Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Splish Splash

Bath times with James have become very interesting lately.  The bath is something James has not always been so fond of.  This is mainly because for the first 9 months (if not a little longer) James didn't take baths.  As soon as his umbilical cord stump (ewwww) came off, he started taking showers with Adam every other night.  This was really the easiest way to get him clean, especially on our very cramped work week schedule.  Initially, we thought Adam could do showers so that the boys could bond since I would be breastfeeding and get my skin to skin time in that way.  Of course, plans are for chumps and breastfeeding was not to be.  But anyway, Adam would get the shower going, I'd undress the little babe, hand him off to dad who would wash him in the shower, and then pass him back off to me.  I'd get James lotioned up, diapered, and jammied (yes, I just made a verb out of jammie, to dress one's infant in pajamas) while Adam finished up his own shower.  From the beginning, James loved the shower.  I'm told that this is rare in infants, most of them hate the water in their face.  Even at 3 months, James would tilt his head into the spray of water, close his eyes, and enjoy the warmth.  Occasionally, James would shower with me, although I was not nearly as comfortable holding onto a squirmy, wet baby.  Also, since I have to shower with my glasses off, I was doing it blind.  That said, I never dropped him! 
Around 6 months I thought that we should get James used to taking baths, so I brought him in the tub with me one evening.  Talk about a fail, he screamed and cried the entire time.  So we went back to showers, but the problem of James' ever increasing weight was an issue.  He was getting too heavy to hold for that long while soaking wet.  So back to the tub James went.  There were lots more tears, screams, and pleading looks, but now, at 15 months, James is finally enjoying bath time.  He has a few toys that he plays with, his favorite being a bath time basketball set.  And when I take the toys out and get ready to drain the tub, he splashes.  A lot.  James will look at me, raise his hands all the over his head (very dramatic, my kid, no idea where he gets that from...) and then bring them down, creating a minor tidal wave in the bathroom.  I suppose his happy splashes are far better than the screams and cries, but I still end up soaked!

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