Let down your hair...

I've been a nervous wreck today. This morning I decided that today would be the day Ana has her first haircut (not counting the time she got the battery-operated bubble blower that "looks like a hair dryer" caught in her hair).

How would I introduce this to her without inspiring anxiety by telling her in advance, or losing her trust by springing it on her by just showing up? I've been belaboring this since we scheduled the appointment at "Kids' Hair" this morning... a place that cuts your hair while you sit on a kids' sized motorcycle, or car...would she fall for these distractions? Ana's no fool.

And what's with my unreasonable hair attachment? All my efforts to withhold Barbie and Ariel and all this princess crap, so that my daughter will know that her merits and heart are the true measure of her worth, and here I am, obsessing over the loss of her hair, and the adulation of strangers asking if they can "have one of those curls?" What a weight will be lifted with the new coiff! I hope?

So again, how to broach the subject...at nap today, the Toralora story (she's our recurring character who deals with problems and situations) was about a hair cut.

Toralora's pride and joy had been, for many years, her long, flowing hair. She loved her locks, but in the morning, this hair resulted in many a throw-down with her mama. Toralora would resist her mother's efforts to make that hair cooperate in a variety of styles, and from time to time, the hair would hang in tangled ropes around her ears. And that was just fine with her.

Well, one day, Toralora's mother drove her into town (from the country) past the pecan groves, and pastures, past Ol' Miss Moses' house, past the Ice Man who was loading a large cube of ice into the back of Leo's pickup... until they arrived at a beautiful building where mirrors and metal shined brightly. Toralora wondered why her mother had never brought her here before, to this wonderful place. As they entered, her mama told her that this was a hair salon, and Toralora was turning for the door...until a friendly lady asked her to choose a chair. Nervous, and anxious, Toralora looked into her eyes, and her mother's and could see they meant no harm, and she took the seat closest to the door, in case she changed her mind.

The lady began touching her hair gently, then brushing it out. It actually felt kind of good. And then she took the scissors in her hand, and began cutting the hair away. (I breezed through this rather quickly)...I'll spare you the details of the large lollipop she got afterwards, and how she enjoyed touching the ends of her hair, and how light she felt. And how when she saw her best friend Maybelline on her way home, Maybelline was so excited about her hair (and the lollipop)...Ana smiled behind her nunu at this part...And how Toralora could climb her apple tree without her hair getting tangled, etc, and the next day at school Maybelline came in with the haircut too...
We leave in 30 minutes. Pictures will follow. Cross your fingers(-*