Aisha Tyler on The Talk

Here's the thing. I've been a little bit annoyed with The Talk since they started their show and then when they went and kicked off Holly and Leah, (I thought) I was finished with them for good. I removed the show from my DVR list and that was the end of that. Then, yesterday, I found out that they just added Aisha Tyler as a permanent member of the the daytime series and I might have to bring them back into the rotation because of it.

As I said, I've been a bit annoyed by the series because I feel a little slighted. I am a 32 year old married professional who likes to join in on the gabfest just as much as the average lady but I feel like the ladies of the view speak specifically to moms and if you haven't noticed, I'm having a little trouble becoming one. The short version of the series description reads: "Celebrity moms discuss their lives and current events" and I feel a little pinch in the arm when I read it. They regularly feature mom bloggers and I wonder why they don't reach out to women bloggers in general. I want to ask Julie and Sarah if they believe the only women who watch the show are moms.

Yes, maybe I am a little overly sensitive about the whole mom subject but I think that even if I weren't currently riding the infertility roller coaster, I would still be turned off by the way the ladies of The Talk seem to speak to a moms only audience. Please - tell me that I just need a chill pill and I'll let it go.

So back to Aisha. I love her. If my girlfriends and I won a contest and got the chance to take one of the co-hosts to lunch, she would win hands down. For this change alone, I will be watching The Talk for at least the next week.

~naturalmel

Too Much Information

I need to lose weight, I'm workin on it. I want to have a baby - workin on that too. Here's some background information to work with:

When I made the decision to join WW, I knew that it would require a little bit of discipline and a huge commitment. I think that my commitment level needs tweaking. I've been on WW since July - that's 8 months of using the points calculator, 8 months of being a conscious eater and 8 months of paying close attention to me. The problem is, I keep taking what I like to call "unscheduled leave" from WW and then wondering why the scale and I can't be friends.

The first time it happened was during a weekend getaway with friends to the Poconos. I had to have a turkey burger off of the grill and then of course I had to taste one of the hot dogs with the burnt casing (on a whole wheat bun of course, cause that has more fiber) and come on, what's a cookout without a piece of BBQ chicken. So ummm yeah - I didn't lose anything that week. Strangely enough, I didn't gain anything either but I am not paying WW to watch my weight stay the same - it's up to me to make it go down. Since then, there have been a few good weeks and a few more not good enough weeks that all add up to 8 months of life getting in the way. I am very good at not going to my Saturday morning meeting because I don't want to hear the nice ladies at the desk tell me that I, "didn't lose this week" or that I'm, "up point 4 this week" but I really need to get that part of myself in check and face the music no matter what. I need to remind myself that the conscious act of inputting my food intake into the PP calculator is in fact a victory that I can be proud of every week, regardless of what the scale says. Good job Me!

Oh yeah, that whole IVF thing. My DH and I have been TTC for over 4 years and have been diagnosed as infertile due to female factor tubal blockage. In case you aren't familiar with infertility jargon - my insides won't let us concieve a child without a major science project that "oh, by the way" is not covered by our insurance. We are finally both on the same page about the science project called IVF and have chosen a specialist so the only delay at this point is funding and making sure that this here baby factory called my body is in tip top shape. WW is part one toward that goal and increasing my workout regimen is part two.

Too much info for our first get together? Sorry you guys - that's how I get down. I'm either going to to tell you everything or nothing at all - it just depends on how I feel on that day. I hope you stick around for the ride because there are a few things I know for sure and one of those things is that I need your support to help me continue to put me first and everything else second.

Happy Today!

Melissa

Yes to Cucumbers to My Rescue!

So apparently my hair HATES protein. As promised, I used the Giovanni Smooth as Silk Deep Moisture line to wash, condition and deep condition. How did I feel when I was done? Dry! I have no idea where this moisture that they promised went but, it definitely did not end up in my hair.

Let's start with the shampoo. I worked in a small amount with warm water and didn't really notice anything special about it. I rinsed and then poured on the conditioner and was immediately surprised by how thin it was. I finger detangled before taking out the wide tooth for the real comb through but I'm sorry to say that there was no slip there. I added another big glob to try to add some but nothing. After about 40 minutes I was all combed through so I rinsed with warm water and applied the deep conditioner. I left it on for 20 minutes with heat and rinsed with cool water. My hair did not feel deep conditioned AT ALL. So, I sectioned my hair into four and braided each section, put on a silk scarf and went to sleep.

The next morning, I took off the scarf and my hair was about 95% dry but I could definitely tell it was not happy. Time for a moisture intervention. I ran over to ULTA and picked up a bottle of Yes to Cucumbers (and got a bottle of Yes to Carrots for 1/2 price through their weekly promotion - SCORE!). When I got back home, I jumped in the magic shower and worked in the YTC and I could immediately hear the birds singing and feel the sunshine come back into my world. I combed it through and then rinsed. I let it air dry about 80%, the blow dried on low until it was 100% dry. I 2-strand twisted with Shea moisture and Garnier Fructis Curl Cream and sealed the ends with coconut oil. Whew! I'll share the results later this week!

~naturalmel