It's Finally Been One Year!!!

My one year mark has finally come!! December 1st and 2nd marked my true One Year Lockversary!!! The year has flown by and I'm glad to have been able to blog my progress along the way.

Life hasn't changed much for me in the last few months. I've moved from Mississippi to South Carolina and will be on the move again at the end of January.

I'm happy to be spending Christmas with my BF this year in cold NYC. The city is so beautiful this time of year. We spent about 6-7 weeks apart then finally reconciled in mid October. We've been talking so much more openly now and while we've learned how to change our relationship to be more open and mature, I've learned many things about myself and my own insecurities. I'm realizing that there are issues from my past that have a profound effect on my today and I somehow have to learn to work through those issues as they surface so that they won't continue to be problems in the future. (And yes, the beautiful flowers and mosaic vase are from him!)

My hair has grown like a weed and I'm glad to have found a consultant in North Carolina to take care of my retightenings. Although I took the retightening class, it was never my desire to retighten my own hair on a regular basis. I had to learn how to do it myself though because with all of my travels, I'm sometimes in an area where there are no consultants available. In these pictures I've curled my hair on plain foam sponge rollers spritzing with a little water along the way. I like to call this my curly fries look! ha ha! I have to say that of all the curling methods I've tried, I find that these good old fashioned rollers maintain my curls longer than any other. I can get nearly a week of curls without having to do any touching up as long as I'm able to keep my hair dry.

Happy Holidays!!

Below are more pictures of the progression of my hair over the last year.

Before Sisterlocks

The first day after my 18 hour install

My Sisterlocks at 6 months

And today, Christmas Eve, 2008

My Sisterlocks at One Full Year

Accessorized with a Tomoka's Twist and matching earrings

My Smile Has Never Been Brighter.....

I am SOOOO excited! Sisterlocks has added links to their website to advertise that they are doing photo shoots in several cities. They've advertised by placing pictures online of some of those who participated in the shoots a couple of weeks ago. I MADE THE CUT!!

I am so excited that my picture is online. I feel so glamourous. It's amazing how something as simple as your hair can boost your overall self-image. I feel more beautiful now than I think I ever have. Everyone that took pictures looks wonderful!

There just may be a photo shoot coming to a city near you. Click here for more information.

And of course.....see my pictures here.

The hair is the richest ornament of women.

~Martin Luther

Meeting A Legend And My Sisters...

This past weekend, the sisters in the northern California area came together for a consultant training class, potluck, and individual photo shoots. While I'm far from ready to take any SL class yet, I did enjoy my own little personal sex kitten supermodel moment when I had my photo shoot.

Once you have Sisterlocks, you hear about the disease...you know the "hanzenthehairitis", "whitegirlatoma", and "slapurgia", but no one told me that I would need to go to rehab for a "phototectomy" (my definition of needing to be pulled away from the camera). Before I got my locks, I thoroughly enjoyed being behind the camera taking pictures and I still do enjoy it, but now I have this thing where I like to be in front of the camera as well! I had a lot of fun doing different poses in different settings, and our photographer, John, was spectacular! He will be at the SL Homecoming in July so start planning your poses now....

I also got to meet and speak with Dr. JoAnne Cornwell...our SL mother, motivator, and friend. It was so exciting to meet her and for her to tell me that she loved my hair!!! Super Kudos to Wendy and hey, congrats to me for working the Caruso curlers! ha ha I think what was most valuable was to hear from the real source of it all, exactly what things should or shouldn't be done with my hair. It was a great compliment to Wendy that not only did Dr. C. think my hair looked very nice, but also that every instruction that Wendy has given me is exactly as Dr. C. said in answer to questions that I and everyone else proposed.

In looking at all of the beautiful locks around the room, no two heads looked alike, but there were a few common bonds...everyone embraced each other as family and friends. I didn't see anyone giving the infamous scan up and down on anybody with the tell-tale, "who did it and what for" face. Second, everyone exuded self-confidence and took pride in how they carried themselves. There was an air of class and elegance from one end of the room to the other, and third, sistah's know how to cook!!

I'm excited to be a part of this warm and growing community and can't wait to see everyone again in San Diego for Homecoming. See you there!!

Special thanks to...

Dr. C.

Wendy

Chloe
(for doing my makeup)

Sandy and Carolyn
(for helping to choose my jewelry)

and of course John
(for taking such spectacular pictures!!)

Here I am with Wendy and Alicia (aka Chocolata)

A sister can be seen as someone who is both ourselves

and very much not ourselves

- a special kind of double.

~Toni Morrison

All Retightened & Ready To Lime!!!

I finally got in with my consultant yesterday for my 1st full official retightening!! THANK GOD!! I was experiencing some pretty severe slippage to the point that some locks had come out completely. I looked kinda funky because my hairline had the most slippage so I was wearing a headband pretty often to cover it up until my retightening....the rest of my hair, however, was very random in its areas of trouble. Ahhh...but that's all in the past and we're going to wish nothing but great things in the weeks and months to come.

The big day has finally arrived...tomorrow I leave for my mission trip to Trinidad. I was feeling overwhelmed by all of the things that I needed to get done in order to get packed and ready when I was finally reminded by God that this trip isn't about me having to get worked up to be something that someone else expects me to be. This trip is about me being myself to help someone else. I don't have to worry about being judged by what clothes I wear or how I wear my hair (although I know everyone is going to love it). This is a chance for me to be thankful for what I have and for the opportunity to allow God to use me to bless others. Allowing that thought to sink in has taken away more stress than I can tell you!

When the missions team and I made the trip to Trinidad in July, we asked the facility staff what things the kids were in need of and they told us that they needed recreational items, such as games, toys, etc. They had already been given a DVD player so DVD's were also a good choice. Being that I didn't have any Christmas shopping that I had to do this year, I went a litte crazy with the after-Christmas sales in the Toy and Media departments at Target! I had a blast!! A VERY VERY special thanks to Lynda for donating some awesome toys to add to the collection!!

I've included a few pictures below of the items I bought on my crazy spending spree. I don't wanna grow up; I'm a Toys 'R Us kid! Did you know that they still sell Easy Bake Ovens???

In Trinidad, their saying for hangin' out is "to lime" so....it's time for some hard work, then time to lime!

I Feel Pretty, Oh So Pretty.....

I got up to go to work this morning and as I stepped out of the house to walk Sydney, I felt a new sense of confidence that I haven't felt in a very long while. I'm generally very comfortable with myself in the sense that I know that I have many things to offer to the world. I'm honest, intelligent, and caring, adventurous, humorous, and intense, but today, I felt pretty. As women, we so often look in the mirror and merely glance at ourselves. We pay attention to our hair and makeup, but do our best to avoid everything below.

As I walked outside today though, I had a new sense of self. It was a confidence that said, "I love my new look! I love my hips, my curves, my sass!" I feel as if I'm going through a complete transformation both inside and out. I wear braces on my teeth to correct a problematic childhood injury. I have embarked on a new adventure with my hair, and I've been trying to take time out to exercise a few days a week.

I've never been a "prissy" woman. In fact, I've always fancied myself as a "frump queen". I love wearing jeans and t-shirts, turtlenecks, and sweaters, and shopping for clothes has always been a dreaded chore for me. After all, if it costs more than $19.99 then it's expensive!! My one weakness is shoes but not in the way most women have. I wouldn't wear a pair of heels if you paid me to, but I love the chunky rubber soles of Keens, my Brooks running shoes, and my Uggs!! I scared myself recently when I actually bought a purse to match my boots!!

Even with new found outer confidence, it's still easy to be shaken on the inside. While at work today I received an instant message from one of my managers. This particular manager has been the most vocal about prohibiting me from returning to Trinidad to continue my medical missions trip (see my posts The Politics of Jealousy parts one and two). She led in with superficial conversation only to later allude to her opinion that I don't deserve to go on the trip. She did all of this while trying to maintain a tone as if we were friends.

As I let the conversation sink in, I felt greatly saddened and hurt. I had never imagined that people could be so nasty to me when after all, I was doing something good! In the midst of what has been one of the greatest experiences of my life, I have been met with such great animosity. In a way, I'd wished that I'd never had anything to do with the trip in the beginning but then, I remembered what the trip is really all about. Our mission team is bringing health and hope to children and their families. God said that those who followed him would be persecuted and when I reflect on this situation, I can see that truth all over.

So today, at the end of the ups and downs of my day, I stand naked in the mirror, looking myself over from the inside out and all in all, I'm happy with what I see. Stand naked in the mirror!! I dare you!! What do you see? Leave your comments and let me know!!

Sammy, Sydney, and I got our Christmas pictures taken today. I can't wait to get them and of course I'll post them when I do!!

My Locks, My Locks, My Lovely Lady Locks....

Yahoo!!!

My installation days have finally come, and after about 18 hours, finally gone!! What an incredible experience! My consultant, Wendy Irvin, is a true gem. I remembered movies like "Beauty Shop" as I sat in her chair and we swapped stories on life as her fingers worked their way through my hair. I feel like not only have I gained a Sisterlocks consultant, but also a friend.

After putting my locks in, Wendy pulled them into two-strand twists and told me that I could take them down when I got home tonight or tomorrow morning. Of course I wasn't going to wait until tomorrow, so after arriving home and resisting the urge to inspect and touch them for awhile, I gently removed the rubber bands and separated my locks...spritzed with a little water and voila!!! Click on the link below for more pictures from my installation. What do you think? Am I lovely and lockalicious or what?

Without further adieu, CLICK HERE for a showcase of my new lovely lady locks....

THANK YOU WENDY!!!

An Exciting Photo-Op...

Oh my goodness!!! I just received a phone call from the local dog bakery letting me know that they have added an additional photo session to have Christmas pictures taken with your pets. I was on their waiting list and had completely forgotten about it!! The picture date is next Tuesday, Decembger 4th. This will be only 2 days after my Sisterlocks installation!!! I'm excited...I'm nervous...and giddy all the same! This means that I will have professional pictures taken with my 2 day old baby locks!! I feel like the kid in the Home Alone movies with my hands on my cheeks screaming AAAAAAAaaaaaaaahhhhh!!!!