Help!!!

I hate to tell an expectant mom this (and I don't), but delivery is not the hardest part! I know the expectant mom gets more and more anxious as she contemplates her increasing abdomen all the well knowing that this bowling ball sized baby has to come out of a not so big exit, but labor is fleeting. It comes, then goes and the joy and excitement of holding her newborn does funny things to the memory, all but canceling what a struggle it was to bring about the birth. The proof of this fact is that she will go through it all again, with joy, to hold a new little child.

Other things do not go away quite so easily because you have to do them again and again. How many times do I have to "explain" to Ivan that the dog does not like being hit in the head with her bone, that the cat does not want her hug to be followed with a yank of her tail and that hitting mom in the face in the morning is not exactly good wake up protocol, it really starts off the day all wrong! Not to mention all the more difficult parts of watching him fall and hurt himself, having to discipline him or knowing that his feelings are going to be hurt. Then there are the not so fun wrestling matches.



Today we fought over long hair with some sharp scissors and clippers. This is extremely nerve racking. Here is this tiny, precious bundle of life, acting like he is being electrocuted as I try to trim around his ears. The goal quickly becomes getting the hair shorter and not too badly butchered as opposed to the original goal of a straight and beautifully executed cut. I really don't see why toddlers hair shouldn't just grow to a nice length and then stop growing until he will cooperate with a cut more readily.






Here are some before and after pics, along with some of our hair cutting tactics. I cut his hair while he squirmed in his high chair. We put the tray on and gave him books, a play phone (I think he was dialing 9-1-1 or grandparents) and his favorite... dominoes. The dominoes worked good, but once all the hair started blanketing and irritating him, we had to move to more offensive tactics like holding him down against his will.



We all decided that while the cut is not perfect, we'd all had a good enough workout on our nerves, arms and attitudes and it was time to make a truce. He enjoyed his bath after and is not tugging at his long hair any more, because it's not there! I'm sad to see his curls go, but they would only emerge after a bath and never stayed until the light of day. Expecting a girl also took the edge off the cutting of the beautiful locks since she will surely have hair the same or curlier than Ivans.



Before you give your opinion on this, I should also explain that Ivan is folically challenged in the front. I have never cut any hair off the front. It doesn't seem to grow or fill out and he has a long forehead, so I haven't wanted to make it any shorter there yet. Just the sides and back have needed trimming so far.