Still having bathtime issues

My2Beauties wrote: I posted about this a while back, possibly even 6 months or so ago. At bathtime Hanna still wants to stand in the tub, if I even attempt to try and sit her down she throws the biggest fit. I don't understand it, she likes the pool, she likes the tub she just will not sit down and she gets so mad when I wash her hair and I do everything I can not to get water anywhere near her face or eyes, I wash her hair with a wet washcloth and let me tell ya - it takes a few good minutes to get soap out of her hair with just a wet washcloth! I don't know what to do. I've gotten to the point where the first little whimper or scream, I say welp sorry mommy has to do it and then I just dump as much water as I can with the washcloth to get the soap out of her hair so I don't have to hear her cry as long. Then at that point she is ready to get out because she cries so hard! I have tearless shampoo, I do everything not to get it in her etes or on her face, I show her how I sit in the tub, I show her how her bath dollies sit in the tub, I ask her to sit and when she squats down I praise her, but that's it she'll squat a moment and then come right back up! Anyone else's children do this at bathtime?

mommy_loves_chase replied: can you distract her with toys? thats what my sister use to do, or when i was little my grandma would put a wash cloth over my eyes then i wasn't worried at all about getting soap in my eyes, it was a big comfort

ediep replied: Jason likes to stand in the tub too, but i bought those bath crayons and I told him he can't draw in the bath unless he is sitting. That usually works with him.

TANNER'S MOM replied: Will she fit in the kitchen sink..

I used to always bath my kids there..and use the spray thing to rince..

It can be a game.. and she has to sit there..

A&A'smommy replied: have you tried taking a bath with her and making sure you "wash" your hair like you do hers?

My2Beauties replied:
No I haven't tried that. I read somewhere that small children can be afraid of a big tub too, maybe I should try taking one with her, I'll try that tonight! I mean I have taken a bath with her before, but when I wash my hair I just get under the faucet, oh man gonna take a long time to take a washcloth to my head

Jamison'smama replied: My daughter doesn't stand in the tub but still has issues with having her hair rinsed off. I don't understand it--she'll go underwater in the pool but not in the tub--won't lean back etc. WHat works best for us it to give her a small hand towel or washcloth to cover her face then we count to 10 and rinse her hair with a cup--as fast as possible. She still hates it but cries less.

TANNER'S MOM replied: Oh and you got to sing the song LeaAnn

This is the way we wash our hair , this is the way we wash our hair..late in the evening..

This is the way we wash our butt, wash our butt ..

Yes I really did sing the song!

mysweetpeasWil&Wes replied: I saw this in Parents magazine once under the "It Worked For Us" section. Well I guess this mom was having the same problem as you so she added food coloring to the water in her child's bath. I guess her son LOVED that the water was blue or green or red. I can't tell you if it dyes their skin or anything, but maybe try a little and see what she does. Sorry if it sounds stupid...but it just came to mind! I haven't tried it myself though. So forgive me if it makes matters worse.

mysweetpeasWil&Wes replied: Okay just thought of another one...What about using one of those shower nozzles where you can disconnect it from the top? The one with the long tube. I wash my dog this way in the bathtub. He certainly does not sit down! So I suds him up and spray him with the water. It makes it easier to avoid the eyes. And it's not like she would be sitting in water the whole time. When it comes to washing her hair, will she hold her head back for you so that you rinse the hair and not get her face?? Or what about one of those foam visors so that the water doesn't run down her face?

Just thinking...

MyBlueEyedBabies replied: Both of my kids will sit down when i tell them to but a trick for washing hair is to get them to howl at the moon like the doggies do (especially if she is familiar with a book like Sandra Boynton's DOggie book were the dogs howl at the moon)
both of them like to look up and go Aahhhhhoooooo so much they don't seem to care that I am pouring water on their heads

My2Beauties replied:
I have one of those nozzles that disconnects and I have tried that before She acted like she was going to put her head under it and then she said oh no and chickened out, so I put it over her head and tried to wash her hair with it after she had been putting her arms, feet, and hands under it - well she threw a big ol' fit! I have one of thsoe foam visor thingies too, it came in this baby care kit we can get from work, I saw that they had that and boo boo bear in there (the little bear you put in the freezer to be cold if they get a boo boo, it's so cute) anyways, that didn't work neither, she threw it off and said Nooooooooooooo! So she is very spirited as you can tell! I'm at my wits end! She threw another fit tonight when I washed her hair, ugh

MommyToAshley replied:
I was going to suggest the bathtub crayons.

Ashley doesn't try to stand... she loves bathtime and she knows that it is over if she tried to stand up. So, I'm not sure what to suggest in your case, but I bet the bathtub crayons would work... I don't know a kid that doesn't love them. Just make sure you wipe them off right away, it's hard to scrub off if you don't.

As for rinsing her hair, a good way to get her to look up is to tape something to the ceiling and have her look up at it. Worth a try.

Good luck!