Guess What My Husband Can Do…

When you become a mom you learn how to master things that you’ve never done before – change a dirty diaper while using only one wipe, nurse while cooking dinner, and get any stain known to man out of your child’s (and your) wardrobe.

But there is one thing that becoming a mom has actually caused me to un-master.

The management of my hair.

Pre-baby, I’d wake up every morning, take a shower, and style my hair for about 20-25 minutes – an attempt to keep it tame by blow-drying, using a nuclear hot flat iron and lots of styling products.  Now with a little one running around, there just isn’t enough time to spend on something so…so… all about me.  If I get time to myself, I’d rather spend it blogging :-), jogging at the gym, or enjoying much-needed time alone with God.  Hair styling priorities are a thing of the past.

The problem, however, is that I haven’t figured out how to style my hair in less than 5 minutes.  If I let it simply air dry, I’m pretty sure I’d have no friends and my family would insist on an intervention.  And doing nothing to it puts me at risk of serious hair expansion – we’re talking Clown-Wig-Huge here – especially since I live in Florida.

Last night when I got out of the shower, though, I had an idea for my hair that could be done in 5 minutes and inspire a really sweet and intimate moment with my hubby at the same time!

I asked Ryan if he would braid my hair for me.

And he did.

(His sister used to pretend that he was a little sister instead of a little brother – thank you Christen!). 🙂

It was really nice having the love of my life braid my hair.  If an audience had been watching, I’m pretty sure they would have applauded Ryan’s amazing hair-styling abilities!

It may sound like an odd and unbelievable thing to do and most men would probably not want others to know that they play with hair or even know how to braid (Ryan has requested that all of my readers take a vow of silence on his special hidden talent), but men playing with their spouse’s hair has been around for awhile…

My grandma, or Mom-Mom, as we like to call her, used to have hair down to her waist.  She always wore it up in a big beehive for most of her married life.  When she was in her sixties, Woman’s Day magazine contacted her and asked her if she wanted to get a makeover (in other words, they wanted to know if she was interested in ditching the beehive).  She agreed!  The magazine flew her and my Pop-Pop to New York where she got the best styling treatment available.  When interviewed about his favorite thing about the makeover process, my Pop-Pop responded confidently with, “I loved it when she took down her hair before they cut it and I got to run my hands through it.”

Isn’t that the sweetest?

Even the Bible speaks of this loving gesture…   Song of Solomon tells his beloved that her hair is like “royal tapestry” and that he is held “captive” by her “tresses” (7:5).

I think that’s what my Pop-Pop was thinking as he stroked my Mom-Mom’s hair.

And I’m pretty sure that Ryan thinks that about my hair too – he doesn’t see my “tresses” as the high-maintenance-horrifying-bother I do (even though pulling my “royal tapestry” out of the shower drain is not his favorite activity).  But I am confident in his love for every part of me – Afro and all.

I think for Christmas this year I’m going to ask Ryan if he’ll learn how to French braid.  🙂

Ladies, it’s a bit strange, I know, but surprise your hubby – reach over and play with his hair.  Use your fingers to work a nice massage into his scalp.  He’ll love it!  Take advice from Song of Solomon 5:11 – “His head is purest gold; his hair is wavy and black as raven,”  and tell your husband sexy words about his hair.  🙂  And then ask if he’ll do the same for you.  See what happens!!  Either you’ll end up doing a whole lot more than playing with each other’s hair, or you’ll end up with a big tangled knot and lots of giggles.  Bottom line – have fun together exploring one another’s “tresses”!