Bathtime with 3.5 yr old & 5 mth baby, what the best way?

[airhostess]

Hi!
This is our routine. Dinner 5pm, 6 pm upstairs, bath run. Both DS in bath together. Get baby out after 5 minutes, fill bath up more with bubbles. Dress baby, wash eldest DS get him out. Baby crying house down at this point as hungry. Dress DS story time whilst start feed baby on DS bed. 7 pm night to Eldest. Retreat to nursery to continue feeding, takes both breasts and not getting downstairs until 8pm.
What can I do to make it more efficiant?
I'm on my own 20 days a month so there is no help x

I put dc1 in a the bath and wash then dunk dc2 and for 5 min. Dc1 gets more play time in the bath and dc2 can begin her feed so is contented while dc1 is dried and dressed for bed.

My 3 year old now gets in the shower with me each morning and I just give the baby a quick dunk in the bath every couple of days. Bathing both of them each evening just became a chore as the were both too tired and grouchy.

I've got a 3.5yr old and a 10mth old. I usually start off with the 3.5y old in bath tub - get her cleaned, washed and teeth brushed all in tub and then baby comes in for a short while with her (usually 5-10mins) and I wash him up. Get baby out and tell
Dd that she can have 5more mins in tub but then when I call her, toys need to be put away and she comes out. Dress baby and quick feed (like one side) and then get dd out, dried and dressed. Story time in bed while feeding baby, dd usually asleep first and then baby asleep by about 8pm. Sometimes 730pm if I'm lucky!

That said, by the time they hit about 8-9mths old, they lose the 2-3pm nap so tend to be easier to put to sleep at abt 7pm and earlier if lucky!
Hth, good luck! :-)

I'm impressed you can get both of them in the bath at the same time - that's pretty efficient! We have exactly that age combination of 3.5 yr old and nearly 5 month and I'n still doing separate bath time. DS would lose it if I tried to inflict baby DD on him at bath time and he is also pretty rowdy at bathtime, splashing water and banging buckets and toys around so might unintentionally hurt her.

I bath DD first while DS finishes his dinner downstairs as he's a slow eater. Then I bath DS at 6 on his own while I feed DD. The whole process is time consuming though. I'm not sure either what the best system is. Hoping for tips on this thread.

I don't bath mine very often. The older one has a bath two or three times a week. Baby less frequently as he just doesn't get very dirty. They never have a bath on the same night unless DH is about to help.