I’m not sure why I’ve been thinking a lot about getting older recently. Maybe it’s because my birthday is coming up and I can’t remember if I’m going to be 35 or 36? Maybe it’s because I’m seeing how much my girls are growing up and it makes me realize that we’re all getting older (and in my opinion, better). Maybe it’s because I’m watching from afar as my mom helps an elderly friend move into assisted living. I can’t really put my finger on what’s got me thinking about aging so much, but it’s been on my mind.
I’ll say this– I’m not sure if I’m 34 or 35 (pretty sure I’m 35. I could do the math but I’ve got other stuff to do.) But I AM sure of this: I love life right where I am.
I wouldn’t go back to 30 for a million dollars.
I wouldn’t go back to my 20s for ten million dollars.
And for a magic genie and unlimited wishes there is no way in HELL I’d go back to my teens. Ain’t no way.
I’m content.
I make faces at myself in the mirror to scrunch up the wrinkles on my face and see where that first round of Botox is going to to go in a few years (right between my eyes) but so far– getting older is pretty kick ass. My kids all sleep through the night, unless they are sick or have a nightmare. Everyone can put their poopoo and peepee in the potty (Glory to God in the Highest) and, best of all? They can all use words!! No more screaming and crying for inexplicable reasons. My four-year-old can simply say, “Momma, my ear hurts,” and BOOM, just like that, I know we need to go to the doctor. I don’t have to wait it out, call my friends, call my mom, call my pediatrician… wait, did she pull her ear??? Nope. We just use our words.
I was in this sort of “HOORAY for getting older” phase when my friend Mandy Rose from one of my fave blogs, House of Rose, posted on her Instagram that she was going to start wearing real lipstick.
She’s adorable without a speck of makeup but her post made me realize that I never wear real lipstick. Even when I get dressed up all fancy to go somewhere with full make-up, I usually just wear lipgloss AND– this is the worst part– it’s the same color I wore in 8th grade. That’s not to say that Clinique’s Black Honey isn’t a timeless classic, because obviously– it is. But I realized that if I was really a Grown Ass Lady– I’d wear real lipstick. Dark and dramatic lipstick.
I remember a conversation I had with my Momma once. She was trying on lipstick in Sephora, something she only does when I make her, and she put on a dark wine color. I gasped. It was stunning with her gray-blue eyes and silver hair.
“It’s too dark!” She argued, wiping it off.
“Are you kidding?” I scoffed. “Wearing lipstick like that is one of the reasons I’m looking forward to getting old! It would look cheap, trashy and sort of goth on me, but you just look classy! I can’t wait to get old so I can wear bright red lipstick and huge diamond earrings. Hell, they’ll probably be CZs but when you get older, everybody assumes they’re real.”
All of this was still rattling around in my brain when my friend Cecily posted on Babble with her top makeup tips for women over 40. I clicked through her slide show and read all of her tips and I thought she was beautiful. Her lipstick was bright and spoke to me.
It said, “I’m not afraid of bright colors because I am a sassy and fabulous Grown Up Lady.”
Later that afternoon I was at the grocery store and I thought to myself, “Dadgumit. I’m gonna buy some real Grown Ass Lady Lipstick.”
I wheeled over to the makeup aisle and trusting Cecily’s recommendation of Revlon’s Colorstay Overtime, I bought the reddest red on the shelf (Forever Scarlet.) I checked out and once I was in my car, I whipped out the new lipstick and put it on. I checked my reflection in the mirror and I’m not going to lie, my heart skipped a beat– I looked just like The Joker. I fiddled around with my phone for a minute, responding to a few texts then checked the mirror again. It wasn’t that bad, I guess after 20+ years of the same lipgloss, it just seemed, so dramatic.
But the more I sat there and stared at myself, the more I realized that was exactly the reason I had bought it. Because I LOVE being 35. (Or 34.) I care less each day what other people think about me and this lipstick was bold and kind of awesome. I also realized that it was 2:30 pm and I was still wearing the workout clothes I wore to hot yoga at 8am. It was highly probable that with a shower and a full face of makeup, my Grown Up Lady lipstick wouldn’t be quite so out of place.
Regardless, I decided, I wasn’t just going to wear red lipstick– I was going to rock the hell out of it, you know, the next time I was going to go somewhere which required underwire and makeup. I reached for a tissue and wiped it across my lips and was a little surprised when there was NOTHING on the tissue. That’s when I noticed that the packaging promised it would last 16 hours.
SIXTEEN. HOURS.
I was committed but I was planning on pulling out the big guns for special occasions only– not for running carpool. Which, as it happened, was exactly what I was supposed to be doing, I cranked my Patty Peck Honda Odyssey (wink) and headed to school to pick up Sadie. As soon as she got in the van she yelled, “WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR WIPS MOMMA? DAT’S SO PETTY! Kiss me!”
None of it rubbed off on her, so I feel like Revlon was pretty damn serious about it lasting 16 hours. I posted on Facebook:
Shortly after, people began offering me tips on how to remove the lipstick. I was running errands with my kids and I felt pretty freaking suspicious in my sweatshirt, yoga pants, dirty ponytail and bright red lipstick. I considered swinging by my house and trying some of the suggestions but then I thought, “Screw it. I’m a Grown Ass Lady and I’ll wear red lipstick with dirty sweats and greasy hair if I damn well want to.”
And I do.
Getting older is awesome. I can’t wait to be 36 (or 35 again.)
Lisa says
Dang. If that lipstick stays on through a tissue wipe you may have actually discovered more than one useful thing. Might have to try some of that at 48.
Kim at Let Me Start By Saying says
LOVE the red. I finally broke down (um, a few dozen people yelled at me on Twitter for being a sissy) and went for it. It felt pretty great. I love being 37 and pale and having no reason to “need” ed lipstick but putting it on anyway.
Go us!
Kim at Let Me Start By Saying recently posted..How to Make Homemade Play Dough in 47 Easy Steps
Angela says
it looks great! how does it feel?
Robin says
Permenanf??? Kidding. It’s not super dry like ones I’ve tried before.
Arden Elizabeth says
Excuse me but… I AM SO CONFUSED IN ALL THE WAYS BECAUSE HAVE I TAUGHT YOU NOTHING AKA LIPSTICK MAKES EVERYTHING BETTER.
Wait. It seems you actually learned it.
Finally.
Arden Elizabeth recently posted..Make Up Monday Plus My Week-In-Review
Erin says
I swore this past September that I was turning 33, but it turns out I’m only 32. It felt like the night you turn the clock back and gain an extra hour of sleep.
Love the lipstick! I haven’t worn real lipstick since sometime in high school – I can’t wear any kind of makeup without breaking out into a full face of acne, and lipstick on its own looks a little odd on me. But you’ve inspired me to be a semi-grownup and maybe graduate to some kind of tinted gloss!
Erin recently posted..Speechless
Carrie says
Let me tell you…the older you get the better you get and the braver you get and the funnier you get and the more beautiful you get and the less worrisome you get.
And you wear the lipstick. Whatever shade YOU choose. Because it’s all about you.
I’m 44 and I can’t tell you how much more I like myself and how much more I appreciate myself.
Even when nobody else does.
Happy birthday….whichever one it is! Hope it’s your best yet!
Carrie recently posted..I need better signs than what I get now from life even though I probably wouldn’t listen to those better signs anymore than I listen to the not-better signs now.
Sharon Greenthal says
You look so good in that red lipstick! Where it all the time.
Sharon Greenthal recently posted..Why Our Stuff Matters
Sharon Greenthal says
DAYum I meant “wear.” Time to get off the computer
Sharon Greenthal recently posted..Why Our Stuff Matters
Nikki says
That lipstick looks AMAZING on you. And it doesn’t come off? I’m going to need some of that!
Heather Holter says
That is so funny. I’m 37 and never wear lipstick. Always tinted lipgloss or chapstick. 2 Christmases ago, when I was 35 I wore burgandy lip stain and EVERYONE made fun of me! EVERYONE! I wish I had read this back then so I could have said “I’m a grown ass lady and I’ll wear burgandy lip stain if I want too. Maybe I’ll try that this year!
WhenCrazyMeetsExhaustion says
Wear the hell outta that red, Mama! And happy early birthday! (I just turned 32. or 33…)
Melanie says
You are rockin’ the ’30s and rockin’ that red!
Mandy Rose says
Ok hot mama…you look amazing! You can pull off the red like a pro! Miss you sweet friend and thanks for the shout out! XOXO
Mandy Rose recently posted..I did it!
Cecily says
LOVE. IT.
hollow tree ventures says
I love this – what a great idea! And you are rocking that red, lady. RAWR!
hollow tree ventures recently posted..I’m talking trash
Kelly Fox says
Well, I turned 40 this year so there was no forgetting that number. Regardless, I love, love, LOVE the red lipstick. I’m going to dig up mine for school pick up today. Thanks!
Jessica says
Saw your post on lipstick and it resonated with me, reminding me that I am a fabulous 35 yr old grown ass lady myself! Even went out and bought red lipstick! Thank you for your post….”I’m a grown ass lady”is my new favorite pick me up phrase for when I feel a little inadequate/insecure about doing something. And having my red lips on makes me feel like a million bucks!
Seriously. Thank. You!
Robin says
I’m so glad I encouraged you! Rock that lipstick Gurl!