Extra squeaky clean

by Roger Sinasohn (Subscribe to Roger Sinasohn's posts) Mar 6th 2008 1:03PM

Showering the kids in the morning is a pain in the tuckus. I have to get them in there, wash their hair, wash their bodies, make sure they brush their teeth, and so on. For Sara, I also have to put conditioner in her hair and comb out the tangles. So if I can avoid it, I do. But, the kids need to be clean and presentable when they show up for school,

Yesterday morning, like many mornings, I got the kids up and hustled them into the shower. I let them play a bit and then got them washed up. I wrapped their towels around them and sent them to their room to dry off and get dressed while I took my shower. When I got out, they were dressed and we piled into the car to head to school.

That evening, Rachel picked up the kids and brought them home. When she came in, she went into their room and asked why their towels were on the floor. I said to ask the kids; that's just where they dumped 'em. That's when she hit me with it. She had showered them the night before so that I wouldn't have to in the morning. I had completely forgotten.

I guess it just goes to show, you make a better parent if you get enough sleep.

Comments (17)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Judy 3-06-2008 @ 1:58PM

A I stupid, or why the heck would little kids need showers in the morning? Unless they were *really* gross, but how many parents are going to put their kids to bed without a bath first if they get that gross? Do other people really insist on their small children showering/bathing *every* day? I cannot imagine getting up early enough to give kids a shower before school!

isisaquaria 3-06-2008 @ 3:28PM

I understand the morning thing, although it may wake them up faster IDK. But I am seriously concerned that you are questioning a daily bath/showering daily...why would you not? I insist that everyone shower daily. And I change the sheets on the beds at least weekly, daily if one of us is ill. That is just a matter of health. Dust mites leave stuff behind in your house as they feed off you dead skin on the couches and beds...that is just gross eeeewwwww!

Judy 3-06-2008 @ 4:20PM

I'm 29, perfectly healthy, a lot of people seem to find me attractive and appealing, and the only time in my life that I can say with certainty I've showered daily was when I worked in a bar and when I got home my hair stunk of smoke and perfume. Otherwise, I shower as needed - sometimes twice a day, sometimes every other day, and unless something really weird is going on, I NEVER wash my hair every day. A lot of experts highly recommend *against* washing your hair every day, as it can dry it out, especially with hair as long as mine.

Maybe I'm weird, maybe it's where I came from, but *most* of the people I knew did not shower every day, and did not stink. They would *wash up* at the sink to take care of icky parts, change their clothing, but that was it.

As a child, we didn't *have* a shower. We had a bathtub, and to get everyone in and out of the tub *every* night would have been a nightmare, not to mention how much water it would have used.

And for children, who aren't really getting that dirty, I certainly don't think there's anything *wrong* with a nightly bath or shower, but I certainly don't think it's necessary either. My sons get a bath 2-3 times a week, usually, and there have been times it's been less than that. They don't stink, and they've never once had to go to a doctor for an illness.

I really, really think our society's obsession with extreme cleanliness and total lack of natural body odors (I'm not talking about nasty funk, but a little natural smell) is over the top.

Towards the end of his life, my father had an injury (a very large open wound on his back, the result of radiation treatment for cancer when he was young) that made it to where he could not get into a shower, bathtub, or swimming pool. He washed himself with a washcloth at a sink, washed his hair probably once a week in the kitchen sink, and I can tell you that he was not at all unpleasant to be around.

Maybe I'm just a freak. I don't care.

roger.sinasohn 3-06-2008 @ 5:08PM

We generally shower or bathe the kids every other day. Sometimes they get really dirty so we might wash them more often. If we don't get to it at night, I shower them with me in the morning. (I do need a shower every morning, trust me on that.)

On Tuesday night, Rachel put the kids in the shower while I took out the garbage and did the dishes, specifically so that I wouldn't have to do it in the morning. She was just trying to be nice. Unfortunately, in my morning fog, I completely forgot and washed them anyway.

isisaquaria 3-06-2008 @ 7:02PM

I was curious so I called and asked around and everyone I spoke with bathes or showers daily, some twice a day(workouts). I am appalled that being clean is such an aloof subject....The sheer amount of air polluntants you are exposed to just walking around other people at the gas station, grocery store or school ---and the germs this time of year alone--just shocking.

WonderMom 3-06-2008 @ 4:31PM

I can't imagine what a PITA it would be for young kinds to take showers in the AM. My 6.5 year old doesn't shower every single day. A few of times a week is more what we do. He loves to play in the shower, so not only do I get a clean kid, I get a 20-30 minute break. Yes, I let him run the hot water out. P.S. he doesn't stink either.

WonderMom 3-06-2008 @ 4:32PM

That was supposed to say KIDS, not kinds. LOL!

Amanda 3-06-2008 @ 5:34PM

I usually give my girls a bath every night. I try not to wash their hair every single night but almost every night they have gotten some form of food up in there, or sweat, ya know. but to me, the nightly bath is part of the bedtime routine, it is sort of a way for them to wind down a little. and I think they like their lavender scented baths, of course since they are so small they bathe together and I really think it helps soothe them and get to sleep easier. there are plenty of times when I put them to bed without baths but it is usually when we have been out somewhere and they fall asleep in the car and its bed-time or later.

Jen Henry 3-06-2008 @ 5:42PM

Yeah, I have to agree with the previous posts on this one Roger, I can't imagine daily showers for young kids. Although I do admire the humor in your post :) Until the kids are old enough to WANT to shower on their own and old enough to successfully do it on their own I don't see the point.

Like Judy said, I grew up without daily bathing. We had a weekly bath. My kids bathe twice a week, once if it's a hectic week. They have clean clothing, faces, teeth, and combed hair each day.

I shower daily during the work week. Once on the weekend, or sometimes not at all on the weekend. There's a big difference though between not changing your clothing or brushing your teeth or hair for days on end, and simply not showering for a day or two.

http://furoreandfrenzy.com

the goddess anna 3-06-2008 @ 7:41PM

I'm glad I'm not the only one who bathes their kids once or twice a week! If they get a little funky, I give them a military shower (washcloth to the pits and genitals, basically).

When I'm massaging regularly, yeah, I shower daily. At home all day with the kids - every other day. I wear deoderant, not anti-perspirant, and I don't get funky unless it's super hot. During cold, dry winters, I've been known to shower even less frequently. I think that over bathing leads to overly-dry skin (that becomes reliant on lotion to restore the moisture), and that's worse than having a bit of dirt on our skin.

the goddess anna 3-06-2008 @ 7:44PM

Isis - if everyone showers daily, but the sheets are changed weekly, you lay your clean body on progressively dirtier sheets each day. Unless you lay plastic on your beds to keep out the germs, dust, and mites that inhabit everybodies houses, that is.

Jeez.

Judy 3-06-2008 @ 9:09PM

I'm so glad I'm not the only dirty filthy stinky nasty one around. LOL!!!

And I totally didn't mean to be attacking to Roger - I just couldn't imagine getting up early in the mornings to shower children. But I'm totally not a morning person.

Seriously, though, my husband is out of town for a few days. I took a shower the night before he left, because I'm not sure how I'll get another one before he gets home. Last weekend, he was gone too, and when I turned on the water both boys came running in and jumped in with me, the younger one still clothed! I think I'll just have to take them in with me again.

If I polled my friends, they would probably all say they showered every day, at least most of the time. But depending on who was asking, I might say so too, because it would be easier than having to explain, and people *expect* others to shower every day, so that's the answer they would give.

As long as you're not stinky and gross, I don't care how often anyone bathes.

hope 3-07-2008 @ 3:02PM

I have to say I'm appalled at the general agreement in this post on children bathing/showering only once or twice a week. It just takes a few minutes to put your child in the tub each night, if you're really that pressed for time. At school, the park, play areas, playgrounds, even stores...everywhere you go you're picking up dirt and germs. I'm just curious, if you're only bathing once a week, how often are you changing your sheets?

Jen Henry 3-07-2008 @ 7:28PM

Hope,
Bathing is just a tiny part of cleanliness. My kids always wash their hands before meals. They always brush teeth, hair etc daily. The kids bedding is washed much more often than my own due to the amount of accidents due to the rate at which they dirty it. I wash my own bedding when it is no longer comfortable. I don't have a fixed schedule. I just look at it or lay down in it and know that it's time. It probably happens more often in the summer months when I can air it out outside in the fresh air (and yes, it does probably get covered in allergens).

Our house is always cleaned regularly, dishes washed every night, clothing washed regularly.

I've also found my little ones have had a lot fewer skin sensitivities from not frequently bathing and having frequent contact with lots of soaps and lotions. I had a coworker who's daughter had frequent UTIs until her pedi recommended not giving her bubble baths every night. These are all issues I feel we've avoided by being just a bit more relaxed.

http://furoreandfrenzy.com

ninainindia 3-07-2008 @ 10:55AM

We shower daily most of the time but I do not think that people who do not are dirty. I just like to shower!

As others have pointed out, the daily shower is a recent phenomenon and nowadays you almost can't admit to not showering every day.

For the people so afraid of germs, they won't kill you! The moment you step out of the bath/shower there are germs on you. They are everywhere and are nothing to be afraid of.

Judy 3-07-2008 @ 12:36PM

All those so freaked out about germs - how do you think people survived before daily showers were even an option (which was really not so long ago - a couple generations at most)? Were people really so sick all the time? And how often are you and your kids sick?

It's been my anecdotal and unscientific observation that the more we (as a society) have become obsessed with cleanliness, the higher the rates of allergies have been (there has been shown to be a link between allowing kids to get dirty and lower rates of allergies), and the more "superbugs" we seem to have. Cause and effect or coincidence, I don't know, but it seems to hold true. And I don't think anyone can say that people get sick *less* often with minor illnesses and allergies than they did, say, 50 years ago when it was not common (and not always possible) to bathe or shower daily.

Ask your parents if they had daily baths as children. Ask your grandparents if they had easy, ready access to showers daily. Are they/were they disgusting, dirty, unhealthy sick people?

Jen Henry 3-07-2008 @ 3:10PM

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you Judy for writing what I was thinking.

My parents grew up without indoor plumbing. My Mom was in middle school when they got it in the house. They had weekly baths, weekly laundry. She raised me similarly more out of habit than anything else. When I was in high school I of course began constantly showering and grooming myself as teenage girls often do.

While I don't think showers alone are the cause of the abundance of allergies in our culture I do think they are one ingredient. Everything is labeled 'antibacterial.'

I also have theories about foods too, but I'll save that for another post ;)

Germs are not all bad. Germs are necessary. Germs are what teaches our body to build antibodies for future use.

http://furoreandfrenzy.com