Saturday, June 29, 2013

My Dancing Daughters!

This post is really a week overdue, but I wanted to get some photos up of my daughters at their most recent dance recital.  I can't believe how talented my daughter Abby has become on stage.
Here's Abby at the center of the photo.
It seems like yesterday she was three years old on the stage.  She is now in her 10th season as a dancer!  Unbelievable how time flies!  And my little Mia is just so damned cute up there.  I luckily got one of the best photos of my life as she finished one of her dances.
Mia at the end of her performance - They were dressed up as clouds. I think she pulled it off!
To my daughters I'd like to say well done!  Enjoy your summer off and get ready to put those dancing shoes on again for next year!  Congrats on a job well done!
Aristokat!
Well Deserved Bouquets!
Love,

Wacky Dad

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

The Taming Of The Beard

“I participated in a campaign on behalf of Dad Central Consulting for AVEENO. I received product samples and a promotional item as a thank you for participating.”

As many of you know, I am one hairy dude.  I was recently asked to try a trio of Aveeno shaving products, and I figured why not.  Anything that might help to get through this mess is worth a shot.  Also the women in my family have used Aveeno products for years and have always been happy with them, so I had a sense that the products would be good.

Ok, so I'm fat, I had a few drinks, and I'm ugly.
BUT, this IS proof that I have one heck of a thick
beard.  This thing grew in in 2 weeks.
Here's what I tried out.  The Face Wash, Shave Gel, and After Shave Lotion.

Even though I might be able to get away with it, as a former Marine, I never go to work without a shave in the morning.  It just doesn't feel right.  I always take a shower to soften up the mess, and jump right out of the shower with a wet face and jump right into shaving with my usual shaving cream and favorite razor.  I've been using the same products for my whole life, like father like son I guess when it comes to shaving habits.  Since I've started using the Aveeno products I have been following the same routine, except I have been using the Face Wash before I jump out of the shower.  This stuff is pretty cool.  It has an Active Naturals Oat Formula that acts to deep clean and strip away some of the dead skin on your face.  But the thing that I like most about the Face Wash, is it leaves a slippery layer on my face.  This really helps create a smooth shave when I actually apply the Shave Gel (which also has Active Naturals Oat Formula - just not the exfoliating component) and take a razor to my beard.  It definitely seems to make shaving a little less harsh, and by the end of the week my face is not in quite as tough of shape as it can be after a week of regular shaving.  Don't get me wrong, my beard is still tough, and I don't think anything short of my facial hair falling off is going to change that, but I am definitely happy with the results I'm getting from this product.  Here are a couple of before and after mugshots.  I know these photos will bring a lot of ridicule.  My huge nose, and ugly mug don't lend themselves well to photos at 6:00 in the morning, or 6:00 at night either, but here goes anyway!  

             

That's really hard to look at, but you can see, I actually did get a pretty good shave out of it.  I did try the aftershave lotion once, and I can see if you have dry skin that it would work great.  I have anything but dry skin. To the contrary, I think my Italian face emits its own natural olive oil moisturizer, and I have never used any kind of aftershave throughout my life. All in all I really like these products, and the pricing is pretty much in line with other products out there. I would categorize this as "definitely worth a try"!

Happy Shaving!

Wacky Dad