Scrub a Dub Dub

My girl Kathryn turned me on to Paula's Choice products a long time ago and I've been using ever since. I don't use her stuff exclusively because I have other tried and true faves too, but some of her stuff is stellar.

If you find that you are always looking for a good exfoliating scrub but think that perhaps using Swiss Ives Apricot scrub (this includes ground walnut shells, by the way!) isn't the best route for you, you could be interested in Paula's line of exfoliating lotions.

What? Lotions? Yep. See, they have alpha and beta hydroxy acids, and they exfoliate your skin without a) burning the bejesus out of your face and b) burning the bejesus out of your face. There is a difference between the alpha and the beta (are we talking exboyfriend's personality profiles or scrubs here?) and it's important to know which is the best type for you. Paula goes into detail on her website as to which works for you, but basically it's a difference between AHA (alpha hydroxy acids) which are glycolic acidsand BHA (beta hydroxy acids) which are salicylic acids. If you're interested, definitely check out the link above (note: some folks are uber sensitive to these). I swear by the BHA 2% lotion. Keeps my skin smooth, which is good because skin that is bumpy AND hairy, not so much.

Sproutings

I may swear a bit. I have made the discovery that I have facial hair. Not peach-fuzzy blonde softness that sweeps across my skin like a teenager's tanned and lovely tummy. No, not that. I have hair first of all, on my fucking FACE. Like, Magnum P.I. mustache facial hair. Like, "Wow, I only notice it because you mentioned it" bullshit facial hair. It's right under my eye. My EYE! Who has almost-eye-hair, other than cavemen? Apparently dames like me, who after pumping out two chillens in two years, has faced the hormonal onslaught. On my face. I found a 2 inch hair under my chin on Saturday night before date-night with the hubby. Nothing says sexy like shaving next to your loved one at the sink. Can you pass me the Mach-3 honey?

I've always had to groom the brows which have grown almost Frida-like across my face. Rectangular-shaped brows I can manage. But when said eyebrow hair grows all the way up to my REAL hairline, I have to stop the show. Send in the clowns, and ask them to bring plenty of Nair with them.

In high school I rocked the Jolen often. That little teal, 3-D square box was found many a time on my bathroom sink. Like a chemists bunsen burner, it was ready to burn the shit out of my face. Not hair removal, you see...but hair bleaching. And, for those who haven't had the opportunity to work with Jolene, it's a cream, mixed with a vial of bleach granules that makes for a nifty mask to put upon your hairy area. It also included a square mixing platform and a spatula that could also be used in a dollhouse if your dolls made batches of delicious bleachcakes. . I often left it on too long as I am: 1) easily distracted 2) unorganized with matter of beauty of the quest therein 3) interested in a cookie, hold on and 4) I think I know better than the directions. Seven minutes? Naaah, Eleven would be much better. It will make the hair even LIGHTER, I bet! Sandra McSmarty pants often showed up with a red bozo-like mustache that stole the attention of her man-stache.

"Jen, did you burn yourself? Seriously, that looks sensitive, try some butter."

So here I am again, back in a shituation which requires: 1) Money I don't have to do laser Star Wars beam-like zapping treatments on my face 2) Time in the bathroom to ponder at new follicular growth, pluck it, shave it (no!), or wonder if the Nair bottle really means it when it says "DON'T USE THIS ON YOUR FACE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD."

As for right now, I think I'll suck it up and get myself a wax job. On my upper lip. And brow up to the hairline. And perhaps my chin.

Or, like my hubby suggested, we can grow matching goatees.

Kiss

You know that song, Copperline, by James Taylor? It's always been one of my favorites. It's about a time in a boy's life when things were simple and sweet. A time when you could go exploring for hours and come back with skinned knees and dirty fingernails and great stories to tell. A time when kissing someone for the first time stops your world in it's tracks. I played this song so much that the boy I used to babysit used to scream 'Jenny's song!' when he heard it with his mother.

I used some of the lyrics on the front cover of my first wedding album. I had married a sweetheart and this song reminded me of him and of us. The words, 'First Kiss, Ever I Took' was gold-embossed on the front of the black leather-bound book. It was my most sentimental time. As that marriage evolved into a sad tale, that innocent part of me started to harden up and I began to scoff at those kinds of lyrics. I remember hearing the opening note of the song on the radio and flipping the switch so fast I surprised myself. What had happened to me had happened to many of us, but this was my only love and I was a young, naive girl. I had married him. He had made a fool of me and I was convinced that the entire world knew it. I was angry that he took that innocence from me, and I couldn't even enjoy simple things like love songs or trips to Provincetown or baby showers without hating him.

So, time goes by as it has a way of doing, and my life moved on and up. That hardness is still there, but it's way down deep, underneath my layers of motherhood and marriage and friendship. I was watching television on Sunday night and saw that PBS was showcasing Mr. Taylor himself. I made a mental note to go back and check it out after I watched some of the 'Big Give' show. I forgot about it until I was channel-cruising at 10:30pm or so and I saw him. Darn it! I had missed most of it.

But, as fate would have it...I heard the opening note of my song. My Copperline. And it was a sweet as I had first remembered it. I sang every word, tears in my eyes. I thought of how good my life was, with my best guy's body next to me, keeping me warm. I smiled the most when I heard my favorite line...'First kiss, ever I took, like a page from a romance book. They sky opened and the earth shook, down on Copperline.'

Update 2

Yes, it was delicious. And good for me.

But I think avoiding whole groups of food is starting to piss me off a bit.

Blink

It's my daughter's second birthday today. Two tiny, whole, long and unbelievably fast years. Two years of late nights and early mornings and worries in my heart and head that I never thought I'd experience. My two happiest years, hands-down. The most abundantly full years of my life, overflowing with raw emotion and joy that only her birth has brought me.

I check on my babies every night, just because. I like to watch them sleep and hear them exhale with that soft little moan that only babies do. Last night I went in and the birthday-girl to-be woke up, sat up immediately. When this happens, she always says 'Tuckener-in', which loosely translated means, 'please lay me down on my pillow, give me my binky, tuck my blanket in and THEN you can leave'.

But she said something different last night, for the first time. She said, 'rocka-baby', which she has said on occasion, but never when I've gone in to check on them.

So I did. I picked her up, my little-big girl, and I rocked her like a baby. She turned toward me and fell asleep right away. And her face was just as sweet as it was two years ago, when I met her for the first time and felt a lump in my heart that hasn't gone away since.

I cried then, too....like I did when she was born. And I whispered in her ear, in vain:

"Please, not so fast...."

One week down

Well, it's been a little over one week officially on my bad-ass diet. It's not perfect, but I'm amazed that I'm still interested in it and that I haven't completely thrown in the towel.

After 7 days, I was down 4.5 pounds. Yes, I know. It's water weight and thank you. But who cares? It feels great and so do I. My new-found penchance for black coffee is probably the most interesting part. I don't know that I actually tasted the coffee before. Don't get me wrong, not reaching for the cream in the morning does not come naturally to me, but it's getting easier and easier.

It's funny. I've had a few 'cheats' in the week, namely buttered popcorn, a few sugar free fudgicles, and two small glasses of wine. Last night I actually had dinner in a restaurant with bread, wine, and some mashed potatoes (clearly not part of the plan!). When I have these little 'cheats', my body reacts almost immediately.

In the name of stinky farts.

(It's my blog after all, right?)

I kinda like the experimental part, that I can see right away how my body responds to certain foods. It's even more interesting since my daughter was diagnosed with Celiac Disease because it's more proof that diet has a profound affect on your tummy. At least mine, anyway.

I miss my yogurts and my daily chocolate, but it's not overwhelming. I'm eating more fish and tried some sauteed broccolini the other day. Don't get me wrong, I'm a nacho and beer kinda girl, but this 'back to nature' thing is working for me.

Powder And Paint...

...Make a Girl What She Ain't.

But it's fun still, right? So, many of you know I have a little side-business as a freelance makeup artist. I've picked it back up in the last 3 years and I've been pretty busy in the summer months. I decided to start highlighting certain products that I really dig (or some that I just don't understand at all).

Here is the first one and it's called Neutrogena Moisture Shine Tinted Lip Balm. I really need something on my lips at all times, or I get comments like:

-Are you feeling alright?

-Have you tried B12? I hear it helps with energy.

-You look tired.

Etc, etc. So I like this product because it's NOT lipstick. It's not sticky and it's not deep in color. It's a nice light lip balm that happens to have a kiss of color. I really like 'Fresh' as a shade when I want something pinky, and 'Clean' when I want something that is more bronzy, without being brown.

I also like them because they are really moisturizing and they have an SPF of 20. I actually ran out of mine in Florida last week and actually burned my lips. I'm sensitive, you know.

So check them out, and they are pretty well-priced at about $7.00 per tube.

And lastly, I have used mine almost daily since I bought in August 2006 and it JUST ran out. Bang for yer buck.