Dad takes on biggest challenge of raising a girl
As a man with a daughter, I'm constantly bombarded with things that I'd always hoped I'd never have to get to know on an academic level. For instance, my daughter is wearing panties now. Those used to be fun. Now they're education.
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And I won't even get started on the fear that I have of training bras and cup sizes. Nope, I'll just stick to my red Solo cups.
Well, before I even get that far in life, I've been introduced to the wonderful world of doing a girl's hair. Yay me. My daughter's hair is a mix of my ultra-wavy, curly locks and her mother's thick and silky hair. I guess that would make her hair wavy, curly, silky, and thick. Basically, my daughter's hair is a parfait. And no, that doesn't make any sense.
I knew the day would come when I'd have to give up my tried and true method of wet, brush, and clip. At some point you have to style a little girl's hair. Besides, I will not have my daughter looking like the girl whose dad does her hair. No sirree, Bob. My goal is to make sure that her hair ALWAYS looks like her mother did it.
But braiding? That was asking a lot until one of my friends, a grown male, braided my daughter's hair in front of me, effectively slapping around my pride in the process. I was livid and returned home and spent hours on YouTube learning how to braid with some imaginary coiled coiff-- e. When she awoke that next morning, it was gangbusters. I was a braiding fool.
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Twist here, swoop there, bring it back one more time. I was Kanye West in 2007, you couldn't tell me nothing. My first braid probably looked more like the opposite of a braid, but I got better. My daughter even ASKS me to braid her hair now. Which, as you can imagine, is the total Charlie Sheen version of winning.
Daddy today? He's a braiding fool. I take every chance I can to try new little designs. Plus, when you add my braid game to my barrette matching game, you've got a total Papa Fashionista when it comes to the curly locks.
Now, if I can JUST avoid the ENTIRE training bra years, I'll be set.
Image via Steve Smith/Flickr
Written by Panama Jackson for CafeMom's blog, The Stir.
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