Age is a Number

Photo courtesy of Facebook

I saw this comic on my Facebook news feed and immediately had to share it. It made me laugh! And then it made me think. And then I realized – gasp! – I’m over 30! I’m in that unfortunate in-between stage where I can’t claim the wisdom of being old, but nor can I any longer lay claim to the ignorance of youth. I’m (gulp) creeping up on being middle-aged! (Truthfully, I’m not really sure when exactly that magical period begins, but I know I’m close.)

Sometimes, when I look in the mirror, I do double-takes. Who is that person? I haven’t physically changed that much, but my face definitely no longer exemplifies the Noxema Girl complexion that I used to be known for in my youth. My eyes are just that much more…tired. And what are those things that have appeared by my eyes in certain lights? I won’t say the word. I refuse.

I don’t have a fear or dread of getting older. It isn’t that I mind the inevitable passage of time. It is just that I seemed to have missed it. It happened all of a sudden. I lived my life, enjoying lots of adventures and experiences, and then wammo! I was old. Don’t scoff. Thirty-three isn’t old and I know it. But it is the oldest that I have ever been, so it feels old to me. Correction, it sounds old to me. Much like the comic states, I still feel young.

As a youngin’, I was always under the impression that people who moaned and whined about aging were actually upset over the missed opportunities and regrets. Now, I’m more of the mind that they have a more concrete grasp on the finiteness of age. Once you turn twenty-nine, you never turn twenty-nine again… Unless you are my grandmother, who I’m fairly certain managed to turn twenty-nine until I was about seventeen, at which point she may have upgraded to thirty-nine. My Nana also happens to be one of those people who can pull that particular trick off. Without knowing the year she was born, it would be a monumental challenge to guess her age. Way to go Nana on looking so amazing for your age - at every age!

While aging isn’t such a bad thing, I have no doubt that as my body ages, my heart and mind will continue to exist in perpetual youth. Except for when I am surrounded by actual youth. At which point, I vow to be happy to have safely reached my ripe old age and the maturity that goes along with.

Hairy Business

People are always obsessing over their hair; the colour, the cut, the style, the lack thereof. Hair is kind of a big deal. And my hair is no exception.  I have an over-abundance of hair, which has elicited comments from strangers and friends alike for as long as I can remember. I like my hair just fine. Of course, I lust after lots of other people's hair, imagining what it would be like to have straight hair. Or thinner hair. Or cooperative hair. Or bangs... I have always wondered what it would be like to have bangs.
My hair is basically a mass of auburn curls protruding from my head in various directions. Frizzier on humid days and a complete nightmare in tropical climates. It started out a definitive auburn, verging on red, but has tamed itself to a darker reddish/brown since the arrival of the minis. I hear that hormones are known to do these types of things. I keep it just past shoulder-length now, but there was a time when I had hair so short it basically formed a perfect sphere around my head. Kind of like a helmet. There was also a time when I had hair so long that it would accidentally get tucked into my pants if I wasn't careful.
I have had lots of hair adventures over the years.
My brother's preferred nickname for me for a very long time was "Fro". Aptly named, I was in no position to argue. Unfortunately, the name got out, and there are still people who to this day refer to me as "Fro" when I go back to my home-town for a visit. Smee, as I called him back then (and will continue to do so for the purpose of this blog and to protect his privacy), involved my hair in many of his daily operations and shenanigans. One of my brother's favourite tricks used to be the old "hide it in the fro" manoeuvre. He would take random objects and entwine them in my locks to the point that they were completely hidden. The fro also got blamed for things disappearing around the house. For example:
Original Mamashunga: "Have you guys seen the remote for the tv?"
Smee: "I think the fro ate it."
Original Mamashunga: "Come on now Smee. Where is it?"
Smee: (without missing a beat) "Did you check the fro?"
And so on.
To be fair, things did occasionally get stuck in my hair. One evening, my brother and I, along with some friends, were standing around on my front porch, chatting. It was June bug season and a few were flying around. Out of nowhere, one seemed to dive bomb right for me. I squealed in typical teenage girl fashion and swatted with my arms, but it had already flown off. Later that night, like hours later, I was brushing my teeth in the bathroom when all of a sudden - an enormous June bug comes flying out of my hair!! The theory is that the fro captured it in an attempt to make friends, but decided against it after discovering the inherent surliness of June bugs. At which point, it was released. Or maybe it just took that long for the thing to navigate itself back out of my hair. Either way, creepy, huh?
My abundance of hair made being a member of the swim team a wee bit tricky at times. I had a bit of a cone-head as my poor bathing cap struggled to confine the fro. I plowed through bathing caps like nobody's business. My coach even gave me an honorary award at the end of a season one year to recognize my hair/bathing cap relationship.
As an adult, the hair adventures have become less frequent. A part of me had hoped to pass on my unruly hair to my children. Another part of me wanted to spare them the torment. As it turns out, they were both spared. But I did feel a certain amount of glee when the nurse announced "He's a ginger!" When my son was born. His hair colour has since evolved to a more dirty blond hue.

Tootie has really cool hair. She has natural highlights that give her different colours depending on the light. Her hair is straight but holds a curl well. It is thin without being too thin. And she has bangs. The elusive bangs. Up until recently, her hair was quite long. She wanted it that way. I'm told that all the princesses have long hair. But she hated having it brushed, and she didn't really like having it tied back. Given her bouncy nature, that meant that she often had hair swirling around her face, in her mouth and poking her in the eyes. A few weeks back, she decided she wanted it cut. I postponed making the appointment in anticipation of her changing her mind. But she didn't, so I made the call. She now has the most adorable little bob, which suits her so completely.

Looking good Tootie!

Resolutions

I know that there are some people that think that making New Year’s resolutions is silly. “Why do you need a certain day to decide to get going on some self-improvement?” they say. Well, I’ll tell you why. I am a master procrastinator. When presented with a task that I don’t particularly relish, I am incredibly adept at creating and justifying excuses to avoid said task.

For example: Vacuuming. It needs to be done. No denying it. But if I do it now, before company comes, then they will just make it all dirty again anyway. I should do it after. I will do it after... But after, I’m too tired. I’ll just rest a bit on the couch and re-energize, then I will vacuum... But now the kids are asleep. Wouldn’t want to wake them up. I’ll do it in the morning... But in the morning the kids are having such a fun time on the floor that I wouldn’t want to disturb them. I’ll do it later... And so on. Obviously, I do vacuum my floor. Equally obvious is the fact that it doesn’t get done as often as it probably should.

This is just an example, and no, I did not resolve to vacuum more often. But now you see why creating a New Years resolution can be a good idea. It is a definitive, undeniable, non-negotiable time to get started.

This year, I made some hefty ones. It’s going to be a big year. First and foremost is “Patience”. I resolve to have it, use it, harness it and create an endless supply of it. As opposed to trying it, wearing it thin and losing it. I will accept that not everyone can read my mind and I will attempt to help others understand that my abilities in that field are sorely lacking as well – in a patient manner. I will parent my children with infinite patience despite the fact that I have STILL not managed to locate the manual that came with the darn things. If you find it, let me know. I have had more than one emergency patience-tester in which it would have come in handy. I will wave in a friendly manner to infuriating motorists rather than saluting them with only one finger. (Just kidding, I’m too afraid of a lunatic with road rage driving me off the road to actually follow through with that particular urge. But I think it sometimes, which is just as bad. So I will wave to them in my thoughts instead.) Ahhh, patience.

Resolution number two is fitness related and unspecific. I simply want to do my best. I want to exercise at every opportunity and fuel my body with a higher ratio of healthy food than unhealthy (which I usually do anyway, but doesn’t hurt to include it on the list). I want to push my limits of endurance so that I can find out what I am really capable of. I want to sweat once a day, and not just because I’m wearing too many sweaters.  I DON’T want to make a fool of myself at the World Master’s Swimming Championships. So I will do all of these things. Then, I can look back and honestly say without a shadow of a doubt that I did my best.

And that’s it. I figure that’s enough for now. I have my work cut out for me, especially with the Patience one. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Happy New Years

Out with the old and in with the new! 2013 was a great year, full of love and laughter. I set and attained some personal goals that I had never before even contemplated. I watched with pride as my children achieved new milestones.

We were lucky enough to have some super-heroes attend our New Year festivities. Super Girl and Super Man joined us for our traditional cheese fondue and champagne celebration. (Or apple juice depending on your age.)

Here's hoping that 2014 will be a year unlike any other. A year filled with adventures and fun, smiles and love. I look forward to seeing my minis continue to grow and flourish, and astound me with their achievements. I'm excited to set and achieve new personal fitness goals and to continue to grow in my professional life. And I can't wait to share all of these adventures with my husband, family and friends.

Christmas Day

Christmas morning was magical in our household. The minis managed to sleep until a very respectable hour. When they finally did awake, it was with a wonder and excitement that permeated the activities of the entire day. I managed to capture on film their adorable response to the question: "Who's excited to see if Santa came?"

The day passed in a slow-motion blur, if there is such a thing. The minis had perma-smiles as they discovered all the treasures that Santa brought them. The rest of the day was spent blissfully playing and spending quality time with family.