Beautyover40ish

So this happened.
This is hands down the most beautiful and possibly the most historically relevant piece of art I own (I’m a history nerd so I have a few) - it once hung at the OG Thunderbird Hotel In Bloomington - back in the day when it was owned by Rodney Wallace. I was pretty young when I was there prior to it being bought by Ramada, probably 7-10 years old or so, when we had dance competitions there probably twice a year…but it wasn’t a place that was easily forgotten. I bought this myself from Rodney’s personal collection after his passing. Long story short, one of my natural-red bull fueled children who scale walls and should probably have helmets on at all times, broke it. I should’ve known when I heard a mouth covered scream and then complete silence for like 10 minutes. COMPLETE silence - I heard one kid’s (I won’t embarrass him by saying which one) nervous farts from all the way upstairs…the silence + the nervous farts would’ve normally cued me to jump up immediately, but I was filing some paperwork in my bedroom so was more focused on my task than the possibility of them breaking a priceless, one of a kind, Native American piece of art. Slowly the door opens to my room, and child x is holding the antler in one hand and cradling the skull in the other. I’ll admit, I shed tears, but I didn’t raise my voice or even scold really, which I think the boys know is far worse than yelling because then they know whatever they’ve said or done has actually affected me deeply, and it’s not anger that I feel, it’s sadness. SO, onto the solution. Thank the LORD the does restorations. We have an appointment to go in next week, and it will be expensive to fix, but when it IS finally done it will have been restored properly.

Here’s to dealing with ex’s…. *t (god I love that scene from “Waiting to Exhale”…best. fired. scene. ever.)

So we had the tripod set up because my youngest is obsessed with making YouTube videos of his gaming….why not go nuts, right?

I love switching out the center pieces in my dining room…I’m NOT great at decorating, it’s not my forte, but this is one fun little piece I can do without it looking like a mess, lol…

Still on the Nike tip, lol….I get very self conscious every time I post a new pic. I always keep it 💯and do little to no editing, but I’m imperfect at best…but I want other women to know it’s okay to be imperfect. I don’t wear a ton of makeup, but I LOVE what I do wear and think most women my age (43) age themselves a solid 10 years by wearing too much. Less is so much more at this point…

“black is modest and arrogant at the same time. black is lazy and easy — but mysterious. but above all, black says this: i don’t bother you — don’t bother me.”. — yohji yamamoto

I can’t be the only one with a to-do list that can take up an entire sheet of 8x11 paper…and I don’t just mean the lines, I mean the side margins, the top and any little in-between spaces I can find to write. That’s kind of how my head feels most of the time…like a three dimensional to-do list with all of my errands, phone calls, household chores, financial responsibilities, stuff the boys need — it all just floats around in a jumbled mess in my brain. Sometimes things float to the front for awhile but the go straight to the back for a month and I completely forget about them, sometimes when it’s too late. All the words are constantly bouncing off of one another, so dates and times get transposed easily. My anxiety is through the roof as the only thing my brain has room for anymore are things I need to do - space for creativity and imagination are gone. Space for free thought is gone. I feel chained to my responsibilities, which puts me under too much stress, which causes me to get sick again….

My big black jacket, a staple. FYI , we don’t say “yee-haw” here, we say “spoiled child” and “uneducated”….and on rare occasions “stupid c***”.

If you’re familiar with the pain associated with systemic autoimmune diseases, you get it. Sometimes it’s just overwhelming… Good times, right?

My fav place - not because I’m vain, but because I LOVE my industry. I’m imperfect, not at the top of my game anymore, but can bring out anyones natural beauty while still maintaining their persona - so they look in the mirror and feel it’s them at their best, not them just overly made-up. I love taking my time, doing full facial cleanses and massages, exfoliating and fully moisturizing prior to even starting to think about color…you can’t build a beautiful home without a sturdy foundation. I am intricate, I am careful, I am picky, I am exact. Since I can’t really have many clients in front of me right now due to COVID and my immune system/ILD/limited life span, I only have myself to work on…and maybe that’s what God intended for the moment.