Recapturing my inner girly girl.

Over the past couple of weeks, I've begun to notice something strange. After 40-odd years of being a female, it appears I lost my inner girly girl.
Strange? Perhaps. I've never been the sort of girl who spends hundreds of dollars on shoes every month, but I've still always enjoyed playing with  makeup and trying a new perfume. You know, the sort of activity that would drive many men into the ground from horror.

This weekend I had the privilege of sharing in my sister-in-law's wedding and several events leading up to the wedding. During the course of these events, I was able to spend some fun time with her lovely friends and fellow bridesmaids. We had a blast.

However, it was during this time I realized my femininity had taken a sharp nosedive. Now, don't get the wrong idea. I still look very much female. However, after living in a house with 3 males of the species for the past twelve years, I realized I'd lost some of my feminine touches. I guess, somewhere along the way, I've become more knowledgeable about Halo and Call of Duty than false eyelashes.

By the way, for the wedding, I got to try false eyelashes for the first time. What first appeared to be a tortuous web of someone's else's hair on my face ended up making me gawk at myself in the salon mirror. Did you know false eyelashes make one resemble a sex goddess? I couldn't believe the improvement. I wanted to bat my lashes at everyone, even the priest.

And just spending time at a salon, getting my makeup done by a professional, and having a stylist twist my straight locks into an elegant side bun I will never achieve on my own, was the ultimate in pampering. I loved every moment: sipping mimosas, discussing nail color and watching the other women transform from lovely moms into va-va-voom beauties!  The whole process fed my soul in a way I still don't quite understand.

I bought a new red lipstick, a $20 lipstick, thank you very much. I was tricked out in black patent heels that killed my feet but made me feel like Heidi Klum. And I got to dance in a pretty new LBD. Not only did the wedding allow me to share in family joy, it allowed me to recapture my girly girl, and it felt good. When did I stop wearing heels? When did I forget that sometimes it's worth it to splurge on myself? I'm not sure. Some of it has to do with being a responsible mom, but even moms need some little luxuries every so often.

My hubby seemed to appreciate the transformation, judging from some of his flirty comments. That felt good, too. I don't know if I'll ever get those false eyelashes on for myself again, but that lipstick and those heels will definitely make another appearance one of these days. And I'll be very excited to witness their return.

So if you haven't let your girly girl out in a while, go on. Let her loose. It's good for the soul.