Vibrant Hair Maintenance

I've been through several changes in the past couple of months with my hair color.  My biggest change was this color, and though I loved it at the time, I realized I feel more like myself with a more orangey sort of red.  I was scared of throwing too much pink in there at first, which is why I asked my hairstylist, Erin, to be subtle.  The more it grew on me, though, the more vibrant I wanted it to be. Sometimes you have to ease into change, you know?

Well, I promised I would report back on how the Ion Color Brillance brand pink was for my hair, and sadly, it washed out a little too quickly for me.  I've currently been using the Overtone conditioners on my hair (you use them as regular conditioners in the shower to keep your color vibrant), and so far I've been loving them!


I started with the Vibrant Orange for the top of my hair and Vibrant Pink for the bottom, but have recently transitioned to Extreme Orange for the top.  It seems to be covering my roots pretty well, which is definitely a bonus!

That's where I am with hair colors right now.  The change has been nice for me lately-- I think it was something I really needed.  I'll keep you updated on my hair care routine in the coming months!

Happy Friday, friends!  xo.

House Peeks

 
I've been spending much of my time at the new house priming and painting lately.  I love documenting the process, because it's so much fun to look back on.  I'm hoping to be done painting in the next week or two, and then I plan to move onto more weeding and landscaping while the weather is nice.  We don't officially move in until November, so it's nice to be able to take these projects on at my own pace.  I'll have more updates in the coming weeks!  xo.

**Moccasins from Minnetonka.

We Made it to the Apple Orchard!

Now that fall is officially here, a visit to the apple orchard was a must!  We accidentally missed it last year and I was not going to let that happen again.  Here are some photos from our afternoon on the farm:


As per usual, Poesy chomped apples the entire time we were out there.  It was a really fun time and I love this fall tradition we have.  Now, let's see if we can make it to the pumpkin patch this year and we'll be golden.  Happy Monday, friends!

My Invisalign Journey

**Photo by Allison Marshall (aka: Wonderlass)

As I mentioned some months back, I spent the end of last year and most of this year with Invisalign.  Having my teeth corrected has always been something I've wanted, but we were never really in a position to drop fat cash on something that wasn't a NEED.  Fast forward a few years to a time of more self care and less guilt (why do we feel so guilty taking care of, or doing things for ourselves?  I could rant all day about how important it is to do things for YOU), and it was time for me to finally take that plunge.  For me, Invisalign was a GREAT experience. Sure your teeth get sore because they're being moved around, but the more months I had my trays in, the easier switching became. Many of you have emailed or commented asking about my experience, so I figured I'd answer the most commonly asked questions here on the blog.

1. How long did you have Invisalign?  I had Invisalign from November 2014-May 2015.  My top teeth were pretty straight except for a few on the sides, but my bottom teeth needed quite a bit of shifting.  I was a by-the-book kind of patient and did everything I was supposed to religiously.  That way, I could be done the shortest amount of time possible.  

2. How does Invisalign work?  After you go in for your initial scan and your trays come in, the dentist applies little enamel colored bumps or "buttons" to some of your teeth so the plastic retainers will stay in place.  When I first got my buttons, they felt huge, they cut my mouth, and I was pretty embarrassed to talk.  I adjusted to them after a couple of weeks and it got way better.  They also wear down over time, so even though my buttons felt crazy-huge at first, popping your trays in and out kind of takes care of that.
Approximately every two weeks you just pull a new set of plastic trays out of the package and replace the ones you were wearing.  I had 15 sets in all, but everyone is different.

3. Are they hard to keep track of?  Firstly, I am a VERY forgetful person.  I write everything down in notebooks and constantly lose said notebooks.  I was pretty certain I'd be calling the dentist at least once a month to apologize, but it was actually very easy to keep track of them.  You get a special storage case to hold them when they're out, and honestly, while your teeth are moving, you are completely aware of whether you have them in or out.  I only had one major scare, and it was when we were trying to leave town for the weekend and I couldn't find my brand new trays that I had put in the night before.  Always save the previous ones just in case this happens!

4. Can you eat or drink with them in?  Well... no.  You can drink water, but that's it.  I thought popping them out in public and brushing my teeth every single time I was done having coffee or eating or whatever would be a hassle, but I got used to it super fast.  Plus, you always have fresh breath, so there's that.  ;)

5. Would you recommend Invisalign based off of your experience?  100% YES.  I had a really great experience with Invisalign and found myself excited every time my next dentist appointment rolled around.  Since my bottom teeth actually align with my top teeth now, I find myself grinding less, actually chewing on my right side (my molars didn't line up well on that side), and smiling with my teeth way more.  I still wear my retainers at night (EVERY NIGHT.  I probably won't ever stop) and it's basically second nature at this point.

The only things I had a bit of a time with (and these were very minor things) were giving up gum-- because I was a chronic gum chewer, and not being able to whistle-- which was my annoying nervous tick.  I mean all-in-all, those were things I probably needed to part with anyway.  I did talk kinda funny for the first month or so, but you get it back.  Honestly, the only real hurdle I ever had was investing the money, and I don't think I'll ever regret it.

If you have any questions about Invisalign, you can leave them in the comments here and I promise to answer each one.  I wanted to post some before and after photos here, but as it turns out, I never really smiled in pictures without my teeth properly covered before this.  When I get my before/after pics from the dentist, I'll show you how they shifted (even thought it's kinda gross and probably a little embarrassing).  xo.