Hair!

First, before I talk too much about my hair, I want to thank everyone who prayed for my little friend with ITP. He had another treatment a couple weeks ago, with a little prednisone to help out. One day I saw him curled up on the couch, the next day he was running around the house. What a difference a few steroids make! He’s not out of the woods yet, but there’s a plan and I think everyone is feeling better.

My hair is actually visible now! I feel like I can go out into the big world without anything on my head and maybe not look like a cancer survivor. Maybe, but probably not yet. One of my teens said it feels like a puppy– it’s soft, new baby hair, and it’s OK if you want to touch it.

I’ve un-retired my shampoo and conditioner, and I dug out some gel. But I dropped the gel on the floor and the bottle broke open – oh well. It wasn’t the right product anyway. Then I tried a styling paste and Mike got in on the action. He didn’t think I was using enough, but then I ended up with too much and my hair looked old and spiky and felt like it had a coating of wet glue. For now, I’ve put the styling products away and am sporting the “Frankenstein” look: all combed forward. :)

I’ve been taking pictures weekly but not posting them. I could blame surgery and recovery, but really it’s been a little about laziness and lots about lack of inspiration and taking a break from the computer.

So, catching up…

February 22, 2013

I’m wearing my “blanket sweater” to combat the cold, rainy, windy day here, and you can see my white surgical bra peeking out – sexy, right? I’m a little concerned about the reckless abandon with which I present myself these days, but, hey, it was only a week since surgery, and I braved the world with a flat chest and drains (which make my stomach look oddly bumpy… kinda like I have a hamster in each pocket).

Match 1, 2013

I had a video chat with both of my older nieces (and my siblings) this week. The girls are toddlers, so we sing silly songs, I parade a stuffed animal or two across the screen, and have oft-interrupted grown-up conversations with their parents. But what the girls are most interested in seeing is Rayna. Aka “woof” or “doggie.” So I thought she should participate in my weekly hair photo.

And today: the standard shot and a glimpse of how I normally look at home when I’m not experiencing a “warm flush” (I can’t really call them hot flashes because they’re not that dramatic – nothing a hat removal and a sweatshirt-shedding won’t fix).

Happy weekend to all of you. Enjoy your hair!

$16.99 at Target

Yesterday I did something I haven’t done in, well, maybe ever. And I’m REALLY giddy about it. On my way home from my first reconstruction “fill,” I decided to stop at Target and buy myself a bra: OFF THE RACK and WITHOUT TRYING IT ON. Yippee!!!

Seriously, I really am tickled about this. I try everything on before I buy it because I’m not an easy fit. I’m the girl that goes into the dressing room with 20 things and buys 1 or 2. I  always want to apologize to the poor stock girls who have to put everything back. My bras, in particular, have always had a JOB to do – underwire, full-coverage, padded straps, 4 hooks in back, minimizer… it was hard work, and not very glamorous. And the selection is very limited.

Last week I had my post-op appointments, and my general surgeon (who did my mastectomies) gave me a prescription for 6 bras. WOW! Thanks to the multitudes of women who have had breast cancer before me, I can actually get prescription bras for life. Crazy. The next day I saw my plastic surgeon (who put in my tissue expanders and “fills” them with a little more saline every couple weeks). I asked if she had any insights on bra selection. She looked puzzled and said, “You don’t need a bra any more!” Plus I’ll be changing sizes for the next few months. But a skin-sparing mastectomy takes all the breast tissue and leaves the skin, so my chest looks like a shar pei right now… not exactly the contour I want under a t-shirt! I’m thankful it’s still sweatshirt weather.

So I guess it’s up to me. I’ve needed a bra all my life, and I feel a little funny without one – and this is my first chance in years to have something pretty. And sexy. An accessory! And while I think prescription bras for life is completely unnecessary, I want to cash in on this first prescription. I want to enjoy this superfluous need for a bra.

I’ll go to Nordstrom in a couple weeks with my prescription, but for now, something cheap and fun from Target gives me a happy reprieve from my black and white mastectomy camisoles. If only I could get rid of my drains, but that’s another story.

I confess that I tried several bras on. And several shirts that begged to be considered. But I didn’t try on the "bandinis" I bought because they were in a two-pack, attached to each other AND the hanger. Grr. When I got home, we all tried them on. :) We don’t have kids, so we have to regress like this once in awhile. Which brings me to the pictures for this post:

Mike started it.

I wasn't quite as creative.

Poor Rayna. But isn't she cute?