Retwist update- July/11 months

Hey all!

So, Tuesday night, I went in for a retwist. Here are the pics from that night.Please excuse my face! It ahd been a really long and busy day, and by the time I had to leave for my appointment, I didn't even have time to change or powder my face.

It's funny, every time April looks at my hair, she excitedly whispers that it's growing. But she's definitely right. It's way longer now than it was when she first chopped it in... March? It's funny how the ends are so much poofier than the roots after the twist. Chris was like, why didn't she twist the ends? She did, baby. As best she could, she did. ;) I'm trying to keep it looking as tight as I can over the next week, so it looks good for the reunion. I'm sleeping with the Dreadsock, instead of just the night bonnet.

I'm almost a year in. Thought I would be way more locked my now, but it's ok. It's a process, and I am not really minding it. I even did a photoshoot with my big poofy fro, and thought they turned out cute. I am going to try my best to enjoy every stage, but I really want the locking to speed up! I don't love the long twist look with the poofy ends!

compliment someone today!

What is it about getting a positive word from strangers that makes us feel so dang good? 

I was out with my hubby looking for an outfit to wear to my 10 year high school reunion next weekend. I wasn't planning on buying anything new to wear, but I just did not feel comfortable trying to squeeze into a too small cocktail dress and hoping it would still look as good on me now, as it did when I bought it to slide onto my past, much thinner frame. Rather than wait to till the last minute, on a whim after small group, I told my hubs that we were going shopping. Not wanting to spend a bunch of money on something I was hoping would soon be too big for me, we hit up Ross and TJ Maxx.

Long story short, at Ross I guessed on my size, grabbed 8 dresses, and crossed my fingers that I wouldn't cry in the dressing room. They fit. Phew! So I narrowed it down to three dresses, and let my husband make the final decision. He did good! I wasn't wanting to get a black dress, but that was the color of the dress I ended up loving. It was also the cheapest of the finalists, and I could grab any pair of black sandals from my closet to match. Plus, you can never go wrong with a LBD. And I needed to have one in my size just in case.

We went to TJ Maxx after that for something else, and I stumbled upon some shoes that would look amazing with my dress, so even though I have some black sandals that I could have worn, I splurged. Well, not really- they were cheap. But, it was an impulse buy. One that I'm very  happy about! Even my husband said they were perfect for that dress- which he said looks good on me. :)  All smiles about that!

Anyway, when we were checking out, the cashier just could not stop talking to me about how much she loved my hair. I mean, she just went on and on. She told me she was thinking about going natural, asked how long I've had my locs for, asked me if I've ever done pipe cleaner curls, told me what styles I should try...! She was telling me about her friend who's "dreads just started dropping" and how they were shorter than mine and how she loved them. Guuuurl! Go ahead and do it! Sounds like you want it bad, lol. I actually felt bad wrapping it up, but there was a line behind us, and I have a feeling she could have gone on for hours.She must've told me at least 3 times how good my hair looked on me. Considering I haven't retwisted in a while, and I was a hot mess, that made me feel really good!

I still feel good, remembering the scenario and sharing it with you. I'm grinning right now! So, I just wanted to tell you about that, since I don't have a hair update. Though, I will! I'm getting a retwist tonight. Oh yeah- I have good news! Remember how April was moving? Her lease at the salon was almost up and she was shutting down shop? Well she decided to keep Lockstar open! They are just moving to a new location. I'm sure she is still moving to Florida, but I know I'll still be in good hands, and may even get to see her once in a while. I don't know much more than that, but will fill you in after tonight's groom!

Take care, you wonderful people! And give someone a compliment today. Don't hold back- it will make them feel good. Maybe even for days, like it did for me! Peace & blessings!

Budding or shedding?

What do you think is going on here?

Remember when I showed you how my hair sheds? Do you think this is the same thing? Usually when that happens, I have wispy little clumps of hair hanging by a strand from the tip of my loc. This is different...

These are thicker, tighter balls, and seem to be hanging on for dear life! Is the ever-so-talked-about budding? Is it finally happening to me?

If you've experienced this, please help me out! Is this budding or shedding? Do I leave them alone?

Deathly Hallows part 2

So,  last night,  we saw it all end.  It was awesome. I did squirm a little at some parts that were not true to the book,  but overall,  it was a win in my opinion. Very well done!
We saw it in IMAX 3D,  which made some scenes of beauty really pop! I am ready to see it again, (not in the wee hours of the morning,)  to really scrutinize it,  as is my tradition.
I only got a couple of pictures,  and none of our full group of 8 people. You can see I was in my (usual) getup. Ravenclaw patch adornedcloak, with a Ravenclaw tie, complete with shield pin. Last year I gave away my snitch necklace, otherwise I would have worn that too. I got a "Ravenclaw love" shoutout entering the theater,  but this year,  my attire shadowed in comparison to the throngs of witches and wizards that were there. There were many more than I expected.
While we were in the theatre,  killing a couple hours until the start of the movie,  the theater employees performed a funny, surprise skit. Nothing special,  but it got lots of laughs and made the evening that much more memorable.
So that was the last midnight showing for me. Bitterswet,  but worth it all. When we left the movie,  there were tons of people queued up for the second showing of the night/morning. We saw one person dressed up and on crutches, who walked out of the first movie,  and to the back of the line for the next showing. Now that's love.

Hair update

I have been trying to post these pictures since Monday, but my mobile Blogger is not liking my post for some reason. That really sucks, because every time I  attempt to re-write it, it gets diluted more and more. It's now like writing something for the sake of filling up space, instead of being meaningful :(  Let's try this again.

On Monday, I washed my hair. It had been 17 days since my retwist at the salon. I had fully intended on retwisting it myself, but after I took off my hair towel, I was kinda digging the fro. So I have yet to retwist. I actually have to go into a meet and greet for work tomorrow, so I hope this doesn't come across as unprofessional. What do you think?

When I was shampooing my hair (I used Head and Shoulders because I was out of my normal shampoo), my hair felt different. It is definitely feeling more like locks in there, even if they are barely looking like it. And what's  up with that? My locks are now 10 months old. I can't believe in just a couple of months I will have had them for a year! I also can't believe that, at almost a year, they are not locked up more. But, alas, I can't complain. I know every journey is different.

About the shampoo... My cat must love the smell, because she kept walking around on my pillow and sniffing my hair. In the middle of the night, I woke up to her "making biscuits," as my husband calls it- kneading her little paws away...in my hair. So. Weird.

In two weeks I go in for my next (and last!) retwist with April. It will be such a bittersweet time, as I know she has bigger and better things in store for her. But, of course, I'm sad to be losing my loctician so soon into my journey. But, I know she will recommend someone who can take good care of these teenage locs, and my progress should not be hindered.

My head had not been itchy at all since my retwist. Now, however, it is feeling a little dry. I have been sweating a lot (working out), so I will probably rinse my hair about every other day. Last time I let it do it's own thing, I wet it down a lot more, but now it doesn't seem to get as flat in the back from sleep as it did before. So, I won't.

Did you like the shirt I was wearing in the second picture? It's an oldie, but goody, from my friend's clothing line. Check it out, he has awesome designs. And if you are in the Charlotte area, the Nuthing Summer Collaborative is always a treat, with tons of bands and vendors. More info on that will be on the website as soon as details are finalized.

Ok. I think that was everything I wrote about before. I'm not really excited about my hair, but I'm not hating it either. I hope it looks ok tomorrow, when I have to clean up and go in for work. I have been rocking elastic headbands a lot lately, to keep my hair off my face and neck in this heat, and it looks really cute. Maybe I'll do that tomorrow. Let me know your thoughts!

House update

So, I know I've mentioned that my hubby and I are building a house. Well, I'm finally gonna tell you all about it. Chris and I had visited this community long before we ever thought to make a home here -even before we were even engaged- when we were just thinking about building a life together. A year or two later, and we're building house together! We fell in love with this floorplan the moment we stepped into the model. It is a big place, but the thing we love about it is how open it is. The first floor doesn't have any walls seperating you from the front entry to the back wall of the house. There are columns supporting the second floor instead. We've taken tons of pictures, and are so entertained by them, but that's probably just us! Haha. I won't bore you with all kinds of construction photos, but every week there has been huge changes, and it has all been very exciting.

About a month ago, the clearing and foundation were poured, and 30 days later:


Voila!

Pretty amazing, huh? These people don't waste any time! Seriously, one week before this picture was taken, only the first floor was framed, and there were no walls or rooflines. Crazy and amazing!

 

We are scheduled to close mid/end of September, just after our one year anniversary. :)

God has been providing for us every step of the way, and even seems to be blessing others involved. I know He's got something awesome in store for us in this new community, and can't wait to see how we can make a difference there.