Chloe circa 2004
Sadie circa two months agoI also never expected the number of comments I get about having two little red heads. I regularly have perfect strangers broach the topic of said red hair with me (the man fixing our furnace the other day was the most recent--we had a ten minute discussion about it). Nine out of ten times it's the same thing: "Where did they get that red hair?!?" At first, when I just had Chloe, I assumed that this question was just a way of remarking about the unusual color, that it was just a kind of awkward way of pointing out that mama and baby didn't match. I doubted that they REALLY wanted the genealogical explanation of where this hair originated, so I tried just shrugging and smiling. Oddly enough, this does NOT satisfy the strangers. They really do want to know. If I don't pony up an acceptable explanation, they quiz me: "Your husband?" And if Carter happens to be with us, it's a perplexed "How do you two turn out red heads?" So yeah, I've learned that people, even complete strangers with full shopping carts, really do want to know and will stand there and listen until I explain it. Here's how it breaks down:
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The adorable little boy in this picture is my paternal grandfather, Myron Rose. I don't know if you can tell from this picture, but he had very red hair. So as far as I know (and am concerned), this is where the titian hair in my line originates. I cite him to the inquiring party. But then I add that I have a brother and a sister with ginger hair as well:
I should have been better prepared for the questions I'm getting now because I watched my mom and then my siblings deal with them for as long as I remember. As a little girl, my sister stood out from the crowd on account of her hair. Not much has changed. I can't go out in public with her without someone remarking about her gorgeous flowing locks. The ones seeking the name of her colorist walk away horribly disappointed to learn it's all natural, but most just say she has the most beautiful hair they have ever seen. I tend to agree. But can you imagine living your life like that? She just smiles and says thank you. And goes on her way, unaffected. She's used to it.
My brother, even though he has the same color hair and is super cute (see evidence below), doesn't get quite the same amount of attention. I think it's because he keeps his hair so short. If he grew it out like Katie's, I bet he'd give her a run for her money on stranger comments.
He does say, however, that people constantly tell him he looks like the guy from Wimbledon/A Beautiful Mind/A Knight's Tale/The Da Vinci Code (they mean Paul Bettany):
More recently he started to get "Mr. Bingley from the Keira Knightly Pride and Prejudice":
He doesn't look like either of these people (that's why I included pictures so that you can see for yourself), but he does have the same color hair. They're right about that. As you can see from the pictures of my family, I was expecting red headed nieces and nephews, not daughters.
Once I explain these red headed relations, people either say something about red hair skipping a generation or launch into a speech about all the red heads THEY know. Sometimes (like with the furnace guy), I get an odd combination of both. I just smile and nod.
I bet you're asking yourself, what does that one person out of ten ask if not about the origin of the hair? With these folks, it's all about tempers. This question is even more difficult for me. I would hate to perpetuate false stereotypes and I completely acknowledge it could be a total coincidence, but my two red heads throw KILLER tantrums. My brunette is the most docile, go-with-the-flow child I have given birth to. Make of that what you will.
So now you know all about the red hair thing. I am so going to print out this post and hand it to the next person who asks me where the kiddos got their hair color. Or, if I'm too lazy to do that and am worried that my six minutes of shopping without the kids screaming is about to expire, I'll just say the mailman.
Love the Rose family pictures. What an amazing old photo. The new ones are pretty good too. My dad also had red hair that was difficult to trace where it came from. He doesn't get too many questions about it anymore. Probably because he's bald. Excellent book choice selection BTW.
ReplyDeleteThat picture of Sadie is so cute I could cry.
ReplyDeleteThe mailman... bwaa! (Diet soda just shot out my nose, lol, it burns! ;-) You might wish to consider, "There's just no telling when it comes to genetic roulette" as a viable alternative to a fictitious redheaded mailman.
ReplyDeleteMore Family Follicle Lore:
Taylor, Katie and Pa (Col. (Ret) Myron Rose) were all born carrot red hair. But Taylor and Katie were angelic, no tantrums I ever saw. In Pa's youth his West Point classmates called the 6'3", muscled football and basketball letterman "Rosie" and he was so good-natured they lived to tell of it so, so much for “I’m Mr. Heat Miser” red-haired stereotypes.
Fun Red Hair Family Trivia: The movie THE LONG GRAY LINE starring Maureen O'Hara (herself with Irish locks redder than Katie's) was filmed at West Point when Pa attended and some P.R. genius saw Pa's red hair and thought that he'd be a great photo op with Miss O’Hara and tried to get them on the golf course together, but she declined to be photographed for the papers with a tall fellow redhead as a media ploy.
Taylor looks so exactly like Pa did at that age that it's flippin' eerie! They even have twin basketball team photos where they are both in uniform and in twin action crouches. Yup, there's just no telling when it comes to genetic roulette.
Chloe and Sadie's red heads are all Rose.
XO,
Mimi (who inherited the temper and the fair complexion that burns, peels and turns white again all in the same day, but not the actual red locks)
My how attractive your siblings have grown up to be. And of course, ALL your daughters are beautiful.
ReplyDeletePeople are always looking for something to talk about! I think your girls are beautiful. And loved reading your post about red hair :)
ReplyDeleteI maintain that their hair isn't THAT red. The strangest thing to me about all this has never been that people bring it up; it's that people THINK their hair is so obviously red. I mean, just LOOK at Katie and Taylor's hair. That is "carrot red" as Mimi put it. Chloe and Sadie's hair is NOT like that. It's brown with a HINT of red. Like the color of cinnamon, or a copper penny. Predominantly brown. But everyone else thinks I'm crazy, I guess.
ReplyDeleteHey Kelly, I should be home today around 5:30.
ReplyDeleteI was going to just email, but I mean, why not boost your post count?
Actually, Katie and Taylor's hair at times in their youth (depending on how much sun they got) ranged in shade from dark carrot to shining strawberry blond and at other times often appeared to be the same coppery shade as Chloe and Sadie's now.
ReplyDeleteSo no one thinks you're crazy, Carter. Just maybe a little color blind. ;-) Face it, two of your girls are gorgeous flame heads. The other is just gorgeous period.
Love you! XO,
Mimi
Show me one picture of Taylor and/or Katie from any period in their life when their hair is the color of Chloe's/Sadie's. Or show me one picture of Chloe and/or Sadie from any period in their life when their hair is the color of Taylor's/Katie's. I rest my case.
ReplyDeleteTaylor should get a haircut to mimic Conan. Get the big bang swoop. That's my two copper-penny cents.
ReplyDeleteI sat there wondering why there weren't any picutres of chloe, when I realized that first picture was in fact Chloe, and not Sadie.
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ReplyDeleteSpeaking from one mother of red heads to another, I get comments all the time, just like you. Everywhere I go, someone says something about Parker and his red hair. I think I'm going to start saying the mailman too!
ReplyDeleteYou have a good-looking family! Siblings, grandparents, you & Carter and your kids.
ReplyDeleteAnd I bet it DOES get so lame to have to talk about the red hair all the time. I guess those of us without are just mesmorized by it. So unique.
Hi Kelly. This is your first cousin once removed (Pat S.) communicating from your Pa's hometown, Williston. What a beautiful family you have. It is obvious from your descriptions that your children are blessed with great parents (as well as grandparents and great-grandparents). I would expect nothing else from the long, red line that stretches throughout the Rose family. My wife and I are blessed to have four children, one of which is a redhead. Our redhead is our oldest son, who is 14, a freshman in high school, 6'2", 180 pounds, and someone who would love to come close to achieving what Uncle Myron has achieved in his lifetime. I know you already know this, but your Pa has had a huge, positive impact on a large number of people. FYI, he is still mentioned when our local conversation turns to some of our area's finest. God bless you and your family, Pat.
ReplyDeleteHi Kelly and Carter! I found your blog through Wendy's, and boy am I glad I did. I can't stop reading--your writing is absolutely riveting and extremely entertaining. I have laughed out loud at least a dozen times. It's great to see your faces (especially the 6th grade versions). I am glad to see you have 3 absolutely beautiful and healthy girls. I am now married to a red head (Kevin), who has a red-headed sister, and their parents do not have red hair, so this particular post really grabbed my attention. I guess I now know what I have coming to me if I should be blessed with red heads in my future. Thanks for the laugh! I am hooked.
ReplyDeleteJenna Macejkovic (formerly MacKenzie)
p.s. sorry I don't know how to do the login thing that puts my name at the top of the post. I'll have to look into that.
Hee hee. I actually had someone say they wished I hadn't told them I dye my hair- they liked it so much they wished it was natural. I thought that was odd.
ReplyDelete