Just for Me

A while back, someone in my life asked me if there was something that I wanted "just for me". You know, after you have kids, lot's of stuff becomes about them and the things that they need. And when you stay home with your kids instead of having a job outside the house, you don't have the justification of buying clothes for work, so sometimes, you just go without for long periods of time. And before you know it, you've been wearing the same 2 pairs of jeans and sad looking running shoes for three years and you wake up one day and think to yourself, "They don't look so hot anymore!" Who knew? (Probably everyone else but me, but nobody was saying anything!) Add to this a husband who is in ministry and a tight family budget, and you have one young (yes, 31 is still young in my book) mom of young kids who needs a dash of spice in her life.

So, back to my original statement...this collective "someone" pursued this question with me several different times to no satisfactory end, and finally resorted to asking Steve what I would want. Long story short, I ended up with a large check made out to me and strict instructions to not spend anything on Steve or the kids. Not to spend it on groceries, or things we need around the house. But just on me! How fun is that? So I thought I would post pictures of my first 3 "Just for Me" purchases (and I know these special "someones" read my blog, so this way I have proof that I am buying things for myself!)

To start things off right, my first CHI.

So I am new to the world of hair straightening, and if I had been buying one of these babies myself I would have marched down to Target and bought the next to cheapest one and probably fried all my hair off. But my friend Amy, who has been a faithful straightener for many years, and my hairstylist Cheryl, both told me that the CHI was the way to go. The way they threw around the word "CHI" (rhymes with free, which it certainly was not) made it sound all exotic and super special, like Gucci or Prada. I was a tad disappointed when I discovered that CHI is simply short for Cermaic Hairstyling Iron, but I have not been disappointed with the product at all. I have had short hair for many years and have loved it, but it was time for a change. So I have been growing it out, and this product really saves me time and I love the results. I can let my hair air dry, or even sleep on it damp (gasp!) which I NEVER would have done before. The reason being...horrible, crazy bent waves all over my head that nothing really takes care of..until the CHI. I can straighten all my hair in about 7 minutes and waalaa....super straight, smooth, shiny hair.

Which brings me to my next "Just for Me" purchase:
I have always been a buy-my-shampoo-at-Target kind of girl (unless my stylist was feeling generous and gave me some samples of Redken), but I always love the feeling my hair has when I leave the salon.  And since I am using my new CHI and exposing my hair to 350 degrees of scorching heat, I thought I should nourish it a bit with a little Paul Mitchell Super Skinny Smoothing Shampoo.  I know, I know...everyone who has really thick hair wants skinny hair, and everyone who has skinny hair naturally wants thick hair.  The grass is always greener...

And last but certainly not least, my new kicks:

I have been going to the gym (mostly) faithfully since New Year's, and my other running shoes were in sad, sad shape. The inside of the heel had exposed plastic that was rubbing a sore on my heel, and I didn't even realize how bad they looked until I took them off at the shoe store and saw them laying along side various new pairs of shoes. O Brother. So these new shoes are treating me right.
So thanks thoughtful, loving "someones"! I will have more Just for Me purchases to post in the future!