Dreads

That's right, after 8 years of admiring, 5 years of asking, and a whole lot of unnecessary product, I finally did it! I got dreads! I first remember wanting dreads when I was 16. I have always loved the "hippie" culture and have always thought that dreads would be really interesting to try. Not everyone has this dream of turning their normal hair into ratty tubes, but to me, they seem to be full of freedom.
Freedom to say, "I don't really care what my hair looks like!" and the freedom to wake up, put my hair up with a bandana or scarf and be done, and most importantly, freedom to try something I've always wanted to, grow bold, just do it, and feel confident doing it. I read an article earlier this year where the interviewee said 2010 had a one-word motto: Embrace. I really liked that. There have been a number of things on my "24 before 25" list, and with getting dreads, I crossed off one of the last things. I'm not gettin' any younger, and I don't know if I could rock them at 80. And let's be honest, I never brush my hair anyway :)
My kiddos don't seem to notice one way or the other, more than likely because it looks the exact same to them. Maybe 10 times a year, I'll fix my hair...maybe. It's always up in a ponytail, and with dreads, it just gives me a great excuse to wear awesome hair accessories like this, this, and even this. :) (Okay, so I already wear the first one, but still!)
Stefan was unsure for a while (hence, the 5 years:), but this year said "okay". I told him that if he hates them, I'd be fine with brushing them out after a month, but at least wanted to try it. Do any of you have things you have to try, or else you'll always regret not being bold and just doing it? Dreads were one of those things for me...so when he said okay, I quickly got the ball rolling. One of my friends from knitting group dreads her own hair (dreads her own hair, can you imagine?! She's amazing!) and when I asked if she'd be willing to do it, she said yes. I spent about 5 hours total getting my whole head done, and while watching the Olympics or just chatting with her, I had a great time! She even put in some cute wooden beads for me! If you or someone you know want to get them, I am more than happy to pass along her info via e-mail.

Stefan is still a bit unsure of them, I think mostly people don't notice since I always have my hair in a bun anyway, but there is a big difference when they are down. Stefan doesn't like them down, and I am still 'getting used to them' down, as in, not super confident with them down yet.
I have a very sensitive scalp and that was something I was thinking about a lot before getting these--I couldn't imagine them itching worse(in the winter, here in Nebraska, my scalp itches anyway!) but because C did them looser at the base, they haven't really itched at all. I wash them exactly like I washed my hair before, every other day, and mostly just wash at the scalp. They do take a long time to dry (but my hair took forever to try before anyway). The only annoying thing is they saturate water and then tend to "drip" for a long time after my shower, so I have to either put them up right away or keep a towel around my head for awhile after a shower.
My hair was looking a bit funky in these pictures, right when they were done, but since I've washed them, they have 'toned down' a bit.
How long will I keep them? I don't know. Right now, I know that I'll keep them at least a month, if Stefan doesn't like them, I'll take them out.
If nothing else, at least I got to spend some time with a friend, and was I brave enough to do it!