Saturday, April 4, 2009

Before and After

This post is probably not what you're thinking it's going to be. I wish I could say that I wanted to share some deep and intimate thoughts on what life was like before losing a child, and afterwards. In some ways, I know those thoughts have been woven into some of my other posts. This post, however, has to do with something totally different.

If you have ever been pregnant, you have no doubt taken prenatal vitamins. Something terrific about prenatal vitamins is that your nails and hair grow really fast. During the course of my pregnancy with Isaac, I noticed my hair seemed to be getting longer by the week, so I decided I would grow it out for Locks of Love. It's something I have always wanted to do, and I just felt like it was another way that my time with Isaac and his little life could be used to do some good, and bring glory and honor to our Father. After all, my hair wouldn't have grown nearly as fast if I wasn't taking those prenatals, and I wouldn't have been taking the prenatals if I wasn't pregnant with him!

Maybe you see where this post is headed :)

Anyhow, I wasn't sure how long it would take to grow my hair out so that I had 10 inches to donate, and still had hair long enough to do something cute with. I still don't know how long it would have taken to grow it out to have had 10 inches. But, it took until April 4 to grow it out long enough to have 8 inches to donate to Pantene. Similar concept as Locks of Love, except that Pantene supports women with breast cancer.

So here's the before (without any styling products!!)...



And a few afters...






If you had ever told me that one day I would be sporting a Victoria Beckham bob, I would have laughed. I am truly just not that cool :) Nevertheless, I am pretty pleased with how it turned out, and am excited to be able to put my hair towards a good cause. If you have ever considered donating your hair, I definitely encourage you to do it! It really was a lot of fun to go to the salon, have Kaci chop off my ponytail (though that was slightly unnerving!), and then proceed to give me a whole new 'do!

67 comments:

Carly said...

You look beautiful! What a great cause Locks for Love is, you did a great thing.

Courtney said...

Aww, what a nice thing to do .. And you look gorgeous! I love the new cut. :)

mel @ the larson lingo said...

LOVE your haircut! It looks so cute on you! And, that is awesome you donated to such a wonderful organization!

Devon said...

i LOVE it! you look beautiful...not that you didn't before...but i really, really love the hair cut!

and so awesome to do that in honor of isaac!

Cate said...

Cute! I love it!

Taylor said...

Stacy I LOVE it. Of course, I am quite the supporter of short, funky hair. :) Hey, do you have any free time to hang out over the break?

Rebecca Jo said...

OH MY GOODNESS... that is an ADORABLE cut on you!!! You look like a teenager!!

And love that there is an organization specifically for Breast Cancer... HIGH FIVE!

Lindsay said...

You look great! Your new hair is perfect on your face.
When my aunt died of cancer, I donated 13 inches! I've yet to get my hair back as long as it was, but I cut it ALL of when I lost Zoe, so I digress. (my hair is still not as long as your's is right now)
You did an awesome thing for someone out there. Another part of your beautiful testimony.
Much Love Lindsay

Laura said...

You are beautiful! What a great gift you gave.

Have a restful weekend!
Sending love,
Laura

Jaclyn said...

Cute haircut! It looks really good on you!

Elizabeth said...

You look BEAUTIFUL!

Mary P said...

WOW!!! You look gorgeous :-) What a great cause to support!

Sara said...

Gorgeous! My hair is going to Pantene in about 2 weeks! Good for you!

King J's Queen said...

Your new 'do is quite becoming on you! That's a nice gift for them. It always reminds me a bit of O.Henry's "Gift of the Magi".

I've donated once to Locks of Love and once to Pantene. I'm just a few months away from another donation. It takes me about 3 years to grow it out. I thought last time would be my final time (too much gray!), but they tell me I should still be able to donate again. Who knows after this time. I, too, like the program for the women with breast cancer. My mom is a 5+ year survivor. Her mom beat breast cancer, too, although she has long since gone to live with Jesus. I've had several aunts who have fought the battle and won, and one friend who lost hers.

Southern said...

LOVE IT!!!! You look beautiful!!!

Unknown said...

Beautiful! I've donated to Locks of Love twice now (16 in & 12 in) and it is such a blessing to get to be a part of something like this.

By the way, I found this blog through Kelly Stamps:
http://www.littleoneapril.blogspot.com/
"B"s little girl (33 wks) has been diagnosed with Trisomy 13 and the doctors have been pushing for her to terminate.

Leza said...

LOVE the new do. You look great and your hair looks soooo healthy and shiny. You can definately sport the Beckham look. What a wonderful thing you are doing helping women~ my aunt just finished chemo for ovarian cancer and someone donated their hair so i know how wonderful it feels for those women to recieve their first hair piece. Thank you from all of those women.

I know Isaac is super proud of his mommy!

Jordan said...

It's adorable! =]

Lisa said...

That style looks great on you. Gives you a whole new look. Love It!!

Miche said...

Love, love your new do :)What a great cause, a wonderful do, and yet another way to honor Isaac.

Jus and Kat said...

Beautiful haircut, great cause! I just donated my hair to Locks of Love a few weeks ago (my 2nd time now), and I did find myself thinking, "OMG, this is the first haircut I've had since Dylan!!" Talk about unnerving. Yes, well, that's what makes us the survivors that we are. Love the new 'do! Kat

Verna said...

Thanks to people like you my sister was able to have a wig when she lost all her hair when she had chemo.

Thank you.

P.S. I love the new cut.

Amy said...

Hey-i love the new look-very sleek and stylish!!! And what a great cause! Hope you are having a sunny day down there in Maryland!
amy :)

shotzie said...

So cute! I've donated to Locks of Love before, I didn't know about the Pantene program. What a great cause!

Jessica said...

You look amazing.

I've been growing mine for the past year and planning on donating it this summer.

AmberS said...

I LOVE it! It looks great!!!

Sonya said...

You look fantastic!!!

Nichelle said...

WOW...I love it, you look so great...I did the same thing last year...10 inches to Locks of Love...I feared doing it so much...after such heartache and grief the last few years...my hair was my security blanket...but wow...such freedom and growth that came from something like a hair cut. Hope it produces the same feeling of healing and growth with you.

Unknown said...

Love it! Soooo cute!

By the way, I'm sending you some blog love with an award over at my place. .

Jana said...

You look beautiful. I love it!

Tammy On the Go said...

Definately cool enough!

Christy said...

I really like your hair cut, you're far prettier than Victoria Beckham! I have donated my hair to Locks of Love and plan to let my hair grow out again and donate it again. It takes my hair forever to grow, but it's worth it! When our daughter was alive we saw little girls be blessed with their own locks of love and to see the change in their attitude was AMAZING.

Trennia said...

That is a very awesome way to honor Isaac,looks good too!

Charity said...

I found your blog through a link from another blog, and wanted to let you know that I totally understand your grief and feelings.
My husband and I had a baby girl, Alethia Joy, on February 3, 2009 after 39 weeks of pregnancy and she was stillborn.
Thank you for sharing your heart through your blog entries.
--Charity

Linda said...

Wow! You look great. I really think it compliments you, and gives you a fresh new look for Spring.

God Bless you and continue to use your story for His glory.

Linda,..(Lynnette Kraft's Mom from Dancing Barefoot)

Susan said...

Very cute!

Heather said...

I love the new haircut! And what a great cause you supported!

LosingSanity said...

You look wonderful! What a kind and generous gift!

Kelli said...

You look gorgeous. On the inside too!!

The Barron Family said...

You look so pretty! It is so flattering on you!! Issac should be so proud of his mommy. You are such an amazing woman!

Anonymous said...

What a great thing for you to do! And the cut looks so cute on you. I wish I could do something like that ~ but I dye my hair ~ so they'd never accept it.... :( Patricia

Unknown said...

Stacy,
I love your new look! It's beee-u-tiful!:)

Sammy said...

Stacey you look simply lovely!

Infertile Myrtle said...

You look great in that cut! Kind of makes me want to cut MY hair! :)

Megan said...

You are a beauty queeen. I wuv it!
You are such a sweet soul. i wish I could know you more over a cup of oregon joe!

~Megan

Kims4Him said...

You are truly beautiful, and it has nothing to do with your hair.And yes, your hair is beautiful too.
Peace in Him.
;)

HJW said...

I LOVE IT! You look fabulous!

Mary said...

Your hair looks beautiful with the new style!

JackiJaguar said...

Stacy, you are officially that cool. :) Your hair looks great.

Unknown said...

It really suits you! Go you! X.

Kristin said...

It is so cute, Stace! Very stylish and still long enough to pull your hair back out of your face if you so wish.

I'm so happy for you that you were able to do something good with your hair to honor our Lord -- and Isaac helped! :) You look fantastic!

~Kelli said...

You look great and did a great thing!

Anonymous said...

Beautiful hair! So sleek and gorgeous~looks fabulous on you! Great cause to donate to as well! :)
~Mandy

Misty Rice said...

Um so I just cut 6 inches off my hair last month....and just said yesterday to my husband that I want to go shorter and VERY similar style to yours. Shorter in the back and angled toward the front. Now you have me more excited to cut MORE off of mine.

It looks beautiful and really healthy!!!!!

The Knight Family said...

I LOVE IT!!!!!! so so cute on you~

Cindy from Tennessee

Kelly @ Sufficient Grace Ministries said...

Cute 'do, Stacy! Love it...

jablott said...

I love it! You look great...and it warms my heart to see you smiling!!!!

Liz and Will Timmerman said...

Wow, what an AWESOME idea to honor Isaac! I really can't tell you how great I think this is. AND, you look super cute with your new haircut! Isaac is so proud of his mommy!

heidi said...

Absolutely stunning! You look great with that style cut!!!! I'm sure someone will be very blessed by your kindness!

Jessica said...

so cute!

Just Me said...

So cute! I actually got my hair chopped yesterday (and did post a video "before and after" in this post of my blog http://hornedfrog02.blogspot.com/2009/04/so-long.html) In 2004, I donated to Locks of Love, but this time I am sending it to Pantene too! What a cool thing you did, especially since it is because of Isaac you were able to grow your hair so long :o) Very special! Enjoy your new 'do...it was REALLY windy where I live today, so it was a tiny bit annoying not being able to pull mine up, but I'll get used to it!

Take care.

Jess said...

Your haircut is beautiful.
My 3 year old donated her hair in February. She had well over 10 inches. Such a great way to help people!

Angela said...

You are so cute! :-)

Christine Craddock said...

i was moved to post a comment today- i have been reading your blog not because of a shared experience but to be inspired by your love of God and your faith. But you see today i am even more inspired by the connection between human souls - i am still recovering from my first of 4 chemotherapies for breast cancer so i am even more inspired by your blog and your life. I am a young mom - like you - only i wish you had your dear Isaac to lift you up in your dark nights like i have my Cole. I will continue to read your kind words and scripture and draw strength from the fact that so many of us are going through hard times that we can help each other.

Ang said...

Stacy,
You look beautiful and for what a wonderful cause! My niece did that when she was 10 and was sooooooooo proud.

Lauren said...

How did I miss this post. It appeared out of no where to me. I had read the one before and after it but I missed this one. IT LOOKS AWESOME!!! I love the do.

:)

Jackson said...

OK so that gives the wow you got your haircut story a little background.