Hair coloring Update

I went back to my closet and looked at the box again. And now I seriously think my lips are starting to swell.

Do I Have the Guts?

It's sitting there in the closet. Mocking. Daring. Threatening. I bought the box earlier this week and stuck it up on the shelf in the closet. I walk by the closet door and stare in longingly. Do I dare? Have I really got the guts to try coloring my hair? At home? By myself?!?
Just buying the box was daunting. There is an entire aisle filled with hair coloring brands. I looked hopefully through the displays, trying to find the color my hair used to be. A dark-brown-but-definitely-not-black shade. None of the brands offered that. How many different shades of brown can there be? Dark brown, brown, ash brown, maple, hazelnut. And if that's not enough choices, they also throw each shade in with a "light" or "medium" offering. Medium ash brown, light maple brown.
It did not help that I had four boys with me, ages 9-14. They alternated between being bored and pulling out some really odd-looking colors obviously not found in nature.
Some of the boxes have color charts on the sides or back. The "if your hair is this color, this box will make it this color". Only some of the before and after shots looked no different from each other. One brand showed the before shot in a blurry haze and the after shot in clear, crisp tones. I get it--your product will make my hair more vibrant--but the color charts should be for helping the uninitiated. They shouldn't be part of the advertising.
I spied one box that said 100% gray coverage. That sounds good. But then I noticed they all said that. Is it possible that all of those brands are that effective? I finally took a breath and focused on my goals. I want my gray hair hidden. And I want my hair to go back to the dark brown shade it used to be--instead of the black that the coloring shampoo has made it. And I don't want a drastic change. After looking at all the shades of brown, I realized that I really want to do this a step at a time. I might have to got through several cycles of coloring over the next few months to get my hair shade back to where I want it to be. So I chose a brown a little darker than what I want, but definitely lighter than what I have.
And now we're home. And I'm plagued with doubts. What if I don't get my hair colored evenly? How do I get all the hair covered in the back? I'd hate to finish the job only to see I have a darker stripe down the back of my head where I missed a chunk of my hair. And what if it drips down my face? Will I have a dark streak on my forehead for the next 4-6 weeks? What if it doesn't do a good job of covering the gray? Or worse case scenario: what if my hair turns some weird shade of dark purple?
Okay, now I have a a new worst case scenario. On the box it says to test a small area to see if you're allergic. What if I have purple hair and huge, swollen lips? What if my husband comes home and finds me dead on the bathroom floor with strange purple hair? My obituary would read, "She died of vanity." (Come on, you knew this would end up with somebody dying, didn't you? After all, I am a suspense writer!)
Most of the guys in my house will be gone this evening, making it a perfect time to try out this project without interruption or commentary. Except I don't have that 48 hour window to see if I'm allergic to it. (I don't actually have any allergies, but that's not the point. Do I really want to find out too late that hair color is the exception to the allergy rule?)
I want to do this, but I'm just scared out of my wits. I never get things right on the first try. How public do I want to be with failure? If any of you have experience in home hair coloring, I'd like to hear it--the good and the bad. Then tune back in here Monday to see if I had the guts to take the plunge.

Christmas Decoration Etiquette

Okay, is there anyone out there besides me that still has their Christmas decorations up? I love my Christmas decorations, I think our tree is gorgeous, but hello! It's mid-January already! I wanted to take them down between Christmas and New Years, but I didn't get a chance. For one thing, I was packing my daughter's stuff for college, and there just seems like something's wrong to take the decorations down before New Years. Like you're a little Scrooge or something. It feels like you just went through the motions on all the Christmas stuff, and now you need to sweep it out and move on with the next year, for pete's sake.
Our decorations are usually up for almost the entire month of December. My kids push for putting up the tree earlier every year, but I absolutely refuse to put it up until Thanksgiving is over. Then we usually put it up that weekend, or the first week of December. That's not so bad. Perfectly acceptable.
But now I still have icicle lights hanging from my roof. I don't turn them on anymore--why advertise how behind we are? But they're there. Some friends of ours have a neighbor who leaves his stuff up until February. And he still turns on his lights every night! One year my sister left her stuff up until Easter. She claimed no time. I'm not leaving mine up that long.
My problem is, I ran out of time. I left January 3rd, and was gone for over a week. I didn't have a chance to take them down and quite frankly, I didn't want to assign the job to the boys while I was gone either. I knew I'd never find my decorations next year if I did that, and what I did find would never look the same.
So I got back this past Saturday night. We had church Sunday, plus missionaries to feed for lunch and a fellowship after the evening service. Monday it was back to homeschooling and work, a quick trip to the grocery store and then our monthly Ladies' Bible study. My husband invited all the men over to the house while we were meeting elsewhere. I felt horrible that the decorations were still up, but then I realized that most of the men probably wouldn't notice anyway.
Last night I finally had a chance to catch my breath. I started taking the decorations down, but I fell asleep on the couch. So now I have half-taken-down decorations and a family room full of Christmas totes. Maybe I can get the rest down this afternoon before supper and prayer meeting. I'm really getting worried about this--Easter is looming ever closer!

High Maintenance Babe

So here's confession number 2 for 2009: I'm high maintenance. This is so embarrassing to even admit because I've always prided myself on being easy-going. I remember once hearing a woman laughing as she said she'd never ask a guy advice because he uses the same soap on his face that he uses on his hands. I laughed, but secretly wondered because I used the same soap on my face and my hands. Now I look back and wonder when that stopped.
I should have realized about a year and a half ago. My husband and I had to fly to Florida for a weekend. I knew airline restrictions said you had to carry liquids in small amounts, so I put all my soaps, cleaners, moisturizers, etc. in small travel-size bottles. I just didn't realize you could only have one quart-size ziploc bag. I had five. That's right--five. The eyes of the security people bulged when I whipped out all five bags.
I guess it only really becomes obvious when I travel. As I mentioned yesterday, I am traveling this week. I don't travel light-especially when I'm not flying. It just seems like it takes a long time to get the whole package together. You'd think for that amount of time, I'd have a better end product. Sigh.
So you all have read already about the coloring shampoo and conditioner. There's also the body soap and the facial cleaner. There's the hair gel and the curl spray and the hairspray. There's two different facial moisturizers, plus body lotion and hand lotion. Where did all these things come from?
I've finally decided that all this comes with age. It not only takes longer to make me look good, but it takes more products. As I've told my husband, I can't look this good for free.
But it does seem like I could get a better return for my investment.

A Little Healthy Competition

First off, I have to apologize for posting so late today. I'm traveling this week. I will be posting every day, but I've no idea when. So keep checking back--you'll hear from me eventually.
Okay, first confession for 2009: I am a little bit competitive. Okay, I'm very competitive. I mean, I knew this on some sort of subconscious level. I knew that if I was losing at tennis (hi, Theresa!) I got a little cranky. I tried to conceal it beneath some biting wit, but both of us know it ticks me off when I lose. I don't get ticked at Theresa; just at myself.
I also hate playing any game with my husband that I can't win. But see, that's not competition; that's self-preservation. He can get a little smug when he wins. Which tends to frustrate me. Which tends to mess with my mind. Which tends to make me lose more.
I've noticed that my boys have inherited that smugness. It's a fragile balance between putting them in their place and not completely crushing their male ego. I haven't found that balance yet.
But back to my faults: my competitive nature came to a forefront several times during the holiday season, much to my chagrin. In the first situation, we had an ornament exchange at our ladies' Christmas party. If you've ever played White Elephant Gift Exchange, Dirty Santa, etc., it's along the same lines. When your number is called, you get to pick a present from under the tree to unwrap, or you can take someone else' present that they've already unwrapped. It's a basic fact that if everyone plays nice, it's not much of a game. The first ten people or so played nice. As the hostess and the pastor's wife, I felt it was my duty to stir this up into a real game. Plus, one of the ornaments was a cute purse that doubled as a music box. I love purses. I love music boxes. I wanted that ornament. So I took it. The problem was, I took it from a shy teenager. I think she really wanted it too. My action stirred some other people to play the game, and it became fun, but still I basically felt like I had taken candy from a baby. After the game was over, I quietly offered the ornament back to the teenager, but she said she was fine with the one she had. So I hung the ornament on my tree. But I felt guilty every time I looked at it.
New Years Eve we had a service at our church, and then we played games in the Fellowship Hall until midnight. Someone asked if I wanted to play Yahtzee Free 4 All. I'd never played before, but it was a game for six players and it sounded like fun. So I joined it. The object here was a combination of cards and chips and rolling your dice. You could take other people's point cards sometimes and since I play to win, I took full advantage of that fact. I didn't even realize how often I did that until it was pointed out to me. It was pointed out by a quiet lady that hasn't been going to our church very long. Apparently I had taken quite a few of her cards without even realizing it. She had quiet wry humor that my card stealing drew out, so maybe it was a good thing.
When that game was finished, (I didn't win) I moved on to Dutch Blitz with three other ladies. As soon as we sat down, they all started talking about the fact that I was the player they all had to watch. They didn't even know how to play the game; where did they get the idea that I was dangerous? Truthfully, not too many people beat me at that game. In fact, I was losing for the longest time that night, but then I kicked into high gear and passed the front runner for a surprise win in the last few minutes of the game. Boy, it felt good!
After that game was over, I noticed some people getting out Scattergories. That's one of my favorite games, so I asked if I could play. Once again there were comments about stacking the deck and sweeping the game. We didn't finish that one before midnight and I don't think anyone kept score, so I don't know who won.
I should point out that in none of these games did I cheat or attempt to sabotage anyone else. I simply enjoy winning. I only gloated moderately when I did. LOL And I only pouted a little when I lost. Am I the only one that takes games a little seriously? Am I the only one that hates to lose?

Things I Learned in 2008

For a new twist on an old tradition, I decided not to list my resolutions here. I have made some, but I don't feel like sharing. : ) I did look back at my blog from last year at this time because I wanted to see what resolutions I had made then. Lo and behold! I didn't share them with you last year either. Something about that making me more accountable or something ... ? One of the reasons I looked for last year's resolutions was because I wanted to see how many I kept. How many actual changes did I accomplish in my life? Do you keep your list of resolutions? It makes sense, doesn't it? How do you know what worked if you don't keep your eyes on the goals you set?
So I decided to think back over my resolutions and see which ones worked for me. First off, I purposed to read the Bible through last year. I make that resolution every year and I did it. I actually finished about two weeks into December. (It's unusual for me to be that early!) This year, partly inspired by my husband, I purposed to read the Bible through twice. It's tough, but I am determined to make it.
Secondly, I did not lose all the weight I wanted to lose. Big surprise, huh? I did lose some, but that was not through any diet. Our family went through an extremely tense and stressful time, and I lost weight that way. I don't recommend it as a dieting alternative. This year I'm purposing to lose it the right way--through diet and exercise. Again, I'm inspired by my hubby. He's in better shape than I am, but he's got some room to work and he's determined to do it. I can't have him leaving me behind in that area, can I?
Thirdly, I purposed to grow closer to the Lord. I do think I'm closer to Him this year than I was last year at this time. But once again, it was not an easy journey.
One of my goals for this year is to actively pursue publication of my writing. I've come close, but so far no contract. In addition to getting published, I want to schedule my time in such a way that I am writing new material on a regular basis. I have to have something to offer when that publisher finally says, "I like it! What else have you got?"
So what about you? Did you hit any of your targets from last year? Do you even remember what goals you set? What about this year--what resolutions have you made? I shared mine--it's only fair that you share yours. : ) Accountability can be a good thing!

Better Late Than Never

Well I'm certainly not starting the New Year out right, am I? But I couldn't let the first day of 2009 go by without at least a short post. We had a fantastic New Year's Eve at our church. A great service with lots of favorites, mixed with testimonies and praises. Then a wonderful sermon that God used to remind me that nothing is impossible with Him. Having faced some huge hurdles in 2008, and knowing there are more ahead this year ... well, I definitely needed that reminder. Then the service ended with us all standing and joining hands around the auditorium while several of the men prayed.
After the service we all trooped to the fellowship hall for food and games, which we played until just before midnight. Then we spent time in prayer as the old year ended and the new year began. Can't think of a more perfect way to spend it!
Happy New Year, friends.