Not too sure about other people’s experiences, but since becoming a mom dating has gotten horrible. I sometimes wonder if it’s because before baby, my mature outlook and take on dating actually wasn’t mature at all? Or if guy’s really do just “suck” sometimes? The question is still up for debate but I digress, every once in a while you catch the eye of a pretty decent guy, you have great conversation and then he asks you on a date.
For the everyday single woman, this is a nice gesture, you have something to look forward to this Friday night but for me, the single mom, although the gesture is nice, exciting even, it also opens the lid to my ever so slowly burning pot of anxiety. After the initial blushing followed by butterflies of excitement finally fade away, I immediately think “oh crap, I have a date” because now I have to somehow get ready for a date. Now no ,again, this may not seem that hard to do but for a single working mom, this sucks. I barely get my current weekly tasks done now, and mind you, a lot of those tasks include my personal appearance care routine. My hair hasn’t been professionally touched in weeks, face is literally in a break out frenzy and don’t get me lying about the last time I’ve shaved, I do not know.
I can remember a time when I could look forward to running to the mall and shopping for a new outfit,a new makeup and spend the rest of my day at the salon. Now a trip to the mall looks more like a department store run in which I may have enough time a run up the cosmetic aisle to grab a few beauty essentials while I grab diapers and soy milk. A day at the salon is me washing my hair in the shower and roller setting it at night then quickly painting my nails on the couch right before going to bed. Somehow I have to figure out how to shave, pluck, get these breakouts under control and paint my 3 month old chipped nails before Friday. “Yay, more stuff”. Well I can now say, that after a couple of great date nights, I title myself the mommy date night queen. I put together a little routine that has helped me navigate smoothly into a successful date night, allowing me to get my normal weekly routine done as well as prep for my Friday night.
I somehow always end up having to make a run to the grocery store in the middle of the week anyway, this week it’s to grab some last minute treats for my son’s Valentines day party tomorrow. So after browsing the weekly ads for coupons, I head to the local grocery store.
I stop in the beauty aisle after grabbing my food items and find this mask by Que Belle bath and beauty. Since it’s the dead of winter I’ve been dealing with dull, dry skin. This masks helps to not only clean but refreshens my skin for a healthier look. After the mask I tone and treat my skin with my go-to toner, Olay facial toner with witch hazel. I love this toner as does the rest of American women, because I can never find it. However when I do, I love how after a good cleansing this toner refreshens my skin and the witch hazel gives me some added support for fighting off acne.
I ran out of my favorite eyeshadow color so I grabbed this Wet n’ Wild color i-con palette in the color “blush” with a $2 off coupon I got from my weekly circular. I also picked up this liquid lip color from their “megalast liquid catsuit” line in the color “give me mocha”
I absolutely hate the process of shaving, it’s so tedious when you really do it right and everything about my life is about multitasking. I need to be able to get multiple things done at one time So anytime I find a coupon for Schick Intuition razors, I stock up because although, they can be pretty pricey, they are so convenient and handy. I love the fact that I can skip one step in the shaving process and get the job done faster in the shower.
I needed to address my hair and since it’s too late to work a hair appointment into my crazy mommy work week, I have to do it myself. First I’ll need to wash and condition it, so I picked up this intensive repair deep treatment masque pack from Cantu to help make my hair a little more manageable when I go to style it.
Lastly, I keep my prep short and simple. A sweep of a quick-dry nail hardener and my favorite Essi nail color romper room and some simple accessories finish off my date night look. That night me and my date attended a casual Art reception at one of our local galleries in celebration of Valentines day.
