"Whe-whe-whe…" He continued crying as she kneeled down setting him into the soapy warm water.
"Jayden… Shush… Shush… baby… It's alright… Soon baby soon…" She spoke softly to him again attempting to keep her own nerves from being racked from his discomfort and her tiredness. As she held him up in the tub, she took the wet wash cloth and lathered it up with the baby shampoo and gently rubbed it at the crown of his head working backwards. It wasn't long before his dark curls were frothy with shampoo. He splashed his arms wildly and began kicking his legs crazily as he grew sleepier. He twisted and stretched his small body out into a full-body fit flailing backwards and splashing his mom.
"Jayden! Jayden!" Marla found herself raising her voice as her own irritation grew. "Okay, okay… baby… Just a minute…" She said to him but Jayden was throwing a tantrum. Before she knew it, some of the soapy shampoo froth had begun to run down his forehead and trickling over his eyelids.
"Oh poor baby… poor baby…" She cooed as she took her wash cloth and dipped it into the water, wringing it a bit to remove the excess water and then dabbing away at the soap on his face and eyes. The more she gently wiped at his face, the calmer he became. Soon he was lying slightly relaxed in her hands and she could bath him now with ease. She shook her head attempting to shake some of her tiredness off as she was now washing his arms, chest and back.
"Ooooh… wake up- wake up Marla…" She mumbled to herself as she found herself yawning again and again. It wasn't long before her head began bobbing downward involuntarily as sleep began to consume her weary body. Abruptly she jerked upward; waking herself.
"Woo…" She said shaking her head and fighting against the sleep. She began to wash away the soap from his chest and back.
"Ooh- Aaah…" She yawned as her eyes involuntarily slipped closed and the circular motion she was making on his back came to a slow and eventual stop as she began to snooze.
"Just five minutes… I'll close my eyes for only five minutes." She mumbled to herself as her head nudged forward and lolloping to the side she was asleep in the stillness of the room. Jayden too had also drifted off to sleep in the relaxing warm water. As they both slept, his tiny body made slippery in the soapy waters quietly slipped from her relaxed hands and slowly into and finally under the waters. As he lay quietly breathing, soft clear air bubbles began bubbling upwards from his nostrils as they too were submerged under the water.