8 Tried & Tested Bath Tips to Keep Baby Calm for New Moms

Hey there! Bringing home that new baby can be pretty overwhelming. I found there were a lot of things that seemed pretty self-explanatory, but then I was a little stumped on how I should go about doing it. Bathing was one of them. The first bath Jack hated it and cried the whole time. By the next week or so, I had finally found the secret formula that worked for both of us.

I am a visual learner, so I decided to take pictures of our bath process that we have used to show our setup for a smooth bath transition.

1. Set up everything ahead of time. When I say everything, I literally mean everything. You want these transitions to be as smooth as possible. I get the bath stuff out; the tub, the towel, the peri bottle, washcloth, and soaps. When he was really little (newborn - 4 months) I would have his bathtub out on the floor with a towel underneath it. Now that he is getting bigger and likes to splash, but still needs his tub to sit up, I place the tub in our clawfoot tub.

PRO-TIP: We use the peri bottle to rinse his hair, genius I know. I can't take credit for it. It was a trick I learned while watching the nurse bathe him for the first time. She was nice enough to let me keep the bottle to use at home! ​

2. I also get everything out for after the bath too. I place it all on the floor because I find it the easiest and safest too. That way, if I forget something and he decides now is the first time to roll over, he isn't going far, and he isn't going to hurt himself.

3. Get out a muslin swaddle. Fold it in half into a giant triangle. Once baby is undressed, place baby's head at the top of the swaddle so that the shoulders line up with the crease. 

4. Fold the bottom corner up in between the legs quickly. Especially if you have a boy, so you don't get peed on in the process. 

5. Fold over both corners on the left and right of the baby to swaddle him or her.

6. Place baby in the bath and get the swaddle nice and wet with warm water. This will help them stay warm and calm during the bath. You will eventually need to rewet the swaddle with more warm water to keep the cloth warm. 

When I bathe Jack, I will unswaddle and wash one half of his body.  I usually start with the right side for whatever reason. In doing so, he still has the swaddle on half of him keeping him nice and warm. This is also a good chance to dunk that unswaddled corner into the water to reheat the cloth.

PRO-TIP: When bathing the baby, pour the water over their head and let the water run down their face. TRUST ME ON THIS. You might think it is mean, but I promise it will save you from issues later down the line. 

This was one of the very first things I learned what not to do as a kid watching my younger twin cousins experience bathing. My aunt would shield the water from their eyes and face when they were babies. 

Later as toddlers, my mom was giving the twins a bath. When the water hit their face, they cried so hard that one of them vomited in the tub. When their brother was born a few years later, my aunt made sure to pour water over his head and let the water run down over his face.

7. Wash all those little cracks and crevices. Seriously, babies get gunk in the weirdest spots; behind their ears, in between their little fat rolls, etc. 

Also, side note, if you are a first-time mom or dad reading this, the baby only needs a bath 2-3 times per week. CRAZY RIGHT!?!
I loved bath time with Jack because he was so cute and fun in the tub, plus who doesn't love that clean baby smell. I was only bathing him 3 times a week and this still was too much for him. His skin started drying out and he started to get dandruff. He now has a Wednesday night & Saturday morning bath schedule.

8.Dry off that cute little nugget and bring the baby over to get diapered and clothed. I will usually just leave all the bath stuff out until after Jack is dried, clothed, and settled. That is one thing you will learn is that things can wait and you can come back to them even if it is 30 minutes later. It is not going anywhere!

I hope this helps make life a little easier bathing that sweet little babe. Bath time is one of my favorite moments and I hope this process makes it a little bit easier on you and baby too! 

Happy bathing!

Newborn Jack Taking a Bath