On Holding Off Time

Thanks to all those who offered me encouragement about my concerns for my grandmother. It's so difficult to watch her age as dramatically as she has in such a short time. That combined with my other posts about the fact that I did not exactly embrace my recent thirty-ninth birthday makes me think that this would be a good day to address my own attempts to hold back the aging process.


I mentioned recently that I decided to try out the Best Life plan from Bob Greene's new book. If it worked for Oprah... I am currently in week three of the four-week Phase One. It involves, among other things, not weighing during that time period. As someone who usually weighs daily as a habit, this has been tough. I'm curious to see if I've lost anything when I'm allowed to weigh next week. The other parts of this phase involve eating a healthy breakfast, drinking plenty of water, being more active, and avoiding alcohol. I've been doing a fair job at all components, but I can't say I've been totally dedicated in any area. I do feel good about getting back into the habit of going to the gym, something I've done regularly for the last several years but had let slide since before the holidays this year. I'll post about my progress or lack thereof next Monday with the official weigh in.



At left is another one of my beauty attempts du jour. I have come to grips with the fact that I am not meant to be tan. For someone who has had plenty of experience sweating in the Texas sun while bathed in baby oil, this was a hard realization to come to, but I'm also someone who has a family history of skin cancer and who has been "blessed" with pale skin that burns first and tans later when left to its own devices. So, no tanning for me. Much better for both health and beauty in the long run, but the decision leaves me with the ongoing concern of frightening people with my glowing white legs this spring. Enter Jergens natural glow lotion. I can vouch for this product's effectiveness and natural look. No orange streaks here! Even better, this year's version promises toning as well as tanning. What more could a girl want? Evidently the toning thing will be kicking in after two weeks of use. I'll let you know about that too.

So now that I'm working on the pre-bathing suit toning and weight loss program and developing a tan (albeit an "unnatural" one) I may have to consider a few highlights to complete my summer look and cover up those pesky grey hairs that keep popping up in my bangs lately. My goal is to look even better next year at this time so that I can welcome forty feeling fabulous. I think that will go a long way toward erasing my concerns about reaching that milestone!