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waxing (from a former esthetician)

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We all know that I share A LOT here on the blog. Well, this post might take us to new levels of intimacy…although this is a family blog (as in my family reads it sometimes) so I’m going to speak as a professional.

Once upon a time I was an esthetician full time. Knowing this, people have often asked me about waxing and I get it. I mean, if you’ve never been waxed before (I’m talking bikini wax) it’s got to be a little intimidating to think about having someone all up in your business and then not knowing how to ask for what you want. There are all of these terms (Brazilian, French, American…you can look them all up online, but unless you want to see exactly what each term means, I wouldn’t recommend it).

So, here’s a quick reference guide:

  • Bikini (aka American) – basically, this is what will keep you happy in a bathing suit and nothing more
  • Brazilian – this is the whole shebang (nothing left…and I mean nothing from front to back)
  • French – this is a happy medium
And now what you really need to know. If you want a good bikini wax, you just have to get comfortable being uncovered and in random (i.e. awkward positions – think annual visit and then some). And if you want it to be less painful (and much faster) go in trimmed. Invest in some bikini trimmers ($10-$20; try Target, Walmart, BB&B) and clean things up before hand. Your esthetician can deal with it if you don’t but it will be much less painful for you if you do. 
Here’s what you should know from the esthetician side of the table. None of them care about what you look like, how skinny/fat you are, etc, as long as you are clean and willing to do what they need you to do to help them get the job done (i.e. cooperate with the weird positions you have to get in. 
And the benefits of waxing over shaving? It all depends on who you are and how your skin reacts. But here are my top reasons for getting wax:
  • No razor burn and way few ingrown hairs
  • Long lasting results (three weeks!)
  • As someone who runs/exercises, there is no comparison
  • You just can’t get everywhere with a razor you can with wax
  • It is way less painful (in my opinion) than the razor burn that is sure to follow shaving for me
So, to those of you who have never been waxed, I highly recommend it and this is the perfect time of year to do it.
This may not be as much information as you really wanted (there are a lot of things I’m not saying here as this is a family program), so should you have any random/personal questions, feel free to email me directly: chell0elizabeth@gmail.com.

why i don’t blog sometimes

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Besides just being busy, sometimes life is not my favorite thing. And when my life feels a little rough, I just don’t like documenting it. Not because I care if people know I get depressed sometimes, but because I feel a little guilty. My life is so good and I have been blessed with so many great opportunities, so when I become focused on what my life lacks, I feel like a total brat and completely pathetic.

Without giving you the play by play of my most recent pity party, I’ll just say that it was a little rough. It’s pretty rare that I cry in front of people about my own life (movies, greeting cards, t.v. shows, fine, but real feelings, not so much) and I have cried multiple times over the past week.

Anyway, here’s hoping I will feel better shortly, and I think I might! More to come on that…

they went easy on me this week

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No wet pants. No gum in hair. And no bloody nose. Teaching primary today was entirely uneventful, except to say that I love it more and more every week. As I’ve started to get to know these kids, I am starting to see how it is that God loves all of us, even with our quirks and flaws and stupid choices.

The one thing I will say for this week is that I think my co-teacher, Jessica, and I are slowly figuring out how to manage our “classroom”. We met for dessert on Tuesday to discuss the kids and how we wanted to run things. The teacher before us had set up three ground rules that she had shared with Jessica, and I agreed that we should continue with them. They are basic. These kids are four. It works.

  1. Keep your hands to yourself
  2. Stay on your seat
  3. Don’t talk when someone else is talking

What is amazing to me is how well kids react to structure when you are consistent with it.

We also decided that where the kids sit would help. There are just a few kids that are little busier than the others. We also have a set of twins who like to always sit next to each other. So, we’re mixing things up. We had them each color their own name tags today and I will get them laminated and put magnets on them to stick on the chairs each week. We were a little curious to see how they’d react to this forced seating, but they were all so excited to find their name that I don’t think they even thought about the change. We’ll see how it goes next week.

The other great thing about these, as I discovered today, is that I can use them in order to randomly call on people. Just like in any classroom, you have kids that are always answering questions and sharing and others that don’t ever participate. It was seriously amazing to see how, if the kids new that I would be calling on them they a) listened a little better and b) were willing to answer.

So, all in all, things are going well. And not only do I just love these kids, I’ve discovered that I really look forward to church and it seems to fly by. I’m actually going to be sad to miss next week.

Now, as far as the lesson was concerned, it might not have been my best lesson ever. I could have done a better job with a few of the elements. That said, my goal is really for these kids to just know that I love them. And I think I accomplished that today. So, overall, a success.

And just because some of you might have kids in primary, a couple helpful things that will make life a little easier for your kids’ teachers:

  • No gum
  • Unless you’re providing snacks for everyone (or your kid has medical needs), don’t send your kid in with them
  • While teachers of the younger children understand that wiping noses is part of the job, it’s nice if you can at least drop your kid off with a clean face
  • Your child’s favorite toy/blanket/etc can be very distracting and we don’t really need any additional distractions