raising daughters 101
because i had a mother who made it painfully clear how much of a burden i was to her by routinely saying things like “i can’t wait until you’re 18 and out of my hair” or “only two more years until i’m not responsible for you anymore” (on my 16th birthday– one year before she kicked me out. guess she couldn’t wait until i was 18 after all), i’m now left trying to figure out how to raise my daughters differently from the example i was given. which is why i always panicked more when we found out we’re having a girl. for some reason i tend to think boys are easier and more straightforward. as for girls, i’m left wondering how to raise them on all levels. from the very-big-can’t-mess-this-up areas such as teaching them to love God, and training them to be lovely future wives and mothers, Lord willing (which is thankfully being covered now at the girltalk blog), to the very-small-but-still-want-to-do-right areas such as, how in the world do i do her hair?! so i’d love to hear any hair styling tips from you girl mommies. products you use? how to get pigtails in line and not all crazy crooked? brush or comb? working with baby-fine hair? how to handle those fly-away hairs when it’s pulled back? really, no tip is too small or basic– i seriously only figured out a couple weeks ago that we should be putting conditioner in allie’s hair to help work out that humongous snarly tangle that always results from towel-rubbing her hair after her bath. thankfully, allie’s been super patient as i sit behind her experimenting with her hair. she sits still, patiently endures the combing out of tangles, and loves to see the end result thinking it beautiful even if it’s really not. 
sadly, my efforts never seem to produce the pretty results i see in other little girls’ hair. but in the end, i’m thankful the Lord knew just what type of daughter(s) this mommy needed.
5 Comments
Kavedissian
Personally, i use both the hair conditioner and hair gel on Megan….she is young but she has tons of hair, and i really don’t want to cut it yet.
As far as being a great mommy….you will be awesome. You are conscious of what type of mom you had, let’s hope any time you spent with me and my mom will have helped. my mom still thinks of you like another daughter.
joesee22
Oh M…you are a great mommy to all your children! I can see it by how content both Mikey & Allie are. Unconditional love and hugs & kisses makes a big difference. BTW…how are you? Let me know when you are up for company…would love to see the new baby.
MNah
You just articulated much of what I’ve felt as well. I actually have very little idea of what I’m doing. I know what I want, but I don’t know what it looks like to get there.
I think you will do a GREAT job, though! I have no doubt, Michelle!
As far as hair, you might notice that K. or M. rarely have anything in their hair (e.g. barrettes, rubber bands, bows). And the reason is because I don’t know how to do it! I’ve tried ponytails, but they end up bumpy and off to the side. Pigtails end up fatter on one side than the other. *sigh* The only solution I’ve come up with is to have them sit down and just cut out a “window” in their hair so they can see. See, I told you, I don’t know what I’m doing!
Kavedissian
another tip besides using hair gel is…practice practice practice…get one of those Barbie heads and just practice doing hair. My mom used to have me sit still while she “played” with my hair, having curly hair it HURT like a mother.
greantea71
just shave it all off. it’s ok. she won’t remember.