Jacob hates getting his hair cut. I mean HATES it.
When he was little, it was a source of a sure meltdown. It didn't matter if there was a promised sucker at the end. Nothing could stop it. (On a side note, I've often wondered why hair shops give kids that are covered in loose hair suckers as a reward)
Anyway, with every hair cut came a fight. I dreaded taking my son to get his haircut. As a toddler, he would kick, hit, scream, and do anything short of getting us bounced from the shop. As Jacob got a little older, and realized it was happening no matter what, the kicking stopped, but instead came the constant wiggles and fidgeting. The hairstylist all but put him in a headlock to keep his head from bouncing all around. Sometimes they are nice and just get a little snip in here and there until it is done, while others you can tell are genuinely annoyed. Many a time you can see where one snip went a little too far compared to the others, and there is a visible unevenness to his hair.
I'm sure in some haircutting database somewhere there is an asterisk by Jacob's name that says "Ants in Pants"!
How ironic that the poor boy was blessed with a mop of hair. I mean thick, thick, thick hair that grows incredibly fast. At the age of six months he had so much hair, I would have servers at restaurants trying to give him a kids menu. The kid was barely starting his pureed veggies, and people assumed he was so much older by the hair on his head.
And so each time we begin mentioning that it is time for a haircut to Jacob, we are meet with much resistance. His new thing is he will say, "But I can still see! I don't need a haircut!"
But this time, he could barely see any longer. His hair was so long he had to do a flip similar to Justin Bieber to be able to see.
The other morning Jacob walked into the kitchen greeting my husband and I with a "good morning". He was dressed and ready to go for the day, and I could see he had wet his hair to get it managed for school. I tried not to laugh, but I couldn't help it. Jacob was sporting a comb over that even The Donald himself would be jealous of! My husband and I both lost it. It was hysterical. Yes, it was indeed time for a haircut.
Jacob didn't think it was funny and said, "Stop laughing at me!"
We tried stifling our laugh and explained to Jacob that we weren't necessarily laughing at him, but with him. See, that's another thing he really dislikes. Being laughed at.
But who does like being laughed at? No one. I get that. It's more being the center of attention and not understanding what is going on that bothers Jacob.
I remember vividly at Jacob's first birthday party. He was sitting in his highchair with a blue birthday boy party hat on top of his head. All of my family was crowded in our little kitchen around him and we began to sing happy birthday to Jacob. Instantly he began to scream! Of course at the time we were years from a diagnosis.
It wasn't just his birthday party he cried at. Any time the song "Happy Birthday" was sung, Jacob burst in to tears. This went on for years! Just in the past few years have we been able to actually sing at parties in our house.
But it wasn't just parties. Many a time I would be pushing him as a toddler or preschooler through the check out lane. The cashier would be smiling at Jacob lovingly and maybe even make a comment about how cute he was, when sure enough he would scream, "STOP LOOKING AT ME!" Ah...such a cute thing to come out of a 2 year old's mouth.
He used to lunge at, hit, or kick when he thought someone was laughing at him, or looking at him. Thankfully over the years he has gotten over that impulse and can now control it.
Just this past Christmas at our church's service, Jacob wanted to go up and sit for the children's sermon. He had never done it before and I was nervous and proud of him all at the same time. It was something he never would have done a year ago. Heck, he couldn't even make it through a service a year ago. The pastor asked the kids a leading question, one as an adult you know will bring funny responses. Sure enough, Jacob raised his hand super high and got called on. And sure enough, his response got a laugh from the congregation. I watched as that all too familiar look came across Jacob's face. He looked around wondering what was so funny because to him, his answer had been quite serious. In just a split second I said a silent prayer, hoping that he wouldn't scream out, or worse yet hit the pastor sitting next to him. Thankfully the congregation laughed at another child's response and I saw Jacob visibly relax in front of me.
So yes, for the most part he can control it. But every once in awhile, something still happens.
My husband had volunteered to take Jacob to get his haircut. Not sure if volunteered is the correct word, and I do admit that this task is typically reserved for him. He made a reservation so it wouldn't be as long of a wait.
It didn't take long, and they returned, Jacob with a pretty good new hair cut. At least no major chunks taken out.
"How was it?" I asked my husband.
"Well..."
He went on to tell me how Jacob was wiggling all over. Wouldn't sit still and they were having a very hard time cutting his hair. And then right in the middle of it, a huge crash came from the backroom. Apparently the entire shelving unit holding all their hair products completely fell over. I'm sure it was a huge crash, and probably made Jacob even more unsettled than he already was. So then the hair stylists where all laughing and discussing it, when Jacob got upset and yelled, "Stop laughing! I'm going to throw a pie at your face!"
Yeah...he's not exactly the best at knowing what to say when upset or frustrated.
I'm sure they had no idea what was up with this kid or why he was threatening to throw a pie that was no where to be seen. At least "haircut" can be crossed off the list, for a few weeks anyway. I'm guessing they will be ready for Jacob next time, as I'm sure the asterisk was added after he left.
*Ants in Pants and Pie Thrower*
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