps around, but when I leave him to it, he sits and talks to the dolls in the bath with him, plays with the toys, etc etc.

Obviously I'm turning my head every 10 seconds or so to look at him, and if I hear him stop talking/making noise, I rush in to check on him.

Yep, I leave DD1 in the bath while I take out DD2 and dress her. It's basically in the next room so I can hear every move she makes and I run back if she goes quiet (that rarely happens, she doesn't stop talking, lol) She doesn't stand in the bath though.

At this stage I dont becuase he stands up and jumps and does silly things, prob not before he goes to school.

Because I have had such big gaps with my kids I have always had an older one in with the younger one and can leave them. I guess the younger one has been 1 when I started leaviing them alone with the older one.
I love bathtime atm cause Erin and Riley get out of my hair for at least 15 minutes LOL

I leave DD for a few seconds only to grab the nappy bucket or laundry basket. Our laundry is in the bathroom so I normally put the washing on while she is in the bath. If I do have to leave the room for a short time I get her to start singing a song so that I can hear her singing while I am out of the room. I have done this since she was about 2.5yrs. I don't think I will leave her alone for more than a minute until she is at least 5. She is pretty good and doesn't muck around in the bath but still I get worried.

I don't think your being over protective at all, IMO 1 is too young.

I have been letting the boys bath since they were 3. Probably a little earlier with my youngest. Having said that the bathroom is in the middle of everything, and my house is tiny. If I was in a bigger house I probably wouldn't leave them like I do.
They also don't muck around. They know not to stand in the bath and they just sit there and play with their toys. If the noise stops, which is usually loud enough to be heard at the other end of the street, my head is in there within 10 seconds.

Tan I've been thinking about this thread.... and nobody can really say if you are being overprotective or not with the J-man cos nobody knows what he is like ya know? (I mean, I've met him and he's gorgeous - but I don't "know" him ya know?)

I think Aricyn is fine in the bath by himself - because he has slipped and fallen before - whilst I was in there. Scared the gee willikers out of him. So now he just sits there and plays with his toys. The only time he does get up and jump around, is when I am in there with him. Mostly he sits there and plays with his toys, or sits there yelling out mummyyyyyyyyyyyy to make sure I'm coming back... lol

So I can't say if you are being overprotective or not - cos I don't know if he's like the A-man or not ya know?

I know you are a damn good mother though, so you'd be doing what you need to do :hug:

You know with the girls we let them in their by themselves, they generally make a lot of noise so when it gets really quiet then I go check. A usually gets out first and K likes to play in there by herself so she gets left alone till she is ready to get out, I do go past the bathroom to make sure all is OK though.

Its totally up to you if or how long you leave him for!

Cheers,

Beck

DD is too young yet. I've been in there with her when she has slipped in the bath and her head has gone under the water. And the scare has not deterred her from doing it again.

If I hadn't been there ... well. So I won't leave even to get a towel or a nappy. I'd rather get her out wet and have her be a bit cold for a minute than worry for every second I'm away.

I let my DD2 in the bath by herself but we only put about 2 inches of water in it. She loves to play in it and I know she won't drown herself. Anyway she can climb out of it by herself as it is quite low.

I leave her in by herself sometimes. I help her clean herself and I wash her hair and get her to brush her teeth, then she just plays in the water for a little while. I sometimes go out of the room to do other things but I know she is ok because she chats to me and I can hear her all the time. We live in a unit and its a small space so I can always hear that she is ok. She's almost 2 and pretty independant.

When my DS was only about 14mths old we gave him a haircut about an hour before we were going out...dont ask me why I had to do it so close to going out!! I think I still had baby brain....anyway I didnt have time to give him a bath so I through hm in the shower for a quick hose down. I expected him to crack it but he loved it so from then on we shower him instead of bathing. I had to put non-slip mats in the shower cos they find it really slippery and I just put a few toys in aswell. Its great now I have a 4mth old because it was getting really hard to bath him and look after her...we were all in the bathroom because he use to fall over in the bath all the time so couldnt leave him and he would always get upset when it was time to get out. Now I make DP shower him and once the shower is off he knows its time to get out and dosent get upset.
It works for us...I am too paranoid to leave him in the bath on his own at 20mths of age.

Rubber mat! I have one of those suction cup ones just from Big W. DS knows that the bath is slippery so tends to stay on the rubber mat, especially if he stands up. He's never come a cropper.

I am happy to leave DS (2yo) in the bath unattended while I go to his bedroom for a towel or whatever - about 6 steps/10 seconds away - and just keep my ear tuned for the running commentary on his toys and general splashing.

DD is only 3 months so I don't take my eyes off her for a second.

I feel physically sick when I realise that DH (who does bath time) is not in the bathroom and has gone to the toilet of to get towels! I cant even imagine leaving them alone. My 2 are so stupidly silly in the bath - they practice their swimming and stuff - so i am worried they will slip and hurt themselves, they dont stand in there but boy do they get crazy in the bath!

I do leave them in the shower along together, they just sit on the bottom and catch the water in their cups/buckets etc, much better behaved in the shower actually!

I too give DS showers rather than a bath. I got sick of saying "sit down" "sit down" "sit down" etc. Now I have just put a rubber mat in the bottom of the shower and he walks around in there while I'm showering. It's great! Saves time (and lots of water). :) I think it will be different once we have #2 though - because then I can bathe them together (and hopefully by then DS will be old enough to stop standing up & trying to climb out)

Oops I forgot about this thread! Baby brain still I think.

Thanks for your replies....Jayden is very silly in the bath most times, just lately he has been "swimming" and I am so scared he is going to get up and whack his head on the tap and he stands up while I'm in there. I have noticed though if I run out to grab a towel or get Ashlea (which isn't far from the bathroom) Jayden is pretty good and stays sitting. He has also got into having showers with me in the morning and I usually leave him in there after I'm finished for a little bit and I stay in my room with the ensuite door open so I can see him. Can't believe I never thought of a bath mat!! :doh: I have non slip frogs/lilypads which are pretty much only good for playing with!

Mel don't ever say you're a bad mummy! I have seen you in your mummying moments and you're a fantastic mum!

I guess there is no right and wrong just what you are comfortable doing, each child is so different.