New Address

Please visit me over at http://thequeenspenblog.wordpress.com
I plan to continue sharing with you guys!!!

Getting My Groove Back.........

Wow...let's just say after having a baby your life abd body change in a MAJOR way!!! When pregnant I only gained about 22 punds. I have lost pretty much all the weight and am back at pre-baby weight. It just appears that my weight has shifted to other parts of my body (sounds weird, right?) While preggo I couldn't imagine myself without my tummy and now that I am no longer with child...I am ready to get back to my pre baby fab!!


I am seeking to get my groove back and be that Triple F Diva again. You may ask what Triple F stands for....Funky, Fly, Fresh). So, now I must watch what I eat and work out!!! While getting back to Triple F status I will also be on the hunt in a MAJOR way for some new gear. As an educato,r I tend to purchase items that can be used pretty much for work. I must now change that and but items for work and play. I am back in my heels and I'm loving that but I must purchase more heels as well. Currently, I am realy digging the FLOTUS' style. She has always worn timeless and classic pieces.

                                                   


While I am not the kitten heel type of gal I truly do love her style. I would just vamp mine up a bit with a higher heel. So, while I can't dress like the FLOTUS on a daily basis I wouldn't mind adding some more classic and timeless pieces to my wardrobe.

Anyone else need to Get Their Groove Back....?

Please comment so we can discuss.....

Remember to Always Remain Royal,


Queen Pen


 

What People Don’t Tell You…..

So in my last post I shared the trials I faced becoming pregnant. I am so thrilled and happy that I was able to experience those wondrous 9 months. It was an amazing feeling and God wiling I will be able to experience it again. Having a baby changes your world COMPLETELY!!! It is a welcomed change now that hubby and I have gotten somewhat adjusted J  There are however things people don’t tell you…..

v  Complete strangers will approach you to try and touch/hold your baby. Anyone that knows me knows that I have very telling facial expressions but they don’t stop the baby snatchers.

v  While changing your baby in a public restroom people will tell you how small your baby is….my baby is 5 months old and weighs 15 pounds…she is NOT 3 months old…geez people.

v  People will say VERY weird things…..”Is that your baby?”, “Are you the father?” Why would I have a baby this size not mine out with me eating?!?!?

Being a mother is an experience that I am glad to have but people make you leery of them and somewhat paranoid. Hubby says he is always on guard because we both know people are crazy. Babies for whatever reason bring out the touchy, feely in strangers. If I know you that’s one thing and I am cool but STRANGERS need to back off!!!!

 

What to do? Anyone else ever experience this?

A New Beginning....

Wow....this has been a long time coming. I began this blog as a way to discuss my life, my new natural journey, fashion and anything else that came about. Well as the saying goes life happens and it happened to me in a HUGE way. The beginning of this blog occurred after I'd had surgery and perused the Internet to no end while being at home. After viewing numerous blogs I thought to myself, "I can do that!" Well, that was not an easy feat and my husband grew tired quick of taking pictures. Shortly thereafter I discovered that we were expecting a little one and well I just grew tired FAST!!! So as you can see taking a break was necessary. After attending the 2013 New Year's Eve worship service and listening to other's testimony it hit me...I have a testimony that I'd like to share. We think life is/should be so perfect but I'm quite sure that most of you know that is so far from the truth.

Are you ready??? Here goes.......

My husband and I got married in 2007 and we had discussed having a child but did not really set a time frame of when we wanted it to occur. Fast forward three years later...the bug hit us and we were ready. Yes, we were ready but my body was not. In 2004, I discovered I had fibroids that were not painful but just caused very heavy cycles. At the age of 26 I was being told to have a hysterectomy!!! Why?? I had no children!!! This was all wrong so I sought a second opinion and had a myomectomy performed in 2004 that helped with my heavy cycles. The fibroid was located inside my uterus which looked to be about the size of a grapefruit. Once that was removed I felt relief and saw a HUGE improvement in my stomach.

Fast forward five years later I found out they were back...this time with a vengeance. I had excruciating cycles and would be paranoid that I would have accidents (sometimes I did). This was NOT the way to live for me. So, I went to the doctor and during my yearly appointment we discussed my fibroids, their location and the possibility of me having children. I was informed that they were once again located in my uterus (which is not good because a baby and fibroids cannot compete) and since I had a history of prior fibroids it was best that I just get a hysterectomy (the second time I am hearing this). Well, I refused to accept that and sought another opinion. This time I was told that there was a new procedure being tested and with my fibroid being the size that it was I qualified for the trial studies. The name of the procedure escapes me at this time but at this point I was ready to have some relief. I was prescribed Vicodin before the procedure to help deal with the pain....Vicodin did not help at ALL. I was still in excruciating pain that never subsided until I had huge blood clots pass through. Then the pain and stress began all over again. The procedure was finally scheduled for September 2009. I was placed in an outpatient room in the doctor's office. I had my IPOD in my ear listening to tunes as they stuck a probe into my uterus. The probe was basically shaped like an ink pen that had "teeth" on the end.  The "teeth" were to basically ingest the fibroid and relieve me from my pain and heavy cycles. I left the office that day with 800mg Motrin with my hubby and mama. I came home and rested and felt better. Life seemed to be getting back on track for me....until December 2009. We were in Savannah, GA celebrating our second year anniversary having a blast. On the way coming home my cycle began...and so did the pain. I cried the whole way coming home. I called my doctor because I had yet to have a followup after my procedure. I was scheduled to go in the beginning of January 2010 but until then I had to suffer in pain. I was so glad to go to my followup appointment because I just knew that something was wrong with me. I had the trial procedure done and they told me that all the fibroid had been removed so why was I in excruciating pain still? Could the fibroid have grown back that fast?

I will never forget meeting with the doctor who told me "We were unable to remove all of the fibroid. The uterus was too convoluted for us to remove everything. We just couldn't see it all. If you were my daughter I would tell you the same thing, have a hysterectomy." Once again I was hearing these daunting words...why was everyone telling me to have a hysterectomy? Was it just not meant for me to have a baby? As I left the doctor's office and headed back to work (yea I am crazy) I cried the whole way there. At the time I was working out of town and it took me about 30-40 minutes to get to work and yes...I cried the whole way going there. I'd spoken to my husband, mama and grandma but no one could provide me the solace I was seeking. I prayed and asked the Lord for guidance. I vowed that I would seek a second opinion. Shortly thereafter I found another doctor who was unlike any I had seen before. Although I'd been to several doctor's to discuss my fibroids this doctor pulled out a book and showed me how a fibroid looked inside the uterus. I had an ultrasound of my uterus and was told there was a chance that the fibroid could be removed and I would be able to have a child...no hysterectomy was even mentioned. I underwent yet another myomectomy in March 2010. Even though I'd been through this procedure before this time it felt different. I guess because I was now married and thinking about having a family...that changes the way you think alot!! I said my prayers and knew it would all be fine. My surgery went well and I was at home for 6 weeks recouping. When I returned for my six week check up I was told things looked good and we could begin trying to get pregnant. I then became scared....why?? This was what I'd wanted but was scared beyond scared now!!!

December 2011 my husband and I discovered that we were pregnant and would be having a bundle of joy in August 2012!!!! Talk about excited.... we were but my pregnancy was not without complications and as a matter of fact considered high risk.  Due to the previous myomectomies my uterus could become shortened, I'd developed placenta previa and I had high blood pressure (from my job..ugh). Regardless of my complications we had a healthy, beautiful and precious baby girl!!!

I know that this has been a long story but I felt the need to share my testimony and begin the year anew. I will try to update this blog at least once a week sharing my thoughts about being a wife, mother, daughter, natural hair and fashion lover!! I hope that you enjoyed reading. Please come back soon.





Remain Royal,

QueenPen

Big Thangs Poppin!!!

Ok, so I have decided that I will create some cake pops for Christmas this year!!! I bought my cake pop maker/donut hole maker from Target. I am going to experiment tonight and will let you know how they turn out!!!!!

Shoe Love

I was recently in TJ Maxx and I fell in love with these shoes. My oh my…..they rock. I have seen Sam Edelman shoes in Belk and Dillard’s but the spikey heels that I saw never really drew me in. When I saw these babies I became ecstatic. They were only $50 and after doing price comparisons online the shoe actually runs for approximately $80-90. I am seriously thinking about getting these shows. What do you think?

Are you watching?

Tonight Tyler Perry's newest show comes to television..For Better or Worse. It is based on the movie Why Did I Get Married? using the characters of Marcus and Angela. So did you watch? What were your thoughts?

Ear Candy --Water Bed Hev

Please review the following article that is a tribute to Heavy D......http://midlandslive.com/2011/11/the-record-report-special-tribute%E2%80%94heavy-d/

I see your true colors…..

I decided to color my hair at home. I’ve always had some type of coloring in my hair. As a relaxed woman my hair was always a sandy brown color and I hated that I could never get it to shine. So, I turned to color. Well, when I chopped my hair in April 2011 it turned a dark brown almost black!?!? I was/am very confused where this color came from. So, last Friday night I made a date with myself and my hair to add some color. I used Hi-Rez  Brazen Bronze color by Soft Sheen Carson. Well I must say that the color is not as brazen as I would like it to be so I am quite certain that I will get some boosting done to lighten and darken to bring about some more contrast. So, for now enjoy the pics below.

Color used

Color Processing

Color three days after

Another view-sunlight shining

Another view of hair color

Previous Coloring (2010)

Previous Coloring (2007)

What I'm Wearing............

As I was stepping out to church I chose to wear this outfit.

I have on a tweed-like skirt purchased from JCPenney on sale for approximately $15.00, a turtleneck (price unknown), a lightweight jacket from Target for $10.00. None of this went together but after thinking about what to wear this is what I came up with. How did I do???

Miss Jessie Twist Out Results……….

Miss Jessie's

Gwen's Blends

I really like the results!! It seems to give me the same results as the Gwen’s Blends I purchased at the World Natural Hair Show. One thing I forgot to mention was after using the Curly Pudding my hands felt weird. Almost as though I had a plastic coating on them….did not feel good!! I know that Miss Jessie’s has some “bad” stuff in it for natural hair but I wanted to try them out. I did like the Super Sweetback Treament and would love to try that again in my hair for the recommended allotted time.

Can you tell a difference between the two pics???

Remain Royal

Trying New Things

So, my cousin went to the For Sisters Only in ATL a while back and she got free samples of Miss Jessie’s and gave them to me!!! I washed my hair last night and I used the Super Sweetback Treatment that is meant for deep conditioning. OMG!!! It smelled sooo good, like good enough to eat. This treatment retails for $48.00 for a 16 oz. jar.

Then I used the Curly Pudding (which also smelled great) to twist my hair with. I shall see the end result when I take my twists out. I will be certain to make a post with the picture when I take the twists out. This styler retails for $38.00 for a 16 oz. jar.

Be Royal!!

Into the Night……

As I left to go into the night to hear the melodic sounds of Ledisi I put on my lovely new shoes. These shoes are by Carlos Santana called Mustique. They are quite comfortable and gave me no problems walking distances.

My outfit was all black with a feathered black and silver belt (Dots), black slacks and a butterfly sleeved black top.

The concert was AHHHHMAZING!!!! Ledisi really put on a show. I was surprised by how much she danced! It was very exciting to see her excited and hear her testimony about her life and music. Truly a WONDERFUL night!

Remain Royal

Pieces of Me!!!!!

Yes, we are headed to see LEDISI tonight and I can NOT wait. So excited:)

All Smiles!!!!!

 These shoes were love at first sight!!! I Can NOT wait to wear them. They can go with so much, black, red, tan/khaki. These are the Jessica Simpson Cheetah pumps. LOVELY!!!!!!

Remain Royal

Only Built for Cuban Linx

So my hubby took me out to a Cuban restaurant-- A Piece ofHavana. When we walked in we were both amazed at the small sized dining area. We were even more amazed at the long tables they had placed on the floor that practically took up the whole walking area. As we sat down we perused the menus trying to decide what we would eat. There was a lot of interesting sounding food. This was my first time in a Cuban restaurant.

 I decided to have a Jupina (pineapple soda) that was sooooo good!!! For our appetizer we had crispy fried Plantain slices with a Mojo sauce. The plantains were good. I did not like the sauce very much, it was kind of spicy. 

For dinner I had the Havana Chicken which was grilled to perfection for twelve hours topped with onions. I had rice and plantains as my sides.

 My hubby had Stewed Shredded Beef with rice and black beans.

Overall, I would like to say that I am proud that we are willing to try various types of food but I did not like it. The rice for me was mushy with the various veggies inside of it. The chicken was good. The pricing and portion sizes were excellent.

What I'm Wearing............

I am wearing a navy and grey blazer with a navy cami and navy slacks. The blazer was bought on a HUGE discount. The blazer was regularly priced $89 and was on sale for $49.99 and with an additional 40% off. The navy slacks were bought from JCPenney's for about $20. Oh, my necklace was bought for me by my husband as a gift!!!   I felt stylish today:)

What do you think?

I am going to start buying more dresses. I do enjoy wearing my slacks but I feel more feminine in dresses and want to show my legs off more. Nothing is more fierce than a nice power suit but dresses.....I do love. While perusing another blogger's site:  www.stylechic360.com and she was discussing a site for wonderful dresses. The site:  http://us.dorothyperkins.com is AMAZING!!! I plan on purchasing some items from this site and will be sure to let you know what I think of my purchases.


Until later,


Remain Royal

Break Needed

Below you will see pics of my hair after it was untwisted in the morning before heading to work. These pics were taken before I received my braids. I was sooo glad to get a break from nightly twisting of my hair. Since I BC’d 6 months ago, my hair gotten thicker. I went to the protective style  in efforts to give my hair a break and my hands……

Twists just undone

Some definition visible after picking

More view of definition after picking

What I’m Wearing

This was taken prior to me leaving home for work. I have a grey and white pinstriped suit that I purchased at Ross for approximately $30 two years ago. I put a pink cami underneath with black Nine West pumps.

THANKS!!!!!!!

I write and wonder if anyone is really reading what I am writing. It is exciting to see people who are following me and actually take an interest in what i write. I know that I am a follower to a LOT of blogs. I enjoy learning about new things and reading what others have to say.

I want to say THANKS to ALL of my followers. Please encourage others to join the site. I promise to update more.

Remain Royal!!!!

QueenPen