Will and dad go to the barber

Until recently, it has been not that big of a deal to cut Will's hair, and we have done it on our own 3 times. These haircuts have been documented: first haircut, last November, and most recently, last February: (1, 2). After that February cut, Erin swore it was THE LAST TIME that she would cut it - he had gotten too wiggly. In Will's defense, mom maybe tried a little too hard to give Will a fashionable salon-quality haircut - I was more in favor of the flowbee method. Still, I always had to admit he looked pretty good when all was said and done and both Erin and Will had stopped crying.

So anyway, I actually have not gotten my haircut professionally very often over the past few years, instead going with the tough guy look most of the time. But when I do get my haircut for conferences and other isolated events where I need to look professional, I've always gone to my friend Li-Chen Chen. Li-Chen speaks little English, but it's always pleasant to have mostly one-sided conversations with her when she cuts my hair. Even if it has been a year since my last haircut, she always remembers me and asks about my wife and son and how my studies are going, then pretends to understand me as I describe my latest research ventures. I figure she always remembers me probably because I've got to be her only non-Chinese regular customer. She really is a very sweet woman.

Last Saturday the three of us went to see Li-Chen together and Will and I both got haircuts. Li-Chen was very excited to meet Will and he got the royal treatment - he got to sit in the racecar chair (which was literally a plastic car strapped to a backless barber chair with leather belts) and watch a cartoon (which I think was in Chinese). The barbershop was packed and everybody was very excited to have Will there. He only cried a little and was a very good boy, sitting very still. Then, when he was done he got a butterscotch sucker! I think it was his first piece of candy ever and he liked it very much and made a pretty good slobbery-sticky mess of it.

BUT WE FORGOT THE CAMERA!!! So we'll just have to try to remember it for next time. I needed to make this post now though, to document another of Will's "firsts".