Make Bath Time Fun

Like a lot of other expectant moms, I had visions of bathing my kids every night in the tub once I had my twins. It would be easy and fun, right? Plus the kids would get clean, because of course they would be really dirty. Well, it didn’t turn out that way, and I’m totally OK with that.

When my twins were itty bitty (which they were for a while, since they were preemies), they absolutely hated being bathed. They screamed every time like we were torturing the poor things. We used one of those blue baby bathtubs in the kitchen sink and washed them one at a time. The process was draining and I ended up dreading giving baths because it made them so unhappy,which in turn made me unhappy. They weren’t really that dirty, so why did I feel like I was supposed to do this every night? I should also say that I rarely conducted the baths at night and opted for earlier in the day, because I couldn’t think of anything more unappealing to do when everyone involved was already tired from a long day. I needed my strength to get through this process!

Eventually the girls stopped fussing and didn’t mind being bathed, but they were still little and the thought of dealing with them both in a bathtub at the same time when they could barely sit up made me really nervous. So, I kept bathing them in the kitchen sink in their baby bathtub one at a time. I could stand up and wasn’t hunched over, plus I got one-on-one time with them, and they eventually learned to enjoy it. 

Eventually we realized they were getting a little big for the sink, so it was time to transition to the tub. It wasn’t too difficult and they enjoyed playing together for quite a while each time. Bath toys (like little animals and boats) plus bubbles equals lots of fun. Enter the third baby, who we bathed in the kitchen sink for not nearly as long as the twins. She transitioned to the big tub with her sisters at a much younger age. She just adored playing with them in there and being included like a big girl.It was still a lot of work though, so this did not happen everyday. They weren’t dirty, so why wash them if it’s not needed? It was during this time that I first started thinking about natural alternatives to traditional baby bath and body products, eventually leading to the launch of my line Bayberry Naturals.

Now we have moved on to showers for all three, rotating them through pretty quickly. I still help the twins out since they have such long hair, but also because I have to be there for my youngest and to keep the pace on track. Basically, my view is that you shouldn’t feel like you have to struggle with bath time. Do it when it makes sense for your schedule and don’t feel like you’re a bad mom if you’re not running a bath every night. It’s OK; they will survive. Promise.

Nancy Liddell

Nancy Liddell was a new mom of twins, when she made the decision to try to eliminate unnecessary exposure to chemicals and toxins in her household wherever possible. She began investigating the labels of all of the shampoos, conditioners, lotions, and soaps in her house and was astounded by what she found—every single product contained artificial and controversial ingredients.

Thus began Nancy’s search for natural, plant-based products, where she quickly realized that many inferred they were natural or organic, but really were not. Whenyou strip down health and beauty products to the most natural, basic ingredients, they can be both incredibly effective and gentle at the same time. From this philosophy came the Bayberry Naturals product line. Simplistic in its packaging and basic in its premise, Nancy designed it for men, women, and children to cleanse and nurture their bodies without fear of toxins and unnatural ingredients.