skin problem

i moved to california from houston texas around dec/jan.  in february my skin broke out BAD!  i lasted about 3 weeks then went away.  however, it didn't completely go away.  i now have these little bumps on my face that i cant seem to get rid of.  i dont know what to do!!  i try to drink a lot of water, i've always been a gym fiend, what am i missing.  it could be do to stress...  i have been stressed out since being in cali!  im now trying to live stress free!  if this doesn't work then....  proactiv??  gmmmmm

hair growing

im really starting to see a difference in the growth of my hair.  im definitely the one who constantly has her hands in her hair.  i love the way my twist outs look days after i take the twists down.  i use to like it better the first day when i take them out, but its definitely changed now as my hair grows.  hands in hair-i dont care!  i love my hair, which is why i cant keep my hands out of it. 

quest for shea butter

i went to target, cvs, walgreens, kmart, and 3 rite aids all in search for my shea butter.  i finally found it at the last rite aid for a wopping 8.99.  ouch!  but, i NEED IT!  when it comes to my hair, i don't deny its cravings.

after arriving home i did a poo wash then twists with shea butter.  i'm gonna let it air dry for a while, then take them down.  this is actually the 2nd time in 4 days that i've twisted my hair.  it didn't need to be re-twisted, but since i spent 8.99 on shea butter i had to put it to work right away.  haha

shea butter

this is what i love!  i use this on my twist outs.  keeps my hair feeling extremely soft throughout the week and makes my twist outs look amazing.  only problem... at times it can be hard to find.  i've noticed most beauty supply stores don't carry it in my area.  the first time i ran into this product was when i was living in downtown la and first went natural.  i was experimenting on products to use for my twist outs.  at the time i had read in a lot of blogs to try shea butter.  i had know idea exactly what from of shea butter to purchase and the rite aid on 5th and spring didn't have to many options, so this is what i went with and ended up loving it.  

i'm now in victorville, which is also in california about an hour from la (oh how i miss LA) and have purchased it at a rite aid on mojave.  now, i live no where near mojave so this morning i'm in search of a store a little closer.  i read online to try kmart, so wish me luck!  I NEED MY SHEA BUTTER!

McDonald's hiring 50,000

Today is McDonald's national hiring day!  McDonald's is looking to hire 50,000 employees.  need a job, go to McDonald's.  to proud to flip burgers?  i'm not!   

McDonald's is looking for managers, interns, corporate, and crew members.  there are plenty of success stories about people who started as a crew member and worked there way up.  this could be you...  or just keep eating there burgers, whatever... lol

Carol's daughter models

sooo, these lovely ladies are the new faces/models for Carol's Daughter.  my first thoughts after seeing the photo were...  where is the DIVERSITY??  these lovely lades all have a light skin tone.  although i'm Solange's skin tone, i would still like to see a variation within the models.  as black women we all come in different colors, shapes, hair textures, and so on... BUT it is clearly not represented in this picture.  

NEXT, i'm not sure who the photographer was, but i am sure there were a number of pictures taken.  why did they choose this one??  these women are very beautiful, but the picture makes them look... well, yea, you get it. 

AND THEN, why do they have Solange thrown in the back?  everything about this picture is wrong.  i personally can't say much about Carol's daughters products because i've never tried them, but this picture will definitely not make me run to purchase.  

Carol's Daughter is definitely doing big things and i applaud the growth in business!  AMAZING!  however, i do feel black women can be represented just a little better.  but, this is MY BLOG and these are MY THOUGHTS. 

hair getting longer

i'm really starting to notice my hair getting longer and longer!  i can definitely tell a difference now.  I've been rockin the same twist out for about 4 days now.  i was actually considering washing it today, but i'm still liking the way its looking, which is a good thing!

where i live there aren't to many naturals at all!  at least i don't see them.  it feels really good walking into a room and standing out amongst a crowd because of my hair.  when i lived in houston i didn't run into to many naturals, but when i did we almost always spoke to each other about our hair.

embrace your natural beauty!

4/12/11 twist out

 i did this twist out yesterday morning around 11am and took them out around 6pm.  it came out pretty good.  i ended up sitting underneath the dryer for about 30min @12pm cause i thought i would need to leave sooner then i did.

hair letter

if what you eat truly does affect your hair, then...


dear hair,

im sorry for tricking you buy having the most amazing workout this morning and sweating you out, followed by McDonald's @8am, then pizza hut chicken pasta and grape soda @10.30am.

you know i love you oh so much, but sometimes i just have those days when i want to eat everything in sight.  i believe today is that day.  i will try to better as the day goes on.  i cant make any promises, but i will try.

yours truly,

naturalzu

sit all day, heart attack

People who sit for most of the day are 54 percent more likely to die of heart attacks says Scientists at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Louisiana

took out the cornrows

ok, so i took out my cornrows today, thank goodness.  i was over it! lol  i loved them for all of about 2 days then missed my hair.  my hair was so long when i took them out(stretched), but i absolutely hated the way it felt!  then i jumped in the shower and the shrinkage came right away.   i decided to do a wash and go today.  after washing i sprayed with my olive oil spray the applied a little shea butter leave in conditioner, then olive oil gel.  heres a quick pic;

OH THE PRODUCT BUILD UP!  i will post a pic of it when its dry to!

considering flat twist out

i've noticed a lot of people tend to check out my flat twist out pics...   hmm.... makes me kinda want to try that style again since my hair is longer now!  i just may tonight and just sit under a dryer so it will dry faster!  lol  my dad found my dryer in his storage yesterday!  of course i wouldn't use it all the time, but best believe it will be getting some use!

budget!

they better get this budget deal resolved!  this impacts so much, i hope everyone realizes this.  national parks, museums, and so on....

-17,000 people alone out of work from the parks.
-health and human services workers will be out of work.  medicare and medicaid workers will continue to work.
-further delay with irs tax returns
-planned parenthood could lose funding.
-----and that is a small part of what could happen....

no ponytail after 1 year!

soooo, its been a year now and i'm still unable to fully pull my hair back into a ponytail!  what the!  oh, the frustration.  it could be partly my fault for wearing braids every now and then, cause i do notice my hair grows a lot faster when its out and free.  i love having my hair out and i also love t experiment with my hair.

you're suppose to do what your reacts to!  thats what i keep telling myself!  so, if i know it likes to be free out of braids then i need to wear it that way!  i will try!  i just cant wait to be able to pull my hair back into a ponytail!  grow hair!  grow!

cornrows

So, i got bored today, and this was the result of me looking for something to do.   not to shabby!  lol  i was thinking of what in the world to do with my hair, then remember seeing on black girl with long hair a picture of Ciara with cornrows and thought what the hey, i know how to do that and at least i can rock it for a couple day or maybe a week.  knowing me it will only be a couple days cause i will start to miss having my hair out.

also...  before i put my hair in cornrows i was out and about in public thinking my hair was looking in absolute mess!  guess not!  i was approached by two different women telling me how beautiful my hair was.  i was rocking a four day old twist out and had been to the gym every am sweating my twist OUT! each day after the gym as i would get bored i would twirl different sections between my fingers trying to maintain something, anything!  little did i know i was making it look amazing! lol  just when you think you're having a bad hair day you get compliments!  kudos!

lessons

understand that lessons are life's way of making you change

hairstyles b4 natural (sum 4 natural)

 

 

 

  

hair re-trained after braids

i'm so gad i came out of the braids that i wore the last month or so.  they've been out a week now and my hair is finally starting to bounce back.   it's almost like i've had to re-train m hair on being free.  my twist outs weren't working so good, but my hair is definitely starting to take to them.  i've been in my current twist out for 3 days now and i've went to the gym 2 of those days, but its still looking good.

everyday i wake up at 5am thinking please, please, please let my hair not look to crazy.  thankfully, its been just fine, i do a super quick re-fluff and head out the door for my morning workout.  my workout starts with running 2 to 3 miles, then either the stepper or bike for 20 minutes then weight training and sit ups.  by the time i leave the gym everyday i'm dripping with sweat.  i plan on washing my hair either 2morow or the next day for sure!

i'm in love with my hair!

1 year natural!

i've been natural for one year now!  go me!  i snapped this pic while lounging on Santa Monica beach yesterday afternoon.  my hair was actually looking kinda crazy but who cares, your hair is not always perfect while you're out and about living your life.

my one year natural was actually in march (i think), but what they hey.... i just know its been a year now and i'm so proud of myself for sticking through with this and going a whole year without chopping my hair off.  i'm the type of person who changes her hair ALL the time!  i just cant keep my hands out of it.  i love experimenting with my hair, playing in my hair, i just love my hair!
 
if anyone reading this is considering going natural or even just starting out, do it!  and stay strong!  don't listen to what other people say about your hair, any negative comments, or even people telling you to do something else to your hair.  stay strong and do you!  cheers to my one year natural!