showering/taking baths with kids

[cheeseandcrackers]

My daughter is 3.5 and I sometimes will take a bath or shower with her and occasionally my husband.
My mom says its twisted and we shouldn't do that anymore.. including myself and that we shouldn't dress in front of her either. 

Have I been doing something wrong? I thought 3.5 was still young enough.. What does MM say? 

[pinkpeony08]

Totally fine in my mind. My kids (6 and 3.5) are opposite gender and still bathe and shower together. And sometimes shower with myself or my husband (they won't get in the home show without a parent).

[puppylove64]

Do whatever you want until it becomes uncomfortable for someone. I don’t take showers anymore with my boys because they stare or giggle at boobs even when I tell them not to. I’d rather enjoy my shower alone anyways. They walk in on me changing all the time. They bath with dad. The 6 yo has gotten to where he wants to shower alone now. I don’t make a big deal about being naked, but he is entitled to shower alone if he wants.

[ellipses84]

I think it’s fine. I took baths with my son until he was 4 because we had a HUGE spa tub. I was pregnant and tired and it would entertain him. He’s never shown much interest or awareness in boy vs. girl parts though and nudity and breastfeeding are normal things we don’t make a big deal out of. At 7 he takes a bath with his 2 year old brother and I’m just getting to the point where I’m asking him to give me more privacy but he will still barge in the bathroom to ask me a question if I’m showering.

[readyin07]

Dec 9, 2018 11:54:38 GMT -5 puppylove64 said:

Do whatever you want until it becomes uncomfortable for someone. I don’t take showers anymore with my boys because they stare or giggle at boobs even when I tell them not to. I’d rather enjoy my shower alone anyways. They walk in on me changing all the time. They bath with dad. The 6 yo has gotten to where he wants to shower alone now. I don’t make a big deal about being naked, but he is entitled to shower alone if he wants.

This. I showered with my oldest until he was probably three and then stopped after I had had my DS2. They are 9 and 7 and still shower together for convenience sake most times. They also walk in on my getting dressed, showering, going to the bathroom regularly. It's just a NBD in our house.

[ssmjlm]

We both still shower with her at 5.5. DH less so because he feels it’s getting a bit too old.

We don’t shy away from being naked in front of her if it happens. She’s not asking for privacy yet, but if she does we’ll support.

I want her to see us comfortable in our skin. We still sleep nude despite my mother telling me we would have to stop. If she wakes we put on something, if she comes to bed with us, we put on something.

I think it might be a generational thing as I’ve heard other grandparents seem to have issue with it.

[notsopicky]

I think H decided when E turned 7 that he should shower by himself. Although I think that was more a space issue than a matter of appropriate/not. He never showered/bathed with me, not that he couldn't have when he was younger, it just never happened.

[vanillacourage]

I stopped showering with my boys when they were 4 or so. It felt weird given what was at their eye level at that age. Neither really noticed (I didn’t make a big deal about it) and both kids started wanting privacy when they bathed around 6 or 7. 

[cabbagecabbage]

My husband and daughter showered occasionally and it just naturally tapered off and stopped by the time she was 4. I think it is no big deal and they only time its sick is if there's sexual abuse in the child's life in which case, it's the least of your worries. He and I discussed it when she was about that age and we decided that it would end whenever one of them felt weird or uncomfortable and it never came to that. It just naturally happened. I think a little exposure to nudity, boundaries, and personal care with an opposite sex parent is probably helpful as kids are learning about the sexes.

[imojoebunny]

My DS showered with me, until he was old enough to shower and get clean on his own. I think he was around 5, and starting kinder. It never felt weird to me, and I didn't tell my mother, who would probably die, since I never remember seeing her without a bathrobe, and she loves to body shame, in any form. DS never said anything that gave me the impression he was uncomfortable. He would get in with me, I would wash him, then kick him out (wrapped in a towel), and shower myself. It was efficient.

[linz]

I've never showered with my kids but they're 4 and see me naked. They come in our bedroom a lot when I'm getting ready. I assume it's still fine.

[CloudBee]

I haven’t taken a bath or shower with DS since he was a small toddler. Both bathrooms have the combo tub/shower so it’s a tight squeeze. We may have gone longer if we had a walk-in shower. So efficient when they are little!

We change with our doors open most of the time and it’s NBD. I don’t see that stopping for a while because we are all still comfortable. DS turns 6 in March. It’s more that we are all getting ready at the same time / talking, DS pops in to ask a question, etc.

If doors are closed the house rule is to knock and communicate / ask before entering.

[pooh8402]

Totally fine. I still take a bath or shower with E sometimes, or he'll get in the shower with DH. It's actually a good way to teach him about the human body and autonomy and stuff.

[VillainV]

We’ve never bathed or showered with C, but he comes in when we are getting dressed or showering all the time. He’s 4.5. Like everyone else has said, when it starts getting weird we’ll stop, but it’s not weird.

[ilikedonuts]

My 5 year old showers with me. It’s just easy to get us both showered and then ready at the same time.

[Queen Mamadala]

My older kids showered with me until 5-6. My dd3 is 4 and still showers with me. Baths was not a regular thing for any of my kids. I don't have the patience for it. They get showers.

[boiler717]

Totally fine. My son is almost 3 and we still shower with him and I take baths with him. When he asks for privacy or we see him wanting more privacy we will stop.

[leviosa]

DS is 3. He’s in the room when I’m getting ready, and I think it’s fine. DD is 9, and while I wouldn’t freak out If she walked into the room, she has a past of sexual abuse. And so she would feel very uncomfortable.

My mom thinks it’s weird. But we were raised in a very private household. One time I walked into her room while she was getting dressed, and there was an hour long lecture after.

It’s a human body. Simmer down, mom.