Daddy Dresses!

Daddy Dresses

By Daddy Deno

So you need to get that cute kid presentable huh? Well, First off you have to identify how many children you have and what sex they are. Seriously, if you are going to take on the task of dressing your child you need to know a few things like what size they are, what clothes are appropriate for where they are going, style, and what the temperature is outside. We will take each one separately and get your darling child dressed before she is old enough to drive.

What size? We have two dressers in the girls’ room with three drawers each. Top drawer is for underwear, socks and pajamas. Middle drawer is for shirts, and bottom drawer is for pants. Sizes can be a little misleading. A size 4t in one brand may be smaller than the same size in another brand, but for the most part they are close. Try the clothes on. If you see belly or ankles, you have the wrong dresser. If she trips on her first step or cannot find her hands, you have the wrong dresser. Her clothes should look like yours do on you. If you can dress yourself then dressing you prince or princess should not be much more difficult.

What clothes are appropriate? If you are going to church then obviously jeans are out. If you are going to school, you need to know what the dress code is. If you do not know you either need to get into your time machine and look at what she wore yesterday or you can ask your spouse. If you are a single parent you have already dressed her once…do it again. If all else fails, even our two year old knows which clothes are hers. Also, it is wise to have “play” clothes separate from “going out in public” clothes. You do not want to send her off in grungy pants. Grunge was a popular look in the ‘90’s. It’s not good for your three year old. AND IT IS NEVER APPROPRIATE TO TAKE YOUR CHILD OUT IN PUBLIC IN THEIR PAJAMAS IF THEY ARE OLDER THEN ONE!

What’s style? I don’t know. Don’t ask me. Just stick with easy solid colors if you can. If you do not understand style then avoid all patterns, especially stripes and poka-dots. There are rules for these items and I don’t know them, but I can find a nice pair of tan pants and a shirt that has a butterfly on it. And if you are forced to do the shopping for clothes and do not understand style….oh, boy! Luckily there is Garanimals. Find the children’s section and they do the matching for you. Match monkey and monkey…you have an outfit! Or buy an outfit that is all put together on the same hanger. Manufactures understand that style-impaired parents exist so they do try to cater to us.

What temperature? If you live in the Midwest like we do, you can see the weather change in minutes. Layers are always the best method for increasing warmth. If she is too hot she can take something off. Too cold…you get the picture. But if all of your warmth is a huge bubbly coat, she is either going to be sweating or frozen. We usually have to go outside before we dress our girls in the spring and fall. You never know from one day to the next what will be correct. If it is not, she’ll tell you.

Remember, the more simple the better. Let Mommy do the fancy hair and the fancy dresses. She’s better at that anyway. Find something clean and solid colors, you should be just fine.

Daddy Do's

How to do your little girls hair...from a dad's prospective!

By Daddy Chris Deno

Dear Dad’s, welcome to the world of little girl’s hair. It can be a scary place and very intimidating. Some types of hair are easier to work with than others for some styles. I think straight,fine hair is the easiest and I think curly hair is more difficult, but not to worry we will get you through this. Currently we have two girls who need their hair done and we have one with straight hair and one with curly hair. Always remember you are not the first daddy to do his little princess’s hair. There are tricks to help you and to help cover mistakes. Sometimes a simple brushing is all you need, but if she is going to church or school you will want to do a little bit more. I am certainly no expert. I keep my own hair very short so I do not have to deal with that issue in the morning. If this is your first day doing your daughter’s hair: take a deep breath, say a prayer, and read the following.

The first universal truth that you have to remember when you work with your daughter’s hair: get it wet!! I do not know the physics, but hair is much easier to handle when it is wet. The next two are tied in my book. Whatever you do to her hair, she is going to cry, scream, and whine each time until she realizes that it really does not hurt that much and she looks SO PRETTY when you are done. To reduce these tears(whether they are real or not) you have to use conditioner in her hair. Guys can get away with just shampoo or using a “two in one”, but for your angels hair you have to use a conditioner. Don’t worry the wonderful companies of the world have developed tear-free conditioner too.

Conditioner makes the hair so that it does not tangle as easy. There are also “detangler” sprays that you can buy but if you brush her hair daily and use conditioner you may not need it. Young kids generally do not do well when you spray them with things. The biggest battle we had with our oldest’s hair was that she liked to use it as a napkin. She would wipe her hands off during supper. Dried food makes hair-do’s impossible and painful to attempt. Her hair needs washed right away before it has a chance to dry, especially when you have something like spaghetti or macaroni and cheese.

Ok, her hair has been washed and conditioned, her hair is still moist, and you understand that she will potentially not completely enjoy the experience. NOW WHAT??? Well, the easiest look I know is brushing all the hair straight down and using a clip or two to sweep the bangs out of her face. This isn’t a look that I would advise for “class picture day”. However, it is a quick and easy hair style that may say, “Daddy Day”, but it also says, “I tried”. Please do this if you can do nothing else. Do not send her out into the world without brushing her hair. This should also be a relatively pain-free interaction…good starter step.

A very simple look is to pull it all back into a pony tail. Comb out all of the little knots, pull all the hair towards the back and use a simple “ouchless” rubberband. There are a variety of kinds so try not to spend an entire day at the store trying to find the right one. You might not like the first kind you buy, but the good news is they are cheap. Don’t sweat it. While you are at the store pick up some clips. These can be a “do” saver. If you pull all of her hair back and one small group was missed…that’s why clips were invented. Once you have brushed it all toward the back start gathering it up in one hand and brush more into that hand. You now need to determine where on her noggin this creation of yours is going to reside. If you are fearful of being able to find the exact middle, there are a few options. Good news, your life does not depend upon exact, but it should be somewhere close to the middle. If you cannot seem to make this happen then try to gather it all to one side, “Punky Bruster” style. Very young kids do look cute with it on the side. When you have a ponytail made with one hand holding it together use the other hand to grab a rubberband and put the hair into it. Keep holding the hair tight. They twist the rubberband and put the tail into it again. Depending on the thickness of the hair you will probably have it wrapped around four or five times. Once you have the band on her hair then you can tighten it by gently pulling the ends away from each other. Be very careful not to tighten too much. You have a high potential to hurt her, but a little tightening is necessary to keep it together. The last step is to brush the ends so when it dries it will fluff out a little.

The next step up from a single ponytail is pig tails. Same concept but you have the added step of splitting her hair in two, hopefully equal halves. So let’s begin with washed, conditioned and moist hair. Brush her hair being careful of knots and tangles. They will be there just try not to rip out all her hair. A brush with wide teeth makes this less painful. As you are brushing her hair determine about where the middle of her head is and begin to brush so that a clear line appears. Once you have that accomplished, start gathering one side in your hand while brushing more into it. Where to place the tail? High, low? Close together or far apart? That all depends upon you and a little luck until you get used to it. The good news is it really does not matter so long as when you are done they appear to be in the same location. One high and one low is not a good look.

Once you have those mastered it is time for French Braiding. No, I am just kidding. I’m really not sure what that is but I know it is exceedingly difficult. Stick with the basics. Let Mommy handle the “special days”. She just needs to know that in a pinch if called upon your child will not look like she stuck her finger in a light socket. If you are a single dad, practice. Hopefully you have someone in your life that can teach you first hand some tricks that I have missed or can teach you to French Braid. Patience and time are two qualities you will need until you feel confident in your technique. Remember clips can help hold clumps of hair that you failed to get into the rubber band. Ribbons and bows also hide flaws. In the hair care aisle there are pre-made bows on clips. If all else fails, maybe it’s “hat day”.