The Daddy Diary
Musings on Babies, Bulldogs, and Beer
Hairdo (or Hairdon’t)
I love being a girl dad, but I was a little scared when I found out that both our children were going to be girls. I would have been more comfortable with a little boy because, well, at one time I was a little boy. Some things are just easier about handling little boys, such as maintaining their physical appearance. Wardrobe maintenance is very simple with boys. Some combo of pants (or shorts) and a shirt will work for any occasion. But girls have skirts, princess dresses, the occasional tutu, and maybe a romper if the situation calls for it.
But my biggest fear about raising little girls was their hair. I have never styled hair before. There has never been a follicle of hair on my head that exceeded two inches in length, and because we have very fine hair in my family, there were never any options when it came to styling. I’m even terrible at getting tangles out of hair. It’s easy when your hair is short and thin, but Ella’s is long and ridiculously thick. Every time I brush her hair, she complains that I’m hurting her. If I can’t even brush her hair, what chance would I have of styling her hair?
Until I had daughter’s I never had a situation that required me to put hair into a ponytail or braid. I tried to braid Ella’s hair once, and let’s just say that the braid was so loose that it stayed in place about as long as a Kardashian marriage. It was gone in the blink of an eye.
If Mommy is unavailable for hair styling, this was going to be my responsibility. There is no chance that this would turn out well.
I have mixed emotions every time we take the girls for a haircut. On the plus side, shorter hair is easier for Daddy to maintain. On the negative side, I fear what would happen if they got a bad haircut. I always think that my little girls look perfect the way they are, so why mess with a good thing? If you already look perfect, there is only one direction in which your appearance could go.
One of the most nervous days of my life was when Ella told us that she wanted bangs. She had never had bangs before, and that is a big change. What if the look didn’t work on her? Is anything worse than having a bad haircut? You can reverse a lot of bad decisions in life, but a bad haircut is a decision you have to live with for at least several weeks. But, of course, she looked perfect with bangs.
For Audrey’s most recent haircut, Michelle wanted to get Audrey a pixie cut, and that day became the second-most nervous day of my life. That is a big change. Audrey hadn’t had short hair since she was a baby, and I wasn’t sure how it would look on her.
However, I was enticed by the prospect of her having short hair. Short hair means no more pigtail duty for daddy. Whenever I put Audrey’s hair into pigtails, Michelle gives me a look as if to say, “What the hell is that?” If by chance I can tie her hair tight enough to stay in pigtails, it would be a compliment to call them asymmetrical. One pigtail will be close to the top of her head, while the other will start somewhere below her left ear. It looks like I learned my pigtail technique from the Pablo Picasso School of Hair Design.
Well, as expected, Audrey is beyond cute with short hair. I don’t think it would’ve mattered if it was a bad haircut. My little girls could go full-on Sinead O’Connor and look perfect. Their perfection transcends bad cosmetology (and Daddy’s ineptitude).
One Comment on “Hairdo (or Hairdon’t)”
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The Daddy Diary 
What a perfect pixie haircut. Tinkerbell would be so impressed. Her smile gives me happiness every time I see a picture of Audrey. Sending you love and joy for an amazing summer
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