Got the Pantene shakes

I've been off the Pantene hair condish for seven days. Write it down. It equals one week. As I get my shampoo and creme rinse, ACV, Cetaphil, pumice stone, razor, all lined up ready to use in the shower my hand kind shakes as I pass over the Pantene. I'm doin' good though. Real good.

Performance

Our seven year old son made a joyful noise in church tonight. He is on stage at church playing Away in a Manger and Hark, The Herald Angels Sing from memory. No sheet music. There were about 60 people in the audience, mostly kids from age pre-k to fourth grade and their teachers. He said for the rest of the night everyone was coming up to him telling him how good he was. It was a wonderful confidence builder for him and I'm glad for that.

In my research for homeschooling, I learnt of the classic approach to talent education founded by Shinichi Suzuki. Our son has been taking lessons since he was four. Suzuki teaches that all children have musical ability, it only needs to be nurtured and developed. This goes against traditional beliefs that only some people have musical talent and that very young children have no ability. Two of his books that I have are Nurtured by Love and Abilty Development From Age Zero. These are wonderful books which I highly recommend.

Relocating stuff

Moved all my husband's stuff out of the cupboard next to the shower so I can put my stuff in there. He just has junk like bathroom cleaners, sponges, Listerine, Dep, Nivea whereas I have important stuff. I have a lot of accouterments necessary for the maintenance and upkeep of this hair and body. If I forget something then I have step out of the the shower and walk all the way across the bathroom to the cupboard on the far, far side to fetch what I've forgotten. It's cold and I get the carpet wet. That's no good. So I moved all his stuff.

A mother's (persistent) prayer answered

I wondered if it was futile. For years I've been praying for my eldest son to attend college. Connected only by telephone, I would slip in a word to him now and then when I could about the importance of education and how necessary it is to widen his horizons and increase his options. I spoke gently and persistently even when I felt like yelling. Give me five stars for staying upbeat and not yelling.

Every year he visits for Thanksgiving. This year he brought a girlfriend. He looked so good. Happy. At ease with himself. Delicious to my eyes. Sometimes I still can't get over how this offspring from my womb is now a 6'1" full grown man.

In September, on a whim he attended a local cattle call hoping for an acting part. They told him acting was a business and he had no business acting. Brutal, eh! But they told him he did have a look they might be looking for and they gave him instructions to get some new duds, shave off the goatee, and come back in three days for runway model tryouts. He returned and out of hundreds, he was selected to go to Los Angeles. He attended some classes, stayed at some fancy schmancy hotel in L.A. and called me four weeks later saying, "Hey Ma, you're talking to the third best looking guy in the United States and South Africa." He cracks me up. He got a trophy and a kiss from Miss U.S.A.

Anyway, he's quiet. He never mentioned a peep about going to college. Suddenly he tells me he's earned enough college credits to graduate, maybe next summer, with an A.A. degree. My child? The one who refused to enter a library in high school?

I'm certain this is in answer to my prayers, even though I admit I was afraid I was praying wrong or maybe for a wrong thing because I was praying on it for so long.

God has his own timing. Mothers must be persistent. You can't just pray for food, lie in bed, open your mouth and the food falls in. But you can never know when your prayer is the one that makes the difference. So pray for your children every day! If you don't, who will?

Blessed be the Name of the Lord.

Made a sparkling gif

I made an animated gif with a sparkling border. It's not great but I think it has potential.

Five days off of the Pantene wagon

This is my fifth day without Pantene silicone hair conditioner. I'm using strictly oils (jojoba, sweet almond, coconut) for conditioning for no reason other than it's my personal challenge. The hair is doing pretty good. I like the coconut oil very much. I can tell a difference when I deep condition using the almond rather than coconut oil. You might think oil is oil, but I'm noticing the oils are different. Of course, no matter what I use to deep condition I apply lots so that the hair looks very stringy, but after using the almond oil overnight, my hair is softer. In the morning after using coconut oil it's more rigid, like a broom. Still stringy but there's a definite contrast in the way the hair hangs and feels. Weird huh.

For Thanksgiving I wore my hair in a braided bun with my lavender bauble (as shown below). The bauble was great, my hair was so-so. I wore my black high neck sweater and blue jeans. I wasn't having a great hair day. At least now my tummy aches and headaches are gone. Everything went well for dinner until someone asked for the gravy. I forgot to make the gravy.

Ordered a Madora comb

Wait, wait. Let me catch my breath. I just placed an order for a Swiss made, smooth as butter, Madora comb.

A most unusual snow

Dallas Raines and his silly Live Doppler 7000+ missed this. We woke up to this view this morning. Here where we live it's mighty unusual weather.

It was a beautiful French twist day

Before I went to bed last night I slathered my hair with coconut oil to see how well it works as a conditioner. In the morning after the big wash I dried my hair till barely damp and it looked so nice that I applied absolutely nothing to it. I put my head upside down and coiled it softly to form a french twist, secured it with four large bobby pins, checked the mirror; front, side, back. Ooh, it was luscious if I do say so myself. So that's how I wore it tonight. I was so pleased with the smoothness because I've tried the French twist over and over but never wore them out because of those wiry hairs at the bottom in the back. I thought they contrasted too much with the very smooth rest of my hair. Well today I had only a few wiries at the nape of my neck. Definitively less than usual. Could it be the coconut oil? I don't know. Read on.

So as I said, I slathered on a ton of coconut oil last night and slept on it - hair in two braids. I could credit the smoothness of my underneath hair to the coconut oil, but alas, in the shower this morning I used the Pave conditioner and, and, and...I added four drops, only four drops of PANTENE.

I
foiled
my
own
experiment.

I don't know why I did it. Do I hate myself? No I don't hate myself. I just couldn't stop myself. Now the only way I will know for sure whether the smoothness is attributable to the coconut oil is if I wash, clarify, and do it all over again.

So tomorrow - full wash, clarify, another coconut oil night and NO PANTENE. I've just got to quit shooting myself in the foot!

An Advent story for youngsters

A couple weeks ago I ordered a book called Jotham's Journey. It's historical fiction. I've read the first chapter to make sure we'll like it and I know our son will thoroughly enjoy the story. I can't wait for Advent to begin.

P.S. - We finished the book for family read aloud and we all give it five out of five stars. Good story!

The lavender bauble

'Twas a good hair day today. All because a couple days ago I purchased a cheapie-deep ponytail holder from Walgreen's (when I purchased the Paves). It has lavender plastic baubles stitched all around the edge. At first I wore it with my hair down but partially pulled back with a pony in the ponytail holder but later in the day I found I could bun all my hair and pop the holder around the bun and it was pretty that way too. It is so nice when you buy something that works.

The grapefruit essential oil is nice. I used such a wee bit as I didn't want to overdo it, so I need to conduct second test drive another day. This morning I used the coconut oil in my hair. The brand is Spectrum Naturals Coconut Oil for use on Hair and Skin. It was the specific brand I was shopping for. I won't know for a few days what I really think of it but it seemed to go on nicely. I mixed a bit in my hand, rubbed hands together to warm and liquify, added a drop of honeysuckle perfume oil and applied it to my hair. I defintely like the fragrance of honeysuckle perfume oil (on body or hair) but I already knew that. I used the coconut oil on my body last night as well. It's supposed to be excellent for very dry skin which I do get in the winter. We shall see.

Today I happened upon a goldmine of links in Fia's journal. I can't wait until I have time to sit down and peruse them. These are all links that she was saving for quick reference.

Natasha from NY I received your email and I will surely email you the instructions for the barefoot sandals tomorrow (Saturday). I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by the simplicity of the pattern. The most critical step is your knotting technique.

Pavés shampoo and creme rinse

I like it. I give four out of five stars to Pavés Flawless No Sulfates Allowed Repairing Shine Shampoo and the creme rinse too. By comparison, Gee Your Hair Smells Terrific would earn five stars so four is pretty good. The fragrance is amenable, even nice I think. I'm not into cosmetics and beauty buys but it smells different from anything I've ever used. I plan to use the shampoo long term to see if the lack of sulfates will have any effect on the amount of hair I lose each day. I'm shedding squirrels. It would be nice if I could shed a leetle less. I'm having to clean the bottom of my vacuum cleaner way too often.

Disappointment. No one woke me for Bible study and I'm supposed to be there at 9:30am. Consequently I didn't get to do a vinegar rinse before I used my new Pavé creme rinse, and then I had to go with my hair down and WET. Ruined my record for hair upness to Wednesday morning Bible study (Book of Matthew). I wanted to ACV rinse between shampoo and final rinse to see if the rinse disguised the vinegar smell. Last time the vinegar smell lingered. I'll do it tomorrow unless my hair looks nice which I don't think it will. Air dry is good for the hair but I don't earn any beauty points for it.

I telephoned the health food store this afternoon and they actually have grapefruit essential oil. Am going to check it out firsthand mañana. I forgot to ask if they have coconut oil. Heidi says coconut oil is good to add EOs to and that the coconut oil she recommends is scentless. That was news to me. I want to try essential oils and herbs and that sort of thing rather than bottles of shampoos and creme rinses.

Lil's hair care routine

Updated April 24, 2008

• Increased washing to twice a week.
• I always put oil on my hair before I wash it. Lately I put lots of avocado or monoi on the last six to ten inches then wear it up. I leave the oil in for up to three days. As I see it, since it's in an updo it doesn't matter that the ends are oily and stringy. No one sees 'em anyways since the ends are hidden.
  
• Giovanni Organic shampoo, the 50:50, is my favorite shampoo and creme rinse.
  
• I dilute each product (you don't need as much as you think you need) and pour it over my hair. It's more efficient than applying globs on my head.
• I quit white vinegar rinses. Haven't used vinegar for like a year.
• To apply the creme rinse I divide my hair into two sections and bring it over my shoulder, mix a generous dollop of creme rinse with about 1/3 cup water, then dip each section as high up as possible several times and pour the remainder over my hair - which isn't much because my hair soaks up most of it. I only apply it from the ears down because the top of my punkin' head doesn't need creme rinse.
• Pin hair up with Ficcare and finish showering. This is about, hmmm, 20 minutes I guess.
• Take hair down last and rinse thoroughly and do final rinse with cool or cold water to close the cuticle and increase shine. If ever I learn that cool rinse has no true effect, heads are gonna roll. I almost always do a cool or cold rinse even when I don't want to. One time I did a cold rinse then forgot about it and flipped my hair back behind me. HOOoooo Weeeee! Think that'll get your attention? Long, cold, hair all the way down your back on a winter day? Eeeek. Nearly took my breath away! Don't worry overly about this happening though because the up side is...it'll only happen once.
• Never wring. I stand in the shower and let the water trickle off my hair till it starts to drip, then I squeeze it from the top down and put it in a towel. While it's in a towel I can oil my bod up without getting it on the wet hair. I will lightly oil the hair, but not yet.
• Always air dry. I avoid using a blow dryer except for my bangs which I wash and blow dry almost every day. I'll only blow dry under unusual circumstances, and then not for more than ten minutes to get rid of a chill or maybe get ridges out for some occasion.
• The newest change in my vita-veeta-vega regiment (I inserted an "I Love Lucy" joke) is that I stopped combing my hair in the shower while the conditioner is in it. I now rinse the creme rinse out in a normal fashion like the rest of the world does, but! I don't comb through it at all until it's completely and thoroughly dry. Okay, I have to lightly comb the top of my head right away or my bangs will be wacky. It's working well! It leaves just the tiniest bit of wave or body in my hair this way. I have smooth, sleek hair, sometimes too much so, and I like the effect my new regiment has on my length.
  
• I eat a balanced diet. I dance for exercise. I take no supplements for hair, mind or body except a calcium pill my husband makes me take. Well, except for Excedrin or Ibuprofen or Tylenol sometimes. Good food and exercise are key to growing healthy long hair. There are no substitutes for proper eating habits and regular exercise. Did anyone notice I had Ibuprofen spelled wrong on this page from August 2007 until now? Heavens to Mergatroid.
• After completely dry and as soon as possible before it's bone dry (do you know what I mean?), I apply a wonderful leave-in that my friend, Kara, makes. It smooths the wiry hairs at my neck like nothing else and makes my hair shine and keeps it from drying out too much.
  
• Wear my hair up 95% of the time. I wear it down more often now. Still, it's not super often but when we go someplace I will wear it down sometimes. A girl named Karen Marie did an accidental big chop (hers was still pretty even at the shorter length) and said one thing it caused her to see in a new light was that she wore it up way too much. Pretty much always, as did I. Sounded good to me, so I applied her idea to my life. It's working well. I like it. I wear it up at home mostly though because the other day I walked by the hall and my hair caught on the door jamb sticking out on an open door (we have a bunji cord on it because it bangs around too much when we drive ) and it about gave me whiplash it yanked me back so hard. The hair didn't glide apart, it chose to knot up at the end and that's why it stopped me cold in my tracks. You'd think I'd stepped on a banana peel. I was lucky it didn't pull a bunch of hair out. It could have been a Cal/Osha recordable, as my husband says. That's a form you have to fill out when there's been an on-the-job workplace accident.
  

The end!

Liliana's Growth Record by the inch

I lopped off three or four inches of damaged ends before I found The Loom in March of 2004. It gave me a fresh start to begin a quest for long, healthy hair.

March 2004 - 24" U-shaped hemline.
October 2004 - 27"
November 1, 2004 - 28"
December 1, 2004 - 28.5"
December 19, 2004 - 29"

January 1, 2005 - 29.5" A self trim (Feye method) went badly. I will never do it again.
April 1, 2005 - 30.5
July 1, 2005 - 31.5"
August 1, 2005 - 32"
September 1, 2005 - 33" Ratty, uneven, dry ends.
September 2, 2005 - 30" Got a trim and went from soft 'U' to straight hemline.
October 1, 2005 - 30.5"
November 1, 2005 - 31"
December 1, 2005 - 31.5

January 1, 2006 - 32"
February 1, 2006 - 32.5" Steady as she goes. Microtrim.
May 1, 2006 - 34" Steady 1/2" growth per month since last trim September 2, 2005.
June 1, 2006 - 34 and 1/4"
August 1, 2006 - 35.5"
September 2, 2006 - 35.5" Total growth 5.5" since Septemer 2005
October 1, 2006 - 36" Woohoo! I'm thrilled. I'm content. I'm happy.
November 1, 2006 - 36.5" Desiring a trim. Unhappy with ends.
December 1, 2006 - 36.5" Because I trimmed my pointed end off.
December 7, 2006 - 35" Ivan trimmed my ends for free! Better blunt hemline. Nice!

January 1, 2007 - 35" Still? Yup.
February 1, 2007 - 35.5"
March 1, 2007 - 36"
April 1, 2007 - 36.5"
May 1, 2007 - 37" I am so content with this length. I like how it swishes when it's down although I almost always wear it up. I yearn for a freshly cut hemline though. I can feel when it's not perfectly even. I will have Ivan trim it again for me in December. I'm looking forward to hitting 40" - hopefully in November?
June 1, 2007 - 37.5 I remember wishing my hair was this long. Now it is and it doesn't seem very long.
July 1, 2007 - 38" Woohoo!
August 1, 2007 - Thought I wasn't gonna make it but I'm 38.5. Feel like I'm glissading down a mountainside! And thatsalottafun.
September 1, 2007 - Again, thought I wasn't gonna make it but I'm 39". Man, I feel great about this 39!
October 1, 2007 - 39 and 3/8"
November 1, 2007 - 39 and 7/8" Such pain! A mere eighth of an inch from 40. Next month I hit the big 4-0 for sure!
December 1, 2007 - 40.5" I feel pretty.

January 1, 2008 - 40.75 Some hair is at 41", but not all. Wanting a trim.
NEWSFLASH: Goal attained. Classic length. I didn't realize it till I took a photo on January 5th! I'm...breathless.
February 1, 2008 - 41.5"

February 27, 2008 - 41 7/8" in the morning and 40" in the afternoon. Saw Ivan and got a trim. I like it.
March 1, 2008 - 40 1/8" A wee bit above classic. Better ends now.
April - didn't record measurement due to lack of interest.
May 6, 2008 - 41.5"
June 1, 2008 - 42"
July 1, 2008 - 42.5"
August 3, 2008 - 43" I have to say it looks exactly the same to me as it did when it was 41".
September 1, 2008 - 43 1/8" So this is what I get for saying it looks the same? This month, 1/8" growth.
October 1, 2008 - Strange month. Measured 43 1/8" on the first. Twice. I didn't believe it but accepted it. Then I remembered that we did a mid-month measure and it was almost 43.5" then. Perplexed, I asked son to measure over again on October 4th and, voila, it shows 43 6/8th. I'm rounding to a joyful 43.5". We don't know why we kept getting a no growth measurement on the 1st.
November 1, 2008 - 43.5" Self trim to take off longest ends.
December 1, 2008 - 43.75" I got 1/8th inch growth. Growth has slowed.

January 1, 2009 - 44 1/8" My knees are 51" and that's my new dream length.
February 1, 2009 - 45" I didn't notice till now that this means over 1/2" growth. I hope it was an accurate measure.
March 11, 2009 - Ivan trimmed. Now 41.5". I expected only two inches off but it looks great with this new, improved hemline. (3.5" trimmed off)
April 1, 2009 - No measure. Got a bladder infection and then sick almost all month.
May 13, 2009 - 42.5"
June 1, 2009 - 42.6"
July 1, 2009 - 43"
August 1, 2009 - 43.5"
September 1, 2009 - 44"
October 1, 2009 - 44.5"
November 1, 2009 - 45"
December 1, 2009 - 45.5"

January 1, 2010 - 45.5"
February 1, 2010 - 46"
March 1, 2010 - 46.5" (Need a trim, but haven't done it yet.)
April 1, 2010 - 47"
May 1, 2010 - Self trimmed a wee bit. 47"
June 1, 2010 - 47.5"
July 1, 2010 - 47.5" No growth this month! so I figured I'd do a self trim again to 47.2" Ends got caught in the fan in the hallway twice. That can't be good. I'm surprised how a tiny trim of such a few hair can make the length look better. I'm a full year away from knee length. Realistically, more like a year and a half or two years at the rate of my growth. An added note: I just realized it's more accurately called dusting rather than a trim. I do it like JJJ.
September 1, 2010 - No growth at all.
October 1, 2010 - 48 and 1/4th. Finally hit 48!
November 6, 2010 - 48.5"
November 6, 2010 - 47. 75" Trimmed 3/4 inch. Ends needed it and it looks much better.
March 1, 2011 - 49 7/8" What happened to December through February? Did I forget to write?
June 1, 2011 - 46.5" Forgot to mention trim in April.  It was very satisfying.  The ends are still much better.
July 24, 2011 - Where did July 1-23 go? 47 1/4"
August 24, 2011 - 48" Yay!
October 12, 2011 - Full moon. Mayela trimmed my hair a little bit. 47" Looks better, feels great.
November 4, 2011 - 47 3/8"  He says the hemline is crooked.
December 19, 2011 - 48"  So it's growing!  Woohoo.

March 17, 2012 - 49"
April 8, 2012 - 49 2/8" and I trimmed 2/8".  Just a few scraggly hairs.
May 3, 2012 - 49.5" Yay!  So close to 50" though the very ends look worn out.
May 5, 2012 - Son trimmed for me.  More of a cut really.  I said take off as much as you think to make the hemline look nice.  He took of 7.5".  I was happy at the time but now (two days later) am a little weepy.

2nd grade sausage curls

My mom had to work really hard to get my hair to hold any curl when I was little. I don't remember my mom fixing my hair on this particular picture day, but I do remember her putting pin curls in my hair for special occasions. I hated them. It took my thick hair so long to dry that she'd try to get me to sleep in them. I'd have bobby pins pokin' my head all night long. I remember playing Barbie dolls (technically I owned a Francie doll and seriously coveted a genuine Barbie) with our neighbor on the porch while waiting for my horrid pin curls to dry.

In fourth grade my mom got us pixie cuts in Tijuana, then I was one ugly little girl. I'll have to dig up that one next. The word was I had a badly shaped head whereas my little sister had a natural duck tail. Oh well.

A French twist

Sometimes I wake in the morning to the sound of '70s tunes blaring in my head. It's always a good song. I'm talkin' tunes I haven't thought of for years and years. Decades even. I can't explain how they pop into my consciousness with such crystal clarity. It's like I have my own cerebral surround sound. It happened again this morning.

Since I didn't have to be at fellowship till 6:00pm I waited till 5:00pm to wash my hair and clean up. That means I was ratty all day. I visited family in San Diego Saturday so I felt ratty on the inside too. It always takes me several days to recover from a family visit. It's like the very environment sucks out all my electrolytes. I'm a fish flapping around on dry sand until I can reach my pond again.

After much deliberation, I decided to wear my hair in a French twist. I did a scalp wash only, then a fast bath, and amazingly I didn't get my length wet at all. That's four stars please. I put a drop of jojoba on the ends and twisted it up. I added another drop and a half (yes I can pour a half drop out of my bottle!) to smooth the crazy hairs and shine the top and sides. I rushed, so after three tries one side was perfection and the other side, the side that twists under, was a rough but it had to do. I braided it yesterday so it had nice waves today and when I do a scalp wash then the top is fluffy and clean and it looks pretty good. It did tonight anyway.

I may have turned my sister into a long hair devotee. Back in the day, she always had hair a little longer than I. She has lovely thick, auburn tresses while I inherited genes for plain brown hair and the early grey. She's 41 and has had a grand total of, hmmm, six grey hairs. Last time we talked she was adamant that she'd just keep it shoulder length as she got older. "Pffft!" I said. Let it grow out. Older women can have long hair and be pretty; look at me. Be like me! (Is my modesty showing?) She replied, as if I were from another planet, "Older? I'm not getting older." I said, "Pffft!" again, but this time silently.

Barefoot sandals

I made a pair of barefoot sandals for my Dad's wife for her birthday. They're sparkly and pretty. I used Swarovski crystals on this set so it's the nicest pair I've made to date. I made a cute holder out of cardstock and I put them in a darling little gold colored organza bag with yellow tassels that came with an order that I placed at an online beauty store. I hope she likes them.

Belly dance and hair

Man, I feel great when I do a scalp wash. I feel like I'm being so good to my hair. Tonight was belly dance class and it's the one time of week that I get all fixed up to go out. I got two new tops at the mall today - two for $20.00. Such a deal! There were lots of sales due to Veteran's Day holiday, plus the youngsters got the day off so the mall was crowded.

Anyway, back on topic. For belly dance I always, but always, wear my hair up. I have a perfect record for wearing my hair up to this class, and that's since August. Tonight I jumped in the shower at 6:00 pm after our delicious pizza dinner, and put my hair in a bun with a ziploc baggie over it to keep it dry. Classy, I know. I didn't dilute my shampoo though because, well I don't know why, I just didn't.

I dried my hair and it looked really good for some reason. Some water did get to the ends. I don't know how that happens but maybe it's due to my hair being basically straight and slick. Perhaps more experience will improve my method. I pulled it back into a pony, braided, and made a bun. It turned out real pretty.

By then it was 7:00pm and that gave me 10 minutes to finish up. I put a drop of jojoba oil on the top and sides to smooth the hairs and shine them up and hair sprayed my bangs. I know hair spray in not kind on hair, but once a week I do it anyway.

I got to use my new zills for the first time. I was totally uncoordinated. Plus I got up in front of the class (without the zills) and danced for the first time. I was nervous and tight. I could not move my feet! That means I danced in one exact spot the whole time. Well the girly girls in class were sweet as could be, especially since I'm new, and everyone applauded when I finished. One girl, she's a psych major with beautiful, straight, honey blond hair, bsl, said I have really good hips. I do have good hips. Now if only I can move the hips, the feet, and maybe some arms at the same time. That would be helpful.

I have really stinky hair

And I mean that literally. I received my new amla and jasmine oils yesterday. They were $6.50 each plus s&h and were a total bust. I used the jasmine oil last night and my husband had a big fit over the smell. You'd think he was in second grade or something. ...Only, his description of the fragrance I cannot type here KWIM. Big disappointment. I threw them out because if he ever smells them again he won't come near me. I'm not buying anything ever again that I can't smell with my own nose first.

The amla was thick smelling, overpowering. Maybe smelled like a '70s head shop or a new age store. The jasmine my husband said smelled like stinky feet or something worse, then he continued to enumerate all the stinky things he could think of, getting more creative as he went along and told me (with his arms flailing about and his great, big voice) to never again have him smell something like that. Very amusing, not. Sometimes men are just big boys. Never fear. I will not be this easily discouraged and luckily, I have my long hair care support board. Next time: real essential oils.