Kids' Messy Hair

[KelseyAnn]

I wouldn't be surprised to learn that Jill, who was the one who obviously loved being around kids ALL the time, was the only one making certain the little ones were dressed nicely with their hair combed/brushed. Now that she's gone, no one else is bothering to make certain the kids are kept clean, even though most of them are old enough to be able to do so on their own.

Maybe that is why she keeps inviting them over, so that she can at least make certain the girls's hair doesn't become a horrid's rat's nest of a mess.

[tabitha2]

They do look like Dickensian workhouses orphans most of the time, don't they?

[SassyPants]

Disheveled- where are their parents????

[tabitha2]

Fucking.

[KelseyAnn]

Disheveled- where are their parents????

Well, two of their 'parents' are out of the house, so....

[MotherOfDragons]

Disheveled- where are their parents????

Sweet fellowshipping.

[YourGodIsNotMine]

Their parents should be on top of their hygiene, but most of those girls are old enough to brush their own hair. And what's with their getting dressed by the older ones?? My kids could dress themselves well before Josie's age.

[19 cats and counting]

The little girls' hair does look terrible. First they all need haircuts (if nothing else a trim--- and I'm including Jill and Jessa here) to make their hair look even and not stringy. Then they all need a lesson on the right product to put in and the right amount (Johannah's hair looks weighed down and greasy and could be solved with the right shampoo/conditioner and washing schedule).

And they shouldn't need to rely on a sister mom to brush their hair. They're all old enough.

[Lillybee]

The only time Poor Jordyn's hair ever looked good was when the oldest kids were in South America and Mullet had Pris, Amy, Anna helping her care for the youngest children.

[SassyPants]

And we all get it. Michelle is nearing 49 and is checked out. The older girls are moving on with their lives outside of the home. EVERYONE who is of age appears to be done with the parenting gig. This is a huge downside to having children for 22 years in a row. Eventually that monotonous shit gets old. Most people who are almost 50, do not have many adult children, several GKs, teens, tweens, elementary and pre-schoolers...JC, I am tired just typing that crap.

19 children is just not realistic- 24 hours/day...never 25, 30...

[txmommyof4]

The younger kids started looking worse the minute Jill and Jessa started courting. Their hair isn't just uncombed, it's filthy much of the time. They have a dull look to their skin and hair from lack of washing, their clothing often looks dirty, ill fitting, and mismatched. It's just sad. It was obvious in the pic used for their Christmas card.

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

My roommate's daughter always looks disheveled. She's 7. It doesn't matter how often you brush her hair, the minute she starts running around, it looks like she just rolled out of bed.

Also, as someone who grew up looking like that, I don't have room to judge. It could very well be that, like me, the girls have sensitive scalps and their family decided to just let them be instead of wrestling them into looking presentable. And, it could be that they used to look more put together because Jessa or Jill knew how to brush their hair without hurting them and no one else bothered to learn. I know that happened with me -- I would scream and cry if anyone other than my grandmother brushed my hair.

[feministxtian]

I had custody of my granddaughters for a few years. I would dress and groom both girls in the morning before leaving for daycare/school. The older girl looked just as put-together at 4pm as she did at 7am. Not a hair out of place, clothes still reasonably clean. The younger girl...could get dirty between my bedroom and the front door. It didn't matter what I did with her, and believe me, I enjoyed dressing up my little ones and getting them gorgeous for the day, the younger one would look like she needed a bath and a good combing in the first 15 minutes.

The girls are now 12 and 10 and the younger one is STILL a mess...The older one is immaculately groomed and put together ALL the time. The younger one...well...if she has clothes on and her shoes are on the right feet, it's a good day. Some kids are just a mess

[tabitha2]

You are lucky if your 10 year old has clothes on?

[AngelGirl8811]

My hair was short and curly like Josie's when I was young and I was bald for a very long time too. I think that there were times where I looked messy and disheveled because my Mom had my baby brother, she was up all night with him crying. Then to get me up for school, it was easier to let me go the way I was than to have me scream bloody murder everytime she put that brush near my scalp. I have a very sensitive scalp and my Mom did not have the hands for it, I cried so often having my hair brushed. Kids will look messy, sometimes no matter what you do. I do agree that some of them could be brushing their own hair and that they could all use a trim but...that's common sense, do we really expect the Duggars to do that? Common sense is a flower that does not bloom in their gardens.

[tabitha2]

I don't see how they don't get horrible tangles.

[feministxtian]

You are lucky if your 10 year old has clothes on?

Ok...guess I'd better explain that one...

Among family and friends, when describing someone who's not usually terribly put together, we say that we're lucky if we have clothes on and shoes on the right feet.

Guess I'd better just stop using family and hometown colloquialisms here seeing as how they get misunderstood.

[tabitha2]

Got ya. I was going say ya'll had bigger problems than messy hair... :lol:

[calimojo]

Kids get messy and I think we all know that, but even the messiest of kids look clean and neat sometimes. Go back and watch clips of the first specials and the first seasons. The kids were neatly dressed, hair neat and tidy daily. Well, that isn't normal all the time either.

For me, part of the issue is that those youngest kids just run wild all the time. I am all for kids being kids having free play time, and I do actually like the fact that they don't watch much tv, but when I was raising kids, we balanced the breakneck running amok, with quieter times to read books, color, work on our ABC's, etc. And if the kids got messy during the day, at some point, we re-grouped and at least washed hands and faces, and tried to tame the hair a bit.

And we for damned sure didn't go out into public looking like ragamuffins.

Kids clothes should be practical, not too fussy, easy to move in and easy to clean. The world shouldn't end if something gets a grass stain, or popsicle juice on it. But these kids look a mess, all the time.

[txmommyof4]

My 4 year old looks a lot like Josie. I mean a LOT. I guess imagine her in boy clothes. Anyway, his hair gets ratty and tangles sometimes and he is the master of being filthy 5 minutes after he is dressed. However, like my mother always said (and geez she was right) you can tell the difference in new dirt and dirt that's been there a week. His tangled little curls glow like gold...dull lifeless hair is long dirty hair. These kids don't look like the type that get messy quick. They look like it's been building layers.

[feministxtian]

Kids get messy and I think we all know that, but even the messiest of kids look clean and neat sometimes. Go back and watch clips of the first specials and the first seasons. The kids were neatly dressed, hair neat and tidy daily. Well, that isn't normal all the time either.

For me, part of the issue is that those youngest kids just run wild all the time. I am all for kids being kids having free play time, and I do actually like the fact that they don't watch much tv, but when I was raising kids, we balanced the breakneck running amok, with quieter times to read books, color, work on our ABC's, etc. And if the kids got messy during the day, at some point, we re-grouped and at least washed hands and faces, and tried to tame the hair a bit.

And we for damned sure didn't go out into public looking like ragamuffins.

Kids clothes should be practical, not too fussy, easy to move in and easy to clean. The world shouldn't end if something gets a grass stain, or popsicle juice on it. But these kids look a mess, all the time.

QFT!

Even my "disaster area" granddaughter got cleaned up if we were going out somewhere. I'd wash her face and re-comb her hair. Her babysitter would do the same a number of times a day. Her true disaster area self shone through after she started school and was in before/after school care...

She's 10 now, and she's still pretty much a mess. A beautiful mess, but a mess. Messy hair, glasses askew, maybe a reminder of dinner on her top. Her sister...never a wrinkle! Always put together. The older one is like her mama, the little one...she's her Nona's girl...poor child is JUST LIKE ME!

[Mylnijya]

They have homeschooler hair. I see it all the time.

[morri]

but dont judge too much xD, My dd has natural messy hair no comb or brush can tame it only straight after a hairwash without rubbing it dry it is kinda flat but after wearing a hat or a nap it will go straight back to frizzy mess(on one side of her head only)

[SnazzyNazzy]

My youngest son's hair, always looks like he wrestled with a weed whacker. The entire back of his head, is nothing but a giant cowlick. Thankfully, he likes his hair super short, so it's not a daily battle, but man if we wait too long between cuts...

[clueliss]

Speaking specifically of Johannah and Jennifer. To me their hair looks fine. Not necessarily thick (well Hannie's does). I have hair like that. Had it as a kid. Heck, still have it at times. If the little girls are using the conditioners etc the older girls are it is weighing the hair down. My hair, when it was allowed to be long when I was a kid, was a stringy mess.

But I had a mother willing to cut it off.

I didn't have the whole 'daddy prefers long hair' syndrome going on.

So the lost girls are stuck with stringy hair as they run wild through the Duggar compound.

As for Josie - I have nothing. Absolutely nothing.