Blog Expansion

Hello all! I just wanted to inform all my readers that my blog will undergo a bit of a transformation soon. There are other aspects of my life that do not include hair that I would like to discuss, but I cannot do so under my current blog title. I know that posting about other topics will help me keep the blog alive and avoid the long gaps in between posts.

No worries about the link name. That will stay the same. I will probably pay the fee to get rid of the "blogspot" part, but it will still redirect you to this page.

Some upcoming topic areas:

• Budgeting: Something we all want to work on, but some of us are having trouble (namely me!). I will discuss the steps I'm taking to improve my budget and report back with my results.
• Working Moms Time Management: Another part of my life that I'm constantly working on is planning my time. With a baby, going to school, and working full time, and my husband doing the same, there truly aren't enough hours in the day. I will share what I am doing and I would definitely appreciate it if you contribute your ideas as well!
• Gratitude: I have a journal called Gratitude that my godparents gave me and it talks about taking the time out to share things for which you are grateful and how to show your gratitude. Instead of writing in the journal, I'll follow the journal's instructions and post here from time to time. These will be relatively brief posts (probably 100-200 words max). It's not the focus of this blog and I won't go overboard with it.
• Healthy Eating: We ALL want to get to a point where we're eating healthy. I haven't gotten there, but I will share my journey to healthy eating as well.

Wish me luck!

43 weeks: Straightening During the Transition Pros and Cons

Hi readers! I'm so very happy with my hair right now...mainly because it's not breaking and I haven't had to do anything to it other than comb it. It's been in a ponytail all week and it's still straight. I am considering straightening my hair more often (about once a month) during the transition, but I'm on the fence. So being the list-manic person that I am, I made a list of pros and cons.

Straightening for the Transition Pros:

• Less breakage (at least when my stylist does it)
• Very little in between maintenance (depending on your hair products)
• Allows me to have the best of both worlds
• Allows me to slowly trim hair and really see how much I'm trimming
• Makes my husband happy to see my hair straight sometimes
• Stops me from playing in my natural hair and causing more potential breakage
• Gives me one uniform texture which aids in styling

Straightening for the Transition Cons:

• Potential heat damage and permanently straightened hair
• I don't get to play in my natural hair! 
• May have to start the grow-out process over
• Makes me want to cut more hair

Looks like the pros list is better to me. Anyone else have anything to add? Pros or cons, let me know!

42 Weeks and Temptation Abounds: My Stylist Visit

Okay this is going to be quite a story. Let me begin with what I had been doing to my hair before the stylist visit.

So you all know that I was washing my hair weekly in three ponytails. I had started only combing through with a shower comb while soaking wet, and letting it dry in the ponytails. I think we determined that was where the problem started. Previously I was combing once or twice during the drying process with a normal-sized comb, but I stopped that when my hair started coming out in large quantities. Coincidentally (or not), it started coming out in large quantities when I went two weeks without washing or combing my hair.

Now when my stylist got to my hair, she looked quite befuddled as she tried to figure out how she was going to get through all of the matted hair. She put a detangling conditioner on it and put me under the dryer for 15 minutes before she even attempted to shampoo it. She said washing it in the state it was in before would only do more damage. After that, she gave me a protein treatment AND a deep conditioning treatment before carefully blowdrying and straightening my hair. All in all, the process took over three hours!

Once it was straight, the temptation to relax again was overwhelming, especially with my husband showering me with compliments all day.

I will never let my hair get like this again. No more ripping and no more laziness. My transitioning 4b hair requires a lot more care than that. Honestly, I'm thinking I will keep my hair straight most of the time throughout the transition by visiting my stylist every 4 weeks. Once the relaxed ends are gone I think I will enjoy my natural hair more.

Without further adieu, my straightened hair:

The Lesson: Even though life is a bit busier with my loving little baby boy, I still have to take time for myself to take care of my hair. I feel like when I'm not at work I always need to be caring for him. Sometimes I forget that I have a supportive husband and wonderful mother who are more than willing to watch my dear son while I take some time for myself. So now, Saturday mornings are all for me. I will either wash my own hair and take better care to remove the tangles, or go to the salon.