There are so many baby bath products out there and a lot of them are crappy. So here are my absolute essentials for baby bathtime that stand out against the competition.

The First Years Sure Comfort Deluxe Newborn To Toddler Tub – Lovingly known in Moms circles as the famous “blue tub”. This tub is great mainly because it’s not huge but works from newborn to baby very easily – Teddy was in it until he was a year old. Some infant tubs are just for infants and you end up needing a new one like a few weeks later (no thanks) or are so massive that they take up the entire bathroom (no thanks there too). The hammock is nice and snug for infants (and washable), while the greater seat works perfectly for bigger babies.

Skip Hop Moby Baby Bath Kneeler Pad – I have already sung my praises for this product in another article, so to quote myself, “Sounds silly. Like you really need a cushion for your knees. But before you get smug, spent 20 minutes wrestling a slippery infant away from an eyeful of soap while kneeling on TILE. Mama’s too old for that. This knee pad is cute, compact, and keeps those knees pain-free, night after night.

Skip Hop also makes a Bath Kneeler in Gray for Pottery Barn (which is the one we have) if colors offend you as much as they offend me.”

Cuddlecloth Baby Bath Towel – Sure, the critter ones from Pottery Barn are cute, but they’re also TINY and stop being functional once your baby is a little bigger. I got this towel as a baby shower gift and it CHANGED MY LIFE. Basically, the towel wraps around your neck, so when you pick up the baby, you’re “wearing” the towel and it wraps quickly and snuggly around them without getting you wet or the baby cold. Honestly, this is one of those products that is just GENIUS.

Matimati Bamboo Baby Washcloths – Of all the baby washcloths out there, my favorites are Matimati. They’re super soft organic bamboo, and they hold their softness for a relatively long time given how often they’re washed – much longer than my “fancy” washcloths from Ralph Lauren and Jacadi.

California Baby Shampoo & Bodywash – After trying roughly 100 (are you surprised?) I keep going back to California Baby – I love the smell, the natural ingredients, and even the bottle itself is less offensive than most on the market. The price is also very reasonable compared to other brands with similar quality.

Stay tuned for a separate post on the best bath TOYS for babies & toddlers!