Beauty by Example

 

When Bird was an infant I was feeling haggard and sluggish. Gone was my youthful, dewy face, along with my spry gait and sunny outlook. I was tired and fumbling and feeling like I was not equipped to be a mom. I hardly ever babysat when I was young, and had only changed one diaper before I had Bird. Imagine me learning how to change a diaper and swaddle, which I never did figure out. Thank goodness a friend told me about the Miracle Blanket when Deal was born. Seriously, that little swath of cotton is indeed a miracle! But I digress… Motherhood was foreign to me, and I didn’t grow up in a nest of clucking mothers or mother hens tending to our needs. I didn’t have younger siblings or cousins and extended family growing up around me. I never grew up with a nurturing, mothering quality. Motherhood simply wasn’t instinctive to me, and I had a loads to learn.

But being tired was debilitating. Two adults to care for one infant seemed easy enough, but in reality, it was extraordinarily trying. I was aglow while pregnant and ashen after becoming a mother. I rummaged through my bathroom cabinets to find the right antidote. I hightailed it to department store make up counters and paid exorbitant prices for serums and creams and polishes and such. Bobbie, Trish, and Estee all tried to work their magic. To no avail. My wallet was lighter, but my under eye circles were darker.

I strapped my baby into the stroller and walked to my local drugstore.

I harkened back to my college days when all I could afford were drugstore brands and generic Vaseline. But let’s be honest, back then I either trudged through campus with no makeup or didn’t bother to take off my mascara every night. I also took my smooth, unlined skin for granted and didn’t own sunscreen. But that was then. My hand reached for the familiar pink and black Oil of Olay. I noted there was a yellow box with SPF so I bought that and a little jar of night cream. I was skeptical, having been an over priced expensive brand name girl for so many years.

Fast forward a couple months.

At Bird’s first Thanksgiving he was fidgety and whimpering and just couldn’t get comfortable, whether in Mac Daddy’s arms or my own. He was not yet three months old so we sat at the dinner table among a cadre of family and friends with him propped into the crook of my arms and then Mac Daddy’s. When my arm fell asleep and eating one-handed became too difficult, we switched. But still, the baby wouldn’t rest. We walked. We rocked. We swayed. We laid him down. We picked him up. Finally, a family friend’s mother, whom we had just met, said, “Let me hold that baby.” She was in her seventies and had raised three children of her own. She sat at the head of the table wearing a simple shift that was simply fabulous in a Mad Men sort of way. Her hands were soft, and fingers slim. She gently put her hand under baby Bird’s head and and held him as if he were a feather. Miraculously, he stopped fussing. She looked into his face and he into hers.

Mac Daddy and I sat awestruck. How did she do that?

She beckoned us to eat and enjoy having the freedom of two hands, which is important to someone like me who gesticulates an awful lot. She lightly hummed to Bird and sat contentedly, as did he. We inquired what her secret was. She gave us a coy wink, indicating it must be something magical that comes with age. I noted that her skin was smooth and youthful, belying her age. She seemed so bright eyed and kicky for a woman in her seventies. I was struck by her gentle command and her confidence. Her smile lines were evident only when she laughed. I finally asked her what she used on her skin to maintain such a lovely complexion.

“Oil of Olay, honey. It’s what I’ve always used.”

And so I sighed and smiled, knowing my laugh lines will be evident one day too. It was then that I embraced aging and motherhood in one deep breath.

Check out the Olay Facebook page. In honor of every person who signs the Beauty by Example declaration, P&G will donate one ounce of Olay product (up to one million ounces) to Look Good…Feel Better, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the self-esteem and quality of life of women undergoing cancer treatment. 

I happen to have a box full of Olay products and other goodies to give away! Simply leave me a comment telling me who your beauty example is. I’ll use random.org to choose a winner on May 11.

 

 

Disclosure: I was given free products to try and was compensated for this post from a partnership with The Motherhood. All opinions are my own, and compensation was not based on a favorable review.