Note: For the most part, this post is PG-rated, with small clips of PG-13. 🙂

Ever had one of those days where life is overwhelming, you feel at your wit’s end, and you just wanted to relax in a nice bubble bath? And then you try it…….

HOW IS THIS RELAXING?!?: The water makes you feel too hot, you get bored, your book pages are all wrinkly, and when you get out you feel a slimy film covering you from the bubbles or bath salts.

Sound familiar?

I’ve been there, and done that. I used to love the thought of a nice and relaxing bath, and then would end the experience feeling far less than satisfied. However, that ended about 15 years ago. Now I cherish my baths, and wish the water would stay warm enough for me to stay in for hours. If you know me personally, my family is known for our baths. Our kids started bathing with us at a whopping three-days old. Yes, we did full-out family baths when the kids were babies. It was the best bonding experience ever, and they have grown up to love baths more than the typical kid. It also calms a fussy child faster than anything else I know.

What made me move from a bath-hater to a bath-enthusiast? I learned how to take a bath a different way.

There are many misconceptions about baths, that lead people to expect one thing, and get a whole different experience in the end. Through my years of experimentation with baths, I hope to share my  knowledge with you, in hopes that you might come to love baths as much as I do. Some people do in fact enjoy the traditional bath that I described above, but I want to offer you another point of view.

Bath-Time Don’ts:

1. Don’t try to read a book or magazine, it just isn’t going to work. Pages get wet and wrinkly, you balance wiping your hands on the towel repeatedly with trying to turn pages, and it makes for a stressful time.

2. Don’t expect to be relaxed if the kids are not entertained with something else. If you try to just sneak off and get a good soak in, the kids will soon be knocking on your door, or screaming at each other on the other side of it. Instead, give them sometime to do before you get in. Have them read a book, watch a movie, play a game, or have another adult watch them for you.

3. Don’t put too much expectation all into one experience. Too much pressure to make something perfect usually ends up backfiring, especially when it involves a bath. Some people set up the bath experience with so much detail, that after an hour they are ready to jump in, and are quickly disappointed if everything is not perfect. Perfectness comes in the moment, not in the set up.

Bath-Time Do’s:

1. Start with a shower. Clean yourself up first. Don’t take too long, or the hot water will run out. However, make yourself clean before you start the bath, not during the bath. Avoiding soap during the bath helps avoid the slimy after-feel.

2. After you’re clean, sit down….with the shower still running over you. You will probably need to turn up the water temperature just slightly from where you had it during the shower (to account for you being farther away from the shower head). The best baths, are not baths at all – The best baths are actually sitting showers.

3. Position is a preference. Sometimes I lean against the back of the tub, with my feet out in front of me. Sometimes my back is straight up, with my knees locked and legs all under the water. Sometimes I lean or slump into is, and my knees are bent and fall to the sides. Sometimes I sit perpendicular to the tub, with my legs crossed (crisscross applesauce-style). Sometimes I immerse myself, and completely sit under the flowing shower water. Sometimes I move my body further away, and just have the water run over my legs. It is all personal preference. Experiment, and find what you like.

4. Plugging the tub is optional. Both ways feel good to me, and it often depends on how long I want to be in the bath. For a longer bath, I will close the drain to keep water in the tub for longer. If I am trying to keep the “bath” short, I will leave the drain open, and when the water gets cold, I know it’s time for me to get out.

5. Regulating your temperature can be done by changing the actual temperature of the water, but more often it is done via other means. Well-placed wash cloths can protect your back from the cold tub, and when placed on the chest/legs, and decrease heat loss to the air. I also control my heat by how much of my body in under the shower stream. If I plug the drain, placement of my legs and shoulders (in or out of the water) can alter my temperature as well. I’ve been known to have my chest/trunk in the water, with my legs at a diagonal to the tub, with them mostly out of the water. I also use the curtain/sliding door to regulate temperature. Sometimes I enjoy turning the heat up really hot in the shower (there are huge health benefits to hot baths), and slightly open the curtain or sliding glass door to let colder air in by my head (I prefer to breathe the colder air, rather than steamy air).

6. Other options: Lights can be on or off (Shower with them on, and them turn them off before you sit). Music can be nice (I have a “Relaxation” playlist on my iPod that I enjoy listening to. think Norah Jones and Ingrid Michaelson). Eating can occur (My husband loves to eat popsicles in the bath. I avoid food in the water). They can be one- or two-person experiences (My favorite date is still a nice bath with my hubby. Yes, we both can fit just great, either one of us leaning against the back of the tub, and the other leaning against the first person. Or, one of us will sit perpendicular to the tub). Candles can be nice if the lights are off (I place them outside of the bath, by the sink, but he flickering light sets a nice mood in the bathroom). Sleeping is a great option (I take my power naps in the tub. The water turning cold serves as my alarm clock).

Happy Bathing!