Grand slam haircut at Sharkey’s

November 20, 2014 by Beth Shepherd

Haircut #4. Sharkey’s Cuts for Kids. Little Bird’s last haircut was ten months ago. It was time.

The before picture

Remind you of a certain former U.S. professional tennis player?

Off we went on our Grand Slam adventure to a new salon. Bunny got a piggyback. This was a big occasion.

Sharkey’s is named for…you guessed it. Mr. Shark was the second big-toothed dude we’ve encountered in the past week.

I’d heard about Sharkey’s from a friend (Thank you, Sara!) who said she’d had a great experience there. Her opinion was echoed by many others in Yelp reviews. Seemed like a good bet. Nevertheless, I felt a bit anxious. My Little Bird is not the most patient of clients. She has trouble sitting still. In fact, most of the time, she has trouble sitting. At all. I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best.

First we met our stylist (Thank you Julie!) and Little Bird selected the stylin’ ride of her choice (pink Barbie Jeep). Then a hair wash.

Next, the hair cut. Per usual for my squirmy kiddo, we weren’t but two snips in before…Are you done? When do I get my ballon? And my lollypop?

Blow dry, followed by Princess braids. Julie is fast. I can count on one hand (less than one hand) how many times Little Bird has worn braids. Cute little clips attached them to her swanky shorn mane.

A spritz of cupcake-scented hairspray (I kid you not) and a sprinkling of glitter and my glamour gal was ready for…

Her mini-mani. She selected a few blue nail polishes. And a sparkle polish to top it off. Of course.

Little Bird also got to choose one jewel to adorn her finger, from a selection of big, beautiful blingy, rings.

And then from thumb to pinky all ten of her nails got a coat of polish and…more sparkles. Bunny was the epitome of patience throughout.

Finally, the moment she’d been waiting for. Not the haircut. Not the braid. Not the glitter. Not the mani. Not the ring. The balloon!

And the lollypop!

All of this set me back a mere $28 which, when you add up every little treat Little Bird scored, seemed pretty reasonable. And her hair–ADORABLE!

The big bonus (in my opinion), with every haircut Sharkey’s donates to Seattle Children’s Hospital, Make A Wish Foundation or Big Brothers Big Sisters. If you pay in cash–which I did–they will double the donation.

With a kiss to Mr. Sharkey, we were out the door and homeward bound. Bye-bye Sharkey’s…we’ll be back.

Take the road less traveled, Beth

Postscript: She unclipped the braids before we got home and started to peel off her nail polish. But she still looks pretty darn cute.

The mane event

January 24, 2014 by Beth Shepherd

My daughter’s hair is her crowing glory. She has a thick, lustrous, curly mane. It is one of the first things people comment about when they meet her: “Oooh, her hair.”

It took me a year to cut her hair for the first time and another year passed before I had the courage to cut it again. As a curly girl myself, I know the drill: condition after shampoo, leave in conditioner, detangler before brushing, special brush. But after morning upon morning where we battle the brush, I decided it was time to really cut her hair.

Off we went to my stylist for her third hair cut. We even managed (with a lot of coaxing) to get Baby Bird’s consent for a hair wash before her cut, and a blow dry at the end. The only thing we forgot was Mr. Lion, our faithful companion on the previous two visits: “Oh no, mama, we forgot lion!”

Six inches fell to the floor, a dusting of sparkles was the frosting on the cut, and voila. Third time’s the charm!

This morning when I went to brush her hair, it was smooth and easy as BUTTAH…until I hit the section where she’d stuck a fork full of macaroni and cheese in her hair. Next up: how to use utensils.

Before picture.

“You done?” was the question asked repeatedly from the minute she got in the chair.

The hair wash pitch–she was not buying it.

First professional hair wash success.

The pink comb garnered extra brownie points.

Snip. Snip. Deer in the headlights.

Bye, bye hair.

First blow dry. What once was curly, now is straight.

Almost done.

Helping clean up.

The do.

Out the door.

Steamed milk and banana bread to celebrate.

Really big piece of banana bread.

Really small piece for mama.

Take the road less traveled, Beth

Second haircut is the charm

November 22, 2013 by Beth Shepherd

Faithful readers may recall that my daughter’s first haircut took place last November. Although Baby Bird’s steadfast companion, Mr. Lion, was was by her side, the visit did not end well.

Hence the reason I waited a full year (yes, a full year) to make a second attempt. We arrived at Swoop Salon a few minutes early, enough time to have a snack, a drink of water, and check out the most recent issue of People Magazine. Mr. Lion was selected, once again, as Baby Bird’s traveling companion. This year, there was stiff competition. He almost lost to Mr. Fluffles (the heron) and Mr. Bunny. Having accompanied us a year ago, he now qualifies as a seasoned veteran. We sat on the couch and waited–anxiously.

My turn yet, Mama?

Yes, it will be your turn soon.

Not hurt Mama?

No sweetie, it won’t hurt.

My won’t cry.

I hope not, sweetie.

Turning to the stylist, Not hurt?

No, it won’t hurt.

Mama? Not hurt?

Mama, my turn yet?

Finally it’s our turn.

You almost done?

No, we are just getting started. We haven’t cut your hair yet.

Almost done now?

No, we’re going to to brush your hair. Do you want pick a brush?

You almost done?

Here we go. Snip, snip. The deer-in-the-headlights look kicks in.

She doesn’t make a peep. I can’t remember the last time she was this quiet, for this long–while awake.

At last. The do is done: cut, French braid, cupcake clip. And relief.

Now it’s Mr. Lion’s turn. He was a rock star. Of course, this is his second visit too.

Lookin’ good.

We headed to Zoka’s for celebratory steamed milk. Yes, Mr. Lion, you may have a sip.

But back away from my banana bread!

Snip snip: first haircut

November 16, 2012 by Beth Shepherd

“Would you like something to drink?” the hostess at Swoop Salon asked.

“Do you have any whiskey?”

Standing in the salon, trying to maintain a hand-hold on squirmy Baby Bird, we waited for her first haircut. My daughter has a beautiful head of hair: a lovely shade of light brown with auburn highlights, thick and full with curls in the back. Her hair is one of the things people comment on when they first see her. Since she’s been home with us, I’ve let it grow (save one awful, quickly aborted, attempt to trim the ends). But lately, her “do” had begun to look like a mullet, so I decided it was time.

We have several options for “kid’s cuts” in Seattle, and I carefully considered them, but ultimately chose to go where and with someone I already knew, someone I could face again if my child had a complete meltdown. That said, it was not without significant trepidation that I called to make an appointment with my stylist, who is herself a mom to two young children.

“What if she starts screaming and disturbs your regular clientele?” I said tentatively to the woman who took my phone call.

“Don’t worry, K. is great with kids. You know, she’s a mom.”

Yes, yes, I thought to myself. But my kid is a very active child, a child who does not like to be physically constrained in any way, a child who—if left to her own devices—never sits still.

We arrived at the salon armed with snacks and Mr. Lion (thank you Shelley!), one of her favorite toys. K. and Baby Bird were introduced and K. took her over to get a booster chair, and then showed her all the tools of her trade: salon chair, spray bottle, scissors, hair on the floor from a previous client. The booster was placed in the chair and Baby Bird was propped on top.

So…how did it play out? Baby Bird was true to form, in a constant state of motion: sitting, standing, squirming, sitting sideways, on the booster, off the booster, on the chair, off the chair. K. was patient and gracious. She pulled out several “tricks” from her stylist hat: handing Baby Bird a comb, uploading animal videos to her smart phone, all for naught.

At one point I asked her, “You’ve cut children’s hair before, would you say Baby Bird is more active than most?”

“Absolutely.”

There you have it. For posterity, I have a lock of hair from her first haircut, and a series of pictures that capture a few of the moments, albeit none of the moments when I was holding her head and she was screaming.

We decided to abandon any efforts to “style” her hair and settled on a light trim with more evenly cut locks, minus the mullet-like, unruly strands. I thanked my stylist profusely and we headed home.

Want to see more snippets of fun? Check out Delicious Baby Photo Friday.