Oh, It’s Tuesday: Mommy Makeover
Sep22

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Oh, It’s Tuesday: Mommy Makeover

It all kind of started with my sister. “Now you really look like Mom,” she said, when we sat down for breakfast after I picked her up from the airport.

“You mean because of the weight,” I said.

“No, I mean because you now have a nurturing spirit that I have never seen on you before.”

Hmm … well, as much as I love my friends who are nuturers (I mean really love them. The vast majority of my close friends didn’t have to spit out a kid to happen upon this kind of spirit), there was one realization that had been getting louder and louder for a few weeks ere my sister’s visit: Though I adore being a mommy, I do not want to look like a mommy.

Photo Credit: txato

Photo Credit: txato

But her words sealed the deal. It was time for a makeover.

I’ve made myself over quite a few times before this. My junior year of high school I started “dressing like a hippie” — my father’s words, not mine — in long peasant skirts, bellbottoms, with authentic wide-brimmed Fat Albert hats which I had stolen from my father’s collection. I didn’t get a lot of compliments at my high school, where kids valued hip-hop and designer labels above all. But I loved having “a look.” And soon after followed the Orange and Yellow winter wardrobe makeover during my college years, the Expat Fashionista makeover during my Japan years, the Bright Colors Overcast City makeover during my Pittsburgh years, and of course the Laidback Denim makeover that all new Angelenos are required to undergo, before they are truly considered residents of this fair city.

Within that look, I have avoided hipsterism, but have embraced Rock and Roll nerd — which now that I think about it might have been a cheap version of hipsterism, but whatevs, the point is that look is dead to me. The extra baby pounds and the stroller I’m pushing has rendered it a litttle ridiculous.

So now I’m in the midst of another makeover, which I’m calling The-Not-Necessarily-A-Mom makeover. This basically involves wearing about 10 minutes worth of makeup (eyes and lips, no foundation unless I’m going to an event), throwing contacts on before I jump into the shower, wearing practical outfits with clever look-at-me accessories (that way my necklaces can also be learning tools for Betty to stare at and grab), trying bold new hairstyles and taking the time to blow out my usual twist out for maximum effect.

And can I tell you I feel terrific? Though one part of me feels that not wanting to necessarily look like a mom is at the very height of vanity and that a woman shouldn’t derive self-esteem from the way she looks. The other part of me loves feeling at my very best when I walk out the door. And sure this has added 15 more minutes to my already rushed morning routine, but it definitely feels worth it.

Are you, too, a fan of makeovers. And which incarnations did you try out before settling into your current look?