I used to not understand why mothers would wail about giving their toddlers their monthly trim. NOW I know why. It doesn't help either when dave, thanks to his wonderful genetic inheritance, has loads of 'em since birth, resulting in war-like proportions type of haircuts. And O, did I mention his next one is due soon?
The first two haircuts were a breeze. All we needed were his jumbo baby seat, a bowl of water and a pair of scissors. As he grew in awareness though, he got suspicious of the apparatus and learnt to distrust them near his ears or the back of his neck....all hell broke loose.
Next, all forms of fathomable bribes and bribery were unashamedly offered, especially things that he isn't usually allowed to touch. Remote controls, mobile phones, calculators, expensive CD jackets and their jewel cases, my painstakingly-put-together scrapbook pages, daddy's underwear, etc.
Other times, we switch on the TV and turn up the volume to maximum to hold his attention (j's idea) on the screen while mummy snips sneakily away. When we are troooo....ly desparate, we hit the channel for Arts Central where the Bollywood hunks and damsels are gyrating away. The strange-sounding foreign language arouses dave's interest and distracts him from our hair-reducing mission. (Also j's theory)
Now, for the tried and tested, proven methods....at least for us. Here's what has worked...
1. Cut his hair while he is napping on the big bed. (yes, there's lotsa cleaning up afterwards but i found using a sticky lint-remover roller does the trick. Just roll along the bedsheet and voila!)
2. Cut his hair outdoors or along the corridor where he can socialise happily with neighbours. We've tried this only once and haven't tried again since cos we were too embarrassed to "book" an appointment with our neighbours. But if you are on super-friendly terms with yours, use them!
3. If your toddler is a greedy one, tempt him with a cookie or other finger food which he can chomp on relatively non-messily. We give dave "Wang Wang Baby Bites". It's low in sugar btw.
4. Divide the "salon experience" into 2 sessions or more. It's more bearable this way for toddlers with little patience to hold still for too long.
5. Most importantly, STOP when your little one is genuinely crying in distress. We did so when we found that david hated the sound of the electric shaver. Attempt another time with good'ole, manual scissors.
Of course, I know that what works now may not work the next minute, day or month. That's the amazing thing about young children. They teach you to think out-of-the-box, paradigm shift and manage crisis-control. And all this without prior warning or convening a meeting. Oooooooo....I deserve a session of serious spa treatment.
Having said all of that, I MUST add that this hair-cutting experience for me, albeit a hair-raising one, has evolved into kind of a love-hate relationship. It's stressful l but there's this irresistable intimacy also that forms and grows with little dave everytime I give him his trim. Think about it, how many people's hair have you cut or even touched? You don't walk away feeling the same after this sort of interaction. It's starting to feel like it's a priviledge to cut his hair...much like it feels a priviledge to be his mummy. Awwwwwww.........
Anyways, time for me to get friendly with the neighbours!
