Disclosure: I received this product for free in exchange for an unbiased, honest review. In no way did the discount affect my review of the product. All opinions are my own. Affiliate links are used in this post. Read full disclosure here.
Shnuggle Bath Review
I recently received the
Shnuggle bath and have been using it for over a week now, and I love it!
This is the first time I actually saw my baby girl smile while giving her a bath and she seemed more into it as this was the first time she was actually immersed in water! I loved seeing her kick her feet and move her hands in the water, testing it out.
I was even able to float her rubber ducky (which also lets me know if the water it too hot -
buy it here) in the tub with her and she noticed it for the first time! Probably because she was able to sit up and thus see it better, unlike with our previous bath time arrangement. It was a great distraction for her while I wiped her down.
My favorite thing about the Shnuggle bath is that it allows Elsa to sit upright, so she can't slide down or off unlike our previous bath seat (see photo below). It also has a very comfy foam backrest for her, which you can buy in gray, pink, or blue (I received the gray one). Also, the Shnuggle will age with your baby so you can use it up to 12 months!
I am, of course, watching her and am with her the entire time during her bath, but it is nice to not have to have one hand on her at all times just to keep her from falling off. It makes bath time quicker since I can use both hands to wipe her down with a washcloth, instead of just one. (Please never leave your baby in a bathtub unattended, no matter how secure you think they might be, it only takes a couple inches of water for them to drown and it can happen in minutes!)
The Shnuggle also has rubber feet for grip, which prevents it from moving in the tub or on the floor, unlike the Babies R Us one that I had, which would slide if I wasn't careful. The Shnuggle is also lightweight and compact, so it doesn't take up much space, making it easy to store.
Another great thing about the Shnuggle is that it saves water as I no longer have to fill the bathtub in order to bathe Elsa. You also don't need a bathtub! You just fill up the Shnuggle and place it on the floor, maybe wrap a towel or two around it if you have a splasher, and you are good to go! This would be great for anyone taking a long vacation and aren't sure if there will be a tub available to bathe baby.
As for downsides, it can make cleaning the neck area trickier, but I usually wash her hair over the sink anyway so I can just wipe her neck before washing her hair. However, to leave a proper review, I did try washing her hair while she was sitting in the Shnuggle and it actually was not that hard! I just squirted some shampoo in my hand, ran it through her hair, and then used a wet washcloth to wash away the shampoo, worked just fine! You might have issues if you are trying to pour water on your baby's head with a cup though (I don't recommend that method by the way as you are more likely to get water in baby's ears and eyes).
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| My Shnuggle - You can buy one here! |
Another downside is that this product is also only available in the US via
Amazon Prime for $35 or in the
UK, so it is not easily accessible to everyone yet. If you don't have Amazon Prime, you can get a 30-day trial
here for $3!
Price wise I think it is a great deal, considering the bath seats similar to this one are in the $15 - $20 range. I would happily have spent the extra $15 for this tub as it is way better quality and way more comfortable for baby.
Also note that my baby girl was 3 months old by the time I got the bath and tried it, so I am not sure how well it would work for a newborn. However, I do wish I had known about this product sooner! The Shnuggle would have saved me from some unpleasant bath times!
You can learn more about the Shnuggle bath on the
Shnuggle website, and purchase the Shnuggle
here!
Our Bath Time Routine
First I want to state that it is very important that you do not over bathe your baby. Yes, too many baths are actually bad as it will dry out your baby's skin! My pediatrician recommends twice a week, but I have also heard 2-3 times a week from other doctors. I give Elsa a bath every 2-3 days, so depending on the timing (and how messy she gets), it ends up being 2 times some weeks and 3 times other weeks.
When Elsa was a newborn, she would often poop or pee before getting in the tub, luckily I was smart enough to lay a towel on the floor in preparation for this so I never had a mess I couldn't handle. As she got older and gained more control of her bodily functions, she stopped peeing and pooping during diaper changes. I also learned to wait till she poops before giving her a bath to eliminate the messy towel, though I have heard from others that their baby will poop no matter what during a bath, even if they wait! So that may not work for you and you will find yourself changing the bathwater.
First thing I do is fill the tub, using a little bit of
Sebamed Bubble Bath, and check the temperature of the water. I have the
Munchkin White Hot Safety Duck, but find myself using my elbows more often. The duck has never been wrong, but I just feel more confident in my ability to tell if the water is too hot or too cold, so the duck is more of a fun toy to distract her. I then lay a towel on the floor just in case, but haven't had an accident in a long time due to the fact that I wait till after she goes before giving her a bath.
I highly recommend the
Skip Hop Moby Bath Elbow Saver and the
Skip Hop Moby Bath Kneeler for your comfort when bathing baby. You could also use a towel, but I found having the kneeler was more convenient, easy to pull out and store away, and the elbow saver has suction cups so it sticks and stays on the bathtub, unlike a towel which would move around.
Once the bath is set up. I get the baby ready. I undress her, take off her diaper, and wipe her bottom down. I always dip her toes in the water first before sitting her in the tub so the bath doesn't come as a shock. She used to cry a lot during baths before I learned about this trick. I guess the shock of being in water made her cry and she just wouldn't stop, but if she gets a warning that the water is coming, she is calm the entire time.
Every other bath I start with using
baby oil on her hair as a way to help prevent cradle cap. I would put a little on my hands and rub it on her head, then I would use a baby brush to help massage it in. Once that was done, I would proceed with the bath, using a washcloth to wipe her down.
At the end of the bath, I would use some shampoo (I currently use
Acure Yummy Baby Shampoo) on her hair and then rinse it out with warm water.
The baby oil - shampoo wash method was recommended by my pediatrician (she actually recommended coconut oil, but I had baby oil on hand at the time, so I looked it up and it works just the same). If your baby has cradle cap, you will want to do this at least twice a week until it has cleared up, and then switch to doing it every other bath or less often.
After her bath, I dry her off well, especially the neck area, as those little folds are terrible at getting milk and spit up trapped in them. If she spits up on a non-bath day, I just use a warm wet washcloth to wipe around her neck to help keep it clean and prevent yeast infection.
I then apply baby lotion to help prevent dry skin. I have both the
Acure Yummy Lotion and
Seventh Generation Coconut Care Lotion. Both work great at keeping her skin soft and smooth, but I love Seventh Generation more because it has pure coconut oil! Plus it smells better in my opinion.
When Elsa had a little bit of cradle cap, I rubbed the Seventh Generation lotion on her head and I believe it helped (along with using the baby oil at bath time) because her cradle cap cleared up in just a few days! I plan on sticking the Seventh Generation brand from now on and will probably switch to their
shampoo as well since it has coconut oil too!
After bath time is also a great time to do some naked time! This allows baby to air dry after a bath before putting on clothes. Plus naked time helps with their development as it allows them to discover their body parts. You can combine this with tummy time as well, but I like to do that before the bath instead so if baby does spit up or drool, it will get cleaned up right away. You can also do naked time before a bath too!
Well you know what comes next, I get her dressed, and we are good to go!
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