Young Children and finding time for haircare

[Bublin]

I'd love to hear from ladies whom have young children and how you find the time to take care of your hair.

Pre-pooing, detangling, deep conditioning, rollersetting then sitting under a drier, twisting, weaving it yourself......its all very time consuming and for me there doesn't seem to be enough hours in the day.

Gone are the days when i could spend the whole day or evening on my hair.

Right now i have taken down my braids, detangled and put in four loose braids that i've hidden under a half wig. For two days now i've wanted to spend some time to wash my hair and then time drying and styling it. But i've not found the time.

Its no fun having a 1 year old screaming for your attention when your in the middle of a detangling session in the shower. erplexed Nap times are getting shorter or are unpredictable so i can't plan around that.

I have a very hands-on partner but at the end of a busy day i just want to relax and spend time with him instead of disappearing into my haircare.

When i do do my hair i rush it and i know i should have spent more time on it - especially as i'm nearly 11 months into my transition.

Can ladies chime in with their routines?

 

[Snuckles]

I have 4 heads to do. Hubby & son wears locs my daughter and myself wear twists. I put everyone on a schedule. Hubby & son I can put off because of the locs.

My daughter & I usually wash every two weeks. I try to make sure we're on opposite weeks. I try to tighten my son's locs once month and unfortunately hubby gets his locs tighten once every 2 months. I'm trying to get hubby on a monthly schedule.

So basically EVERY WEEKEND I'm doing at least one head if not two.

I usually do hair Saturday night or early Sunday morning, before church.

Good luck in finding a schedule that works for you and your family.

 

[miss stress]

Hey! I have a 2 yr old and a 3 yr old. And the key for me is not having a long complicated reggie. I pretty much wash and dc 1 time a week and maybe co-wash one other night during the week. As far a styling, I dont really heat straighten my hair often so I pretty much just slick it back into a pony and wear my upa clip. From start to finish on dc night It only takes 40 maybe 50 mins depending on how much new growth I have to detange and for me its easy to find that amt of time. Good luck!

 

[chely 77]

I have a 8yr old a 4yr old and a 3yr old and i do my wash days on sat morning while everyones still asleep by the time they wake up im styling my hair, however i cowash every nite again once everyone is asleep and put my hair in a ponytail and let it airdry with a scarf wake up for work put on my drawstring ponytail and still have time to be with my DH. Hope this helps

 

[beans4reezy]

I have a soon to be four year old and I try and keep it as simple as possible. On Saturdays, I wash, dc, and rollerset...and he is with his dad. Once those rollers are on my head...then I am all his. I cowash as well...but I cowash at work after my work outs as I am fortunate enough to be employed by a company with showers. I moisturize and seal every night- but that takes like two minutes, so there isn't much he can get into when I do that.

But the key to balancing hair care and children is to keep it as simple as possible.

 

[Alta Angel]

I have two daughters with long, thick hair, ages 6 and 3. I keep my transition routine simple by washing, DCing, steaming once a week and wearing a faux bun. I braid my hair in six braids each night and put a scarf on and keep it moving. In the morning I moisturize and attach the bun.

I do my girls hair 3xs a week-Sunday, Tuesday, and Friday night. I keep their hair in about 6-10 braids on a regular basis. The more braids, the longer the hairstyle lasts. They both sleep in satin bonnets. My husband or I will refresh their hair in the morning with a little braid spray and lightly brush up any edges. I wash their hair every 2-3 weeks (more often in summer).

 

[Bublin]

You guys make me sound lazy - got to get off my backside. lol

 

[yamilee21]

You're not lazy; small children can be very demanding. My hair grew and thrived after I had children for the simple reason that I did very little to it... mostly co-wash and put it in a bun, 2-5 times every week (more in summer, less in winter). "Deep conditioning" for me is quickly slathering some concoction over my dry hair, then going about my day until I get a chance to wash it out when the kids are asleep. When they were smaller, I sometimes had to wash and detangle while holding them - I had a mesh sling for that. As everyone else has said, keep it as simple as you can.

 

[Tylers-mom]

I have a 7 year old and 8 month old. I pre-poo overnight or as soon as I get home from work I might throw in my mix and then cook or do whatever...when they go to bed I then hop in the shower and do the rest. 90% of the time I airdry and do braid or twist outs. So as I'm watching the 10pm news, i'm twisting my hair. LOL. And I also have a supportive husband who will hold down the fort when I'm doing my hair as well. I'm always sitting around the house with some crap in my hair with a plastic cap on.

When I first had the baby I would go get rollersets every Sunday morning..I'd leave the house as soon as the kids woke up, around 7:30am and would be back around 10-11am to finish spending my day with them.

 

[Vintageglam]

Hey Bublin here's a suggestion:

- Prepoo with oils on a Friday night
- Shampoo in the morning
- Slap on Deep condish and don a shower cap and wrap with a towel while making the kid's breakfast and while you eat yourself.
- Hop into shower and rinse out DC
- Style while getting ready (you can dry your hair in a wrapped up towel or t-shirt as you get ready).

HTH's

 

[Summer79]

Keeping it simple does help a ton. I have a 3yr old daughter with long thick hair that gets redone a few times a week and also my hair. I cowash a few times a week, more when it's really warm. If I need to prepoo/DC I'll put the treatment on with a shower cap and a scarf on top of that and keep it moving and do whatever I need to with the kids (also have an 8yr old son). Now if I'm doing a henna I'll wait until DH is home to hold down the fort for me. If I wanna roller set or set my hair for a braidout or twist out, I'll just set the kids up in whatever room I'm in with a movie and some snacks, or coloring books, legos, etc. where I can sit and do what I gotta and they are happy or just wait until they go to sleep.

 

[Salsarisma]

I have a soon to be two yr old and a six year old. My big wash night is on Wednesdays. My kids are on a pretty strict schedule, so both are bathed and in bed by 8-8:30ish...we do have some late nights, but rarely. I prepoo as soon as I get home from work and keep my head wrapped in a shower cap or Saran wrap while I cook/play/do homework/bath the kids, etc. Once they are in bed, I shampoo, dc, and rollerset. I'm in bed around 10pm. I co wash once a week in the am before work. So I guess KISS is the way to go!!

 

[lamaria211]

ive got a 5 yr old and a 16month old and now my 16month old doesnt take naps anymore so it gets crazy most of the time he tries to help me!

 

[LadyPaniolo]

It is NOT easy! I have a 4.5 year old with classic length hair, a 2.5yo boy and now a 3 week old DD. PLUS I'm taking classes online. Time is of the essence, lol.

That's why I have primarily kept my hair in protective styles that last. For ages I wore Crown and Glory braids that I bunned. Now my hair is getting too long for that, I have worn wigs for the past year. This past few weeks I've been trying to wear my hair in braidouts and updos but ye gods I don't have the TIME for hardly anything. Today I had to drive to the city to take an exam and I slapped that wig on my head and KIM.

If I had the time I'd put in C&G braids again and refresh them one at a time whenever I had a free minute... but it takes me forever to do my whole head... tiny people keep interrupting me every 2 minutes, and when they are asleep I have papers to write and a baby to nurse