How to End the Hair Brushing Battle For Good

This post contains referral links which means that if you purchase from one of my links, I will receive a small percentage of the sale.  

Both of my girls hate having their hair brushed, especially 8 year old Katie.  Katie has long, thick, fine, curly hair-the perfect breeding ground for knots and snarls.  Brushing her hair can be a battle and very unpleasant for both of us.

One day, I'd had it with her screaming at me to stop hurting her by purposely putting tangles in her hair and then yanking them out as hard as I could just for the fun of it.  Okay, maybe those weren't the exact words she used, but the message came through loud and clear nonetheless.  Anyway, it was time to put a stop to the madness.  I pulled the clippers out of the bathroom drawer and gave her a buzzcut that matched her little brother's.

JUST KIDDING, PEOPLE. Calm down, I'm not that mean.

I told Katie that tangles hated smiles and if she smiled, they would jump right out of her hair.  A big grin immediately lit up her face, and we finished the hair brushing session with no more tears or yelling.

There are three reasons why this trick works.  First, Katie's concentrating on smiling instead of thinking about what I'm doing with the hairbrush.  Second, because she actually stands still and doesn't try to pull her hair away from me, I am able to work out the tangles much less painfully.  Third, it's harder to be angry and cry when she has a smile on her face.  Go ahead and try it sometime, you'll see what I mean!
 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do your kids hate having their hair brushed? End the hair brushing battle with these tips: http://bit.ly/1NRWYtY
 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Another thing I did to make it easier to brush my girls' hair was to buy a Knot Genie hairbrush.  I love it so much that I actually bought four more for my nieces.  I use one on my thick, fine, curly hair as well so I can personally attest for how well it works for hard-to-brush hair.

Knot Genie also recently came out with a Magic Hair Band which adjusts to any thickness of hair.  I haven't had a chance to try one yet, but I definitely plan to soon.  Traditional hair bands end up being too loose in my hair or breaking because I tried to get them to stretch for just one more loop.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 We love the Knot Genie because it gets tangles out without tears!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 
What tricks do you have for hair brushing?  Do your kids hate it as much as mine do? 

This post is linked up at: 1. A Bountiful Love  2. Coffee Shop Conversations 3. Create With Joy 4. The SITS Girls 5. Don't Call Me Supermom  6. Cornerstone Confessions 7. Carolyn's Homework 8. Sweet Little Ones Blog