Monday, July 11, 2011

I'm Gonna Wash that Dirt Right Out of Your Hair

Bath time in our house starts out as a very exciting time. When the kids hear the bath water running, they themselves come running. They have even tried to climb into the tub with all their clothes on.

We start off by playing with bath toys. Foam letters and cups are our staple bath toys.

We have tried homemade bath paints from here. My two year old loved the paints. My one year tried to eat the paint. I decided to save tub painting for another day.

For all that I do to try to make bath time a fun experience, there is always one thing that brings the fun to a halt.

Washing hair


I wish my kids looked this content with shampoo in their hair. Instead, as soon as they feel any water on their hair, they begin to scream and try to climb out of the tub - NOT safe and really NOT very fun.

At this point, bath time goes from a fun activity to a wrestling match.

I am stumped!

I have tried to be gentle. I have tried to be quick and just get it done as fast as possible. I have sang, explained and begged, but to no avail. Any attempt to wash my kids hair ends in a chorus of cries.

What tricks have you brilliant moms out there come up with to make hair washing a less terrifying experience?

Do you use any nifty contraptions to limit eye-water contact?

Or, is hair washing just something that moms and kids have to endure?

Thanks for your help.

~Lisa~

8 comments:

Julie said...

My fiance has a three year old who has the same problem... she loves to play in the water, but HATES getting her hair wet. I fill the water up just enough that I can lay her head all the way on the bottom, without the water reaching her ears, then I tell her to grab my arm with both her hands (keeps those hands occupied and not squirming!) We usually sing the "ABCs" as a distraction and it's over before she knows it! She does a lot better with bathes now, and knows what to expect.

The Fisher's said...

We rarely have tears around here (thankfully!) when it comes to hair washing, but one thing I didn't realize I was doing differently from other friends was rinsing them laying down, rather than dumping water onto them to rinse. They love to lay in the water and it usually makes contact with eyes less likely. It is something we've done since birth however, so starting this at a later age may be a difficult one.

Showers are nice for a change up as well - when we are traveling with little ones and there is no tub a quick shower is an awesome treat and they do really well! Maybe that would help with some of the water trauma once in a while :)

Heather said...

Maybe you could try the hair washing first (perhaps using some of the suggestions above) and have the toys at the end to end the bath on a good note.

Laura said...

We do what Heather said--our girls don't get any toys or bubbles until their hair is washed. I find they are willing to put up with it a little more civilly if they know they get something out of it at the end.

My girls also know they can cooperate by putting their heads way way back to get rinsed, or lay down nicely in the water--and if they don't, they know that I'll just dump water on their head. It isn't worth the fight to me to try to be nice if they're not helping when it's something that lasts 10 seconds.

Megan said...

We do the same thing as Laura. Washing hair is the first thing that happens and Lucas knows he doesn't get any toys until it is done. We also let Lucas help us. We use tear free shampoo and let him scrub his hair and also sometimes we let him dump the water on his hair.

Alyssa Harper said...

Those cool little hose-shower attachments can make things fun and make it easier for you to direct the water while rinsing.

Raylyn said...

I don't make my daughter wash her hair everyday:) This might help becuase then they aren't having to do it so many times a week.

Delia said...

This might be scary for them...but maybe not. Have you tried giving them a shower? I mean I know it's water hitting them on the head constantly, but some kids might think it's fun to take a "bath" like mom and dad do. You can point the shower head down so they can choose when and how much they are hit by the water by moving in and out of the stream when they're ready. If you have a detachable head...even better. They can control the water and use it to wash the water out of their hair themselves even. If not...I used to put my head under the faucet to rinse my hair out when I was a kid. I liked that I when I flipped my head upside down into the water, it got the back of my head and not the front and into my eyes. You have to stay under there for a while, but eventually all the shampoo gets washed out. Good luck!