I have naturally curly hair and so does my daughter who is now 22. When she was little, we did the mousse thing alot. I will tell you, my daughter was the happiest when we let it grow a little longer and she generally pulled it up in a pony tail. Curly hair tends to 'feel' very unruly, especially in hot, humid weather. Now my daughter has it cut chin length and it is very 'chic' looking on her, but she still kept it longer and pulled it up into a pony tail alot when she was in high school and was a cheerleader and on the tennis team.
When I was growing up, my mom always kept my hair cut fairly short and I was always so envious of my friends who could put their hair in a very sleek pony tail. With my hair, I have just always felt very 'frumpy'.