Rockin' the Bowl Cut

So..... first, you take a bowl and put it on your head..... 
                       

Then you let a friend, with scissors, cut around the bowl....except you leave a little tail in the back for added style.  Obviously,  you don't check with the friend to see if they have any sort of skill level.  Why would you do that?  

Of course you get up the next morning and go to school sporting your new doo...and surprise your parents once again with your amazing level of self esteem.

 #rockinthebowlcut    #whodoesyourhair   #pleasehookmeup

We had a good laugh over this little hair fiasco -  Braden, his dad and I.  It's such a Braden thing to do.  

He is the last Manley kid at home and I am trying my best not to hold on too tight.  In a couple of years plus a few months, he will be on his way.  When I received these five babies, no one bothered to tell me that the leaving would be so painful.  

Wouldn't change it.

Just don't like it. 

Miserable joy.  

Would you think me too sappy if I were to admit - occasionally - sneaking into his room at night after he is fast asleep, just to stare for a minute - to take it in?   

This can suck the breath right out of you if you're not careful.  

Interesting as I stare how much I see....not just the here and now  - but the yesterdays and the days before that.  

The new infant.... .the chubby two-year-old hands...... the bulging five-year-old pockets......that favorite denim hat pulled down over the ears.... and it just goes. All those pictures my heart has taken come racing back.  

Where did all that time go?

If I'm not careful, my thoughts can so easily go to "Have I done a good enough job?"  So quickly come all the mistakes - catagorized and cataloged - the impatient voice, the rushing to get out the door, the harsh words.....  I work to stop this before it starts, not because reflecting on the past isn't important and even a good teacher sometimes.  But because, too often, I allow the beating stick to steal the moment.  

This moment is for basking in all that is good and positive.  Here is a boy - a young man - who knows he is loved, who is healthy and strong, who is blessed to sleep peacefully.  For now, that is enough.  

                                                          _________________

The next day, I picked Braden up from school and took him to the salon to get a little clean-up done on the bowl-cut.  
I know. 

This begs the question, "Why?" 
  
The hairdresser was especially perplexed.  "Wait, you did what with a bowl?" 

Braden and I laughed again. 
  
My phone snapped the picture

....and so did my heart.   

#sappymom      #please      #slowdownthedays      #iloveyou

                                #withallofmyheart