Pictures of My Hair

My face has really gone through some issues since I moved to Baton Rouge. I went from soft and smooth skin to spotty smooth skin. The water has some kind of oily like texture to it.I have to scrub myself red just to feel clean. I miss Shreveport and the water. When I went home for my wedding, my skin loved the clean, refreshing experience.

Learning To Sew

I am horrible at sewing, but I really really want to learn how. I think I need a teacher. Anybody in the Baton Rouge area want to show me how. Send me a message!

My pathetic skirt I made. LOL!

Children Hair Styles

OK my daughter is 100% natural and will STAY that way as long as I have final say. During the school season I keep her hair braided, cause I am lazy. LOL! I hate getting up in the mornings now, and I never been that type of person. I am use to being in the bed by 9PM and waking up by 6AM. Now I am in the bed by 12AM and wake up by 10AM. Too much sleep I know! My sleeping patterns are off. Anyhow, I wash her hair Friday and keep it plaited. Oh, but Sunday she is braided faithfully. So here are some pictures...

 This is her hair blown out, but half wet. No her hair is not pressed, flat ironed, or permed.

Checking Up On Me

So my journey began a while ago to a better me, and I thought to write a "How I Am Feeling Blog." 

HAIR: I am not as crazy about 100% natural because I don't have hair on the sides. It's like I need my straight hair to cover it up. I have however decided that I will not perm my hair any more. So that's a step for me. I am sure most people will criticize me for that, but I feel that, that is progress. I wash my hair twice a week but only flat iron it once a week. I am mostly at home, so I just let my hair dry itself. My hair has never really had that nappy texture to it though. Cause I comb out the tangles immediately after I condition it. Comb as it dries. I have managed to gro w my hair a little. That's how I feel about my hair.

Finances: Budgeting sucks. But I know that I want a house one day and needed to get a hold of what was going where. Since I have not worked since May (because I am a sub teacher). Things have been getting extremely tight. My cellphone bill is due, and I do not have the money for it. Now we (my husband and I) have decided to consolidate things, but I do not want to share that bill. Because we were on a combined plan before, and we had difficulties there. He didn't want to add me as an authorized user, so I couldn't update my plan or get my upgrade without him present. Yeah that sucked, but nothing that we made a big problem. I just felt that since I was paying the bill I should have had the rights to do what I felt I wanted with my phone. So that is something we agreed not to combine. (Well I agreed...LOL!) Anyway, I do not want my phone turned off. However, I gotta use my savings for the rent. :(

Spiritual: Everything is ok there!

Emotional: I feel kinda sad cause of the financial issues, but I am a very happy person naturally.

Education: Ok this is something that I added. I want grad school to be over. I am upset with the financial aid dept. How can you not give an award letter before a start date! Are you serious!

Physical: One of these near days I will start on that. As soon as I finish this ice cream. :)

That's about all!

Get Your Finances Straight

FINANCES

Finances are very important and can affect a person in every aspect of their life. Most people do not think long term about the early decisions they make in their lives. For instance, I have undergraduate loans that exceed $20,000, 2 credit cards that are almost $1,300, and a private loan that is almost $30,000. Can I say ‘yikes?’ This would be very scary if I didn’t have a solid plan. Along with those big debts I have small debts that I need to pay off. Many debt counselors may go against what I am about to say, but this is my plan for a better life for me. I made a spreadsheet of all my debts and expenses. I, also, reviewed my previous bank statements and store receipt to get a total of what I spent impulsively. In the months of May and June, I spent nearly $300 dollars unnecessarily. I am a scrapbook-aholic, and I love books. So I had to alter those expenses. I plan to stop going to the bookstore and go to the library; stay out of Hobby Lobby (this is so hard cause this store has EVERYTHING I love); and limit my boredom trips. Here are the templates I used.

Fixed Monthly Debt
Who/Type	Account Number Login Information	Starting Balance Current Balance	Interest Rate	Minimum Payment	Approximate Payment Due Date

This template includes important items like car note, car insurance, rent, and just those expenses that are 1) necessary and 2) unavoidable. You can make a second one for those that fluctuate like electricity, cable, water, gas, and whatever you owe.

Contact Information

Who	Address	Website	Phone/Fax Number

This template lists all the creditors (those people I owe) and who/how to contact them.

	BOTH	WIFE	HUSBAND
HOME EXPENSES
Rent
Cable/internet/phone
Electricity
CAR EXPENSES
Car Note
Car Insurance
Gas
Maintenance
DEBTS
Credit Card 1
Credit Card 2
Credit Card 3
EDUCATION
Loan 1 Balance/Minimum
Loan 2 Balance/Minimum
Loan 3 Balance/Minimum
GENERAL
Life Insurance
Health Insurance
Cell Phone
Personal Hygiene
Cleaning Supplies
Clothing
Other
TOTAL SPENDING
Home
Car
Debt
Education
General
ALL

 Finally this template works best for couples. Before you get married (or after) this is important so there would be no surprises about debts.

These are just ways that I keep up with my information. Also, a credit reporting company is handy to pay for each month. Get a copy from all 3 and pay close attention to what is on there. Make sure everything is true. Don’t be ashamed of your credit. Just get it straight. These are some good reporting companies that gives you all three.

www.identityguard.com 14.99 monthly

www.identitymonitor.citi.com 12.95 monthly

Steps at making me a better me is in order.

The Wedding

The wedding was July 10th at 1pm. It was beautiful. Although the time was supposed to start at noon. The photographer got a flat tire and never showed up. Good thing almost everyone had a digital camera, so I got pictures. My mom left all the flowers for bridesmaids and bouquet for me at her house. I mean she did know it was a wedding. But all in all, I had an awesome time.

Random Blog

I spent some time getting my page together. This is not my first blog and the settings mimic my other blog. The other one is a personal blog, but it will not be as personal and thorough as this one. I have started writing poetry again. I used to write it all the time. I left my notebook in my car (oops)! I am too lazy to walk down the stairs and out to my car. It's late and I am not feeling that.

Saturday is the BIG day when I officially become Mrs. Lewis. I love how that sounds. I am one of those people who never wanted to get married and never wanted children. That changed when I had my daughter. I had to think more serious about life and the direction I wanted to go. I love my daughter and him just like I love myself. I mean it is a given that I love my daughter, but it's a big step for me to give myself 100% to someone else. I am 26 years old. I been in relationships, but nothing like this. It is a wonderful feeling.

Some insecurities I had as a kid always surface. I been wearing glasses since I was in first grade. I am talking about BIG glasses. I am not ashamed of them like I used to be. There were times when I was afraid to walk out of the house, because people teased and stared. Other kids can be so mean. That's why I teach my child to look for other things to determine if she wants to be someone's friend. (I better not hear about her teasing NO ONE. Not in my house. I do not approve.) Even if I have to be like Cliff Huxtable with his many stories. I moved on from that stage and found that inner beautiful Shanita. And I found out she is the best friend and kinda funny. I do love myself.

Many people need to stop dwelling on their imperfections and get to know themselves. The purpose of this blog is to just say that. Since getting over that hurdle I have found flaws in myself, but they are fixable.

Who Am I?

I am a mother of a very smart 4 year old girl. She is beautiful and, of course, her hair is natural. Over these 4 years her hair has grown significantly. I keep her hair in braids, because it is so thick. I have an awesome husband (well soon to be July 10). He is amazing and so supportive. Actually, he just says things like "if you want to, I am behind you." Oh, how sweet. We went through a lot before the wedding more personal than people think. Our transition of getting to know each other and getting used to each others habits and routines were truly a journey. But we are totally in sync.

This is the year I get everything together or at least make a start towards A BETTER ME. I have taken care of others for so long that now I need some Nita time.

I plan to go natural with my hair. Why? Because perms cost too much, and I don't want my daughter to even want to get a perm. I decided last month to go natural, so my hair is still kinda straight. I am learning how to do more than braids and twists so I can manage my hair. I am not a fan of weaves, but I do want to put off the Big Chop (BC) for as long as my hair will manage. I am on youtube, but I only uploaded a couple videos (of my daughter). I have watched the girl's with their natural journey and have been inspired to go natural myself. That and maintaining a perm is costly, but I figure if something is going to be costly like that- then I should just go natural. At least my hair will be healthy. More to come later on this topic.

My finances are kinda crazy, so I plan to get all that together. I want to be able to buy a house in the next 5 or 6 years. I am not a fan of RENTING. I want to invest in something that is MINE. All mine. A few mistakes over the past years is what has prompted me to get serious. I own a car, but that's about it. Hopefully, I will get a better job this school year. I want so much and it all involves money: a new job, a home and a new car will satisfy me. More to come later on this topic.

I have to get back healthy. I eat well, but I need to start exercising again on a regular basis. I just need to trim my thighs, tone my arms and legs, and get a lean, flat stomach.

All my life I grew up in a church, took the teacher's word for everything, read my Bible only in church at appointed times, and rarely prayed. When I met my fiance' I knew there was something different about him. He stayed to himself, worked out, read his Bible. It just seemed that everything was together with him. Then one day, I asked him to take me home from school (before I had my car.) I was having issues getting home on time or getting to school on time. I noticed a Bible. I didn't say anything about it, I just took noticed. He knew about my transportation issues and offered me a ride to school for the morning. I said ok. Well when I got in the next morning, I noticed that Bible again. We got to school early and I thought we could just talk. He told me about his morning routine but was running behind schedule, because he promised to pick me up in that morning. He told me he would catch up with me later- my cue to get out of his car and leave. To make a long story short, I asked him one day what he did every morning when he told me to get out of the car. He told me he would read his Bible. I was stunned. Anyway I joined the church he was attending, and things have never quite been the same. I understand him and why he do the things he do. I read the Bible for myself. So this journey for a better me is more than just exercising, strengthening my hair and getting my finances together, it's about embracing all of me spiritually.