New Mummy

Bye-bye fluff, your time was up!
Over the last few weeks, Little Man had turned into a little monkey, discovered his clutching power and had been hanging off mummy's fur whenever given the opportunity. And I got a little tired of disentangling little hands from messy strands (behold! a rhyme!) and - ouch! - losing perfectly not-white hair to him on a daily basis. Growing old and going grey is bad enough; going bald wasn't quite necessary.
So Leo took me to the hairdresser - or I took him - and actually most of the ladies at the salon got a hold too, as he insisted on being carried about or else... - but on the whole he was being very cooperative and only at the very blow-drying end had to sneak under the gown for a snack and a snooze ("Oh my God where's the baby!" exclaimed hairdresser/babysitter number two) - anyway, to cut a long story short (ah! whit!): snip snap, off came the stuff, and a new mum went to pick Tara up at nursery.
Tara, of course, discussed the promised ice cream treat first, then negociated a suitable replacement treat (ice cream place closed) - priorities, ey - while eyeing me from the corner of her eyes throughout before addressing the change directly: "Why don't you have your long hair any more, mummy?" Is the radical change in maternal hairstyle disturbing for a 3-year-old? If truth be told, every time she sees me in the shower with wet or shampoo'd hair she tells me I'm a "different mummy." But she knows where I'm coming from. "That's why Leo gets stuck in your hair all the time" ("why" = 'because'). Leo getting stuck in hair is something she thoroughly understands. The last brotherly entanglement had her shout out loud: "I don't want any more babies in this house! ... Only ONE more girl and THAT'S IT!"

One trip to the sweet shop and one bag full of mostly red and pink treats later, old Tara and new mum are best friends again. (A few hours later, with Tara still chatting non-stop, singing loudly and operating three plasticky musicky toys at the same time on a three-hour sugar rush, I don't feel up to the best-friends business any more and vow to stay away from the sweets shop as long as from the hairdressers.)

That would be next Friday, when I've made an appointment for Tara. She doesn't yet know she wants her hair cutting, but new mum and the sweet shop have a few days to convince her.

Not so sure of new mum yet

Leo looks like he's posing with a celebrity. Bless.