Too short, but good for a change

No, this entry is not about a vacation or trip; it's about hair. In November I found a hair dresser that I really like. She specializes in curly hair--definitely a breed of its own (www.cutcolorcurls.com if you are interested yourself). When I went 5 months ago (way too long, I know. Blame it on lack of money and good planning...) I came away with a new vision of how to care for curly hair, but my hair didn't look much different. As I planned to go this next time, I knew I was ready for a change. My hair has basically looked the same for the last 3 years (don't get me wrong, I love the long and curly look and so does Pret), and change is good, right?!?!

I went in planning on getting it a little bit shorter than last time, but as she looked at my hair, she realized how dead it was and was willing to go for the more extreme change. She showed me a quick preview of what she was going to do, then began cutting (she doesn't do wet cuts for curly hair.) The first few cuts began to scare me--it was a lot shorter than I thought. Luckily, that was one of the shortest layers, but still!! She kept snipping away and soon there were piles of curls on the floor. I wish I had had my camera, or that I had kept some of the perfect little ringlets.

By the end, I was a little sad, mostly because I knew Pret would be a little dissapointed at the length, but at the same time, I was strangly exhilerated. I am now a changed woman! After being sick for so long and thinking I had pink eye so not really wearing make-up, I am now ready to start taking care of myself again. It is amazing how a little change in one area can cause a chain reaction of change. Hopefully it is all change for the better.


Sorry the picture isn't the best--it was taken with my computer... And I am not trying to show off, I just have friends and family that I won't see for a while that look at this...

Death and Sadness

So it has been a long time since I have had a grandparent die. In 1999, my mother's father passed away at the age of 94. He had lived with us for about 6 months 3 years before and I grew close to him and learned a lot from him, especially about prayer and faith. Then in November of 2005, Pret's grandfather died, but I had only had the opportunity of meeting him a few times, so it was't too difficult.

Growing up, I didn't live close to either of my sets of grandparents (I only met my grandma Sohn once before she died when I was very young). But next door to us lived Pat and Keith. They were both older and all their children had moved away and their grandchildren were all even older than I was, so I "adopted" them as my "grandparents" and they adopted me.

I spent many hours over there--mainly because they had cable TV (including Nickelodeon!), pop, and gum available to me at any time. They would let me in any time I came over and welcome me with open arms. I would even get to eat dinner over there sometimes, which was quite a treat! They had a little weiner dog named Cletus, who they would ask me to "dog sit" when they had parties or other things going on in the evening. Basically, they were the grandparents I got to visit every day. They had both been heavy smokers, but Keith had a heart attack and was told he had to quit, so instead he always kept a pack of gum in his pocket and would pull out a piece when he wanted "a smoke." Pat on the otherhand, smoked, what seemed like, almost continuously, but it never seemed to bother me when she did, even though I still can't stand it when others smoke around me. I didn't even notice that my clothes smelled of cigarette smoke when I got home, although I am sure that it bothered my mom and dad.

When I left for college, they had moved out to "The Place," their ranch house about 25 minutes out of town. There, Keith had built a beautiful log cabin in the middle of the Hidden Valley. My mom made sure I went to visit them anytime I came to town for an extended period of time. I went begrudgingly, mainly because I felt like they were "old" and I didn't have anything to talk to them about anymore. But after I went, I was always glad that I had.

Yesterday I got a message from my dad telling me that Pat had died on Monday. It is hard for me to even write this without crying (I am failing, to be honest.) I never thought that this would have hit me so hard. I know that I was close to them when I was younger, but I have not been in contact with them for years. I guess it comes from thinking about when my own grandparents will pass on and not looking forward to that time. I also hope that Keith will be able to get on by himself. As Pret has told me, it is probably a good thing as I'm sure her health wasn't too good after smoking for 50+ years. She also has a daughter and sister that have passed on, so she can now be with them once again.

The funeral is tomorrow and I am horribly sad that I can't get up there for it. I hope that my thoughts and prayers will pass the distance and provide some comfort to the family and friends.

To Pat--know that you have made a wonderful difference in the life of one small girl whom you loved unconditionally!

Allergies--again!

So I went and got poked yesterday! I went in to the allergist yesterday thinking that I would probably be allergic to cats and maybe a few other things. Boy was I surprised when they decided to test me for 65 things! (She said the average is 64, so I guess I wasn't too abnormal)

After the initial pokes, she came back 5 minutes later and immediately took off 5 of the grasses/trees/weeds because I was reacting to them so badly. After the 15 minute mark, the nurse took all of the grasses/weeds/trees off and said I was allergic to almost all of them. I was so shocked! The doctor asked later if I had ever suspected that I had so many allergies and I said no--it is true! It has only been this year that I have really been affected consistently. Then the nurse said that the cat and dog were not really reacting at all, but based on what I had said about cats, she wanted to test them again.

So I got the arm pokes too, just for cats and dogs. The cat came back completely negative, but the dog was a 1 on a 0-4 scale, so we probably won't be able to have an indoor dog (sorry Pret and our future children...). The doctor came to analyze everything and was shocked that I wasn't allergic to cats--I had a 1 in 10 chance to NOT be. I am very happy that we can have cats--Kitty has been a life-savor for me on the nights when I have to go to bed alone because Pret is at work late.

Anyway, he has me on Allegra and I start getting the shots next week. I also have to go see an ENT (Ear/Nose/Throat) doctor to check out the connection between my now-messed-up sinuses and irritaded eyes due to pro-longed sinusitis symptoms because of my allergies. I am not happy about all the medications and doctor bills that we will have to pay for (luckily we have pretty good insurance), but as long as I can feel like I am not always tired and sick, it is worth it!

One Year and Counting!!

Well, we have made it one year! Saturday, April 14th was our One-Year Anniversary. We did a few things to celebrate. We started a week early by staying a night at the Anniversary Inn in the "South Pacific" room. We slept under a bungalo and took a shower under a waterfall. It was a great break from the norm!

As we were eating dinner that night we asked each other whether marriage was what we expected. We both said no, but it wasn't because it was bad, mainly because neither of us could come up with what we expected it to be. We did both say, though, that it was better than we had expected. We both gave the year positive reviews, although with some bumps and bruises along the way that we have both learned and healed from.



Then, on our actual anniversary, we decided to go eat at Rodizio Grill at Trolley Square (the place of the shooting two months ago.) It was good food, but Pret was sick, so he didn't eat much, which meant I felt like a pig as I kept eating. We were both so full by the end that we had to hold our breaths walking by any food so we wouldn't throw up! It was good, but a bit pricey, so I don't think we will be eating there again for a while.



For my birthday, Pret had arranged for us to go see a show at the Desert Star theatre, but we had some other things come up, so we put it off and planned it for our anniversary instead.


The show we saw was Nunsense-Amen. We both enjoyed it, I a little bit more than Pret. There were a few times I was laughing so hard my stomach hurt! Two of the actors were excelent stand-up/on their feet comedians! I would recommend it to anyone. Although it was a little a little more than we would spend going to the movies or something of the likes, it was a wonderful change and well worth it!!


Thus ends our anniversary celebrations. I ended up getting some LEGOS for Pret (I didn't think I would actually win the auction on E-bay), but that's about all we have done for presents for each other. All-in-all, it was a wonderful anniversary and we look forward to many more together.

Spring Break and Allergies

So I'm sorry it has been forever since I have posted anything. I have a couple excuses. My first is that I have been sick--dealing with allergies--for the last week and a half, so I have been avoiding staying long at school, which is when I usually have time to write on here.

Second, I had spring break from last Wednesday to this Monday, so I was away from my computer (I left it at school) and easy internet access for six whole days, then today I was at home with Pret, thus resulting in no updates. Hopefully this will suffice for a few days until something exciting happens and I have something to update.

Thanks to all those who have been updating their sites, thus giving me something to read when I am bored at work or while Pret studies...