Of first haircuts and traditions

I had this post in my draft folder since October when my son had his first haircut. Last January, he had his second cut three months after the first one. Due to insistent demand from Mr. S's family, I finally agreed to have his head shaved in hopes he'll have thicker hair. 

Anyway, below is my post about his first haircut drafted four months ago. Hehe!

My son turned a year old almost two months ago. His hair has gotten pretty long on his first year but was still relatively manageable. We rarely experience the dreaded knots that are so tangled you need to cut them off.

He lost all his hair at around three months (around the time I also lost a bunch of mine) so it's really just nine months of outgrowth for him. I wanted to keep it growing until it reached at least chin length before we got his first haircut. See, he is genetically predisposed to be bald. I just want to give him a chance to experience having long hair while he can. Mr. S started losing his hair in his mid 20s so if he follows that time frame, it's not a very long time for him to enjoy his hair.

Mr. S does not agree with me on this. He wants to get our son a haircut soonest time we can. Still following tradition, we waited for my son to turn one before we had his first haircut. Our son has thin, fine hair. People say that if you cut the baby's hair really short (read: skin head or semi-kalbo), it would grow fuller and thicker. I suggested we take it slow and cut his hair short instead of just getting a trim and then we'll go from there.

One Sunday morning, we trooped to Cuts4Tots at SM Megamall. The shop is at the 5th floor near the chapel. We were there a little after 10 AM and we were second in line. Mommies, try to be there soon as the mall opens if you're planning to have your kid's haircut on a weekend. Other customers started pouring in at around 10:15 AM and it got crowded. Babies wailing stresses other babies (and mommies) out so it's best to be the first and get the haircut done as fast as possible.

We were there about 20-30 minutes since there was only one barber at that time (the other one arrived as we were leaving though) so we had to wait for the other baby to get his haircut first before we got our turn.

We chose Cuts4Tots since we live nearby. Also, read good reviews about the service plus the fact that they print certificates and attach a lock of baby's hair with it. They took before and after shots of the baby's cut which they draft into the certificates too. This service costs Php 525. You'll have to come back after a week to pick it up.

While waiting for our turn, Datu was oblivious to the other wailing child. He sat in the (car) barber's chair and was busy playing with the steering wheel. He very rarely cries and has almost zero stranger anxiety so I was confident that there will be no drama here. Boy, was I wrong. He started crying soon as the barber started on his razor. I ended up having to carry him for him to stop crying and I got his hair all over me. Mommies, bring extra shirt or make sure before you carry your baby, ask for a cape (or whatever that is called) so you won't get hair on your clothes.

That's where the babies get to sit. There is also a regular chair for bigger kids. Stations have a monitor where you can request your kid's favorite show to be played to help calm him down. This didn't work with my baby though so I had to resort to carrying him.

There are toys in the waiting area your kids can borrow to occupy them while waiting for their turn.

Before the barber started to cut D's hair, we made sure to follow one tradition, to have an intelligent person cut the baby's locks. They say that if someone intelligent gives the first haircut, the child will also grow smart. Not sure where that came from and obviously, there was no scientific basis to that but it won't hurt to follow. Who got to cut his hair first, you ask? I was the designated person. I guess I was the smarter one. I got Mr. S to marry me after all :p

How about you, what traditions did you follow when your baby had his/her first haircut?

Here are my son's before and after photos.

I was kind of emotional while my son was getting a haircut. He felt like a different kid to me. As if he suddenly grew up. I don't know, I guess I was just being sentimental or hormonal or both. Doesn't he look so grown up after the haircut? Oh, babies grow up too fast.