Having a Vain Moment

Aside from wanting to lose weight, which I'm still working on by the way, I am also trying to keep up with my beauty regime. I'm sure this task is a no brainer for most of you ladies out there but if you have a 3 year-old demanding toddler and a 9 month-old baby, you tend to put everything else aside.

I have listed this task as one of my new year's resolution after discovering the appearance of fine lines under my eyes. The discovery gave me a mild stroke at first but then, when I reflected on the possible culprit, I realized it was all my fault. You see, during my second pregnancy, I transformed into a moody, hormonal hippo with a bad case of morning sickness. Due to this transformation, I became extremely frumpy and  sloppy.  And then, I did the unthinkable; I stopped using skincare! (did you just gasp?).  Well, I didn't see the point of sticking up to a beauty regime cos none of the creams I used could stop the hormonal breakouts on my face. So against good judgment, I went au naturel for almost a year.

Two months after my delivery, my fine lines and I met for the first time. Me: Hi y'all.  Wrinkles: Hello mommy! I'm fine lines and that's crow's feet. So yeah, we had an ice-breaking session. My first impulse was to go for a facial and pamper myself from head to toe. Something like this.

However, after visiting one of the salons in Riccarton, I had to reconsider. Spa treatments are  simply too expensive here and being a student, I can't afford it. A complete facial and body massage costs about $200 and this takes only an hour and a half (including consultation time). There are cheap ones which cost around $45 for just a facial but this is only for 20 minutes and it doesn't include face-steaming, facial massage  or extraction. It's just exfoliation and mask. Pretty pathetic. So I opted for a more economical solution and after seeing a very convincing ad on the net, I purchased this for my peepers. The price is quite reasonable at USD17.99 and delivery is FREE.

It came in a small bundle last week and I've been using it for three days; morning and night without fail. I am hoping for some kind of miracle to happen but so far, no such luck. Maybe it's too premature to tell. Aside from the ad for this supposedly effective UNT eye cream, I've also seen an enticing ad for Susan Lucci's microdermabrasion kit. It was aired on TV a while ago and I can't help thinking about it. After all, microdermabrasion has been said to help rejuvenate the skin as well as eliminate fine lines. I read about it here. Very tempting you know.
.

Today, I saw another product on the net which claims to diminish the appearance of fine lines under the eye with botox-like effects. With such enticing words I am convinced yet again. Read about it here.

So that's my dilemma for today. Cheap botox or microdermabrasion. I'd like to have both but hubby will probably over-react and start his lecture about how all these ads are superficial marketing gimmicks designed to fool vulnerable people like me. Bla bla bla. This happens all the time.

I normally let him finish before I start my rebuttal talking about the sacrifices of motherhood, which I had to go through. About pregnancy, about getting fat, having morning sickness, backache, hyperpigmentation, water retention and finally the C-section. Then I ask him, "Dear, after all that, don't you think I deserve a bit of pampering?"  He normally gives me a knowing smile. I then continue my argument talking about post-partum challenges like the pantang after delivery, engorged breasts, sore nipples, having unsightly love handles, endless hours of babysitting, sleepless nights and of course the subject of this entry; under eye wrinkles.  I conclude with "Dear, what did you have to go through other than the process of contributing the baby's chromosome?" I rest my case.