Braiding Hair

While Cydney has what would be colloquially known as “good hair” its still a lot for me to deal with.  I’m a guy.  I have a little more experience than most guys with hair because I had two separate five and six  stints with long hair.  Still, I never braided it and not until Timile got sick did I twist my own locs.  I was excited th day Cydney’s grew long enough to put into a ponytail and go.  That was my expertise and Cydey’s signature style.

Around February, the hair in the back of Cydney’s hair began to thin out and I couldn’t do anything with it.  The days of the ponytail were mostly gone and it was time to start braiding it so that it could be left alone and grow out.  I knew that because my hair grew quickly since it wasn’t being combed out or touched on a regular basis.  I have braided her hair before but that was mostly guessing because I knew the basic mechanics from all of the times that I’ve seen and felt my own get braided.  

About 90% of the time, Cydney’s hair being done is by the hands of yours truly. Being that she’s a little girl, I can’t keep doing the same thing over and over again so I had to find ways to get creative: pigtails with braids, four braids, rows of three, etc.  Well, this morning I didn’t want to do the same thing over and over again.  Through some guessing and just doing, I figured out how to put Cydney’s hair into two French braids.  I put on Nick Jr., gave Cydney a doll to comb her hair and figured it out.  She sat through it mostly.  By the second braid, she was over it and it became a little of a hassle.  Eventually I got through it.  I’d say the results were mixed but I was kinda proud of myself for figuring it out.  It looked good enough that I didn’t take it out and I figured that if I keep doing it I’ll get good at it and figure out cornrowing.  

Now, this may not seem like the most masculine thing to do.  But I’m a dad and whether or not Cydney’s mother was around I would have wanted to figure out things like doing my daughter’s hair.  Partially because it would be a challenge, but also because I do want to be that father that does it all.  At this point its necessity and I have to keep my daughter looking right.

In honor of this feat, I will post a video that sums up the fatherly experience of doing hair.