Bedtime Bath... Hyper or Calm? ;)

I am the one that is responding with "quiet and calm dinner and then bath"..

Remember these are usually responses for the parents having a hard time getting their children to go to bed and to go to sleep.

SOME children, not all, can take a long time to transition form hyper play to calm enough to get settled and start to relax. They get all riled up and cannot become calm or realize that has now stopped.

Some children do not realize the cues that it is time to settle down.. and so you start the process earlier and it sets their systems to quiet and calm.

I also suggest these parents with these children keep their voices low and calm. To use a little warmer water and to use the wash cloth to really rub their children.. like a massage. Wears them out..

Some children also can be easily distracted by other household sounds and begin to think they are missing out on some fun activity.. So turning off or lowering the cell phone and the conversations, turning down or off the TV.. will also help them think.. there is nothing else going on..

Again these are just some children.

Fun - playing, bubbles, definitely not calm. The calm comes with storytime after bath for us.

Bath time is pretty hyper at my house, but the act of going through the bedtime ritual is calming. After bath, run down with towel, teeth, hair, pjs, story, then they are warm, cozy, sleepy. I think It's more of a mental signal that it's time to start winding down.

Mostly fun. It's more active if DH does the bath because then they play with ducks or whatever. I tend to sing songs and read stories.

My son gets a bath everyday, and It's usually fun, and a little hyper. He has his toys that he plays with and stacks his blocks and laughs at the craziest things. He gets all his left over energy out from the day. He lets me know when he is done, he starts putting his toys away and drains the bath and stands up for me to grab him with the towel. So cute! By the time he is in my arms he is yawning, then its time for pj's a little warm milk, and a story, and then goodnight kisses and off to bed.

My daughter swims laps in our tub(I knew we should have gotten a smaller one! haha!) so I can't claim relaxation. However, by the time bath is over, I am exhausted enough to sleep on the bathroom floor. Mabey it should be suggested as a sleep aid for parents!