All that Glitters

Being with Natalia totally adds the glitter to my existence. Now don't get me wrong - Jeremy adds the love, spice and everything nice; but Natalia adds the glitter for sure. I get so excited when I talk to new moms with daughters. I always tell them three key things: Get the book "Girlfriend's Guide to the First Year" by Vicki Iovine, having a child gets so much more fun the older they get, parenting gets so much more tough the older they get. God loves balance, yin and yang, whatever you want to call it. Ya get the good stuff, but ya gotta be on your toes to ward off the potential bad stuff. The stakes get higher when it comes to problems as they get older. Ask any mother of a teenage daughter. I'll think about that tomorrow.

Back to the glitter part. Natalia says she loves to go to the mall, but what she really means is she loves to go to Sephora. She likes Sephora for the same reason she likes Costco on a Saturday. Samples. I have taught her the hygiene basics of makeup sample-ness, then I let her play. Guess who is her favorite makeover client? Yep. Me. And I totally let her "work her magic". Jeremy hangs out in the game shop across the way and we meet in the middle when she and I are finally done. This time when I came out Jeremy looked at me, there was a pregnant pause, then he asked "Did she do that?" She's seven and her makeup skills are just beginning to manifest, so I ended up looking like a bipolar hooker.

Now I don't mind walking around with the fruits of Natalia's makeovers as long as she's with me as my obvious explanation. Trolling around the mall by myself to run into the Hallmark wearing my latest Natalia makeover is kind of a different story. Without my mini-me explanation at my side, I just looked like a crazy person with orange lipstick smeared every which way, one turquoise eyelid, one glittery purple eyelid, and enough blush to think I am a woman up to no good. Maybe I could have pulled that look off at Hot Topic, but not so at the Hallmark store. In her defense, Natalia was very proud of her handiwork and said I look beautiful.

Today Natalia and I got our hair tinseled. This is literally two teenage girls in the mall tying strands of tinsel to our roots. Natalia picked rainbow and I picked gold because I thought it would be quasi-subtle. I just couldn't resist! I want fancy glittery hair too and like I mentioned before, Natalia is my favorite excuse. "Oh yeah, I just did it because Natalia thought it would be special if we both had our hair done." Bull. I did it because I want sparkles in my hair too. I didn't even ask Jeremy if he noticed or liked it. It wouldn't matter - I love it.

The older I get the more I am adamant that I don't have to fit into any "mother mold". I'm not a soccer mom, a OC housewife, a Prozac mom or a helicopter parent. I am Queen Shauna, keeper of Princess Natalia. I will wear lipstick and glitter until I am too demented to remember where I put it in the first place. I'm sure Natalia will hook me up just fine. I want sequined shoes, glitter hair and perfume that smells like sugar cookies and chili peppers. I want to stay young and beautiful forever, do cartwheels and roller skate until I break a hip. I can tell you that I would have aged so much more quickly without Natalia. She gives me the excuse and inspiration to do all of these things, even if I sometimes end up looking like an emotionally unstable woman of ill repute.