First haircut

The topic of Sabrina's hair has been an on-going discussion for Gene and I (and other family members who have been around). First off, let me just say that it's great hair -- very soft, but VERY curly. So curly you can almost hear the "boooiiiiinnnnnngggg" when you pull a curl and let it go, as it springs back into its original position on her head.

However, it tends to get, in Gene's word "Wild" (see photo in my previous post). Meaning, it looks great after a bath and before any rolling around takes place. Thereafter, you just never know. So the hair that looks picture-perfect at bedtime, post-bath, may look very different the next morning. To battle this, I've invested some time and money in various potions, lotions, spray-ins, leave-ins, etc. You get the idea. I did resist Gene's suggestion of using "grease". I don't know, just that notion didn't sit well with me.

I mentioned these woes to my awesome hairstylist Eileen at my last appointment, and she suggested I bring Sabrina by for a consult. So that's what my mom and I did today. We took Sabrina to my hairstylist for an assessment of her hair. (Side note: this morning Sabrina grew very concerned/scared when she heard my mom drying her hair with a hairdryer. 'What IS that thing?' she must have thought. My mom even reassured her it was OK, turned it on the cool setting, on the lowest fan level and let her feel it, but she wasn't convinced. It may have been the noise, or just that it was a new experience since Mommy never uses a hairdryer. We used the occasion to tell her that she would be seeing and hearing a bunch of these later that day at the salon!).

So we arrive at the salon, and while we wait for Eileen to finish up with another customer, Sabrina is getting acclimated to the various sights, sounds, and smells in there. When it's her turn, Eileen suggested Sabrina sit on my lap in the chair. She takes a look and suggests that most of the curls remain in place, it's just a few of the longer hairs that are contributing to the "wild" look. She suggests that these longer hairs are actually original hairs that she never shed as a baby, and that they be trimmed to the overall length of the other hairs. I thought about it and while my initial reaction was not to cut, this made sense.

Eileen is a mother of 2 girls (around 2 years old and a baby of around 6 months), and she was just great with Sabrina. Before we even got started, she suggested that it may be helpful for Sabrina to hold one of those mannequin model heads that the apprentices practice cuts and colors with. What a great idea that was, because I held the brunette in my hand so Sabrina could see it, touch it, etc. And before Eileen dampened Sabrina's hair with the spritz bottle, she gave it to Sabrina to wet the model's hair. Genius! Once Sabrina's hair was wet, Eileen gave her a hair brush to use on the model (and Sabrina really seemed to like brushing the model's hair) Then came the tricky part... having to run a comb/brush through Sabrina's get so it could be cut. There were some knots and snags that Sabrina didn't take too well to. Poor baby was crying at each discovery of a snag, despite how careful and gentle Eileen was being. Overall she did super! And having the model head there to distract was really helpful. My was there, too, to comfort and encourage her whenever needed. She even gathered the hair clippings for Sabrina's scrapbook.

It looked great, albeit visibly shorter...most probably wouldn't have noticed the difference in length, but hey, she's my daughter :)

Some tips from Eileen for Sabrina's hair care:
1. The Johnson & Johnson shampoo/body wash I've been using on her hair is probably too "light". So we thought I could try my Pantene shampoo and conditioner, made specifically for curls.
2. Use a wide-toothed comb to ensure each strand gets some of the conditioner during her baths.
3. Invest a creamy (not runny) leave-in conditioner. What I had been using was a thin, runny leave-in from J&J. She suggested "Phyto 7", which runs $26 for a little tube. I will try it.
4. Put the leave-in conditioner on her hair when it's still wet (don't towel-dry too much) and use the wide-toothed comb again to evenly distribute.
5. Be gentle during step 4 because of snags/knots.