I was thinking the other day about all the various things we’ve done over the years to level up bath time for kids… have you tried all of these? Readers, do share — what are your favorite bath toys, bubble baths, and other ways to level up bath time for kids?
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My Favorite Tricks to Level-Up Bathtime
Fill a tub, crack 10-15 glowsticks (let your kiddo wave them around to make them glow), put the glowsticks in the tub, and then turn off the lights. Your kiddo now gets to take a really cool glowing bath. Don't cut them open or anything, just crack them. You can add bubble bath or whatever else you normally want to; if you want to light a candle and put it out of reach of the kiddo it adds a nice flickering element.
Nothing too crazy here -- just a bubble bath is always nice. If you have a kiddo with sensitive skin or eczema problems, it can be difficult to find a good sensitive bubble bath -- we liked these Bubble Podz when my eldest was suffering. Mr. Bubble also has an extra gentle bubble bath.
(NOT a bubble bath, but also a product I'd recommend if you've got a child with sensitive skin -- we had boxes and boxes of the Aveeno Oatmeal bath. Can be fun to combine with a glow stick bath!)
My kids have always loved these -- you throw 8-10 tablets into a tub of water and they fizz and turn into floaty streams of color. With younger kids you can teach color combinations also. We've mostly bought these color tablets, but we also like the Sesame Street ones. (Amazon has a lot of other options!)
We actually PREFER these to bath bombs, although my sons are always excited when they get a bath bomb in their stockings or whatever -- these are generally more affordable and you don't have to fight with the plastic packaging before you put them in.
Once you start down this road, there is also bath foam (an upgrade from the shaving-cream-in-the-bath ideas on Pinterest, because it's actually soap) and bath slime (I recommend Slime Baff over Crayola Bath Slime, but I found Slime Baff super cheap -- it turns the entire tub of water into slime.
We've never gotten a ton of use out of the bath crayons and the like that we've bought.
There are a TON of toys to buy for the bath, and a lot of them stink. The squishy figurines get water trapped inside and get DISGUSTING, and the foam numbers and letters are cute, but for some reason my kids wanted to chew on them more than spell. (Go figure.) Our preferred toys are things like this light-up whale (it squirts water) or this robotic goldfish; we also had a glowing donut that my eldest adored that I can't find a link for.
My MIL started our collection of Green Toys (they're made from eco-friendly, 100% recycled plastic), and my kiddos both LOVED them. Because the toys have no metal pieces and are all plastic, they actually make great bath toys. (Pro tip: you can often find these on great discounts at TJ Maxx and Marshalls!)
My final suggestion is that if your kiddo has a head cold (particularly the babies who hate the snot sucker), VAPOR BATHS are your friend. The bubble bath's scent is designed to make your sinuses open and your nose run -- the steam also helps. We've used these Frida bath bombs, as well as the Johnson's vapor bath. (The steam also helps your kiddo.)
Readers, I’d love to hear your favorites! What are your favorite bath toys, bubble baths, and other ways to level up bath time for kids?
This is a lousy picture (super grainy), but here’s a very young J in a glow stick bath… no, you shouldn’t probably let the kids chew on them…
Photo credits: Katfry LLC. All rights reserved.
(Psst: if you’ve got a kiddo with sensitive skin, these are some of our favorites:
Above, some of our favorite brands of eczema-friendly clothing for kids: Burt’s Bees Organic / H&M’s Conscious Line / New Jammies / Primary (not pictured but also)
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Amy says
Our favorite bath toy is a Yokidoo. My kids loved to play in the running water, but I didn’t like leaving the tub running for as long as they wanted. The Yokidoo has a small pump that gives you a stream of water for filling cups, etc.
https://smile.amazon.com/Yookidoo-Baby-Bath-Toy-Stackable/dp/B001R5TJ8G/
Anon says
my kids would LOVE this. does it get moldy?
Pogo says
We have one by Yokidoo that has a submarine and a sprayer attached. We have to police the out-of-tub spraying, but it’s a huge hit.
shortperson says
This is fabulous. Smells good and makes great bubbles and color. But since it’s $8 and lasts at most two baths we use for special baths only.
https://www.lushusa.com/bath/bubble-bars/unicorn-horn/9999907911.html
GCA says
Came here to say Lush if you don’t mind strong scents! Our apartment has only a shower stall, so baths are sadly off the table but the kids love Lush shower jellies.
LBoogie says
Does anyone have recommendations for bath tub inserts or other way to have kids take a bath when you only have showers? My daughter is almost 5 and just barely still fitting in the Primo Eurobath (https://www.amazon.com/Primo-340W-PRIMO-EuroBath-Pearl/dp/B000056OV0) that we’ve been using since she was a baby. She loves baths (especially with the color tabs!) and while she will shower, would be great to have her soak in a tub without running the water.
GCA says
We have only a shower stall and my 5yo takes showers on his own (phew) (&DH showers with the toddler), but you probably want something without the contoured molded bits – I think Stokke makes a freestanding foldable plastic/ silicone tub.
Pogo says
In addition to Green Toys, Duplos make it into our bath frequently. I also bought some bath bombs that had tiny dinosaur toys inside and those were a HUGE hit.
Realist says
Sort of bath related. I’m thinking of redoing a kids/guest bath with a clawfoot tub. We would add one of those old fashioned shower converter things to it, so a long shower curtain could be hung when kid is ready for showers. Kid is 6, so we may not have much of the bath phase left, but kid also loves, loves baths. The only other bathroom in the house would be in the master suite, which has a shower/tub combo. Is the clawfoot tub a dumb idea? Would a teen girl or guests be annoyed at having to take a shower in this set up? I admit that part of the appeal is being able to see the plumbing. We dealt with a water leak issue in the past that seriously traumatized me and I like the idea of all the plumbing being visible and easy to access (the master suite has a plumbing access panel, but one would otherwise be impossible in the kid’s bath with the layout).
Anonymous says
Showering in a clawfoot tub is absolutely miserable, and most teens prefer to shower most of the time.
Anon says
Another bath-related question. We are building a new house, custom. I have two toddler boys and both boys will have their own room and attached bathroom. Should I put tubs in their bathrooms, or just do large hotel-style showers? The main room (ours) will have a large tub for the next couple of years of bath time.
Runner5 says
Ice cubes. A large non breakable bowl full of ice is great on its own or when combined with any of the above (eg, ice + color tab experiments).
Mr Bubbles bath crackles