Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Look Good... Feel Better

"Look Good... Feel Better is dedicated to improving the self-esteem and quality of life of people undergoing treatment for cancer. It is our aim to improve their self-image and appearance through complimentary group, and individual, and self-help beauty sessions that create a sense of support, confidence, courage, and community."


So my birthday was a few days ago, and it also happened to be the last Monday of the month. This is the day that I volunteer at a local hospital for The Look Good... Feel Better Program which is sponsored by the American Cancer Society. This was the perfect birthday gift for me, because I left there feeling the way I do after every class. Happy, grateful and enriched.  

As an esthetician, I am able to help lead workshops that teach these amazing women about good skin care, and what changes they can expect their skin to go through while they are in treatment. We teach make up application, including eye brow filling and shaping, and how to get that healthy glow even when they aren't feeling well. We also go over wig and scarf options and styles.


The stories these women share during these sessions are so beautiful and uplifting. It's never a sad time, although we often find ourselves laughing and crying all at once. Through this program, I have learned to be more compassionate, to listen carefully, and to hug more freely. What a gift it has been for me. The power of human connection is amazing, and so, so important.

If you're looking for a way to give back, please check out the Look Good... Feel Better program in your area. It is a national organization that is always in need of both general volunteers, and especially licensed volunteers (estheticians, cosmetologists, nail techs). It will soon be your favorite day of the month.

www.lookgoodfeelbetter.org

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

What's Your Favorite Age?


In five days I'll be turning 42 (that was hard to type, don't know how I'm gonna say it).  I've been thinking a lot about age lately, and trying to decide which year has been my favorite so far.


When you're 1 year old, you get to play all day, and have all your needs attended to.
When you're a teenager, you often get your first kiss.
When you turn 21, you can drink alcohol ... and feel like such an adult.
When you're 30, you feel more wise, yet still look young and feel attractive.
When you're 40, you know yourself better than you ever have.


I suppose if I had to pick one, for me it would be 30.  I was already married, and had my two beautiful children.  I didn't feel like I had quite peaked yet, so I felt I still had that to look forward to.  Yes, 30 was a really good age for me.  That being said, I wouldn't go back.  Been there, done that.  And who knows?  Maybe the best is yet to come.  :)

So now I'm curious: what has been your single favorite age so far?  Was there a year that really stood out? I'd love to hear...


Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Join my Beauty Army?

                                                            
I don't know but I've been told,
creams keep skin from looking old!

Wasting money steals my smiles,
love my Beauty Army trials!

Sound off
one, two...
Sound off
three, four...
one, two, three, four... five, six!
Six beauty trials!

O.K. girls, I've found something really cool to share with you. I don't know about you, but I have come across so many products that I would really like to try, but don't want to dish out the money for a full sized item that I'm not even sure if I will like. Then I found my Beauty Army.  This is a service you can sign up with that lets you choose 6 pretty decent sized beauty product trials for $12 a month.  When I first signed up for this service, they had me take a little quiz so they could find out a little more about me, and what beauty products I might like to try.  I then got a pretty big list of items to choose my first 6 samples from.  I had a hard time choosing, there were many that I wanted to try! 

Four days later this box came to my door.

Not gonna lie, I was pretty excited to rip open the box.

Inside the gorgeous black box were my products all wrapped in pink tissue.  It was like a girly Christmas!

These were the the products I selected to try this month.

From left to right in the photo above, I received the following. 
1. Pssssst! Dry Shampoo  
2. Babor Argon Cream  
3. Lift Lab, lift and firm eye cream  
4. Joico Bio-Advanced restorative hair treatment  
5. Cell Ceuticals anti-photoaging SPF 55  
6. Eye Prep fx, anti-age smoothing primer

Out of the six trials I ordered, I love three of them.  The Pssssst! dry shampoo is amazing.  Perfect for the days you don't have time to wash your hair.  It smells amazing, and it's easy to restyle your hair after using it.  I also love the Joico hair treatment.  It's too heavy to use everyday, but it's an amazing monthly hair treatment for dry damaged hair. Finally, I really loved the Cell Ceuticals anti-photoaging SPF. It doesn't smell like sunscreen, and make up goes on smoothly over it.

Two of the items are o.k., but I'm happy I will never spend the money on a full sized product as there are better products out there.  The Babor Argon cream is nice, but it's not quite hydrating enough for me.  The Eye Prep fx primer goes on nicely, but I didn't notice my eye make up staying on any longer by using it.

The last item, I really did not care for at all.  It was the Lift Lab firming eye cream.  It dried the skin around my eyes out terribly, and I didn't notice any lift or firming at all.

I'm so happy to have found this little gem of a service, and I can't wait until next month when I get to try more new products.  If you'd like to try it too, please use the following link:

https://www.beautyarmy.com/account/registration/?referral_id=70e657449e7bf0d9c91a03140d1e1b2e

By recruiting other beauty addicts, I could get special discounts in the future.  Enjoy the rest of your day my glamorous soldiers!  ;)



                                   



Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Family First

Last night my husband and I had dinner with a good friend of ours that we met while living in Tampa, Florida.  I adore his wife, and we have kids around the same age who have always gotten along really well.  It was wonderful catching up with him, and getting to hear what is new in their world.  During our one of our conversations, he told us that his father will be moving in with them in the Spring instead of heading into assisted living housing.  He said that his father would really prefer to be with family, and I really respect my friends for being so unselfish and supporting him.  This made me start thinking about my parents, and my husband's parents, and about some of the tough decisions that we will probably have to make one day.

Dinner at Fats... yum!

Deciding on how to care for an aging parent must be really difficult.  Each family is different, and has different needs, so there can't be one answer for everyone.  My grandmother really thrived in an assisted living program, as she was so social and enjoyed that aspect of it.  On the other hand, my grandfather seemed to go downhill quickly after being placed in one.

Thankfully my parents are still young and very healthy.  Although I have been threatening them both with the "Sunshine Home" since I was a teenager, when this time comes for them, their happiness will be the most important thing to me.  I will gladly welcome them into my home, or help them in anyway they need.  There has never been a day in my life when I couldn't count on my parents to be there for me if I needed them.  I hope they know they can always count on me for love and support too.


                               
                                     My Dad
My Mom