Abbie's FIRST haircut EVER!!!!

When Abbie was born she came into the world FAST!  I was induced on her due date of May 4th at about 9 or 9:30 AM, I had had no signs of labor and hadn't even dilated at all but I was d-o-n-e DONE carrying that huge child around inside my body so my doctor agreed to an induction.    Justin and I sat around for about two hours and watched a movie to pass the time.  We anticipated a long wait since it had taken forever for Bracken to finally make his appearance but all of a sudden she was ready to be here.  She was born in the twelve o'clock hour and I had gone from virtually nothing to full labor and birth in no time flat.  The doctor was paged by the nurse and had to literally sprint from their offices across the parking lot to make it in time to catch this huge baby as she came barreling out.  

I lost a lot of blood and was totally out of it for several hours after she was born so I didn't get to see those first precious moments of her life.  I wish I had seen her right when she emerged to see what she looked like as a brand new little person.  By the time I was conscious and they felt safe letting me hold my own baby she looked like Streganona.  I felt like I should put a shawl on her and hand her a walking stick.  She looked like a fat, red, little old woman.  Don't get me wrong, I loved her from that first moment but she was not exactly the perfect little darling bundle Bracken had been.  The poor thing had been through a lot in that delivery just as I had and it showed.

Anyway, what does all of this have to do with a haircut you ask?  Well, Abbie has grown into a beautiful little girl but for a while there she was struggling to grow into her head and sturdy body.  She HATED tummy time and couldn't really lift up her head for months.  When her hair started to grow in and was really pretty, thick, curly, brown hair I was thrilled for her because her head is completely flat in the back.  All of my family knows this as do many of my girlfriends.  It is something I have worried about (purely for aesthetic reasons since the pediatrician assured me years ago that it is only a cosmetic issue) and Justin even wanted to get a special helmet for her to wear basically all the time.  I decided that I couldn't bring myself to do the helmet thing, especially since the doctor had told us it was totally unnecessary, but I could instead allow her hair to naturally conceal her (as Justin says) "block head".  It is for this reason that I had been hesitant for nearly four years to cut her hair.  I worried that the curls would be cut off and never return or that some hack would botch the job and she would get an awful hair cut that we both had to suffer through.  However, I knew that I was only delaying the inevitable, she would have to get her hair cut at some point.

So, while we were back in Virginia and in the vicinity of our most favorite hair-cutter I decided that the time had come.  It was time to stop Abbie from looking like a polygamist child who had hair down to her butt and to take the plunge.  I assured myself that we were in good hands with Ayesha (the only person who cut Justin, Bracken, or Tate's hair ever while we lived in VA...it was really hard to leave her behind) and that I would survive no matter the outcome.  I knew I was being ridiculous, after all hair grows back.  Well, Abbie resisted at first but she felt comfortable with Ayesha and after I assured her that she would still have long hair and not look like a boy she agreed to the much needed maintenance.

gotta get the shot with the Hair Cuttery sign in the background

one last shot of my baby

she's trying to back out of the deal

one last run of her fingers through the long hair

a little scalp massage

she's unsure of this whole process

she looks like she's walking to her execution

doesn't she look thrilled?

out come the scissors and no turning back

a little blow drying

All finished!

Totally cute! The braid was Ayesha's idea and I let it go...

Long enough to still blow in the wind

All good things end with a treat!