Yesterday I kidnapped him, literally right out of our driveway, and forced him to go get a haircut. I figured he'd transition from the summer mohawk into the winter regular boy cut but he had other ideas. Then he begged that I buy him some of that color glue, in red.
I left early for work this morning. This is the text I got from Matt from the bus stop:
OH MY!
I posted the pic to my facebook page and got a whole bunch of positive responses:
Barbara: Love it!!!!! You rock as a Mom for letting your kids express themselves!!!!♥
Rachael: Love it!
Carrie: LOVE LOVE LOVE it!
... and more. Then we got commenting about expression.
Me: Expression is easier than listening to whining. It hurts this Gap/Lands End Mom a little but, they're happy.
Ashley: I, too, am a Gap/Lands End mom and I HOPE I have the courage to allow this when my time comes.
Jonathan: you are ruining this poor boys childhood by allowing him to do this stuff. Dying your hair red is supposed to be a meaningless act of rebellion which makes all the sense in the world but your mother doesnt understand. i hope you realize that he will probably grow up to be well adjusted as a result of this and that will be on your head.
After reading what Jonathan (my friend from high school who wrote the book on rebellion through self-expression) I went to run errands at lunch thinking "yeah I'm the cool Mom". Then I got stuck inside my head a little bit and got to wondering... "If I let him express himself this way NOW, what will he choose as a rebellion?" and "Do kids who are able to express themselves NOT rebel or do they perceive that they must rebel one step further?" GAH. I went round and round with that one and I'm really not sure.
Being a Mom is tough. I guess you just go with your gut, pick your battles, and hope they don't feel the need to one-up whatever it is you do allow them to do. How much worse could hair get than a red mohawk? Right? RIGHT?