Just a Quickie: Home Alone

While I was irritated with him for the timing I have to thank my brother for getting my mother motivated to take a vacation.  She is off visiting her grandbabies and I get a few weeks of quiet.  I'm still rocking super relaxed hair.  Gym will reboot soon.  Met with a nutritionist and need to up my veggie intake.  I did get a free cookbook out of the meeting. 

Just a Quickie: Relaxer Update

So I am no longer counting down to the next relaxer.  I went ahead and went in today after doing a bunch of research and talking it over with the young woman that was going to do my hair.  Everyone agreed that ten days should be enough time and encouraged me to keep doing what I'm already doing when I go swimming.  And after talking over what I am trying to do with my hair and working out she was willing to help me find someone local to braid up all this mess of hair.  I'm thinking around the time I finish swim lessons.  I was actually a little dumbfounded by how much my hair had grown out since December and still looks pretty good after she took about half an inch off to even things up in the back and get rid of stray length along the sides and back.

 The back evened out

The front and sides and my newly arched brows.  The gray is here to stay.

Middle of the Night Wash Day Recap

I hate when I fall asleep in the late afternoon because I'm always up longer than I plan on being whenever I wake up.  Wash day went pretty smoothly.  I prepooed over night which my hair seems to like after swim class.  Can I just say I really love swimming too?  If I could make sure my hair never got wet I would go more than once a week but it's a nice change up from being on the treadmill or bikes.  Whenever I can master the whole breathing to the side thing then I will be back to being part fish lol.  Anyhoo, I added almost everything back to my wash routine this week.  Not because I had to but because I am considering getting a relaxer this week ahead of my line's anniversary on Saturday.  I could wait until the next round of swim classes are over but I haven't stretched to 16 weeks on purpose ever and I'm slightly worried about what my hair will look like by the end of that time frame.  I tried to do some snooping about swimming a little over a week of a relaxer but everyone has different info.  Some say never do swim at all if it has been less than two weeks.  The Motions website said do what you want just be sure to wash and condition your hair as soon as you can after you get out of the chlorine.  Which I normally do along with wearing a bit of conditioner into the pool with me.  I may try double capping this time to see if that aids in the water staying away but the cap I swam in on Saturday stayed on my giant head with no issues so I'm kinda in love.

I deep conditioned a little longer than I had to and after washing it out and t-shirt drying a bit I did the now weekly LOC method and my hair felt great as I set it on flexi rods.  It should be dry at this point but I won't mess with it at all till I gotta go to the dentist.  Hopefully the expected snow isn't as bad as it was projected to be.  I need to get these cavities fixed so I can get this crown put on.  I so need to work on taking care of all of me seriously.

How are you folks?  What say you about swimming and fresh relaxer?

Just a Quickie: Question for readers

Hey everyone,

after having a great fall in knocking things off my bucket list, this spring I signed up for swimming lessons again so I could get comfortable being in the water again.  Turns out I wasn't as afraid of the water as I thought and it has been the thing I really look forward to on the weekends.  I coat my hair with conditioner and then put on a swim cap before each lesson but as I get closer to relaxer crunch time I'm wondering if anyone has had any experience swimming with a fresh relaxer.  The first round of lessons started about a month post my last relaxer and due to lots of snow forcing cancellations of class is rushing up on my next relaxer.  My hair feels fine now, I always start a prepoo as soon as I get home from class on Saturday, but it's starting to do that hey lady I need a relaxer thing and if I don't do it before swim classes start I'm not sure what I would look like by the time they were over when I'd be about 16 weeks post.

Any feedback, thoughts would be great.

Thanks
SG

So It's Sunday...

Sorry for being MIA most of the week.  Both of my last wash days (last Sunday and today) were relatively pain free.  Th Mizani seriously makes my hair feel amazing so I may go looking for a deep conditioner in that line the next time I have a few minutes.  I got Dr. Miracle's deep conditioner the last time I went to Sally's because they didn't have the As I Am bottle in stock.  I was almost ready to forgo the deep conditioner today because my hair was feeling so good but that seemed like a bad idea so I stuck to the plan.  I did bring back in my Shiny Silver (even though swimming got canceled again due to weather) and I used all of my conditioners finishing off with the Mizani.  I mimicked last week and tied my hair down after putting in a few more rollers than last week.  I keep debating on the whole gray hair thing but I realized again it looks more gray the further into my stretches.  As soon as the relaxer hits it again then the black hair overwhelms my head again.  I may dye it if I can find a STRONG permanent dye that won't kill my hair.  I have been focused on my edges again as I'm wearing headbands at the gym and I'm at the gym way more than I planned. 

I was a little upset about the Superbowl but ehh it happens.  Work has been pushing along and there are several fires in the oven that I am super excited about.  As I mentioned I am at the gym a lot.  I went five times last week, once partially because the swim lesson was canceled but I still didn't go home and turn into a lump.  My weight keeps going up and down but my clothes are doing the lady you are getting slim thing which is a great ego boost not great when my pants have no belt loops so I can keep wearing them a little longer.  Someone asked if I had taken any progress photos and I really haven't.  I hate how I look in photos and I haven't found a good spot in the house to set up my digital camera to do the selfies.  I am going to work on that and getting a trainer.  I need one more push to get me into full weight loss mode.  I have had more luck with the healthy meals but the Greek frozen yogurt was disgusting.  The Smart Ones chicken strips and fries on the other hand was delicious.  Portion control and crispiness was the best.  Oh doh the working out stuff again--not sure if you have noticed but my workouts for the year is almost at the halfway mark for where I was for all of last year.  I had lots of starts and stops last year which sucked.  Even when I got back on track I wasn't taking proper care to get my behind there and get a good workout in for the day.

I think after several years of blogging I am finally at a place where taking good care of all of me is a priority.  Now if I can just stop slipping up on the skin care routine.

Peyton Manning & I have come a long way

Picture it, Sicily in 19..., umm scrap that.  My first awareness of Peyton Manning came when I was in college in Nashville, TN.  Yes I know Peyton didn't go to school in Nashville but every year the Vols came up to Vanderbilt's stadium and played one game.  And every year they came there was a massive influx of people who had never been near a college who spent the next five days asking us about Peyton and the game and the what not and what not.  Didn't matter that we clearly were no in Vols gear or looked remotely interested in the game.  They were everywhere and made doing anything in town ten times more painful than it needed to be.  I hated Peyton.  He hadn't done anything to me but make my life difficult for a few days once a year but really hated him because they came because of him.  I heard all about his daddy and his brothers and blah blah blah.  Hated him.  Hated him a little more the year after he graduated because Vols fans were lamenting their lack of Peyton Manning so much they didn't notice their new quarterback, Tee Martin, was doing quite well.  It totally wasn't his fault again but he was the target of my displeasure for years.  Playing for the Colts didn't chart for me until I got to grad school and that was all the talked about again.  But at this point I actually started paying more attention to him than the hype and the more I did the more I found him to be kinda goofy and a nice guy.  I was still happy when Eli won the Superbowl first but that was more because I love a good underdog story and they just didn't seem to give Eli a shot in hell of winning.  After his year off, I was rooting for Peyton to make a strong return and he did.  This year he's done even better and hopefully will complete the greatest feel good story the year could manufacture.  No offense to Russell Wilson but he's got plenty of time to climb this mountain again.  Peyton may be on borrowed time.

I'm sure some of you are wondering what any of this has to do with a hair blog.  Well if I showed you pictures of how jacked up my hair was during this time you may hate it as much as I hated Peyton.  It would grow just fine and then boom start breaking.  I wasn't even remotely pretending to take care of it well and do more than run to the hairdresser or dorm do doctor when I was broke lol.  I'm no longer trying to figure it out I kinda know what I'm doing with my hair and my grown up life.  This year may be my make or break year as far as making good positive changes in my life an so far I'm feeling good about it.  17 workouts in a month equals a third of all my workouts for the year.  If I don't do much else beyond keep that up who knows what I'll be looking like by December.  Root for us old timers continuing to get over the hump.  And if you are an old timer join the club.  20 years rushed by much faster than I thought it ever could lol.

Wash Day and Updates (damn snow)

It's been a good wash day even though absolutely nothing went as planned.  To start with my weekend plans got totally derailed by more snow.  The random weather changes had me sick as I don't know what but I was planning on seeing a coworker in a play.  By the time we got off and I was ready to go that home for a minute the roads had gotten so bad that everyone canceled.  Great I said I could sleep and get ready for swimming yesterday.  I got up, saw no cancellation for swim classes and was getting ready to get up and shower.  I called the Y to be sure and started trying to assemble my swim kit in my head.  30 minutes later I was made very sad cause they canceled the class because the snow had left the roads super crappy.  You'd think I'd go fine I can get some work done but how about no again cause it messed up my day.  I wanted to go swimming and then come back and work on my hair.  Since there was no chlorine to take care of I just did nothing the rest of the day.  I was waiting for the men's tennis final and fell asleep somewhere in the middle of the mixed doubles.  I woe up like five times between 4 and 6 am so I finally started checking for the score and was slightly dumbfounded that Stanislas Wawrinka was up two sets and on serve in the third.  But I couldn't let myself watch it live at that point because I was pretty sure Rafael Nadal would make a come back while I was watching and I'd have to pull out my non prepooed hair.  I got up and prepped my hair and then lay back down.  I dozed off slightly and then checked the score again and the final was over.  Stan WON!!!!!  I watched the trophy ceremony and then passed out till about 11 almost.

I had to get up and do my hair because if it's not set by 1 then I will probably be wet by 7 the next more.  At least in places and wet curls in the snow seems like a REALLY bad idea.  Since I didn't have to do the chlorine processing and my gray is pretty white now I decided to pare down the shampoo and conditioners.  I did detangle before and after the wash and kept my LOC routine the same this week.  I found the right super thin but really absorbent t-shirt again this time so the t-shirt drying worked much better.  I had to use a different deep conditioner because the As I Am jar under my sink was not my deep conditoner, nope it was the coconut cowash which I really didn't need today.  So I used my last sample pack of Optimum Care Deep Conditioning Masque and enjoyed the tingly.  I went for flexirods but I really do need to find a braider for this hair.  Here are the photos and woot new Swiss guy I really like (nothing wrong with Federer he just bores me silly).

 Last week's twist out

Hair loss after wash

Hair loss before wash

Wash Day Products

This wash I used my Organix and Moroccan Oil Shampoos and then opted for an Organix Keratin repair conditioner and the Mizani MoistureFuse.  My hair felt flipping amazing.  Strong and moisturized but most of all tangle free.

LOC Products

Kept everything the same from last week.  Had planned on moisturizing my scalp before I roller set it but I will do that in the morning I guess.

Slow and Easy Wash Day

Moving the start of wash day to Saturday has actually worked out better than I thought.  One day I may actually finish it on Saturday but I have been so tired the last few Saturdays that isn't even on my agenda.  And today I must have been extra tired because I didn't get out of bed until 11.  It could be the knowledge that we're not working tomorrow that helped.  I would have been in a panic otherwise because my hair is taking so long to air dry these days.  It also gave me time to think about the fact that I haven't done a detailed wash day post in a while.  So here goes the products I'm using right now and as many photos as I can add.  I will apologize now because some are fuzzy but I took them with my phone and not my camera as I was doing my wash day.

Here are the products I used to prepoo yesterday after I got in from my swim class.  I just covered them up with a plastic cap and then my bonnet so I could hold in as much body heat as possible and to not make a mess if I did pass out like last week.  I apply the Strong Roots directly to my scalp and the other to over the length of my hair.

1. Moroccan Oil Intense Hydrating Mask
2. Organix Argan Oil of Morocco Intense Moisturizing Treatment
3. Tropic Isle Living Strong Roots Red Pimento Oil

When I finally stumbled out of bed I got in the shower and washed my hair in the shower.  I will say I was borderline amazed at how nice my hair felt post conditioners considering I skipped the Moroccan Oil conditioner this wash.  I had started using the Shiny Silver shampoo to get rid of some yellowing months ago but it tends to work relatively well with stripping the chlorine from my hair as well.  I could probably skip the Organix but I have like the combination of it and the Moroccan Oil a lot.

1. Shiny Silver Shampoo
2. Organix Macadamia Oil Shampoo
3. Moroccan Oil Moisture Repair Shampoo

As for conditioners I have a ton to choose from but opted for three without using one of my mainstays.  I went instead for the Moisture Fuse to wrap up the conditioning day and my hair felt amazing.

4. Aussie 3 Minute Miracle
5. Aphogee Keratin 2 Minute Reconstructor
6. Mizani Moisture Fuse

I used my regular deep conditioner after t-shirt drying for about an hour and after I washed it out t-shirt dried for about an hour again.

And I decided to go ahead and try to LOC in the write order.  I can't say how well it will work at this point but it has been done and my hair smells good lol.  Here are the products I opted for today.

1. Taliah Walid Protective Mist Bodifier was my liquid--just a few spray
2. Tropic Isle Living Black Castor Oil Serum was step one of the oil
3. NOW Jojoba Oil step two of the oil
4. Taliah Walid The Great Dentagler phase one of cream
5 As I Am Leave In Conditioner was phase two of cream

I am sure I look like a beauty supply store at this point but it works to keep my hair healthy and growing.  Since there doesn't have to be a trip outside tomorrow I went looking for a new protective style.  I am going to attempt a twist out.  Well I should I'm twisted as I type this.  I checked a few videos out on youtube to feel a little less anxious about it and then curled up the ends on flexirods.  That was tied down under a scarf and now my bonnet is securing the whole enterprise.  I may stay home the whole day tomorrow to give them time to really set since I rolled them wet.  I can do some exercises with my videos or bands.  Oh and I have to add a few more photos plus add some more detail.  I detangled before I washed and after I deep conditioned with my 3 combs (mini rake, oil infused seamless comb, and what I have been using as my fine comb).  Hair loss wasn't nil but it was pretty good for six weeks post.  That was pre wash.  There was really only a few strands post wash.  Anyway there you have it, my wash day.