bath safety question

[fluffhead]

At what age do you stop worrying about leaving a child in the bathtub unattended for a minute or two? We're not talking about a tubfull of water - just 4 or 5 inches.
I still make sure to be there all the time, but I don't think I can continue that until she's 25.

I'm not sure what a cut-off would be, but I leave my 4 yo in the tub for a few minutes at a time. As long as I can hear her (and believe me....), I figure she is fine. The bigger concern now is the amount of water the rest of the bathroom takes on.

On that topic, I got a little reminder of water safety and the whole only a few inches of water can cause a baby to drown. Anna loves the bath, snuck into the bathroom, and fell headfirst in the tub. Thank god there wasn't any water in it and I was very close by. *phew* All toilet seats down in our house when not in use under penalty of mom going crazy.

I think around that age was when I could(felt Ok with) step out of the bathroom to get something for a minute.
With our youngest, I can't hardly turn my back without him thinking it is funny to slam his face into the water!

[SueC]

Mine are 3 and 4 and I step out for a minute or so, but I make sure they are within earshot. My 3 year old the other day shoved an entire washcloth in her mouth (the little freak!) so I have to watch her a little closer.

[Meenah]

Even at 4 I would be careful, and make sure the hot water heater isn't too hot. I have seen a few kids in the ER with serious burns because the parent stepped out and they turned on the faucet.
Luanne

Oh. Good point, Luanne!
She does know how to use the faucet and be careful with the hot, but if it accidently got turned up, she might panic.

[DCJenn]

The ability to "mix" water is number one on most water safety assessements I have seen for people with MR. Once they get to an age or a size that they're not going to roll over in the water and not know what to do, the next concern is burning. One thing that most states require is that the water temps be no more than 110. (which is not very warm) However, if you don't know what your water temperature is, there is usually a dial on the waterheater. Even in the short term, you might want to consider lowering it a bit. When we moved in the temp was so high that I had to lower it significantly; even with the cold on full blast it was too hot.

Jenn

[peggyfromwastate]

Our twins have been in the bath alone quite a few times. They are 3 now. When DH was at a military training this past summer, and they were almost 3, I didn't even give them their baths b/c I was nursing Luke, who was like 3 weeks old, or something... My oldest daughter gave them their baths, and she was with them the whole time (she's 8, and she volunteered!). Before then, we usually would be watching them for most of the bath, but since about 2.5 yo we would step out on occasion. The biggest problem was that they would spill more water out if we weren't in there. They have never gotten into any serious trouble, though. We watch them still about 95% of the time, and the other time we are right next to them and are listening closely. I didn't leave my oldest alone in the bath hardly until she was about 4. She didn't like to be alone even for a second, and since she was the only one in the tub... With the twins it's a little bit easier. They are so loud and usually are fighting througout the bath, so I could theoretically be in the basement with the laundry going and the radio full blast and still probably be able to hear both of their charming voices...

[SueC]

The hot water is a good point--mine know if they touch teh water faucet when they are in there they are in deep sh*t!