There are some long, wispy bits of hair, like an uneven fringe at the top of Cy’s head that are just begging to be chopped off. I had planned not to cut his hair until he was a toddler or so, as I love his baby hair and I think it’s adorable when toddler boys have thick mops of sweet unruly locks. But because his hair grew in at different times, he has some short sections, some long sections, some straight hairs and some curly ones. It’s all over the place. I can brush it to the side to make it halfway presentable, but as I’m sure you can imagine, that lasts for approximately 3 seconds.
I’ve heard people talk of not cutting a baby’s hair at all the first year. Some cultures, on the other hand, say you should shave the baby’s head entirely. My sister’s husband, who is from Laos, recommends this and did it with his own daughter, arguing the hair will grow back thicker and fuller if you do.
I’m just itching to tidy up the front, though will probably need to do his whole head, as I just know once you tidy up one thing, everything else looks shabby by comparison, so I might as well just do it right to begin with.
Now, I have never cut anyone’s hair before–except for that one time ten years ago when Toby asked me to give him a mohawk and even then I was terrified I’d mess it up. (And can one really mess up a mohawk?)
It might end up like the time, when I was about 13 or 14, and I offered to help trim a bush for my aunt. She had invited me for a week in the summer, as she did every summer because they had a lovely pool for swimming. It was late in the afternoon and she mentioned she needed to trim back one of the bushes that lined the back of the pool. I offered to do it for her. She asked whether I had ever attempted such advanced gardening before, and I have no idea what compelled me to lie when I told her I had done it plenty of times. By “plenty,” I really meant “none.” So she handed me the shears and left me to it. I started out with grand ideas and great intentions, but kept changing my mind as to what I wanted the eventual shape to look like (round? a heart? an elf?), and thus kept hacking at that poor shrub until only a few bare, mortified branches remained, then handed her back the shears and announced, “I’m done!”
Come to think of it, that might have been the last time she invited me to stay for the summer.
Most likely, it would appear as though everything was going along just fine until I got to the end and realized all the hairs on the left side of his head were a full inch longer than those on the right. And that’s assuming I could even get him to sit still long enough to make more than a quick snip or two.
Maybe it’s better to leave it–given enough time, maybe his hair will sort itself out on it’s own…
What do you think? Should I try it or let it be? Have you, or would you, cut your baby’s hair?
Thing I Love About Cy Today: When he sits in his high chair, he likes to prop up one leg on the seat, knee in the air, foot resting on the seat. It reminds me of my sister, she sits exactly like that.
