My Toddler's Bathtime Essentials

Recently, we are coming to the realization that our little boy is not a baby anymore. We've been witnessing an explosion of developmental milestones, and thankfully, my husband and I, with the help of our immediately family, are coping with his growing up relatively well. 

His growing up also entails changing some habits. As he is much more agile now,  we've gradually changed his bathtime routine to adapt to his being more active and playful. For today's post, let me share his everyday bath time routine and essentials.

Y's bath essentials (L-R): cloth diaper, bug repellent, bar soap, barrier cream, lotion, and calming essential oil

Bar Soap 

Having an active toddler is almost synonymous to sweat and smelling maasim. We've made  the switch from liquid bath soaps to a bar soap recently not only because it's more economical, but also because we found that it keeps Y from smelling maasim longer. We've been loving his Mustela Gentle Soap with Cold Cream as it keeps his skin soft and supple, too. 

Lotion / Emollient

Y sometimes gets rough and dry patches due to contact dermatitis (which unfortunately he inherited from me). After he takes a bath, we massage him with  Mustela Stelatopia Emollient Cream to prevent his dry patches, and to keep his skin soft and moisturized. We also noticed that applying this lotion also helps his dark insect bite scars disappear faster. 

Cloth Diaper

I've always raved about cloth diapers on this blog, and we have been exclusively on cloth for 18 months as of late. Y hasn't showed a lot of signs that he is ready to be potty-trained, so I think will still be using our beloved cloth nappies for a couple of months more. 

Vitamin Barrier Cream

One of the perks of using cloth diapers is that babies' bums are less prone to rashes. I can personally vouch to this perk as Y hasn't had a diaper rash yet, but he does get the occasional redness. Before putting on his diaper, we apply a thin layer of his Mustela Vitamin Barrier Cream on his bum only when that area needs some extra protection. 

Bug Repellent 

Because of the recent outbreaks of mosquito-borne diseases, we've taken extra measures to prevent insect bites. Once Y is fully dressed from his bath, we spray our ol' reliable Messy Baby Insect Repellent Cologne on his clothes. 

Calming Essential Oil 

We normally give Y a bath once he has eaten brunch and has spent a few number of hours for his morning play/ activities. We found this time perfect because he is full, he is worn out from playing, and after his bath, he almost always falls asleep into his afternoon nap. To set the calming mood and to ease his way into his nap,  the last essential in his bathtime routine is our Plant Therapy Calming the Child Roll-On Essential Oil. I used to put this on his chest and on the soles of his feet, but now, he has learned to roll and rub the oil on himself (same areas). We've used this oil for months now, and it's really a sure-fire way of getting this happy toddler to his afternoon slumber.