How many baths a week for a 5 week old?

[lilalley]

I see that everyone has included a bath in their wind down routine for bed.  At what age should I start including a bath every night into her routine.  She's 5 weeks old.

[Idahomom]

You could probably start right away.  You don't have to wash with soap every time - that my dry out LO's skin, but the sooner you start a routine the sooner they get the idea of what comes next: bath, then story, then sleep.  We did daily baths until DS was about 2.5 yo and firmly set in his routine, now we do every other day unless he gets really dirty playing outside.

[Texomamama]

Until DD was about 4 or 5 months old, we just did baths around 3 days per week.  We finally started making it daily when we started to get her into a good routine, as Idahomom points out.  It is a really good way to get them to start winding down and relaxing. It is also a fun and relaxing bonding opportunity for moms, dads and others to have with baby.