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Original poster

Putting baby in washing basket in public

219 replies

TottenhamCake · 31/03/2026 12:58

im really keen to find a more practical and safe way of washing my baby (4mo) after his swim lessons. Washing him in the shower feels like a disaster waiting to happen. I like to get him washed there as well, as he’s so exhausted I can’t get a bottle in him before his nap, and hate the thought of chlorine lingering on his skin.

im thinking of getting one of those foldable laundry baskets and using as a kind of bath. The shower heads there aren’t fixed to the wall so this could be done. Will I look like a complete lunatic though? Or does anyone have any better ideas??

OP posts:
likelysuspect · 31/03/2026 19:54

Thats a good idea actually because then you get two for one.

viques · 31/03/2026 19:53

sweetpickle2 · 31/03/2026 16:11

Put him in the dishwasher with the toilet brush would be my suggestion, anything else is just grim.

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Or superglue a baby bouncer to the roof of the car and drive home via the car wash.

Crazybigtoe · 31/03/2026 19:49

One place I used to take my first had a plastic highchair you could wash them in...

But generally I think they get super tired so would wash them as a priority and get them dressed first, give food, then get dressed myself .. mine normally slept after swimming and would be fractious when they got out so everything needed to be quick.

Booksandwine80 · 31/03/2026 19:48

TMFF · 31/03/2026 19:20

A lone swimming instructor apparently 👀

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Aww, aren’t you a funny sausage?!

Booksandwine80 · 31/03/2026 19:48

tnorfotkcab · 31/03/2026 19:14

You've seen 4 month old babies in a swimming group class with only the one adult in the water?? Where?

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No clever clogs, but I have seen small sessions of 4-5 babies each with an instructor. I don’t know what the company is called but it definitely exists (have seen videos on social media)

TMFF · 31/03/2026 19:20

tnorfotkcab · 31/03/2026 19:12

Of course she's in the water with the baby... Who else would be?

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A lone swimming instructor apparently 👀

Eenameenadeeka · 31/03/2026 19:17

How does the shower feel like a disaster waiting to happen?

tnorfotkcab · 31/03/2026 19:14

Booksandwine80 · 31/03/2026 18:31

They are when it’s a class where only the instructor is in the pool. I don’t mean the baby is bobbing about on a lilo with a pina colada unattended 🙄

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You've seen 4 month old babies in a swimming group class with only the one adult in the water?? Where?

CassandraWebb · 31/03/2026 19:13

Comtesse · 31/03/2026 13:19

What do you think chlorine will be doing to babies’ skin?
A quick swoosh under the shower is plenty.

Both my children had sensitive skin that really reacted to chlorine. They loved swimming but I had to rinse them very thoroughly and then use lots of eczema creams

tnorfotkcab · 31/03/2026 19:12

Booksandwine80 · 31/03/2026 13:26

I think it’s obvious that the OP is meaning she wants to sit the wriggly 4 month old in the basket to keep them contained/safe and use the shower head to wash them.

I would also hazard a guess that she doesn’t get in the pool with baby therefore is clothed and unable to shower with the baby.

Of course she's in the water with the baby... Who else would be?

champagnetrial · 31/03/2026 19:08

Booksandwine80 · 31/03/2026 18:31

They are when it’s a class where only the instructor is in the pool. I don’t mean the baby is bobbing about on a lilo with a pina colada unattended 🙄

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*Actual footage of OP's baby in swim class

Pool Party GIF by ViralHog
dizzydizzydizzy · 31/03/2026 18:50

Booksandwine80 · 31/03/2026 18:31

They are when it’s a class where only the instructor is in the pool. I don’t mean the baby is bobbing about on a lilo with a pina colada unattended 🙄

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I am an experienced ex-lifeguard. I cannot imagine how this would be possible with a baby except in a 1-2-1 lesson but they only normally do those from age 4 onwards. Where I’ve worked children have to be 3 to go in a swimming lesson without 1-2-1 adult care.

Elizabeta · 31/03/2026 18:45

Booksandwine80 · 31/03/2026 18:31

They are when it’s a class where only the instructor is in the pool. I don’t mean the baby is bobbing about on a lilo with a pina colada unattended 🙄

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Not at 4 months, no. Parents are always in the pool.

likelysuspect · 31/03/2026 18:39

Are you talking about something like this, I didnt know these existed, they look great

littleorangefox · 31/03/2026 18:37

Sorry but if I saw someone washing a baby in a laundry basket in the shower I would think:

A) That is super cute
B) Why did I never think of this when I'm on my 4th child?

You crack on. Who cares what people think. Let them.

snackattackk · 31/03/2026 18:37

NamelessNancy · 31/03/2026 18:34

Use your salad spinner/washing basket/bucket as a makeshift boat?

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🤣🤣🤣

NamelessNancy · 31/03/2026 18:34

Neurodiversitydoctor · 31/03/2026 16:18

Sorry how on earth do you take a 4m old swimming with out getting into the pool with them ?

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Use your salad spinner/washing basket/bucket as a makeshift boat?

MiddleAgedDread · 31/03/2026 18:31

Comtesse · 31/03/2026 13:19

What do you think chlorine will be doing to babies’ skin?
A quick swoosh under the shower is plenty.

I’ve seen what it does to mine let alone a babies! I have to wash all over with shower gel or it really dries my skin out.

Booksandwine80 · 31/03/2026 18:31

dizzydizzydizzy · 31/03/2026 17:51

Babies are not allowed in a pool without an adult.

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They are when it’s a class where only the instructor is in the pool. I don’t mean the baby is bobbing about on a lilo with a pina colada unattended 🙄

stichguru · 31/03/2026 18:30

What is the water temp like of the showers at the pool? At mine, the showers are just push on and the temp varies so much within seconds, there's no way I'd put a baby in them! That being said, if the temp is steady and good, your idea sounds genius!

Trainup · 31/03/2026 18:22

I just chucked our clothes on and showered/bathed at home. Can’t imagine the level of faff required when wet in swimming costume yourself that a baby bath would take.

CassandraWebb · 31/03/2026 17:55

Seems reasonable to me
I only realised once my children were older that the reason I struggled so much to carry them as babies was because I had a (then undiagnosed) neurological condition

I wish I had ignored people who made out like it was "easy"/"correct " to do things their way and got on and just used whatever method suited me and my baby

dizzydizzydizzy · 31/03/2026 17:51

Booksandwine80 · 31/03/2026 13:26

I think it’s obvious that the OP is meaning she wants to sit the wriggly 4 month old in the basket to keep them contained/safe and use the shower head to wash them.

I would also hazard a guess that she doesn’t get in the pool with baby therefore is clothed and unable to shower with the baby.

Babies are not allowed in a pool without an adult.

likelysuspect · 31/03/2026 17:47

marcyhermit · 31/03/2026 13:29

A 4 month old isn't having a swimming lesson alone!

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They are, the mums are all by the edge of the pool whizzing the kids along with butterfly nets and dredgers.

likelysuspect · 31/03/2026 17:38

SarahAndQuack · 31/03/2026 13:22

Does depend on the baby - there was a boy in our NCT group who really reacted to chlorinated water and if the OP's DC is like this, I would understand why she wants to get it off.

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Well surely you wouldnt go swimming if that was the case?