A Day in the Life of a Three Year Old and Her Hair

We’ve teamed up with JOHNSON’S®, whose products have been in our house since day one of parenting (if not, even before then!), to try out their JOHNSON’S® Kids haircare range. We’ve reached the stage, with our three year old daughter, where her hair is too long to just get washed with the same wash we are using to wash her skin with. It needs a bit of TLC to get it looking at its best. She was so excited when she saw her very own shampoo and conditioner. She shouted ‘JUST LIKE MAMA’ and ran off upstairs to the bathroom with them. I don’t think I’ve seen her that excited for bath time in a while!

My daughter’s hair cracks me up. No matter how hard I try, I just can’t get her to keep it nice and tidy. I’ve tried buns, French plaits, ponytails, messy top knots, pretty much every style you can think of, and it still ends up looking like she’s ran through a bush numerous times, and then rolled around on the floor for a while. It’s a very specific look and one that I mainly see just my daughter rocking.

I learnt some really interesting facts about hair whilst researching this project. Did you know kids’ hair is thinner than adults’ hair and doesn’t fully mature until they’re in their teens? I didn’t! Children’s hair contains less melanin than adults and lacks a central core, making hair strands more transparent and prone to breakages. And kids’ hair has less melanin (pigment) and is more transparent than adults’, which is why their hair tends to be lighter and then darken with age. I had noticed that before but didn’t know the reasons behind it, so that was interesting to learn.

Maxime Buffat, Johnson & Johnson Hair and Skincare Specialist, says “As your little ones’ imaginations grow, their hair changes too, with their wispy strands becoming thicker and stronger in time. Their hair remains much finer than adults’ and is more transparent, so it looks and feels softer, requiring delicate care. It’s important to care for children’s hair as you would their skin, using products specially developed for their age range and formulated to be gentle and mild on their hair.”

So, onto our day!

Waking up and getting ready – Little I is our good sleeper. She tends to wake up by herself and wander on through to us at a relatively decent hour (compared to her brother). She’s also pretty good at getting herself dressed and likes to bring her brush and pot of hair bobbles etc through to me to get her hair done. I always tie it up unless she’s having a day at home or is off to a party or something. She is a bit of a tom boy and needs her hair up out of her face for climbing trees or making dens.

Off to swimming – This is a weekend day so we are off to swimming. Little I has been going to lessons since she was a baby and she still absolutely loves them. She now has to wear a swim hat and it plays havoc with her hair! If it wasn’t all tangled before, it definitely usually is once she’s been wearing that hat for 30 minutes. Using the JOHNSON’S® NO MORE TANGLES® spray helped unlock all her knots and tangles and we had a MUCH less emotional after-swimming-hair-brushing-and-tying-up session. Thank goodness, because I do often wonder what the other parents think of me when I’m chasing her around with a brush.

Play time – Little I has reached that age where she absolutely loves dressing up and role play. This often involves lots of different hair styles to match whatever princess, fairy, unicorn, pirate, builder or elf she wants to be! Spraying a bit of conditioning spray makes it a bit easier to manage all the different styles and avoid it getting tangled. The fun of dressing up soon vanishes when you have to extract a brush from your little one’s hair because it got stuck!

Bath time – the main event! We bath the kids every night but don’t wash their hair every night. We tend to wash their hair about two or three times a week, otherwise it dries out their scalps. Since we have started using JOHNSON’S® Shiny Drops Kids Shampoo and Conditioner, Little I’s hair is so much softer and shinier. The conditioning spray gives it a bit of added nourishment as well, especially if we have to blow dry her hair dry.

Bed time – I always make sure I take her hair out of its bobble (if it’s in one) and give it a brush before she goes to sleep. Otherwise she wakes up looking like she has a lion’s mane – which is quite funny for us, but not so funny when trying to get her ready for the day!

Three year olds just never stop, do they? When do we lose all that energy? I can’t remember a specific time when I woke up one day and thought ‘phew, I’m tired now’, or maybe that was just when I became a parent!

We really enjoyed trying out the JOHNSON’S® Kids haircare range. I have been on the hunt for some nice hair care products that are super gentle on little ones’ hair but will also give it a good clean as well. These ticked every box for us. Little I loved using the products and thinks she’s super grown up now she has her very own separate shampoo and conditioner. I loved the fact that it made her, often very tangley, hair much easier to manage and style. We now have a lovely smelling little girl, with hair that she doesn’t get angry and shout about when it is getting brushed. Everyone is happy and I think we’ll continue to see lots of JOHNSON’S® Kids haircare products in our house for years to come!

The JOHNSON’S® Kids haircare range is available to buy at Ocado, Boots, Asda and Superdrug.

*This blog has been sponsored by the JOHNSON’S® brand. I have received payment incentive and samples but all opinions are my own.