5/23/2014

Hair Raising Experiences

I am no stranger to hair grooming-related emergencies.  I'm not a great "detail" person, so I tend to rush a little bit and this gets me into trouble.

I remember my first real grooming emergency happened when I was in middle school (7th grade, I believe).  I was trying to tweeze my eyebrows and I couldn't find my tweezers.  Somehow, my pubescent brain thought that nail clippers were the next best thing.  Fast forward to 10 minutes later when I had, literally, cut off half of my right eyebrow.  Luckily, my understanding mother let me skip first hour the next day and took me to the drug store to get a pencil and tools to draw my brow back on.

And three weeks ago, I was sitting in church when I spied a missed patch of hair on my leg and I spent the rest of the services with my son's blanket covering my legs.  So, it was very timely that Influenster and Venus razors teamed up to send me a VoxBox to try out their new Snap portable razor.  I gave it a try this week and I was pleasantly surprised!

If you don't know, the Snap razor is a Venus Embrace razor blade on an adorable tiny handle that comes in a clamshell case so you can easily toss it in a purse (or computer bag in my case).  Most days I get to work from home, but Wednesday I commuted into my San Francisco office.  Because I wanted to try out the razor, I "forgot" to shave one armpit and a patch of skin on my leg (this is not, however, an uncommon occurrence for a me. As a mom of two young ones - one of whom is still up 2-4 times a night for feedings - my shower routine is haphazard, at best).
Isn't is adorable?  Yes, I just called a razor adorable.
I tossed my Snap in my computer bag and headed out.  I had two primary concerns when it came to using the razor:

1) I have sensitive skin.  I always shave with moisturizer, so how was putting a little water on my razor going to translate into smooth, non-irritated skin?
2) How would I clean it after each use to keep the blade fresh as long as possible.  If I'm only using the razor for quick fixes, I don't want it to dull after a use or two.

Here's how things shook down.  I shaved with cold tap water in the bathroom at work.  I shaved my armpit and the patch on my leg.  The Embrace razor head has (what they call) a "water activated ribbon of moisture" around the blades and it was pretty amazing.  No irritation at all, even with a "dry" shave. So, that was great.
Me and my In A Snap in San Francisco
I did find, however, that my second concern was a bit more warranted.  I had trouble cleaning the hair out of the razor with just the pressure of the tap in the office bathroom.  I didn't want to rub it down with a towel, lest I prematurely lose my ribbon of moisture - so I generally feel like I didn't get the blades as clean as they would need to be to help extend the life of the razor.  The clamshell case does have some "air holes" however, so no moisture will stay trapped on the blades - just some little hairs.

I do love that the blade can be replaced with a standard Embrace razor head, however, as I've been pretty converted to the blade itself (that ribbon of moisture really is a life-saver for my sensitive skin).  So, I can buy a standard handle for my shower razor and then let my replacement heads do double-duty.


For anyone who likes to wear skirts/shorts on a regular basis or who showers in a bit of a fog every morning, I think a Snap razor should be a must-have in your bag.  You might not need it every day, but when you do need it, you'll be glad you have it!

Want to join Influenster?  Let me know your email address and I'll send you an invite! 




5/20/2014

Family of Four

So much has been going on and how much of it is chronicled in my blog?  Oh, NONE.  Let me give a quick update and we'll go forward from there.  I am going to start setting aside some dedicated "blogging" time shortly, so keep an eye out for more regular musings coming your way!

Couldn't you just eat them up?!
1) Audrey is now 3+ months old.  She'll be 4 months on the 26th.  She is simply delightful.  She loves to eat her hands and chatter away.  She's a very vocal baby.  Will liked to make some noise, too, but not like this gal.  She's been a pretty good sleeper from the beginning.  She goes to bed between 7:30-8pm and "sleeps" until 7:30-8am.  But, we have a few wake-ups in between still.  She's not terribly physical (she can roll back to front, but is not a tummy time champ at all), but I think she's exerting so much energy on hair-growing, that something's gotta give. Other than that, she's just growing and learning and such a welcome little addition to our family.
Ready for a picnic.
2) Will is 2 1/2 now and he's his own version of delightful.  This is a really fun age and he's a really great little kiddo.  Since we last caught up he has given up his pacifier (pretty much his own choice - I'll write another blog about that later) and moved from the crib to a toddler bed.  I was nervous about so much change with little sis' coming on board, but he has adapted to her presence as if she was always here.  Will has never struggled with having her around.  We brought her home and it was as if she had always been there.  He's gentle with her and helpful with things she needs and generally tolerates her existence without any trouble.
Testing out his new camp chair before he and daddy went camping!
3) Geoff unexpectedly lost his job in March, so he's doing daddy daycare duty while he looks for a new one.  It's a competitive job market, but he's an awesome guy, so we are hopeful that he'll find something great soon.  He had the opportunity to watch Will when he was just a teeny one (he worked nights and watched Will during the day), so I think it's kind of cool that he also gets that time with Audrey at this age.  It's not something a lot of dads get.  Of course, we'd prefer he were working, but you gotta find those silver linings wherever they may be hiding.

Snuggling those kidlets.
4) Me!  I'm doing well.  Work is good.  Kids are awesome.  My house is nearly always a mess (hey, you can't win them all).  I really can't think of anything else to say about me.  There must be more, but I guess I'll mention it later.
Attempting selfies with a toddler.
Anywho, we'll call that "caught up" and, as I said, keep your eye out for more regular posts!