OK so I'm wondering if my techniques are ok. Her dad and I J. had a talk about her bathing herself now (she pretty much has, but we used to help more) that she J. turned 5 and he wants to know if I've taught her properly and instructions to tell her or remind her, so it got M. thinking ummm maybe I should double check my ways before sending a stinky kid to school=) Also when is too old for someone to be in the room with her?
so this is what i've done
she uses the loufa first with J. water on he private area (no soap)
we get the loufa(sp) i put a little soap on it or let her and make it sudsy and hand it to her and then while i wash her hair she scrubs down. I might say hey did you forget your arms... and she does every area except her front of her privates, since she did them without the soap. I've heard by the GYN that soap shouldn't be applied directly to that area, and no bubble baths b/c of UTI's and that bathing/showering frequently and J. rinsing down there well is good. (i cheat on this since i shave every day so obviously i have to use soap arnd the area for myself)
And then after she can pat that area dry very well to avoid yeast infections.
So is that right or do you have them scrub down there as well with soap??
Also when do they start washing their own hair. My daighter hates soap and water in her eyes so its a production so I figure I'll gradualyl get her to this year.
It seems to be working fine but i'm wondering if i've taught her right.
that makes sense about doing it last...but i always thought feet last, u wouldn't want to spread an athletes foot somewhere if u had it, which she or i never had but still...but maybe i'll reorder it and o that last , she only does the front area first so no soap...and then we rinse it and put soap on it
I'm gonna ditch the loofa after the advuce...also she does get soap there somewha but J. not like everywhere else,
Tammy I agree my post might seem that way, but to her i don't tell her don't get soap here make sure you clean there, its J. hey did you get here, wash there...she doesn;t worry about it, and I don't mind germs at all, i feel the same way=)
You have a lot of good responses, so I'm only going to add that my 5 yr old, who also hates getting water in his eyes, has suddenly decided that he loves showers. We had to force him in the 1st time (on vacation and there was no tub). But once he realized that he could tip his head way back to rinse his hair, with minimal water in his eyes, he was sold. Now, most days, he refuses a bath and wants a shower instead. You might try it.
I have always used soap on my girly bits and taught my daughter to do so as well.
I let my daughter use baby shampoo when she first started washing her oen hair at about age 5, until she got good enough at it that she didn't get it in her eyes.
I also taught her how to flush it out of her eyes if it did get in.
Bathing is done from cleanest to dirtiest. So first face, then work your way down, skipping the private area. When you get to legs, wash the private area (you don't mention when she is washing her bum... that needs to be done, with soap, and always last). If her feet are dirty, have her wash them with J. her hands...
well, my only comment would be: privates last, why spread germs elsewhere?
I use soap, and taught my two girls to use it too. They are 5 and 8. The 8 yo can do it all herself, although I do check her hair to make sure all shampoo is out. The 5 yo needs help w/her hair. She hates water in/near her eyes. She is able to do the rest by herself. They both wash hair first, and condition, then clean body, so conditioner can set. They use their hands or a wash cloth. Loofa is too rough. They don't even use the poofy thing. I will continue to monitor them. I'd say they are ready to do it themselves when they are able to do a good job of it, and not have to be reminded of things. What ever works for you, and as long as they don't smell. :)
I think you should supervise baths/showers as long as they need reminders. Heck, my daugher is 10 and I STILL have to supervise! I'm constantly asking "did you wash your legs? No? Get back in there..."
We use a washcloth on the privates, a loofah is too harsh and it doesn't really get "in" there. My daughter uses face soap on it because it's more gentle.
Depending on your daughter's hair, she may need help for a while My daughter has thick hair and I still have to help her wash it. I let her wash it and then I wash it for her once a week to make sure a good job is done at least once a week!
You're doing great!
Hmm. I do have them use soap down there - my girls are 4 and 5. I supervise their bath, they do everything themselves except hair. I wash their hair for them since otherwise they'd J. rinse one spot and not get it all over the hair! LOL! I have them put their soap on their washcloth and soap up with water into their crevices and rinse it all out. They still use kids soap so that stuff is nice and gentle on them. I am not sure at what point they will be able to handle it on their own - I'll watch and see the responses you get, I'm curious for moms whose girls are a little older than ours, to see what they do.
I shampoo and condition their hair every other day. But we do a bath every day, J. not washing the hair. I do not wash their bodies for them but I do have to really make sure they actually clean themselves not J. wipe their washcloth all over their outer bits if you know what I mean - little kids - at least mine - are not always the most thorough!
I would NOT use a loufa on my private area. That's J. too rough.
I taught my daughter to get wet first, wash her hair and put conditioner on it. While the conditioner is doing its job, get your washcloth wet and put soap or body wash on it and begin with her face and go down her body.
My daughter had plenty of bubble baths and didn't get a UTI until she started her cycles.
If it works for you - then you are doing it right.
I let our kids shower by them selves for the main part but I wash her hair, rinse it, put in the conditioner, comb it out, rinse it, then she can rinse off the rest and get out by herself. She has nearly waist length hair that is hard to get the tangles out.
If they are taking a bath I did not leave the room until they were at least 4. I stay in the hallway, out of their sight, with the door open and talk to them, sort laundry, fold it, crochet or read. Their lives are at risk and I will not leave them to go out of hearing while either of them are in the tub with water in it.
I had a close high school friend drown in the bathroom due to slipping and falling unconscious to the floor and the water came up and they drowned.
It sounds to M. like you are doing a wonderful job of teaching your daughter the proper way to bathe herself. One thing that really helped my daughter when she was learning to wash her own hair was I would tell her to make sure and look at the ceiling while washing to keep the soap and water out of her face/eyes...also, make a big deal about getting the roots of the hair clean, they often forget to wash right by their head, so the longer parts are clean, but the roots are still dry, lol!
