It's Perfectly Natural Root Food One Month Later

I have been using It's Perfectly Natural Root Food for over a month now and I wanted to give you all a quick update.  I haven't noticed much growth in my problem area that thinned out this past March after my last relaxer, but I have noticed that my edges have filled in.  I didn't know that my edges had lost hair until I noticed hair growing around my forehead.

My head is now getting fuzzy.

If I had known that I would have gotten so much growth around my edges I would have taken some before pictures to compare to my after pictures.  So, my verdict is that it works.  I think my thinning area just needs some more time to fill in, and I believe that will come with more time.  I plan to do another update sometime in January giving Root Food three months to work on my thinning spot.  I don't consider myself a product junkie (more like a recovering product junkie), but I plan to use this product everyday.  If you have had some damage to your edges I'm suggesting Root Food by It's Perfectly Natural.  I'll get back to you about my thinning spot.  Until next time...
Blessings!

Why my hair seems to have stopped growing!

October 7, 2001

I have been keeping close tabs on my hair growth since I BC back in August.   Lately, I have noticed that my bangs in the front seemed to be stuck at the bridge of my nose right between my eyes.  Now, the good news is that I appear to have no split ends and my hair isn't breaking and I have had some growth, but hardly anything to jump up and down about.  When I big chopped in August 2011 I had almost an inch of growth the first month.  So why isn't my hair growing at the same rate?

So, I did some research and found out that hair grows slightly faster during the summer season.   Basically, this increase is due to certain hormones being released during the warmer summer months and overall better circulation of blood during the summer season.  Overall your hair will grow about 10% faster during the sunny warmer summer months rather than the cold winter season.

November 27, 2011

My research also uncovered that with the extra growth in the summer your hair will also have more shedding in the warmer months.  This is due to the natural hair cycles we all go through.  Now this can vary from person to person and depending on your own genetic hormonal levels and things like pregnancy.

I think we can all relate to this added growth by looking at the hair on our legs.  I don't know about you all, but I need to shave my legs more often in the summer months than in the winter months.  Not just because I want to wear a cute skirt or shorts, but because that hair seems to grow faster.  This is true with the hair on our heads.

The Pro's and Con's 
In the summer your hair may grow faster, but you may shed more hair.
In the winter you may experience much slower growth, but you may shed less hair.

So, the next time you do a length check and noticed that your hair hasn't grown much note the season.  It could be simply the winter months and the natural hair cycles our hair goes through.  Until next time...

Blessings!

Changed plans, but still a blessed Thanksgiving!

The hubby and I had plans to travel to visit my family in North Dakota today, but we ended up in the doctor's office instead.  Our son threw up multiple times Tuesday night (twice on me and once on the hubby) and he had a fever of 103.5 degrees.  So, after calling our clinic and talking to the doctor on duty we ended up having a very late Tuesday night, but we avoided going to the emergency room.

This morning instead of packing for a trip we took our son to our clinic.  The good news is that he doesn't have an ear infection or anything else serious, but he is clearly sick.  We were told that he can travel, and to make sure he drinks a lot of fluids.  So, we will try to leave Thanksgiving morning for ND if he is feeling better.  I have packed like we will leave tomorrow morning, but told my mom not to get her hopes up.  With all the stress and hassle I feel like I really need to focus on giving thanks.

I am thankful for my clinic that was able to squeeze us in today.
I am thankful for my husband, who without him this situation would of overwhelmed me and destroyed my holiday.
I am thankful for my beautiful son who reminds me everyday how precious life is.
I am thankful because, even though I may not have turkey tomorrow or be able to see my family, I am blessed to have a family to see.
I am thankful because I am blessed to have a God who works miracles and I know he will heal my son!

I pray that you all have a blessed holiday and remember to always give thanks in all situations.  Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!  BTW if I don't get to have any turkey tomorrow eat some for me and have that piece of pie, because that's what I would do for you!  Until next time...

Blessings!

It's Perfectly Natural Black Friday Sale!

 I have  exchanged a few emails with Denise at It's Perfectly Natural and she informed me that she is having a Black Friday sale!  Now, I love sales and especially on hair products that I know I will use.  I have been using It's Perfectly Natural Root Food since October 27, 2011 and so far I believe that this product does what it says it will do.

So, if you want to support a small growing business that makes all natural products check out It's Perfectly Natural webpage.  Now, remember that I am not a professional and all reviews on this blog are my opinion.  If you suffer any conditions please speak to your health care provider before buying and using any products.  Until next time...

Blessings!

Hurt on my heart...but still blessed.

This is a different kind of post then usual.  My heart hurts right now.  If you have read my profile you will already know that I am a special education teacher (autism) in a high school.  I also teach a small special education social studies class.  Our school is gearing up for History Day and I was paired up with a young teacher to do the kick off meetings.  I was told and confirmed with this other teacher that the kick off was scheduled for tomorrow.  He sent me an email today telling me that they had the kick off this past Monday.

Now, I know that I only have ten students, but they are living breathing human beings.  They may not be like the typical individual but they want to be included and treated just like everyone else.  My heart broke when I told them that we missed the kick off.  You see, I love my students and I really love my job.  So, when they are excluded and basically treated like second class citizens I take this very personally.  As a black woman I know what it feels like to be excluded.  So, since I don't want to cry at school I have decided to list the blessing my students are to me.

I am blessed to work with some of the most interesting students.
I am blessed to have students with a very unique perspective on life.
I am blessed to work with students that rarely lie to me, and when they try they do it so badly I kinda smile at their attempt.
I am blessed to work with students who really live in the moment.
I am blessed to work with students who always tell you what's on their mind.
I am blessed to work with students that don't play mind games.
I am blessed to work with students that have taught me as much as I have taught them.

So, now I got to get back to work.  I have realized that I can't expect others to love my students like I do, but they will respect them!  I'm gonna try to fix this situation and get them to a kick off even if I have to bus them to another school in the district.  Until next time...
Blessings!

Flat Twist Out

I took out my flat twists to moisturize my hair and I was surprised at how much I liked this look.  I have been wanting to do a twist out look, but my hair is still to short to get any real twists.  This style stretched my hair out a little and I kinda have bangs.

I kinda like the wildness of this style and it makes my hair in the front look a little longer.  For an accidental style I think next time I will sleep on my twists and do this look in the morning.  Until next time...
Blessings!

Church Hair

Packed full of confidence from my last attempt at flat twists I decided to do two flat twists in my hair for church today.  Instead of the Bantu Knots I just used a hair clip to secure the ends.  I got several compliments at church today.  Surprisingly, from two ladies who were against me going natural and cutting off all my relaxed hair.

Wet hair. Front view.

Wet hair.  Side view.

Wet hair before church.

Dry hair after church.

I am very pleased with the results.  I did try to do some flat twists going to the back of my head, but I need to practice going in a different direction.  I find that my conditioner makes my hair very slippery when wet, so learning to flat twist in a different direction will require more practice.  I love how shiny my hair is and this style show cases the curls in the back.  I'm gonna rock this style this week and continue practicing my flat twists before I move on to learning how to cornrow.  Until next time...
Blessings!

Flat Twists and Bantu Knots

This morning I decided to try my flat twists again with Bantu Knots on the ends.  Following some advice I read on another blog (can't remember the site) I did my flat twists on wet hair.  I am very pleased with my results this time and considering this is my first attempt at Bantu Knots I'm considering this attempt a success.

Wet hair.

First attempt at Bantu Knots and I had to use hair bands to secure them.

Dry Hair

When I do Bantu Knots again I think I am going to try my flat twists going back to the crown of my head and then end the twists with Bantu Knots on top of my head.  So, what do you think?  Until next time...
Blessings!

It's snowing!

So, this morning on my way to work I noticed a few snow flakes drifting around.  Now Minneapolis is not slated to get any real snow, but this has me concerned.  I have been doing wash n go's every morning and besides adding It's Perfectly Natural Root Food and my oil mixture I have been doing nothing different with my hair.  Besides the "cold" factor, should I be doing anything different?  I don't want to wear extensions or a weave and my hair isn't long enough to twist or braid, so am I alright with my current routine? 
Blessings!

Second attempt at flat twists

Okay, so they say practice makes perfect.  I'm still far from perfection, but this time around I think they look better.  Now my flat twists still aren't flat, but that's because my hair is still very short.  I decided to part my hair and do just one flat twist from my part to my ears.  This time around they came out looking better.

You'll notice that I have "no look of disgust" on my face this time.  I love being able to see progress and I feel like this attempt was an improvement from my first attempt.  Until next time...
Blessings!

Three month anniversary of Big Chop!

It's now November and time for another length check.  My 3 month anniversary of my big chop is tomorrow, but I will be busy so I decided to do my monthly length check today.  I measured my hair again and found out that my hair at my crown is about 4 1/4 inches long while the hair in the front is 4 inches long.  When I measured my hair after my big chop my length was 1 7/8 inches long (just under 2 inches).  I did some math and figured that I have had 2 3/8 inches of growth since my big chop that's almost two and a half inches of growth in 3 months.  That puts me just under an inch above the average hair growth most people experience.

Regular shrinkage without any fluffing.

Hair fluffed with my fingers.

One thing that I have noticed in the past month is my curl pattern.  I really love how my hair curls up and my new length is allowing me to do some different styles.  I have updated my hair regimen so check out what I am doing now that it's colder here in Minnesota.  I'm gonna try to do some flat twists again.  I did some more research and found out that I was doing it right, I just need to practice to make the twists look neater.  Watch for the results of my second attempt at flat twists.  Until next time...
Blessings!

Nature inspired blessings!

Today the hubby and I did some yard work.  I put my gardens to bed and my hubby took care of the leaves and winterized the lawn.  As I was collecting my son's toys in the backyard to be stored for the winter I heard him say "mommy look at the yellow tree".  I glanced up and looked at our sugar maple on the berm in the front of our house and noticed how beautiful it is.  All the other trees in our neighborhood have changed color and dropped most if not all their leaves, but our sugar maple just started to change color this week.  Below are some pictures of our sugar maple tree.

View from the backyard.

On the right side of the picture in the corner is my yellow house.

 If you look in the background you can see that the other trees in the neighborhood don't have any leaves.  I felt so blessed to have this lovely tree that I wanted to share it with you all.  Remember when you're working to stop and enjoy the blessings around you.  If you don't, you could miss out on God's beauty.  Please share with me any blessings you have paused to notice in your life.  Until next time ...

Blessings!

First attempt at flat twists

Well I have been getting bored with my TWA so I have been trying some new styles.  I first did the brush curls, then the finger coil bangs and today I attempted some flat twists before getting ready for bed.  Yes in my house we're dead tired on a Friday night and go to bed around 10 pm.  Anyway, "attempted" is a kind way of saying I tried but miserably failed.  My twists look like a child did them and they are not very flat.  Of course my wonderful husband said they were "lovely", but I don't think I will be going out and about in public with this look until I can make my hair look less messy.  So, take a look at my "flat twists" and let me know what you think.  Any suggestions are greatly welcomed.

Check out my look of disgust over the results.

I parted my hair off to the side then tried to do two flat twists from the part to my ears.  This is one of those styles I have seen on other people and wanted to do with my hair.  I will practice this some more before I dare to go out in public with this look.  I must be feeling brave to post pictures of myself in a style I'm considering a failure.  On the bright side, check out my curls!  I think they are lovely!  Until next time...
Blessings!

Finger Coil Bangs

I have been wanting to have some kind of bangs to frame my face.  My TWA is getting long enough that I decided to do some finger coils just in the front.  After co-washing this morning I applied my Aussie Moist and some Aloe Vera gel to my hair.  I put on a hair band and then pulled some hair out at the front to make the coils.  I then did some quick finger coils in a row from ear to ear.  Presto finger coil bangs!   I took these pictures with my phone, so not the best quality.  When I get home I will upload some pictures from my digital camera.  What do you think?

One of my students gave me a compliment about how nice my hair looked!  Until next time...
 Blessings!

Home with my sick baby, but still blessed!

So, I'm home today because my baby boy is sick.  Last night we went to our Pumpkin Party at our church and when we got home we noticed that he was coughing.  I was up until midnight with him last night simply holding him because every time I laid him down he would start coughing.  Below are some pictures of my baby dressed up as a tiger at the Pumpkin Party.

Playing some carnival games.

My baby tiger loving the inflatable at church.

I am blessed because I have a job that gives me sick time.

I am blessed because I can afford to stay at home with my sick baby.

I am blessed because all he has is a cold and nothing serious.

I am blessed because I can look at staying at home with my sick baby and treat it as quality time.

I am blessed because I can praise Him in all situations of my life.

Remember to give thanks in all circumstances because you are blessed!  Please leave me a comment about what you are thankful for.  Until next time...

Blessings!