Mohawk *without* an Attitude

There comes a time in every Mom's life when her sweet child gets a fashion sense of his (or her) own. With each passing year, I knew my days of picking adorable outfits and cute hair styles were numbered, but I have to confess I didn't expect them to end quite so soon. Certainly not by the tender age of 8.

How naive of me.

It began with the clothes. Over the last year, Wyatt has developed very specific taste in what he wears. He'll make small concessions to keep his dad and me happy and to ensure the ongoing privilege of picking what he likes without getting our blessing every time. Asserting control over his hair, it turns out, wasn't far behind. Wyatt has been asking for a Mohawk ever since he played soccer with Cooper. Cooper was the Coach's son and Cooper had a Mohawk. Wyatt's never whined for one or made a fuss about it; he's just mentioned it in passing from time to time. Somehow we, his slightly nervous parents, managed to dodge the issue for almost six months.

Since Wyatt was a little tyke, we've kept his hair "buzzed." Short, maybe a little spiky, but always tidy and well trimmed. Early this spring, though, he expressed his desire to let it grow. He has great hair...thick and wavy, would probably be curly if it got long enough. We gave him the thumbs up and let Mother Nature do her thing. His hair grew fast. He looked good with it longer--like a stylish and contemporary 8 year-old. Alas, thick wavy hair becomes like a winter hat you can't take off when the weather turns warm. It gets sweaty and sticky under bike helmets and causes much gnashing of teeth when trying to coax swimming goggles into place. So it wasn't long before he asked me to buzz it again. I revved up the clippers and made a first pass around his head when I heard him murmur the fateful question, "Mom, can I have a Mohawk?"

I paused.

Hmmm. Well, why not?

It's not a full 'hawk...more like a half 'hawk because I'd already buzzed the back. But he likes it. It's fun for him. And fun for me to see him enjoy it so much. I'm getting a glimpse of what life will be like when adolescence hits as he spends countless minutes grooming his 'hawk into place every day.

We really need that extra bathroom.

A sweet kid with a great 'tude and cool cut