The Hair Cut

So Lexie and I have been talking about this day for a long time. Probably the seed was planted when I cut my hair for Locks of Love. I absolutely despise long hair. Letting my hair grow out 10 whole inches was about one of the hardest things I've done. But because I did I was able to give my hair to someone who didn't have any. That was a while ago and we've been talking about what I did and why. My niece gave Locks of Love shortly after I did. And then Oprah did a show on Beautiful Lengths a few months ago. Lexie and I talked about the differences. For those of you who don't know Locks of Love gives hair to children who don't have any because of a disease that they have such as alopecia. Beautiful Lengths supports real hair wigs given by American Cancer Society to women with Cancer. And both are wonderful causes to support with your gift. Locks of Love now requires a minimum of 10 inches. Beautiful Lengths accepts donations of 8 or more inches. There are various other differences in their policies for hair acceptance. Lexie's hair was a little layered. And while it reached 10 inches tip to tip at the longest area most of her hair was probably only 8 inches and not usable by Locks of Love.

She probably would've had to cut her hair another 2 inches shorter to give a workable donation to Locks of Love. As Lexie's hair has gotten longer and longer it had become more difficult to manage. We were both getting frustrated with the tangles and combing it several times a day to manage all the knots. So we decided that we would set a date of cutting it after State Games. And it was every bit as hard to wait to cut Lexie's hair as it was for me waiting to cut mine.

I never pressured her into this decision. It was a choice she made on her own. She is so proud. As should all the children, the women and the men who give their gifts of hair to either of these wonderful causes.

See posts below for some pictures of the competition.. and I'll be posting video in the next few weeks.