Hi moms, do you have any tips to help detangle both wet and dry hair? My 2 yr old daughter's hair is finally growing out and it gets tangled easily. I would also appreciate any tips on getting her to brush her teeth or let me brush her teeth....thanks!
I heard NOT to brush/comb hair when it is wet because it breaks so much easier. I wait until my daughters hair is a least 2/3 dry, then I put in about a quarter size amount of plain old conditioner, not detangler or leave in stuff. I use a wide tooth plastic comb to get tangles out and incorporated cond, then put it in a loose braid for sleeping - looks good in the a.m.!
Use a leave-in conditioner squirted on after the bath and then combed through with a wide tooth plastic comb or pick.
For me, when I was a child, there was a program called "Happy Tooth" (and if any of you can find it, please forward me a link!!) It had a character of a strong tooth that had to: Brush, Floss, Rinse=Happy Tooth! It came with a hand towel that showed the cartoon doing all the steps.
For my kids, I just have the firefly toothbrushes that blink until they are "done". Character toothbrushes work well for two year olds. You may wish to revert to infant toothpaste--my kids don't like toothpaste that is "spicy".
My daughter has very fine hair, as do I. For detangling when it is dry I have found that if you sprinkle some baking soda on a large wide tooth comb and rub it all over then gently comb through the tangles, it works like a charm. If there are a lot of tangles you may need to sprinkle the comb more than once. Often, I will next sprinkle a large round brush with baking soda to brush the hair and make flips at the end. The baking soda is also a natural dry shampoo and gives body to fine hair!
My daughter has fine, curly hair and it gets tangled very easily too. I found that the Suave kids detangler works best (green bottle - green apple scented). I've also tried Johnson's and L'Oreal for kids but they just don't work nearly as well. The lady who cuts my daughter's hair always comments on how soft her hair is and my daughter's teachers always tell me how good it smells (she's 4 and gives lots of hugs so they get to smell her hair a lot).
As for brushing teeth, have you tried a kids electric toothbrush? They have different character ones and maybe your daughter would like that better. You could even take her to the store and let her pick out her own toothbrush and kids toothpaste to get her more excited about it. At 2 years old you still need to brush her teeth for her but it's good to let her try on her own first and then you can "touch up" afterwards. You can explain to her that you have to help her get all of the sugar bugs off of her teeth so she doesn't get cavities. My daughter brushes her teeth by herself in the morning now and I help her at night. If she refuses to brush her teeth then she doesn't get any sweets for one day (no cookies, jello, pudding, chewy fruit snacks, lolipops, etc.) because you don't get to have sweets if you don't take care of your teeth. At 2 years old maybe you could reward her with a sticker after her teeth are brushed - in the evening you could even tell her that you can't read a bedtime book until her teeth are brushed.
Paul Mitchells leave in conditioner. Its great!
Buy a detangling comb - wide teeth spaced far apart - and use it with spray conditioner. Maybe let her play in the sink while you comb her hair?
As far as brushing teeth goes, my son had an independent streak at that age. I could only brush his teeth if we took turns. He had the first turn and I had the last turn. Light up toothbrushes helped too as did letting him pick the toothpaste.
Our dentist recommended letting my grandson chew on the toothbrush. They observe and will start imitating you. My grandson watches me and starts brushing the way I do. There is an Oral b toothpaste for training.
Just saw detangling as a topic on http://www.parenthacks.com/ today. Check it out.
It may be time for a little trim. Stylist recommended it for my girls. I have used the suave conditioner for kids and combed it through with a large tooth comb before rinsing. Works great!
As for brushing teeth, the electronic kind scared my kids at that age so buy a cheap one if you go that route. I let my kids pick out their own toothbrushes and that helped a lot! Singing a silly song like Raffe's brush your teeth song helped as well as ditty's like "I'm gonna brush that food right outta your teeth." My variation of song from South Pacific. Sounds crazy but it worked. Make it fun. Just a quick brush at first and tons of praise if she does well.
Try combing her hair in the bathtub with conditioner in it. My daughter has very curly hair thta tangles and we find it much easier ot comb this way. Good luck!
California Baby Hair De-tangler Spray is amazing. I use it on my 2yr old. She has curly fine hair. Works both wet/dry. Got it @ Whole Foods.
Find her a tooth brush with a character on it, that has always worked for my daughter. It has to be done, remember, you're the adult!
I keep a spray bottle mixture of water and whatever conditioner I use handy. No need to buy a separate product. As for the teeth brushing, I just recently got my 2-year-old son to start letting me help him with brushing. I can't offer any great advice there, except that I think he enjoys being like his older brother. Also, if there is someone she really loves (auntie, friend, etc) they might be able to help out. My son let only his auntie brush his teeth. Unfortunately, she lives 350 miles away! So, every time I needed him to brush his teeth, I would say "Let's do it like Auntie Leah does it."
When you brush your teeth, have her brush her teeth at the same time. When she sees that mommy does it and how mommy does it, she will learn by example. As far as tangles, make sure the shampoo is all washed out because that helps with tangles. And the only other thing you can try is the spray (no more tangles). When I was a kid, my hair tangled so easily my parents gave up on it and cut it real short. Just do your best and teach the importance of hygiene.
You should help her brush her teeth until she is 9 per my dentist -- that is the point where they develop the dexterity to do a good job. I tell my daughter and son (3.5 and 2) respectively that they need to make sure all the food is out or they will rot out and then I do a silly gummy face with no teeth -- it makes them laugh. Once a day, I let them try themselves and in the evening before bed, they start and I "finish" by getting the molars, "smile teeth" as we call the front ones, the sides of the teeth and tongue (sticking it out for fun). We also buy the fluoride free Toddler Thomas the Train Toothpaste- the kids like that. They both have beautiful smiles! Good luck -- toddlers are so difficult :)
For detangling, we also use Suave's detangling spray. I toss my daughter's hair as I spray it pretty good, then gently brush starting with the ends of her hair & working my way up. She's almost 5 and her hair has only been trimmed a couple times! It goes all the way down her back! haha
For toothbrushing, try to make it fun, like a game. Let her watch you brush your teeth. Let HER brush your teeth! Let her brush her own teeth. Then tell her it's YOUR turn to brush her teeth! I always tried to laugh & make it fun when I helped my daughter. Now she will ask me if she can brush her teeth haha (I will still ask, "can I brush yours too?" haha)
I use spray detangler. I think Suave has an inexpensive one that smells like apples, in a purple bottle with an octopus on it. You can also put just a tiny bit of conditioner on the hair after bathing the child, and leave it in (comb it through) while wet.
For teeth brushing, I do a "It's your turn to brush your teeth" and just let them do it, then "It's Momma's turn to brush your teeth." It also can help to try to do it when they are focuses on other things (like in the bathtub), though you're going to run into the issue of trying to hit a moving target; but you might get less resistance.
We have used so many different things for tangles......currently we are using: 7th miracle from Sally's---awesome stuff and smells wonderful. We use Pantene Pro-V Deep Conditioner when we wash their hair and don't stress about rinsing it ALL out......it is okay if some stays in. I also have started having them wear their hair in a braid or ponytail to bed---helps A LOT---I just started doing what Cara mentioned and that is to put some of the conditioner in a spray bottle with water and spraying it on their hair----it worked great so I may stop buying the 7th Miracle (it isn't cheap).
Not sure on the detangler (I have boys) but on the teeth brushing I can help. Sing a song, tell her she can brush her teeth first while you sing and then you need to check/brush for yuckies after she is done. This really helped my son. If this doesnt work start a sticker chart and buy a fun tooth brush that she likes. You need to make it exciting and not a chore.
My 2.5 year old loves her Spinbrush toothbrush. I usually start out brushing for her and then let her do it.
Detangling sprays work well, and you can use them anytime. I also accidentally discovered that shine sprays work really well for detangling and static electricity, which is a problem in winter. They have silicone in them for shine, which smoothes the hair. (Too much makes it look greasy, though.)
It wont help to detangle if you don't keep it from getting tangled again. Detangle when it's wet and seperate it into little ponytails. Then braid or twist them so they don't get tangled all over again.
Teeth brushing - I take them to the bathroom with me and hand them a brush when I brush. I'm modeling. To make it a game - we bought firefly toothbrushes that light up when you tap the bottom. Kids are supposed to brush as long as the lights blink. So, we turn the lights out and let the kids brush. After I turn the lights on I inspect and rebrush a little to get what they missed. Sometimes they think it's funny and giggle, sometimes they resist and don't want to play along. Than I just play the bad guy and do it anyway. It's not easy, but somebodys got to do it!
spray on conditioner/detangler. start at the bottom and comb an inch or 2, work your way up. satin pillowcase. and if she wears her food in her hair like my daughter, a ponytail when she eats will help. for brushing, they sell these toothbrushes that light up, firefly i think they are called. if you can find them, it might do it, my kids love them. you have to do it, by the way, she wont do a good enough job at this age. i still do my 5 year olds at night, she does it in the morning, etc
