Mother of two Denica Caneva heard her daughter Ivona’s wishes for a younger sister—a playmate, someone whose hair she could play with. The Bulgarian family was shocked when baby number two arrived and already boasted enough hair to earn her comparisons to the fairy tale princess Rapunzel.
Caneva and her husband, Zvezdelin Zaharinov, were amazed when younger daughter Gabriela was born with a full head of thick, shiny hair that stuck up in all directions. It appeared as though the wishes the elder sister had been expressing all along had come true.
“Ivona had been dreaming of her for a long time. Every day she used to ask me ‘Mummy, when will I have a sister so I can play with her hair?’”
“Nurses said they had never seen a newborn baby with such long hair—she obviously looked very different to the other babies,” said Caneva.
Now, they get compliments on the little one’s hair nearly every time they go out in public. After all, it’s surprising to see such a small little girl with so much hair—although the family absolutely adores it and takes the utmost care to make sure that baby Gabi’s Rapunzel-esque locks are treated properly.
“We use only high-quality cosmetics that have been proven safe, and I go to the pharmacy to buy shampoo much more often than most mothers of young babies,” explained Caneva. “Our little Rapunzel really enjoys it when her hair is being washed—we create foam bubbles and put them all over her hair.
“Hair-drying is a lot of fun as well. When I dry Gabi’s hair, it tickles her face, and she laughs with enjoyment. Her sister, Ivona, combs her hair afterwards.”
The family can’t seem to figure out what caused Gabi’s gorgeous longer-than-expected tresses. Although Caneva told The Daily Mail that she craved spicy foods while pregnant with baby number two, she doesn’t believe this contributed to the unique hair in any way; 0lder sister Ivona had normal baby-length hair when she was born.
But no matter the reason, Caneva is delighted that such a perfect little sister joined their family.
“[Ivona’s] dream turned into a beautiful reality because Gabi looked like she had just come out of a fairytale,” said the mom.
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