Bathing toddlers can be a fun and easy process. It is important to keep your toddler clean and healthy. Bathing is a critical part of this. My little boy has always loved to take a bath ever since he was born. Most toddlers look at bath time as a FUN time to play. They don’t realize that at the same time their little bodies are getting nice and clean:)

There are some toddlers who do not like to take a bath. The good news is that this may change during this toddler stage and they could begin to like bath time. Until that time comes the name of the game is to use distractions. Here is a list of some distractions you can try to make bath time fun for your toddler and easier for you.

Some great distractions that can be used are as follows:

1. Bubbles. This is a given. Every toddler loves bubbles. Use their baby body wash as the bubble bath. Never use regular bubble bath or shampoo. It may hurt their little eyes or skin. Only use the same stuff you wash their little bodies with. Just a little bit of bubbles makes all the difference. It keeps them laughing and distracted.

2. Toys. Any kind of bath toys are FUN when bathing toddler. Especially the ones that fill with water and squirt the water back out. My son would get so tickled when I squirted the water back at him. You can buy toys and keep them specifically for “Tubby Time”. Boats and duckies are a classic and still a hit with any child. It is so funny because my son is 3 now and at bath time he has more toys in the tub than water. (This is just a figure of speech LOL). You see my point he has grown to love his toys in the bath tub with him. It makes it fun for them and especially if your toddler is uncomfortable taking a bath.

3. Bath Paints and Bath Chalk. These are really great, but we do not use them every day. They are fun but sometimes can get a little messy. You can designate a day of the week for chalk and paint. It is fun for them to draw on the sides of the tub or shower walls.

You also have to remember to take certain safety precautions EVERY time your toddler takes a bath. These are very very important to ensure their safety at all times while in the bath tub.

1. Water Temperature. I can’t stress this enough. Always test the water before you place your toddler in the tub. Use warm water. It should not feel hot to you. Remember when bathing toddler you cannot bathe your child in the same temperature of water you may use. It can burn them. Children are sensitive to hot water. My son likes the tub water to be a little on the cold side. So use caution and be careful when selecting the appropriate water temperature.

2. Water Level. There should only be a few inches of water in the tub. That is all that is needed. Toddlers can potentially drown in a small amount of water so be careful and judge appropriately.

3. NEVER leave your toddler unattended in the bath tub not even for a second.

4. Never allow your toddler to stand up in the tub during bathing time.

5. Invest in spout covers and a Bath Mat. The spout covers are fantastic!! They will cover the spout and the hot and cold water. This way in case your toddler hits their head on the spout it is covered and they are less likely to get injured. Also with the hot and cold water knobs they will not be able to turn the water on by accident. Prevention is the key. Make sure you have a kid friendly bathmat in the bottom of the tub also to keep them from slipping.

Something else I would like to share is about other additional items that are important to have for toddler bathing.

1. Toddler Soap. Use baby wash for their body and hair. My toddler is 3 and I still use baby wash when bathing him. It’s great because the wash does not hurt his eyes and it also washes his hair at the same time. This way you only need to buy one product instead of two. The adult bath soap also tends to dry out their skin so just stick with the baby wash. Plus you can use the same baby wash for BUBBLES in the tubby. You see baby wash is the best and has so many great uses!

2. Infant Wash Cloths. My son is 3 and I still use the baby wash cloths. I love them. They are thinner and great to use. I always use two wash cloths when bathing toddler. One I use to wash his hands face and body. The other I use to wash his bottom and private areas. This is a personal choice just remember if you only use one washcloth than wash their face first and their bottom last.

3. Nail Brush. Dirt can collect under their fingernails and this is great to wash all of those germs out of there. Cleanliness and sickness go hand in hand so keeping fingernails clean is important.

4. Toddler Towels. The towels with the hoods on them are great!! You can wrap them up after their done and their whole body is covered. Then you can dry them off well and they are ready to go!! I have purchased lots of these towels and they are Nice!!

It is important to settle into your own personal routine when it comes to bathing toddler. Always remember safety first. Make it FUN for them. and before you know it, they will LOVE bath time.

Author: Ingrid Lee
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Guest blogger

The baby shower games played at a baby shower are usually one of the most memorable experiences during the pre-baby events. However, to ensure the games are successful there should be some thoughtful party planning. Before starting the games, it’s a good idea to go around the room and have everyone introduce themselves and their relationship to the Mommy-to-Be.

Here are some of the more popular games you can play during the party:

Guess Mommy-to-Be’s Tummy Size: You will need some string / yarn and scissors for this game. Have each participant pull the yarn to the size they believe would fit perfectly around the Mommy-to-Be’s center of her pregnant tummy. After everyone cuts their string, compare the results to the Mommy-to-Be’s actual tummy. Give a prize to the guest who is the closest! This game is an ole favorite and will be enjoyed by all.

Say “Baby”: You will need baby safety pins or another type of baby object you can place on a string for each guests at the shower as well as string or yarn, enough for each woman to wear as a necklace. Have each guest place the necklace with the baby safety pins around her neck when she gets to the party. The rules for this game are given at the beginning of the baby shower. Whenever someone says the word “baby” during the shower, any woman who calls it out gets a pin from the other woman who stated the word. At the end of the shower, the woman with the most pins wins a prize.

Naming Baby Items: You will need a pad of paper and pen for each guest. Have each guest write down as many baby products as they can name, such as bottle, blanket, pacifier, etc during a five minute period. This sounds easy, and IS at first, but during last few minutes, the participants will start racking their brains for more baby items. The guest with the most baby products named will win and receive a prize.

Make The Mommy-to-Be’s Baby: You will need baby magazines, scissors, glue and paper. Divide the guests into teams with each team having three members, and give each team some baby magazines. Ask each team to cut out pieces of different baby qualities and put together a picture of what they think the Mommy-to-Be’s baby will look like. Ask the Mommy-to-Be pick the baby she likes the best. Prizes will go to the winning team. This is another of the most popular games.

Guess The Gerber’s: You will need Gerber’s infant food, pads of paper and pens. You will need to take the labels off of the baby food jars and have the guests at the baby shower guess the food, i.e. carrots, peas, sweet potato. This game usually has ten different jars or more of different baby food. The winner is the guest with the most correct guesses.

Guess the Number of Safety Pins: You will need a lot of safety pins and a jar. Pass a jar full of baby safety pins around so all the guests can view it. Each guess will then guess the number of safety pins they think are in the jar. The one who guesses the closest wins a baby shower prize. This another game favorite.

Place The Baby On The Mommy-to-Be: You will need cutouts of a baby, tape and blindfolds. This is a version of Pin The Tail on the Donkey, a game kids love to play. Blindfold each guests and give them a paper baby to place the baby as close to the Mommy-to-Be’s tummy as possible. The one who gets closest to placing the paper baby on the pregnant tummy wins.

Bottle Races: You will need several baby bottles with milk. Have each guest take a bottle filled with a milk (you may substitute milk for another liquid) and suck the bottle as a baby would. The woman who drinks the most during an allotted time wins the baby shower gift. This is always a laughter filled game.

Baby Bingo: You will need pens and bingo cards. Before opening the gifts, number each gift on the box starting with one. If you know that 35 people will be attending the shower, pre-print bingo cards with numbers 1 through 35 and randomly place them on 35 cards. When the Mommy-to-Be’s decides to open the presents, she grabs the present she wants to open and reads the number out loud. As soon as someone receives bingo, they win the game and the prize.

What’s the baby item: You will need various baby products and a blindfold. A bag of baby items are placed in front of the Mommy-to-Be for her to take one item out at a time blindfolded and tell the baby shower guests what item she has in her hands. This is really fun baby shower game when you choose some crazy baby toys or products.

Complete the Baby Rhyme: You will need a book containing baby rhymes. The host will read out loud to all the guest a part of the rhyme, which is to be completed by the other women.

How’s the Baby: Ask all guests to bring a baby picture of themselves before the shower. Have all the pictures in a collage and draw lines for people to fill in who they think the babies are out of the people at the shower. If most guests don’t know each other, just have the pictures of the mother, mother-in-law, sisters, and Mommy-to-Be. See how many people guess right. You can make copies of the baby picture collage to see how many can guess right.

Baby Scrambler: Another fun game is to choose 25 baby related items and scramble the spelling. For instance, pacifier can be changed to reiifpca. Ask the guests to unscramble the words. The one who gets the most right in five minutes receives a prize.

Name that Baby Song: You will need a pad of paper and pen for each guest. Have each guest write down all the songs that have baby in their titles, like baby love, Santa baby, one for my baby and so on. Allow five minutes for this game. This baby shower game can be made more difficult by asking who also wrote the songs.

Dirty Diaper Circle: You will need a diaper, chocolate and music player. Although one of our “dirtiest” games, it is one of the favorites. The host takes a diaper that has been “fixed” with warm chocolate in the right place and have the guests pass it to the person next to them is in a circle. When the host stops the music, whoever is holding the diaper is out of the game.

Pacifier in the baby’s mouth: You will need a blindfold, a baby picture and a pacifier drawing for each guest. Tape a picture or drawing of a baby on the wall and have the blindfolded women try to tape the pacifier as close to the mouth of the baby as possible. The one who gets the closest ones.

Blindfold Diapering: You will need a blindfold, baby doll (life size) and diapers. One of the funniest games. It calls for the guests to be divided into teams of up to five people. Each team has a doll, blindfold and diapers. The object is for each participant to place the blindfold on, take the current diaper off the doll and place the new one on while blindfolded. After the first person completes diapering, they run to the next teammate who places the blindfold on and has to do the same. The first team to finish diapering wins!

Baby Tic-Tac-Toe: You will need a large erasable board to use for the tic-tac-toe board, writing utensil, and baby facts. Baby shower guests are divided into teams and are ask to answer a question about a baby fact. If they get the answer right, they get to choose a space, like the classic tic-tac-toe game.

The baby shower games are a very important part of your baby shower. You want to do everything you can to ensure the baby shower games are enjoyed by all and are a huge success. Here’s some tips for ensuring your baby shower games are successful:

a. Be sure you have writing utensils for everyone
b. Wrap games prizes
c. Make sure to have extra prizes in case of tie games

Author: Sarah Porter
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Gadget reviews

Toddlers undergo a wide array of changes in their developmental tasks. At this time your kids learn to walk, starts to utter words and will develop a sense of autonomy. They can also have ritualistic behaviors at this stage and not to mention potty training. Toddlers need certain activities to promote developmental task for their age.

Play is one of their daily activities and according to one of the maternal and child health books I’ve read, toddlers play with children next to them. At this stage toddlers are engaged in parallel play. And we always incorporate toddler toys to their play. As parents we would end up asking ourselves, what toys do they need?

Toddlers will definitely enjoy toys that they can play with themselves. They will enjoy push and pull toys like trucks or anything with wheels and strings. There are several types of these toys so make sure you buy the right one because convenience for your kids is one we need to look into. You can even choose blocks for them. They could stack up the blocks and this could also develop their imagination. It will allow them to make their own designs and explore their creative minds without adult interruption. This blocks can also be placed on small wagon with strings because toddlers who can walk love to drag almost absolutely anything.

I know you would definitely ask why push and pull along toys are ideal toddler toys. Certain benefits could be derived from this choice. Among them are:

Since toddlers want to achieve autonomy, then they can achieve independence in learning to stand on their own. If not walking, still they can use these toys everyday to aid them to stand until they become stable. They can even do this unknowingly and they can make their legs stronger.

After learning to stand, toddlers can start to make steps. Small steps are preliminary to walking. Push-along toys can be used as walker. Your kids can practice walking, at the same time boost their confidence. Imagine your child learning to walk on their own.

Pull along toys can greatly encourage toddlers to walk because great balance and a sturdy gait upon walking are needed to work with these toys. Toddlers will be greatly amused with pull along toys.

Push and pull toys can be used to develop the kid’s creative mind and motor skills. Some of the push toys like lawn mowers or toys cars can be used by the kids to perform imitative play. At this stage they love to imitate the adults and incorporate with their play.

They can be very affordable and versatile. These toys can be very economical and multi-purpose. So before they have outgrown these toys, you can make sure toddlers will make the most of it.

For the parents, just make sure the toys you buy for the toddlers are safe. Toddlers can be very active so when they are playing safety is to be ensured. There are tons of toddler toys you can check out on stores and definitely push and pull toys are one of the best choice.

Author: Rachel Nunez
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Mobile device news

The baby shower games played at a baby shower are usually one of the most memorable experiences during the pre-baby events. However, to ensure the games are successful there should be some thoughtful party planning. Before starting the games, it’s a good idea to go around the room and have everyone introduce themselves and their relationship to the Mommy-to-Be.

Here are some of the more popular games you can play during the party:

Guess Mommy-to-Be’s Tummy Size: You will need some string / yarn and scissors for this game. Have each participant pull the yarn to the size they believe would fit perfectly around the Mommy-to-Be’s center of her pregnant tummy. After everyone cuts their string, compare the results to the Mommy-to-Be’s actual tummy. Give a prize to the guest who is the closest! This game is an ole favorite and will be enjoyed by all.

Say “Baby”: You will need baby safety pins or another type of baby object you can place on a string for each guests at the shower as well as string or yarn, enough for each woman to wear as a necklace. Have each guest place the necklace with the baby safety pins around her neck when she gets to the party. The rules for this game are given at the beginning of the baby shower. Whenever someone says the word “baby” during the shower, any woman who calls it out gets a pin from the other woman who stated the word. At the end of the shower, the woman with the most pins wins a prize.

Naming Baby Items: You will need a pad of paper and pen for each guest. Have each guest write down as many baby products as they can name, such as bottle, blanket, pacifier, etc during a five minute period. This sounds easy, and IS at first, but during last few minutes, the participants will start racking their brains for more baby items. The guest with the most baby products named will win and receive a prize.

Make The Mommy-to-Be’s Baby: You will need baby magazines, scissors, glue and paper. Divide the guests into teams with each team having three members, and give each team some baby magazines. Ask each team to cut out pieces of different baby qualities and put together a picture of what they think the Mommy-to-Be’s baby will look like. Ask the Mommy-to-Be pick the baby she likes the best. Prizes will go to the winning team. This is another of the most popular games.

Guess The Gerber’s: You will need Gerber’s infant food, pads of paper and pens. You will need to take the labels off of the baby food jars and have the guests at the baby shower guess the food, i.e. carrots, peas, sweet potato. This game usually has ten different jars or more of different baby food. The winner is the guest with the most correct guesses.

Guess the Number of Safety Pins: You will need a lot of safety pins and a jar. Pass a jar full of baby safety pins around so all the guests can view it. Each guess will then guess the number of safety pins they think are in the jar. The one who guesses the closest wins a baby shower prize. This another game favorite.

Place The Baby On The Mommy-to-Be: You will need cutouts of a baby, tape and blindfolds. This is a version of Pin The Tail on the Donkey, a game kids love to play. Blindfold each guests and give them a paper baby to place the baby as close to the Mommy-to-Be’s tummy as possible. The one who gets closest to placing the paper baby on the pregnant tummy wins.

Bottle Races: You will need several baby bottles with milk. Have each guest take a bottle filled with a milk (you may substitute milk for another liquid) and suck the bottle as a baby would. The woman who drinks the most during an allotted time wins the baby shower gift. This is always a laughter filled game.

Baby Bingo: You will need pens and bingo cards. Before opening the gifts, number each gift on the box starting with one. If you know that 35 people will be attending the shower, pre-print bingo cards with numbers 1 through 35 and randomly place them on 35 cards. When the Mommy-to-Be’s decides to open the presents, she grabs the present she wants to open and reads the number out loud. As soon as someone receives bingo, they win the game and the prize.

What’s the baby item: You will need various baby products and a blindfold. A bag of baby items are placed in front of the Mommy-to-Be for her to take one item out at a time blindfolded and tell the baby shower guests what item she has in her hands. This is really fun baby shower game when you choose some crazy baby toys or products.

Complete the Baby Rhyme: You will need a book containing baby rhymes. The host will read out loud to all the guest a part of the rhyme, which is to be completed by the other women.

How’s the Baby: Ask all guests to bring a baby picture of themselves before the shower. Have all the pictures in a collage and draw lines for people to fill in who they think the babies are out of the people at the shower. If most guests don’t know each other, just have the pictures of the mother, mother-in-law, sisters, and Mommy-to-Be. See how many people guess right. You can make copies of the baby picture collage to see how many can guess right.

Baby Scrambler: Another fun game is to choose 25 baby related items and scramble the spelling. For instance, pacifier can be changed to reiifpca. Ask the guests to unscramble the words. The one who gets the most right in five minutes receives a prize.

Name that Baby Song: You will need a pad of paper and pen for each guest. Have each guest write down all the songs that have baby in their titles, like baby love, Santa baby, one for my baby and so on. Allow five minutes for this game. This baby shower game can be made more difficult by asking who also wrote the songs.

Dirty Diaper Circle: You will need a diaper, chocolate and music player. Although one of our “dirtiest” games, it is one of the favorites. The host takes a diaper that has been “fixed” with warm chocolate in the right place and have the guests pass it to the person next to them is in a circle. When the host stops the music, whoever is holding the diaper is out of the game.

Pacifier in the baby’s mouth: You will need a blindfold, a baby picture and a pacifier drawing for each guest. Tape a picture or drawing of a baby on the wall and have the blindfolded women try to tape the pacifier as close to the mouth of the baby as possible. The one who gets the closest ones.

Blindfold Diapering: You will need a blindfold, baby doll (life size) and diapers. One of the funniest games. It calls for the guests to be divided into teams of up to five people. Each team has a doll, blindfold and diapers. The object is for each participant to place the blindfold on, take the current diaper off the doll and place the new one on while blindfolded. After the first person completes diapering, they run to the next teammate who places the blindfold on and has to do the same. The first team to finish diapering wins!

Baby Tic-Tac-Toe: You will need a large erasable board to use for the tic-tac-toe board, writing utensil, and baby facts. Baby shower guests are divided into teams and are ask to answer a question about a baby fact. If they get the answer right, they get to choose a space, like the classic tic-tac-toe game.

The baby shower games are a very important part of your baby shower. You want to do everything you can to ensure the baby shower games are enjoyed by all and are a huge success. Here’s some tips for ensuring your baby shower games are successful:

a. Be sure you have writing utensils for everyone
b. Wrap games prizes
c. Make sure to have extra prizes in case of tie games

Author: Sarah Porter
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Digital TV, HDTV, Satellite TV