Funny. Both my boys have long hair, and I know the problems that come with it, but their dad wants it long, and I don't think it's worth a fight. A while back I realized, though, that I was unconsciously making judgments about people who keep their young sons with a close buzz cut. My cousin's son has one, and I've seen them on some others.

Maybe it's because I grew up next to a military base, maybe I have an association with that sort of hair cut and a certain type of person, but I've been trying to overcome the bias in the way I hope others are trying to overcome the bias of little boys with long hair.

(And I just saw in Cookie magazine another celebrity, although one I'd never heard of, whose son has very long hair! It's totally the fashion now, huh?)

Reply

Do I feel your pain!!!!!!! My oldest, who's 2 1/2, had his first haircut at 6 months, seriously the child has always had tons of hair, and currently gets a cut every 2-3 months. He has gorgeous hair, thick honey-colored wavy curls that are beautiful, but mommy here just doesn't like dealing with the rats nests that develop, so I drag him to the torturer, aka stylist, to have the dreaded cut. He's all fine and calm until the scissors appear, then all heck breaks out! Screaming, crying, tears the size of Texas, you get the idea! And God forbid you bring out the electric clippers, you'd think the WIggles were just executed in front of him! This last time was better, just screaming at the clippers at the end, but he needs a cut next week (I can put his hair into pigtails, which is so wrong!) and I'm just praying he's calm and doesn't turn into the Tazmanian Devil in that chair!

Reply

I gave my son his first buzz cut at three months. He had an "old man mullet" just fuzz on top and it was growing all long and wild around the sides and back, so we buzzed it off and have been buzzing it ever since (he's 2.5 now). I do try to grow it out now and then (my mom gets after me about how he always looks like he's a recovering cancer patient), but he's not exactly blessed with great hair. Sadly, he has my hair, stringy and thin. And it doesn't grow evenly all over, he's still sporting a receding hair line.

Reply

We have been buzzing Eric since he was about a year too. He's 5 now and he still hates getting his hair cut, he doesn't cry, he just complains the whole time. He has a bad cowlick too so we can never grow his hair out anyways.

I think he'll always have a buzz, until he is a teenager and has a purple mohawk.

Reply

My nephew cut almost 17 in of his hair to join the ARMY. We all cried-- it was gorgeous. His lil' bro says if he has to cut his, forget it.
I love long hair on anyone--if hair was meant to be short it would not grow.

Reply

FINALLY a point I can disagree with you on, after all these years of reading your blogs.
I must admit my son's hair is long. (he's 1.5 yo) He has the most gorgeous curls and it is trimmed and shaped into a lovely little mop. I used to buzz his hair and he didn't seem to mind, but he looks BETTER with longer hair. His sweet little face framed in dark cherubic curls with his green eyes..OOOOH! I want to go wake him up and pinch him, but we all know better.
No one ever mistakes him for a girl, and he just learned how to shake it around when it is wet and splash stuff.
To each his own, I miss the ease of the buzz (OH, I miss the ease of the buzz CUT that is...though other buzzes are well missed too.) and don't begrudge anyone's choice in hair styling, I'd be out of business if I did!

Reply

I am thinking about buzzing my son's hair, the upkeep on his mop is insane! He has fine strait hair that grows FAST! I first cut his hair when he was 4 months old (and he was BALD when he was born) and do it every 3 weeks since. The problem is he will not sit still long enough for a hairdresser so I do it myself; half a head a day while he sits in the sink playing with the vegetable sprayer. Needless to say not only does he look silly due to my lack of scissor skills, but he also has a full day of ridiculous half cut hair to endure as well.

I evny the buzz cut.

Reply

My mom refused to cut my brother's hair when he was little. He had cherub blond curls + she was in love with them. I found the locks disgusting because any food that ended up in his hands ended up in his hair. In turn he always smelled like maple syrup + the smell to this day makes me wanna vom.

I'm all for baby buzz cuts.

Reply

I like a nice length on boy hair. Not buzzed but not to the waist either. My son is currently competing with shaggy the dog and I'm not sure how to handle it. He has a form of autism and along with that comes sensory issues. I was forcing him to get it cut for the past few years and it was torture. I never went super short.. once we did a spike but everyone hated it so we never did that again. He likes it long and once you cut it, it seems to hurry to get back to the length it was previously! When I picture my son in my mind, that's just how his hair looks!

I decided he's almost 5 and it's his hair. He can decide. He told me first that it's not long enough until it's in his eyes. Then I thought, well obviously you aren't ready to have this decision then! Now he says PLEASE don't cut it! it's so.. BEAUTIFUL! How can I argue with that?

I did picture him around 8 yrs old with sort of a surfer 'do and so my final decision is a compromise. He can keep it long, but we ARE going to the hair lady (who is awesome with kids) and asking her to keep the length as much as possible but to 'clean it up' a bit. If she feels comfortable trying to do that cute surfer cut I'll agree to that.

I'm a photographer and eyes captivate me. I won't stand for them to be covered!!!

Reply