Rub-A-Dub-Dub

When Autumn was an infant she loved bath time. She would lay in her little infant tub and smile and coo and play with the bubbles. As she has grown, so has the length of bath time. She has always been content with splashing in the water and playing with her bath toys, until recently.

Over the last month bath time has gone from a calm distraction before bed to a battle of wills. It usually begins by me telling Autumn it is time for her bath. In the past this announcement would cause her to run to the bathroom door, waiting for me to open it. Now, before this entire sentence has left my mouth, Autumn is running in the opposite direction, shaking her head "No". After picking her up, squirming and wiggling, the fun really begins. She starts screaming for her blankey.

At around 9 months old Autumn woke up one morning and attached herself to one of her blankets. They have been inseparable since, except at bath time. She has tons of bath toys, but recently the only thing she wants in the tub with her is the one thing that's not going in, her blankey.

Instead of sitting calmly in the tub, playing with her toys, while I wash her. She stands, fists balled up, face beet red, and cries. Where I used to sit on the side of the tub and watch her play, I now wash her as quickly as possible and get her out.

Once out of the tub, I walk her into her room and lay her on the changing table to dress her. This is when I give her back blankey. The remainder of the time is spent with me getting her into her pajamas while she whimpers and buries her face into her blanket, as if they have been separated for years.

Even though this has been the routine for the past couple of weeks, I still feel bad everytime. Bath time used to be a fun time that Autumn and I spent together, we would splash and play, until she was ready to get rinsed off and get out. Now it is filled with tears and is over as quickly as possible. I know that, as with most things when it comes to a one year old, this is probably just a phase. It is a phase that could not end soon enough.

Until then, Autumn and I will continue to have our bath time battle over blankey.

Edit: Tonight went much better, so maybe we have turned a corner! Fingers crossed!