Cyan! I Am Glad to Meet You

Dear Henry, 
My lil dude so expressive and dare I say colorful?!  For a couple of years you have been quite fascinated with unusual color names. Chartreuse, Indigo, crimson and cyan, to name a few.  You settle on a solid love of all things cyan, quizzing people to answer to what they think your favorite color to be.  Your school has an ample supply of individuals and expressive appearances.  This is one of the many reasons we love it so much, growing up where differences were frowned on, or at least constantly questioned.  One of the trends at your school is stripes of hair colors or full headed green heads or purple dos.  This is the year you wanted to do yours.  We held off through the year and as summer hit we said let's do it.  You are pretty sensory sensitive and I worried the process would drive you nuts and we would abandon our efforts to a vibrant cyan mid lightening process and end up with a brassy orange.  We talked about this and you promised to hold it together long enough to get through so we proceeded through steps 1. cutting and step 2. bleaching.  

You were so excited about the initial results you delayed the coloring part, admitting that there had been a lot going on around your head and you needed a breather.  You made it through the first round by talking to yourself, asking lots of questions and giving a blow by blow of what you were feeling.  Nervous energy was never more cute. 

We also allowed Hazel to do a little stripe in her hair. Barely there, a pretty "little caramel stripe" she called it.  So, here we are a week later and you are ready for the dye.  We prep, get you outside and slather on this bright blue stuff.  

You handled it amazingly but we had to rinse it outside in the cold hose.  After much hooting and hollering you followed up rinsing off in a warm shower and we dried the finished product...a gorgeous poof of cyan cotton candy perched on your head.  

You feel you look very cool.  We think so, too.  You were more than amenable to pictures.  I will post them all here for future looksies.  

I posted on facebook and apologized to your grandparents whom all understand your personal drive to self expression but are a bit reserved for such a brightly screaming statement.  No worries, they will see how happy you are an melt.

I love you buddy.  This was fun doing this for you.

Love, Mama

Beauty School Drop Out

Dear Hayzittle....
This week you were practicing your scissor use with some fancy scissors.  This was fine but you weren't able to cut with them well because of their big handles.  So, I found a dollar pair that would fit your little mitts and taught you the rules on how to hold the scissors when walking with them, how to hold them in your hand and how to cut paper and "ONLY PAPER or if Mommy says it is okay to cut."  So we cleaned up after our little lesson together and I went to the bathroom to get prepared to leave to pick up your brother from school.  I came out of the bathroom to an unreasonable quietness and called out your name.  You came down the hall holding something in your hand...Oh it is your little scissors.  Look at you! Holding them just like Mommy showed you........uh...your hair....where did this hunk of hair come from...HAZEL!  Where did you do this?  You said with a giant grin, "My room, Mama.  I cut my hair."

Why yes you did.  Luckily in the same parking lot as Henry's school is a hair stylist and I dropped in and she evened it up so it could grow together.  The entire way there you were giggly and unleashed, very proud and exuberant.  After your short fringe trim we played at the playground where you were dragon for the 8 year old boys playing on the climber, growling and screaming them away again, and again.  If anyone brings up your haircut you get so proud.  I guess there is that in this thing that is going to be a long grow out.  I couldn't not laugh, the whole thing made you so happy.  When we returned home you demanded I take photos of you on the sidewalk.  

Then at Target the next day you tried to beg me into buying you a Tiger Beat Magazine...slow down lil mama! 
 
Love, Mama

Piggie Wiggie!

Dear Hazie!
Today I did your hair in pigtails and it was the most amazing thing ever!  Who put this little girl in my house?  Baby is sayin' bye bye (literally you said bye to Daddy today as he left for work and the Physical Therapist as she was leaving our session) and figuratively...I am starting my pile of Hazels.  You're an amazing little baby lady.  So funny and so pretty.  Your PT and OT today could hardly take your cuteness with the little fountains of hair pointing out the sides of your head.  You're starting to throw in some fiestiness too.  This is refreshing, yet a little shocking.  You grabbed the fork out of my hand at dinner on Monday and threw it to the side because you were done eating the cheese.  

You were trying to use the brush on your own.

All you really need to do is sign all done, but who knows when you're really done because you EAT AND EAT AND EAT.  You're signing when you're sleepy, you want more, you're all done, and I love you.  The other day you sat on the floor for several minutes making a plastic alligator bite your big toe, to which you'd let out a good giggle, over and over again.  

Though you don't yet stand on your own or walk you did cruise three steps today.  You're off of formula and on to milk with no fanfare or battle...Oh crap, that's all for now, you just climbed up on to the fire place. 

Love, Mama

First Hazel Haircut

Dear Hazel, 
Just before your birthday we took you to Tamara at Boomerang to get your first haircut.  It was pretty tame... Your hair wasn't that long but the texture kind of changed all at once and it was hanging in your face down your nose, making it difficult for you to see when you are crawling.  It was quick.  You stood at the couch and she went... snip, snip, snip... and it was all over!  And you looked cute and I could see your sweetie pie face.  There were a few barely there wisps to put in two plastic bags, one for us and one for WW.  

Love the look of it.  The first hairstyle of many.  At least someday the perm trend won't make you a victim.  haha You're such a beauty. 
Love, Mama     

*Henry's first haircut.    

Hair Follow Up

Dear Cupcake, 
You're hair is growin'!  Your body is growing too!  Looks like you're edging out of the 0-3 months and fitting into 3-6 months.  Man babies grow quickly!  Well, your hair situation isn't as tame as your disposition.  Those cowlicks are still dancing at the back of your head creating a perfect mohawk that any devout punk rocker would envy, and without the glue or aquanet.  I try to pacify the up swoop with a little barrette but it works its way out of the clamp of the barrette and pops right back up.  

 We are in love with the smiles you've been giving freely.  

This is your hair's natural state!

This is just after a bath

Quite a few times we've had lil' cough exchanges or woops.  I love this.  I bought you a little snow suit for the cold weather coming.  It is still a little big but you were soooo cute in it.  Here is one with your pointy tongue making an appearance, just like WW's. 

We danced in front of the mirror today to your delight.  Henry came in and brought us pillows to sit on.  You still love the light and your eyes are always glassy with shine.  We are loving getting to know you.  You've just slid into our family as if your slot was just waiting.   I took this one to send to Bahboo just before his ankle replacement surgery.  

Shirt says, 'My Grandpa is a Hunk'

We love you babycakes. 
Love, Mama      

Lots of Lift

Dear Zellie,
Your hair is in control...perhaps a little out of control.  So fluffy and so soft and so freaking stuck straight up in the air!  A few days after a good washing it starts to lay down a little, and when I say a little I mean you still bear a striking resemblance to Kate Gosselins 2000's look, slick in the front primping rooster in the back.  I love it really.  Just look how sweet you are.  I am sure this won't be my first hair drama in your life. 

 Love, Mama