How often do you give a newborn baby a full bath. I wash her up every day but how often should you do the full bath?

By Ladypeacek on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 03:31 pm:

i usually gave mine a full bath about once every week and a half. They don't need much more if you are just dry bathing each day.

By Coopaveryben on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 03:57 pm:

I think mine had their first full bath at 6 weeks, because of waiting for the cord to drop of course. After that I gave them one everyday, it was part and still is of our bedtime routine. Not to mention they had a lot of hair and I wanted it more than sponged off everday because it looked greasy. But I could see once a week.

By Andi on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 04:01 pm:

After the cord fell off I gave DS a bath everyday as part of his bedtime routine. It's something we still do to this day and he is 3. I never had a problem with his skin getting to dry from the baths but all babies are different.

By Amecmom on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 04:05 pm:

Don't give her a full bath until her umbilical stump has come off (I'm assuming it has). Sponge baths - just wiping with damp cloth and a good moisturizer after, if she needs it is all you need to do as long as her diaper area is clean. Make sure to get into the skin folds - under her chin, under her arms, etc.
I gave my son full baths only once a week or sometimes two weeks - he really didn't need any more than that. Of course, when his diaper didn't hold, the baths were more frequent.
Congratulations on your little one!

By Trina~moderator on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 04:06 pm:

We gave DS a bath daily after his cord came off, but had to change to every other day due to eczema. With DD we did things a little differently. As a newbie she got a bath every 3 or 4 days. I was too tired to do it more than that! LOL!

By Mommyathome on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 04:20 pm:

With my babies I bathed them every night, like Andi mentioned, as part of their bedtime routine. We used baby bath and Johnsons baby lotion and didn't have a problem with dry skin. We still bathe every night as part of our bedtime routine. So, basically, ditto Andi LOL

By Dawnk777 on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 04:22 pm:

I was working when my kids were that little. It was maybe once a week, but certainly oftener if there was a mess, or if that morning diaper was just nasty. Even just urine would leave such an odor sometimes and the diaper wipes couldn't always take it all away. (when they were sleeping all night.)

By Conni on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 04:28 pm:

Every day after the cord came off. I absolutely loved the way they smelled and how good it seemed to make them feel when they had their warm bath.

By Coopaveryben on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 05:08 pm:

I also massaged them with oil after their baths, I read several studies that said if you massage your babies for 10-15 minutes a night before bed it helps them sleep better, adjust better, etc. Mine never slept so I don't know if that is true, if it is true I would hate to think of how bad they could have been (o:
But skin to skin touch is a powerful thing for newborns.

By Sunny on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 05:34 pm:

For my 2 older kids, who were born in the cooler months, a sponge bath every other day until the cord fell off, then a bath every night. With my 3 younger kids, who were born during the hotter months, I gave them a bath every day.

By Mommyathome on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 05:39 pm:

Conni.....I love the smell of a freshly bathed and lotioned baby as well. It is the best smell

By Melanie on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 08:11 pm:

Ds #1 was also bathed daily as part of our bedtime routine. #2 and #3 got baths every two to three days.