I recently stumbled across a random post online that said something along the lines of, “water fixes 90% of problems.” I remember reading it as I scrolled past, nodding to myself, “Oh yeah, that makes sense.” And then, like so many fleeting thoughts on social media, I let it fade away within minutes. It was one of those moments of quiet agreement that didn’t stick. My brain quickly moved on to the next snippet of information.
But a few weeks later, I came face-to-face with just how much truth there was in that statement.
It happened on a night I was at gymnastics practice with my oldest, while my husband stayed home wrangling our other five kids. Somehow, he committed one of the classic parenting “faux pas”—he let our 4-year-old twins fall asleep at 5 p.m. Yes, he actually let our little Tasmanian devils outsmart him into a nap at the worst possible time. Any parent reading this knows exactly what I’m talking about. Late-day naps almost never end well.
I came home around 5:45, blissfully unaware that the twins were still asleep. All I cared about was getting dinner on the table. I dished out food for everyone, calling the kids by name to come eat. When I got to the twins, there was nothing. I called again. Still nothing. My husband casually mentioned, “Oh yeah…they’re sleeping.”
“They’re what?”
Instantly, I knew we were in for a battle. I braced myself for two extremely grumpy little girls, and sure enough, my instincts were right. They were absolutely furious at the idea of waking up to eat. How dare I interrupt their beauty sleep, they seemed to be thinking!
At the table, they sobbed, kicked, yelled—you name it. Feeding off each other’s energy, the twins were an unstoppable force of four-year-old fury. It was all I could do to try to keep dinner on the table and keep my own sanity intact. Bribes, hugs, extra attention—nothing worked. Even holding them didn’t help. I felt my patience slipping and my own temper rising.
And then…a tiny memory popped into my head. That post about water. Could it work here? I didn’t know, but in the middle of the chaos, I decided to try it.
“Screw this, I’m done!” I announced. “Upstairs! You’re taking a bath!”
I ran a tub with an absurd amount of bubbles, threw the girls in, and within thirty seconds—they were laughing. Laughing! The storm of tantrums disappeared almost instantly. They were two happy little clams, soaking in the bubbles. Their moods had flipped completely, just like that. Water—so ridiculously simple—had turned everything around. I couldn’t stop laughing with them.
It made me think: water has always had that effect on me, too. When I’m sick, I take a bath. In labor, the hospital tub or shower is my refuge. When I’m sad or depressed, a soak washes away the heaviness. When I cry uncontrollably, a shower helps rinse the tears. When I’m angry or stressed, a long bubble bath somehow resets me. There’s probably science behind it, but all I know is that water truly does fix a lot of problems—maybe even more than 90%.
And it’s not just baths. Think about it: a day at the lake, a long float down a river, or time at the ocean inhaling the salty breeze—it changes everything. Swimming during pregnancy eases the weight on your joints. Time in or near water lifts our spirits, soothes our bodies, and clears our minds. Comedically simple, yet profoundly effective.
Looking back at this past summer, I see it more clearly. The twins were happiest on pool days or paddleboarding adventures on the lake. Sprinklers, slip-and-slides, squirt guns—anything water-related sparked joy, laughter, and excitement. Water didn’t just change their mood; it brought out their personalities, their joy, their energy.
Why hadn’t I realized sooner how much water could help my kids? I had assumed baths were for grown-ups to reset, never thinking that little ones might need the same magic. Kids have rough days too, and tantrums can blind us to simple solutions. But from now on, when my kids aren’t quite themselves, it’s bath time. Even if they just had one—sometimes, doubling up is exactly what’s needed.
Sometimes, all it takes is water to solve your problems. And honestly…sometimes, that’s exactly enough.
—Molly Schultz, Tried & True Mama
