Friday, April 25, 2014

Hi.......Still Here........

I haven't decided what to do for a new blog and I don't have time to work on it yet, so I'll stay here for a bit.

Here are two new pics from Wed's hair appt.  I have close to 2 inches of white on top with darker grey on the sides and rest of my hair.  Weird. I had my hair lightened a bit with more of an ash color as it was getting brassy (which it will do)  and warmer blonde which is nice, but I wanted a bit more toned down color. I hope this is the end of the highlights for awhile.  I am now using a shampoo (Rusk Brilliance in the purple bottle, if you are grey and want to spiff up your hair a bit) for grey and blonde highlighted hair which will keep the 'yellow' color at bay.

Can I just say that going blonde has been really interesting?  I was blonde back in my mid 30's for the first time and have added blonde highlights over the years, but this is the first time since 1996 -97 that I am really really blonde.  It's weird because older men follow me around (this is concerning me frankly and I don't like it) as an older man in Target did today.  He even came to the same checkout as I did.  I saw him scanning the parking lot as I got in my car (I ran with the bags as I didn't get a cart so had to run fast).  This never happened to me before I went blonde.  I see men in cars that are in the opposite direction noticeably looking over at the older woman with blonde hair till they realize it's a 50 yr old woman and then they look away. I have seen people I know stop dead in conversation when they see me if they haven't seen me after I went blonde (AIWB).   It's a weird feeling and I am sure when I go grey it will feel the same.  The other question I got when I was in the salon the first time was, "Why are you doing this you are young?"  Said by a senior stylist.  I gave all the reasons I gave previously, and she said "you know I wanted to do that but the other (senior as my stylist in her 40's is the youngest one there) ladies talked me out of it."  I told her to go for it. It's liberating.  I don't know how else to explain it other than it makes you feel free of the hair dye trap.  I hated that after 2 weeks I had noticeable re-growth and I am tired after all these years of going the dye route.

SO here are two pics of the recent color (also a trim. It's shorter which I didn't want but my stylist trimmed the back up so it's all one length straight across).


Sorry for the selfies, but it's hard to take a pic when you are short with short arms, LOL.

So how about an update on the girls?  I am sure any of you out there reading would like to hear an update on them.

They have been busy.

BGA totally turned her grades around after they did a 6th grade slip.  She has had some peer issues and some bullying which I did allude to and won't go over here, but we got her into a peer counseling group at school and I think it will help her.  She is also in the leadership group for end of year this year and next year.  She really enjoys it.  She also goes to the after school science program, on site girl scouts (with LGA) and then has had tutoring one day a week.  That's the busiest we have ever been. She got an honorable honor roll mention (not quite honor roll but the next grade level down which we were VERY happy about).  I think she is one of those kids that we have to get involved, get the teacher on board, and then she picks up her grades.  This is the 2nd year we have tried hands off and her grades slipped so we had to get involved. Dave feels we will always need to be involved with her teachers.  I'm ok with that.  I have gotten to know some great teachers.  This weekend BGA will represent her school at the school wide track meet.  She will run the 50 yd dash and 200 yd "run" she called it.  She also wants to play basketball next year.  She is well rounded I think. I never expected that for her when she first came home. How much progress she has made is amazing to me!  She is fully going through the 'teen' stage even though she's not 13 yet (till end of year) but that's to be expected.  It's so hard to hear the attitude come flying out of her mouth at times but it is the age. She also thinks she's right all the time even if she has no idea what the subject is. I can't say ANYTHING about that one because I remember being the same way, convinced I was right and everyone else was wrong.  LOL. Her compassion amazes me though.  When I went for her award ceremony, her teacher from last year approached me and told me that BGA had taken a card and had all the kids sign it.  The teacher had lost her cousin unexpectedly and BGA had some cards my aunt and uncle gave the girls when we were at my mom's summer of 2012 to clear out her place.  They had stickers, cards, etc.  I guess BGA took a card to school and had all the kids sign it.  It was sure nice to hear the teacher sing her praises and it made me very proud.  I hope this side of her continues.  She was not like this in fact she was rather rude when she came home.  SO this is huge progress and growth.

LGA had a rough year initially when school started.  She's still in Special Ed Day class and she was with the older kids (adjusted 4th grade so with kids 4-6 grades) and having lots of issues.  Her teacher was out learning the common core so LGA had a sub. I really wondered if we were headed in the mood disorder meds direction however, in Nov the teacher was back in the classroom and some of the kids in her class needed to go play on the smaller playground so after I complained of some issues they moved LGA and some of the other kids to the smaller playground and LGA settled down quite a bit.  She's grown tall and is close to height to her sister, they weigh the same (BGA is tall and thinner but LGA has caught up to her) and wear the same size in tops, most pants and shoes.  No more passing stuff from BGA to LGA anymore.

LGA is learning to read and reads on about a 1-2 grade level.  She's doing some math and has taken an interest in baseball (Yay!!!).  She does still have melts and tantrums but I am learning her triggers as I have stated in previous posts so for the most part we are doing ok.  She loves cats and we did get the kitten back in Nov.  That cat loves me (because of course I take care of her, however BGA does the litter boxes) and LGA so that's a good thing.  LGA has a love hate relationship with her friend K and they either get along or they fight.  But she seems to have a friend so that's a good thing.   She loves her Furby which drives me insane some days but does provide some good laughs "Wakey, wakey, eggs and cakey!" it says sometimes which has become a popular saying to wake the girls up in the morning.  LOL.

Well, that's the short update for now (as short as I can be).  I will let you all know where I land if I start a new blog.

Hope you are all enjoying the spring weather (rainy and cold here then supposed to get into the 90's by next week, gotta love spring!).  Have a good weekend everyone.  :-)

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

So I Haven't Quite Gone Yet..............But..........Changes..........

I have been thinking about.  There's so much to talk about.

Anybody here???  Tap, Tap???  This thing on???  Oh, hi there.  You are here, those few readers who were reading this blog.

I am still thinking I will work up another blog, but haven't decided on a name.  Here's why I am thinking this, and feel free to weigh in (PLEASE???) and let me know what you think.

Back in January, my stylist had to be out for a hysterectomy op.  That meant that I was not going to be able to get my hair dyed till maybe March. I could  (A) go to a new stylist for a couple of months, or (B) grow my hair out to (drum roll here!!!)  GREY OR WHITE, whichever it is my hair has on this here head.  So, you know what I chose right?  I chose grey/white.  So from January 9th to March 12th, I left my hair alone.  No cut, no dye, zip.  I bought hats.  Seriously, I bought hats.  I have colored my hair since I was 18.  Highlights because I had a white streak (yes, a bit similar but not as noticeable as Stacey London's from WNTW). Then at 29 I was told that my hair was past the stage of highlights so it was time to go to PERMANENT color.  I didn't want to take that commitment (every 5 or 6 weeks) so I let it go grey/silver, at 29.  I couldn't hack it and I hated the color it was.  Granted I was a bit on the heavier side weight wise and I didn't feel pretty about my hair at all.  So permanent hair color and I began a relationship that was to last until I turned 50.  A 21 yr relationship with hair color.

This year or maybe sometime last year, my hair began to resist hair dye.  It would be 2 weeks past hair color and I'd see a half an inch of white roots show up.  My hair began to itch and burn from the color (I have heard this happens).  I began to get tired of trying to cover up the 1/2 inch white roots from my double crown in the back.  I began to get irritated that at 2 weeks I had roots.

I began looking at pictures of Helen Mirren on Pinterest.  YES, I did.  Here's one.

Now my husband, who has gone grey/white himself, likes this picture and this style of hair cut.  He told me that it's just hair and I could go back to coloring if I didn't like it, but it was up to me if I wanted to color or go grey.  You know what the choice was, what it had to be.

So hats and I (mainly newsboy caps because they seemed to look ok on me) and I got to know each other very well till I could get in to see my stylist.  We talked via text about what to do so she could plan to get me in and take time to do my hair.  I couldn't get in till March 12, 9 weeks after my last color. I was dying, I tell you.  I hated the 'skunk' look that I saw appearing as white along with the light brown I had.  But come March 12, I saw my stylist and we agreed to highlight and low light my hair from past the white roots to the end of my hair.  I thought this will help it blend till the grey/white grows out.   Here's what my hair looked like post blonde highlights.  Excuse the blotchiness and tired eyes.  I was having an allergic reaction to something, not sure what it is but I am thinking some sort of artificial dyes.  Anyway, here are the pics from the first highlight/low light session.



And if you want to see a shot of what I looked like before the highlights, here's from last Sept, LGA and I at my cousin's wedding.

Brown and quite a bit shorter.

Some more weight has come off as well. I am not trying to lose it, it's just been watching what I eat, etc.  I need to incorporate more exercise in my routine as well.  The batteries died on my scale so I have no clue what I weigh or how much I have lost all I know is I am almost down one pants size and top size.

So here's what my hair is looking like now.

Sorry I don't have a better one, it's hard to take selfies when you are on your own.  There is quite a bit more white in it now.  

How did my family react???  Well, let's just say the girls were less than thrilled with my going grey.  LGA in particular, pointed to pics of my long brown hair (when the girls first came home) and said, "MOMMY!!!  Please go back to brown!!!"  Evidently one of her more snarky classmates was teasing her.  I know she was because as LGA got off the bus I could hear K (I don't know what issues K has mostly learning I believe, but she and LGA lock horns quite a bit) saying, "I like your hair"  then giggles of laughter from the bus. I just played it off and shouted, "K thanks!"  And ignored her.  Hubby hates blonde hair.  He has NEVER been a fan and has told me never to go blonde.  When I explained that I had to, to go grey (even though from the blogs I read - and there are blogs and even a grey hair forum out there - it's a no-no to do it this way.  You are supposed to get through the 'skunk' stage, but I can't do it.  Just can't.  So I am choosing to blend) he was ok with it.  BGA didn't say much but looked dismayed when I pointed out an older woman with grey/white hair and said that is what my hair would look like.  

Fast forward 6 weeks and even I am used to it. I felt at first it was too much and I didn't like it.  But now I am used to it.  I have changed clothing, jewelry colors to reflect (and luckily I had most of the colors in my wardrobe just had to donate the 'warmer' colors and stick with the 'jewel' tones) it.  Make up had to be changed as well.  Everything changed.  Even shampoo (did you know there is shampoo out there that brightens grey or even blonde highlighted hair??? I didn't till I found some). I asked Dave what he thought of it on Sun night and he said he liked it.  When I told the girls I'd be going in this week to get it changed up a bit (it's a bit yellow, which I expected) they said "NO!  We like it as it is."  I don't know if that's true or not but I told them, "sometimes you have to be open to new styles and changing your hair.  Dye is bugging me and I want to change it.  It's only hair and it can be changed back."  Now they are asking me to get colored highlights in my hair.  A friend suggested peacock blue.  Dave was not on board but the girls are.  SO maybe this summer we three girls will have colored highlighted hair.  Who knows?  Have hair, can change it up if we want.

The point of this blog post was............thinking of starting a new blog to reflect my new hair, the process and the emotional part of it (yes, it is very emotional, more so than I ever thought it would be).  Anyone interested in following along?  There are blogs out there about women (some of them in their 30's) who have gone/are going grey (Google it, seriously that's how I found it) and embracing it.  

Weigh in..............I'm curious if anyone would follow along.  If not, well, then here is a short update of what's been going on with me lately.  There are updates about the girls too, which I will post later.

Hi blogland...........if you are still checking here or reading give me a shout out.  I know some of you lurk. Just shout out that you are reading.  Would appreciate it.........

Buh-bye for now..........