I hear this comment quite often — second only to “She’s SO cute!”
Yesterday, Carly and I went to Costco for our monthly diaper, wipes, cheese block, and miscellaneous stuff run. She absolutely loves going to the store — any store. Come on, she gets to ride in the cart, have Mommy all to herself, and be smiled at by dozens of adoring strangers. Who wouldn’t love this? It’s like her own parade under bright florescent lights.
When we were heading over to the baby stuff, two women crossed our path, and I heard them say, “I LOVE her hair! It’s so tall!” Of course, I knew they were talking about my daughter — who was (at that time) probably the only African-American one-year-old with “tall” hair in the store. I turned around, saw that they had adoring looks on their faces, and replied, “Yeah, and it gets taller every day!”
Dave has started calling her “mushroom head.” I’m not sure how I feel about this. You see, she’s got all these amazingly beautiful curls all over the top of her head, but the sides (and of course the back) haven’t filled in that well. After a long day of playing at day care, playing with Mommy & the dogs, and taking a couple naps, those curls, well, have matted a bit. And her hair, as an entity, gets taller. (NB: When we go out — not just to the store — I do make a serious effort to re-do her hair during the day.)
I know, and Dave constantly reminds me, that I need to take her to a Black salon to learn more about it. I’ve researched a little, so I know where I do and don’t want to take her — and there are several very good ones in the Metro area; however, once I do take her, I admit to the world that I need help taking care of my daughter’s hair — despite all the reading and researching I’ve already done. Despite the great products I’ve already found (like this and this and this). I understand that this is the best thing for everyone — after all, her hair is different from my hair. Of course I’d do what’s best for her self-esteem and make sure this part of her is treated well. So why am I so worried about my own ability to parent this beautiful Black child?
Hair Pix (L to R ~ “tall” hair; after a bath; pretty for a party):
