And now I am a Mom. There are days I take off my PJ’s, take a shower, then put my PJ’s back on. Others where I put on jeans and a plain shirt, and the rare day where I put on “nice” clothes and leave the house. I am not saying being hot and being a mom are mutually exclusive; I just haven’t been able to balance keeping up appearances and working from home/raising kids/doing housework.
My husband often reminds me of how much he wishes I had my short hair again, or that he loves it when my eye shadow is “darker” and cooler. And so do I, but keeping a hair style can be pricey and putting on my full face is time consuming!
I also used to take the time to get a new piercing or new tattoo every once in a while. At one point I had my nose, tongue, lip, navel, and……. ahem…. pierced. I have 4 tattoos and all but one are Smashing Pumpkins related. I would love more tattoos but again, they are expensive and time consuming. Plus I am hoping to find an AMAZING artist to do my half sleeve in the future.
Blogging, kids, and keeping house consume my entire life (not in that order). I know I need to take better care of myself and make time for my outside interests or hobbies. My husband would appreciate it and it would make me feel better. I am back to my pre-pregnancy weight and fitting back into my skinny size 2’s (thank you breastfeeding- I know it had nothing to do with diet or exercise since I have done neither) so my body deserves a little accentuation.
I have ordered a new pair of specs (eyeglasses are my favorite accessory) and will be getting a hair cut today! I have no idea what I am going to do with it. I have an insane high end make up collection but stick to the basic colors so I think I should get back into that. Sephora called and said they missed me and my money.
How do you juggle keeping up with fashion/hair/makeup and your mommy duties?
lol If it wasn’t for the fact that i work part time, i might never get out of my sweats either!! And i think you’re beautiful both ways!! 🙂
Ugh I have been feeling the same way! Two kids in 3 years. I’m 19 weeks postpartum with baby #2. I got down into my skinny jeans with baby #1 at the end of the 12th month. I decided last week to focus on ONE thing daily that is just about me. My activity of choice is to work out. I started P90X 8 days ago and already feel better..and surprisingly I have more time every day (maybe it is energy despite being sleep-deprived) and have been showering every other day and putting makeup on once in a while. 🙂
I’ve been feeling the same way lately. Unfortunately for me breast feeding just makes me insanely hungry all the time so I’m gaining weight instead of losing it. I see pictures of myself and think ewwwwww. Have always hated exercising with a passion so using what little free time I have to “work out” just makes me want to cry.
With my first I didn’t start losing weight until after he was 4-5 months,
then it fell off with no real reason. I did start working out but then I
stopped and it kept going. I wish I knew the secret because I would share.
Maybe working out can be considered “me time” if you have some good music
to jam to!
AMEN! I have 3 boys, 4 and under…I just dropped 70 pounds. Still I am so not the hot me I used to be. This morning I caught myself in a horrid thought, “oh, I can throw on these large schlubby jeans because no one will see me today.” What, NO! That is totally wrong. I’m trying to feel like a hot chick again. Tuesday I go for purple highlights. Although, I’m also considering TTC in a few months…which I definitely want, but I still feel a tad fearful of losing all the things that comes back to the mama as the kids get older. Ah, MAMA’S ROCK! You don’t really realize it, but the sacrifices of a mother are life altering and truly unconditional. <3 to all the mamas who read this 🙂
Yeah, I just got my hair cut a few days ago and when talking about layers, I said “just make sure the shortest one is long enough to go in a ponytail”. Yup. I went there.
you are still a hot mama kim! i cant wait to see the new glasses and really, those red ones were super awesome on you! send me a pic or post one after getting your new ‘do. 🙂
I’m already feeling this way and I only have one six month old! Part of it is that I don’t fit into my pre-pregnancy skinny clothing yet, and so I don’t feel like myself. I have also mostly forsaken my extensive makeup collection for basic, quick neutral application. I like the idea of doing one thing a day that focuses solely on myself. I try to work out every day, since exercise seems to give me more energy and help cope with the busyness of being a mom.
How in the WORLD do people lose weight while breastfeeding??? Please enlighten me! I can’t seem to manage to shed a pound! My body wants to cling on to my fat! It’s hard to get your old self back while chasing kids. I thought it would be easy with two kids spaced so far apart (they are 4 and a half and 5 months). But, sadly, that isn’t the case…
Sometimes it depends on how much you have gained during pregnancy. It is almost impossible to get rid of it.
I gained NOTHING during pregnancy on both pregnancy…I actually LOST weight on both pregnancy, but gained during bfing b/c I eat like a teenager and bfing is not helping me loosing ANY of it!
AMEN!!! Even though I work FT I work from home so I find myself in pjs ALOT! I keep my hair updated but I can’t remember the last time I went shopping for clothes. And makeup…I use the bare minimum! Oye – I fear one day the folks from “What Not to Wear” are going to show up and take me away! Can’t wait to see your new HOT LOOK!
if you live in or near new jersey, i highly recommend tom yak at electric tattoo in bradley beach! he did my half sleeve a few years ago and i love it (i want MORE!). see photos of it here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/thisistami/sets/72157610354609654/with/3066410642/
by the way, i think you look beautiful! but, yeah – i totally understand. 🙂
What you never think about a person when you read blog posts! I’m laughing so hard, just because I have zero tattoos and just my ears pierced. I’m so mellow/boring! You always seem ‘put together’ to me, so you’re broadcasting good stuff even if you’re not doing it! Now that I’m putting maternity clothes on again, it’s annoying me already. I used to wear ‘dress’ shirts to work. I did wear either jeans or cords all winter, but I never got ‘new’ shirts after my daughter (almost 2.5) was born. Nothing seemed to fit. At least when I was trying to dress to hide the maternity ‘bump’ at first, I was snagging my suit jackets out of the back of the closet and wearing them with jeans and cowboy boots to church. Sometimes a nice jacket makes all the difference–and hides what’s needed to be hidden! I JUST cut my hair a few weeks ago, but I did it to donate to ‘pantene great lengths’–think locks of love for grown ups! It’s super short now–but I won’t ‘do’ anything to it. I haven’t had my eyebrows done in 3 years– high past time. However, when I DO leave the house, I do try and look ‘nice’ — at least I brush my teeth! I shower every day and put on ‘real’ clothes. I can count on one hand past 2 weeks postpartum when I have just worn pjs all day. It’s something I INSIST on for myself–however, I will have to wait and see when baby #2 comes along how I do. I rarely wore makeup to begin with, so that’s not a real issue for me. I guess I was never ‘very’ girly, so if I’m clean and look ‘decent’ that’s good enough for me! My hubby thinks I’m hot no matter what!
Love this post!! It seems like we have a lot in common : ) And I think you are still pretty! I wish I could still fit into my size 2s lol. My husband keeps telling me I need to get my hair cut. I can so relate.
I have been mentally composing this blog post for months! Sista from anotha motha here…
You go for taking the steps to make it happen. Once life calms down a bit here, I’m going to be all over that! Might go on an impromptu shopping trip today, actually…
Although I struggle with balancing “me time” with family and running two businesses, I have always negotiated the time with DH to get my hair and nails done, even when the babies were little (I pumped so I could get away from the house from time to time).
Having said that, there are still days that I don’t get dressed. Just ask my assistant Rebekah and my bookkeeper Robyn LOL!
I know exactly how you feel, when my husband and I met 7 years ago I was a SuicideGirl… now I am a mom of 2 (5 year old and an almost 1 year old) who is lucky to get a shower more than 3 times a week… I am taking baby steps, new glasses was my first step too, then lacy underthings… next up are haircut and new make-up (my whole drawer just needs to be tossed).
Oh man, I feel the SAME way! A couple weeks ago I went in to get my hair trimmed but I had an awesome stylist and she ended up cutting my hair in an awesome style but it’s still easy to take care of. I also ended up coloring it and it REALLY boosted my self esteem. Then last weekend I decided to head to the Clinique counter at Nordstrom. I’m normally all about using natural make up or not putting poisons on my face. But I just haven’t been happy with what I’ve had lately and I don’t have money to keep buying stuff that doesn’t work. So I had them do my makeup and I felt SO much better! I have a foundation that makes me feel so much better. My all natural eyeshadows work just fine so now I can do my makeup and feel better. But I’m still lazy so it only happens once or twice a week.
I think Hotness is mostly mental attitude and self confidence. I grew my hair out from the short pixie ‘do I had when I was 18 and when my DH and I first started dating, and it’s now all the way down to my buttcrack.. according to him that’s very sexy.
I try to keep up with the trends; but I usually just stick to classics and then one or two trendy things per season. In addition, I do spend money on makeup.. but I wear Bare Minerals and Ulta’s in-house brand and the other thing that really helps is getting my eyebrows waxed! I spend $8, and then give a $2 tip and trust me.. that $10 ever few months make a WORLD of a difference with how I feel about myself. When we go out for anniversaries or dates, I tend to dress up a little nicer and wear makeup, because I want to feel good AND look good! I dolled up last night for a bridal shower, and despite being 36 weeks and having contractions, everyone commented on how great I looked and how cute my belly was and all the things they say to pregnant women.
Why or how do I do keep up and look fabulous? I make time for myself when I want to. I refuse to fall into the typical “Mom trap”. I may not have rock hard abs nor did I ever go back down to my pre-pregnancy weight of 92 pounds -I’m 4’11” so I was weight height proportionate- but I do realize now that I’m content with being around 110, because I feel that I look better with the extra 18 or so pounds. And my biggest secret is that I do not own a SINGLE PAIR of stretch pants!
My makeup routine consists of putting on some lipstick, if I remember. I wear the same clothes all the time, just like you: jeans and a plain top. I wore the same shoes every day in the winter.
Ugh. I want to change, but don’t know how to manage the time!
OMG!! I was just having a meltdown this morning about the fact that I have so many responsibilities and spend so much time trying to meet everyone else’s needs that I don’t take care of myself. I only have one almost 4 month old but my parents travel a lot so I have to take care of my 16 year old developmentally delayed sister and her dog alot too. Between that and helping my husband with our new online business and trying to cook and keep up the house I barely have time to shower or eat, never mind sleep!! I’m still nowhere near my pre-pregnancy weight yet and I was already overweight anyway so lately I’ve been feeling fat, ugly, and definitely not sexy!! But I also feel incompetent at times because I’m always forgetting things and can’t keep up with everything! I do shower everyday for the most part but i don’t always have time to wash and style my hair like I used to. And I haven’t had time to buy any new clothes and don’t fit into my pre-pregnancy ones so I’m always wearing the same old tired maternity pieces that are baggy and unflattering. It’s starting to make me feel depressed but i just can’t find any “me time”. I really needed to read this post so I at least know I’m not alone. I always imagine other moms are very well put together and can handle everything perfectly and I’m just a mess. Thanks for this post. You look great to me by the way!
I realized how important it was for me to communicate to my hubby that he is also a priority for me. That, and I want my kids to value talking care of oneself. I bought some easy to put on makeup (stick foundation and stick blush) and most days I spend about 15 minutes getting “ready”, that is doing something with my hair, putting on a little bit of jewelry, some perfume, and foundation, blush, and mascara. I find I am more apt to get out of the house and feel hospitable if I am a little put together. It is worth it…my husband notices and I am more productive. (I have a 5yr old, a 3 yr old, and a 1yr old, I stay at home and nurse my littlest)
Sweetie, you are seriously one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen! I’m not just saying that to be nice (because, seriously, we don’t know each other IRL, so I have no reason to lie to you). Good for you for wanting to feel beautiful for yourself and your husband, though! Have fun with it!
Me? I shower once a week.
And I know a fan-freaking-tastic tat man in Rochester.
He’s a genius.
I definitely deal with this too. I must say though, when I take the time to get done up, I end up getting more done and feel more motivated in every aspect of my life. Also, as much as I know my husband loves me even in sweats, he gives me a certain look (one I’m not sure he even knows he is giving me) when I put the effort into my hair and makeup.
To Leslie below me, I FEEL YOU. I think I’m going to put all of my focus into just toning up my new chubby body, because no amount of counting calories or not eating 3 hours before bed or eating clean is helping me drop the pounds, and I’m usually someone who can lose weight fairly easily. Dear body, you do NOT need 30 extra pounds just to breastfeed! Ugh.
Hi, noticed a tweet from you (I think it was to BlogHER?) and noticed your last name.
That’s my last name, too.
Curious…what is your husband’s ethnicity?
I am from Colombia.