First attempt
Kneel down so that you are at eye level, stare deeply into her eyes with your facial expression radiating love. Tell her in a calm, lilting voice that it’s bathtime and you will be washing her hair.
Pick up your screaming, writhing toddler who has suddenly gained super-human strength and try to put her in the bath. Give up when the only part of her you’ve managed to get in contact with the bathwater is her big toe.
Second attempt
Put her in the bath and let her play happily for five minutes, then tell her that you’re going to wash her hair.
Wonder if your child could be an Olympic contender in the hurdles races after watching her leap over the side of the bath and jump over the shoes and clothing scattered on the bathroom floor.
Third attempt
Put her in the bath and let her play happily for five minutes, then pour water on her head and attempt to hold her down and grab the shampoo at the same time. Get punched in the face.
Start thinking about enrolling her in an athletics group after she leapfrogs over you to get out of the bathroom.
Fourth attempt
Time her bathtime for when Daddy is home to help. Give up when her writhing and screaming causes Mummy and Daddy’s heads to bash together, resulting in mild concussion for both.
Fifth attempt
Play lots of role playing games involving pretend hair washing. After several hours of her refusing to play any other game, suggest that it might be time for the real thing.
Wonder if she has a future career as a Magician since that’s the most amazing disappearing act you’ve ever seen.
Finally
When it’s a nice sunny day, fill a basin with warm water and squirt shampoo into it to create bubbles. Let your toddler play with it outside. Watch as she dips her hair in the water, or fills her teapot and then pours it over her head. Give her the hosepipe to play with afterwards to rinse off.
More genius! Between letting your child play in soapy water to get most of the dirt off and the cardboard box at the grocery store trick I’m going to call you the MacGyver of moms. Nicely played!
*blush* Thank you.
Oh, I wish I had thought of that last one when my kids went through their hating hair wash stage. Now what I do is make them put their heads back and put one hand on their forhead as a wall to keep the water from running into their eyes. They still don’t like hairwashing that much but put up with it.
Cute story!! I used to get my toddler to wash her hair by doing “celebrity hair makeovers” in the tub. We would use the shampoo soap bubbles to shape her hair into the styles of her favorite cartoon characters like Jimmy Neutron, or Tinkerbell. Sometimes we would even get colored soaps to help decorate her with “fake jewelry” (there are some crayon like soaps you can draw with) would shape her hair funny then give her the mirror to see it.. She would laugh then I would rinse it out and she had to wait till next time to have another one. I would use a silly announcer voice when I “presented” her to the mirror as whoever she was pretending to be. She loved bathtime.
Good luck!
Great idea. I’m going to try it at bathtime tonight.
Sounds about right to me!
Have you tried having your daughter “wash” a doll’s hair while you wash hers? That worked for one of my kids. The other kid? Not so much. But one out of two ain’t too bad!
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Love this! I can so relate.
Thanks for linking up to #findingthefunny!
What is it about kids and hair washing and teeth brushing?
I was laughing with you, not at you. Promise.
Very true! My kids are now 6 and still hate having their hair washed. I sometimes resort to making a bubble bath with lots of shampoo and getting them to lie down in it.
Found this via Dr Bron’s linky.
Hi there! I’m excited to be your newest follower! I was hoping you’d hop on by my blog and return the favor!
http://www.enjoyingtheepiphany.com
Thanks,
Sarah