We are not typically a "bathe our kids every night" family.
Shocker, I know.
But given the effort involved, combined with our full evenings, we just never got into routines of bathing our kids every single night.
Things change when your boy turns 7 and runs hard at recess every day. I can't imagine sending our eldest to school without a bath at this point, I don't think his tablemates could make it through the day. He can shower completely on his own now, and it's a nightly ritual we don't skip.
I've noticed on my late-night rounds, tucking & kissing the slumbering children, that Bran smells of lavendar shampoo - clean. It's a wonderful smell, and I go to bed feeling that somehow deeper sleep and sweeter dreams come with freshly-washed bodies.
So last week was a rough one with this little guy. In a nutshell, Bran is giving us opportunities to pull in the reigns of discipline a little more tightly. Not fun, but necessary. I had to follow through with some very difficult consequences one day last week, and within minutes of executing them, the "old Branson" I hadn't seen for weeks reappeared. Amazing that this stuff really works.
That night I sneaked into his darkened room well past midnight, checking to make sure he was snuggled under his covers. No bath that evening. But as I stood on my tiptoes and stretched across the top bunk to kiss his cheek, somehow his smell was more clean and fresh than it had been in months. He was clean from inside out, and it smelled beautiful.
Shocker, I know.
But given the effort involved, combined with our full evenings, we just never got into routines of bathing our kids every single night.
Things change when your boy turns 7 and runs hard at recess every day. I can't imagine sending our eldest to school without a bath at this point, I don't think his tablemates could make it through the day. He can shower completely on his own now, and it's a nightly ritual we don't skip.
I've noticed on my late-night rounds, tucking & kissing the slumbering children, that Bran smells of lavendar shampoo - clean. It's a wonderful smell, and I go to bed feeling that somehow deeper sleep and sweeter dreams come with freshly-washed bodies.
So last week was a rough one with this little guy. In a nutshell, Bran is giving us opportunities to pull in the reigns of discipline a little more tightly. Not fun, but necessary. I had to follow through with some very difficult consequences one day last week, and within minutes of executing them, the "old Branson" I hadn't seen for weeks reappeared. Amazing that this stuff really works.
That night I sneaked into his darkened room well past midnight, checking to make sure he was snuggled under his covers. No bath that evening. But as I stood on my tiptoes and stretched across the top bunk to kiss his cheek, somehow his smell was more clean and fresh than it had been in months. He was clean from inside out, and it smelled beautiful.
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