Monday, March 7, 2011

Improvement and Frustration

Last night I suggested to Daughter that we start getting up and to the church 30 minutes earlier this week, that way we'll only have to adjust 30 minutes for the time change Sunday. My radio comes on at 5:00 in the morning, and then the alarm goes off at 5:30. I got up before the alarm went off, and Daughter was already up, showered, and dressed for the day. She was very happy this morning. She took care of her linens with no prompting from me. When I asked her to put the clean dishes away, she did without complaint. I was delighted.
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Then she asked me to do her hair. It was a tangled mess. I don't think she has been brushing or picking through it. I applied lots of lotion and worked through it with a pick. She screamed and hollered. I didn't let her see how much hair I threw away. She keeps telling me that she's almost and can take care of herself. Obviously she hasn't been taking care of her hair. I will need to monitor more closely in the future. Sigh.

3 comments:

maeve said...

I so love Miss K's hair. It's very, very short and she looks like a model. Not to mention the fact that I don't need to monitor hair care. K loves finding AA women in stores and other places with short hair. Now we're seeing more and more of them on TV and in magazines. Worth thinking about.

I know this is controversial and that what you don't need right now is advice for people who don't get it. Just an idea that you might want to bounce off of her.

Actually I got this done by having friends talk with K about the idea because she's still pretty oppositional and, if it's my idea it's a bad idea.

Keep us posted. You are an awesome mom!!

Miz Kizzle said...

There are many options for hair styles for African-American women that don't involve cutting her shai very short or expensive extensions. Since you're living in "The capitol" instead of "Tiny Village," there must be quite a few salons near you that specialize in haircare for women of color.
Your DD needs to learn how to take care of her hair as part of her regular self care routine. With some guidance from an experienced hairstylist and a little motivation on her own part she can begin to take pride in her crowning glory.

Reverend Mom said...

Maeve,
Her hair is shorter now than it was, but she has decided she prefers it long.

Miz K,
She knows how to take care of her hair. I was amused to hear one of the members telling another member about how Daughter had explained to her what is involved in caring for her hair. She just chooses not to do it. I have told her I will take her to a salon after she shows me she will consistently wear her hair wrap to bed. It has elastic, so all she has to do is slip it on over her hair. I'm just trying to get her to do that basic thing right now. I will not allow any chemicals on it until she is doing that. I don't think I'll be taking her to a salon any time soon. I did take her to a salon once to see if it would motivate her to do a better job. It didn't.