Possibly stupid question - how/when do you have a shower??

[rainbeau]

It was fine when ds was younger, would leave him in bouncy chair and make faces through the shower screen
But now he's a tornado toddler, he'll be hands down the loo, etc
So I was popping him in his cot with toys and books and having monitor in bathroom to keep an ear out and then was basically rush in, under shower, scrub rinse out
But now I'm trying to underline that cot is for sleeping, not playing...so don't want to do this really.
how do you do it?
Do I need to move my shower to evening after he's gone to bed?

[rainbeau]

PS I like my morning shower.
But he's a very early riser (5.30) so don't wanna get up before him to do it
Grateful for any thoughts.

[BunnyLebowski]

I was exactly the same until we bought a playpen. We don't use it very much but it's ideal for when I need to have a shower/hang out the washing/make the beds etc.

A lifesaver!

[PandaG]

hmm. I thihnk when I had toddlers I showered before DH left for work in the morning, or sometimes when they had a nap.

Alternatively, if you need to hget clean and child not sleeping you could have a bath together? Not very relaxing but is possible to get the job done!

[Cosmogirl]

DD is only 7 ms but I stick her in the travel cot which is set up in our bedroom whilst I shower in the ensuite. Maybe a play pen/travel cot in the room next to b/room?

[TigerFeet]

do you have a partner? ie someone who could watch the baby in the morning before leaving for the day so you could shower at a more reasonable hour?

with dd1 I would shower when she had her morning nap

now I have dd2 and I have to be presentable for dd1's school run so shower before dh goes to work

if I can't manage it then, I just have to look dishevelled until dd2 has a kip later in the morning and I can jump in then

[BitOfFun]

Do you have a partner? I would go and have a soak in the bath while he "interacts" with ds after he gets in, if so. It might also involve wine

[onepieceoflollipop]

I prefer morning showers. dh leaves for work at 7.15 so occasionally I will get in before he goes. (not sure if you have a dp/dh?)

dd2 is a toddler but I leave her with dd1 to "play" now. With dd1 we did resort to the cot. Would it be possible for you to borrow a play pen as a short term measure? Or make the loo/landing more toddler proof? I think that you can buy toilet lock safety catches?

My friend used to let her dd in with her, but I hate that. I just want to wash my hair etc, not play with a toddler as well!

[PuppyMonkey]

I had to switch to evening showers really. It was so much easier in the long run. You will survive not having a shower in the morning, honest.

[onepieceoflollipop]

Personally I think it depends on your hair Puppy. My hair always looks terrible after it has been slept on!

As a compromise I occasionally had a bath in the evening, then washed my hair over the bath the next morning!

That worked for a while when dd was tiny and we had builders in who used to arrive at 7.30am.

[rainbeau]

wow, thanks for this
THink eve showers may be the way forward as DP leaves at 6 and doesn't get home until 7.30 so no x-over between DS being awake and DP being here during the day.

I have just had one while DS is napping but don't like not getting dressed until now normally(!)

[jumpjockey]

I let dd into the bathroom with me and she likes to put her hand round the side of the shower screen or have water sprayed at it while she's on the other side. Means she's a bit damp, but at least I get a bit more time under the shower! Oh, and all the loo roll etc is way above ground level

[HeadFairy]

I let ds destroy the house while I wash all my cares away... and then spend the next 20 mins clearing up the 400 or so cars he's distributed throughout the house in that brief time!

[alarkaspree]

I used to park the dcs in front of the TV. Can't believe I'm the first person to suggest this. Now ds is 3 and will just play/wander in and out of the bathroom while I have a shower.

[oranges]

would he sit mesmerised in front of cbeebies?

[IMoveTheStarsForNoOne]

Playpen + Something Special = 10 mins to shower.

Also, we put DS in his cot sometimes when I shower, never had any problem with him associating it with play - how about leaving DS some books in the cot for quiet time, rather than toys?

Other alternative is to totally child-proof one room and shut the door/stair gate and leave them to it - this is what we do, there's no way i'd ever get anything done otherwise!

[ShinyAndNew]

When dh is in, or when they are in the shower with me, or when dd2 is penned in the bathroom with stairgate eating ice cream at her snack table or when they are in bed.

[TheMightyToosh]

I take DD in with me - saves time on bathing her at bedtime, too.

You can get those latch things to stop them lifting the toilet lid if you want them in the bathroom but not in the shower with you.

Personally, leaving them downstairs in front of telly wouldn't work for me as would be sure to start shouting for me while I was mid hair-rinse!

[TabithaTwitchet]

I strap DD in her high chair in front of the TV, works for us.

[MrsJohnDeere]

Mine are a bit older now and tend to play together when I shower now (always do so after breakfast to try to tame mad hair). When they were really little I just brought them upstairs with me and let them run riot whilst I showered.

[Seuss]

I used to use a stair gate on the bedroom door and make sure they were playing happily when they were younger and then as they got older just leave the cbeebies presenters to keep an eye on them.

[ChasingSquirrels]

strapped in bouncy chair
in travel cot in my bedroom
in travel cot in my bedroom with tv on
in shower with me (didn't have to play with them they both liked having a sponge and scrubbing the walls
now 7 and 3.9, they are fine while I shower.

[notcitrus]

Since grown out of the bouncer, have him in the bathroom with lots of toys, and keep throwing more toys and flannels and bottles of stuff at him. So far he's fascinated...

Or let him wander round the landing and the bathroom, but that gets cold!

[Rindercella]

Seuss - those Cbeebies presenters are fab babysitters aren't they?!

When DD first started toddling, I would child-proof the bathroom as far as I could (bathroom cupboard locked up, toilet seat secured, things like loo brush holder put out of reach, etc) and shower whilst she was in the same room. Now she comes and goes as she pleases, but mostly stays in the bathroom with me. She always has plenty of books, etc., to keep herself occupied, as well as me chatting away to her, and save for the odd mishap, such as getting herself stuck in the bath, licking the heated towel rail , she's been fine. She helps me too - will always get my towel for me if I ask her to Sometimes I do long for a shower by myself, but it doesn't happen that often!

[clairesparkle]

I have my DS (11 months) in the bathroom with me, leave the shower door slightly ajar and he stands there and splashes quite happily for ten minutes. Or.. occasionally he gets bored or splashing and tries to eat the toilet brush/empties the bin/unravels the loo roll - but usually it goes ok!

[allaboutme]

When little they went in bouncy chair, when a little bigger I showered during morning nap (which was always only an hour or so after they woke)
Toddler age in a play pen (travel cot) with toys
Now I have 2 and youngest doesnt have morning nap (he is 20 months) I put the TV on and let them run riot while I get ready. They are fine together now. I used to keep DS2 up in his room with stairgate on and DS1 downstairs watching tv when they couldnt be trusted together!!