I'm moving!!!

New location for me. I will be posting more!

http://luckypaco.wordpress.com

Birthday, Engagements and Triathlons ALL With a SMILE!

What can I say?! Well first of all, I am sooo very happy that my sisterlocks turned 2 on July 21st! Yay! It seems like they have just taken off and I let them do what they want.... I notice that they are not as dry when I drink a ton of water and keep them conditioned. My locks get a little dry when I am out in the sun riding my bike for hours or run/walking for hours. So the water and the conditioner does great. Still doing the apple cider vinegar rinses with each wash. In my experience you can never stray too far away from the ACV rinses. They are awesome!

I am also back to doing triathlons. I have completed 3 races so far this year. It's been tough but I am doing sticking with it. It's weird but it's like I am having to convince myself that my knees are okay. I have an excellent coach and a great team. Also another sisterlocked blogger (sandzoftime - Mental Running) keeps me motivated to give it my best at all times!

So I have covered the birthday... I have covered the triathlons...
Let me tell you the good news! I am engaged!!!! My Sweetie Pie proposed to me on June 19th and I said YES! So now I am getting ready to be a married woman! I am so excited about this. God is sooooo Good! I am looking forward to spending many blessed, happy, and healthy years with my "Sweetie Pie"!

19 Months Sisterlocked

I am loving my locks more and more everyday. Made some changes. I wash my hair with diluted Nature's Gate Aloe or Nature's Gate Herbal shampoo. I use the corresponding conditioner once a week and then do an apple cider vinegar rinse after every wash. I shampoo my hair a lot because I swim at least twice a week. I am in the process of training for my 5th triathlon. So swimming will be a consistent routine for me for a while. :-) When I run or bike outside in the cold I make a point to cover my locs with a cap. I do not use a lot of oils to moisturize. I occasionally will spritz with water if needed. Most of the time I rock a freestyle look since I am swimming so much these days.

When I get a break I will curl my locks with Caruso curlers. I have not had much energy to use my Soft Spikes lately because by the end of the day I just wanna put my Dreadsock on and sleep! :-)

I have been eating different for about a month now and I have noticed some changes. I used to battle dandruff really bad around my edges but now that is gone due to a daily dose of ground flaxseed and Omega 3,6,9. I also take a multivitamin and drink LOTS of water. So far I have noticed positive changes with my health as well as my sisterlocks as a result of this. I have even lost 7lbs so far!!!

It is true... Healing begins from the inside out!

1 Year Birthday - Sisterlocks

This has been one of the most difficult years of my life.  I have experienced 2 surgeries since I have had my locs.  I had an emergency appendectomy and ACL knee reconstruction.  Both times I felt like crap but my locs never let me down and they still looked good no matter how bad I felt.  :-)  

I finished one triathlon and one half marathon with my locs.  Not once did I ever worry about my hair and I can say that not once did I ever think I had a bad hair day.  I struggle with dry scalp but that is due to health issues and hydration.  I started oiling my hair more after about 9 months into the process.  I live by ACV rinses!  I am still experimenting with shampoos.  It's been hard for me to keep it simple because I am a product junkie in my heart but I am learning that keeping it simple is the best thing for my hair.

I am unique and my locs are unique.  No one in the world has locs like mine.  I embrace that with an admiration for being comfortable in my own skin no matter what anyone thinks.  I work in Corporate America and I walk into the office with my head high.  No one in the building has hair like mine and I love being different in a beautiful and empowering way.  

My loctician Elaine Hill is the best!  She's positive and very knowledgeable in natural hair care.  She doesn't feed you a lot of "bull caca" to take your money and she's honest in conveying what she can and can not do.  She's helped me embrace my locs at that "not so cute" phase because in her shop no one has "bad hair".  

 

Freestyling at 5 Months

I am loving my hair!!!!!

One Week Old Sisterlocks

These pictures were taken about 1 week after getting my Sisterlocks installed.

My hair has changed so much since then. It's amazing how each day they look better than the day before. I am enjoying my sisterlocks as they mature.

My First Half Marathon!

I did it! I finished my first half marathon in 3:43 fighting strong 40mph winds. I battled a huge blister on the bottom of my foot and my cheap shirt digging into my right arm after mile 10 but I still kept on keeping on!!! I had to walk a little bit to cope with the arm pain because I wasn't used to that. However I was familiar with blisters so I just didn't even worry about that issue. The White Rock Half marathon course was not hard at all. Not really a lot of hills. Just strong winds. The weather temperature was around 60 degrees when we started the race and was around the 70's when we finished. What's funny is that there was a huge temperature drop that night after the race and now we are experiencing sleet and ice. In Texas we don't know how to deal with this type of weather so everything is closed down. I am so thankful to God that the weather was nice during the race. I am excited that I accomplished this goal in 2008 just like I planned at the beginning of the year. Now it's time to improve my half marathon time and move on to tackling 26.2 miles! After that it's time to improve my marathon time and move on to Ironman!!!!! I am going to have fun getting there and what's neat is that I am going to be slinging my beautiful sisterlocks all the way there!!!