Near Death Bath Experiences

A few weeks ago, when we got home from an extended 2 week visit at my parents’ house, Toby discovered that his bath at home is nothing like the bath at Grandma’s because it is missing the anti-slip-pads that Grandma’s has on the bottom.  So a few times since coming home he has slipped in the tub while doing *innocent Toby-ish things in the bath, like trying to climb onto the ledge, trying to bang on the windows, or tying to run to the other end of the tub…. He quickly discovered that not only does slipping in the bath create a huge SPLASH but it also elicits an exciting reaction from mommy and daddy.  And SOMETIMES if you’re REALLY lucky you end up flat on your belly with a mouthful of water.  All of which is extremely funny.

 

So tonight, at bathtime, Toby decided to MAKE himself fall.  He discovered that if he stood up and shuffled his feet around enough he would eventually fall.  Hard.  In the tub. 

 

We TRIED to convince him that this wasn’t a funny game.  And we also tried not to encourage this potentially deadly activity by laughing or reacting at all.   But watching him stand there with his arms out in eager anticipation of a fall, while trying his hardest to get his feet to slip was quite funny.   The huge splash at the end which covered both of us AND the entire bathroom with water was NOT so funny.   And, of course, the potential for injury….it makes this a very difficult situation NOT to react to.  If Toby could talk I’m sure one of his first comments would be about our unfortunate lack of a sense of humour …

 

After a few successful falls in the bath, he soon decided to add an extra element of danger to his routine.   Falling just wasn’t that much fun if you didn’t get water in your mouth.  SO he started landing on his bum and then THROWING himself face first into the water while inhaling.  Yes, this DID result in coughing fits, watery eyes, sneezes and some breathing difficulties.  Did this discourage him?  Of course not.  Did it make NOT reacting to his behaviour more difficult? Of course….

 

I always knew that a kid can drown in the tub in an inch of water if you leave them alone.  What I DIDN’T know is that they can ALSO drown in the tub with both of you less than a foot away with your arms outstretched and your eyes never leaving them for a second.   Six months ago I was scared of viruses and the common cold….today my daily fear is the dreaded bath time.  I’ll keep you posted….