Aging Gracefully

How to embrace aging.   

For 23 years my husband and I worked with young people.  It's an absolutely wonderful way to keep you "young at heart"!  

But our move a few years ago changed things.  We went from a daily onslaught of 18 year olds to a regular dose of 80 year olds.  Reality check. We moved 16 steps from my in-laws back door so I've gotten quite an education.....and if there's one thing I've learned - aging ain't for sissies. 

We just celebrated Mother's Day so I'll pay a little tribute to the moms in my life.  Both my mother and my mother-in-law have aged gracefully.   It's so inspiring.  My mom has accepted the hard things of life with amazing grace and trust in the God she loves who never fails, never leaves or forsakes.  She looks amazing, is in incredible shape and defies age (I hope I have her genes).  My mother in law is also a godly woman and is "going with the flow" as ongoing hard health issues constantly plague both she and her husband.  They're both beautiful inside and out and are accepting their age and their circumstances without bitterness.  I want to be numbered among them one day. 

But what I'm realizing is that now is the time time to prepare for growing old!

My sister, Janice, recently told me that if we want to be sweet old ladies when we're old we better be sweet ladies right now!

Unfortunately, our focus so often is on trying to turn back the clock instead of living in the present!  

One of the ways I think we lose this battle is trying to look 20 when we're 50.  A bad idea on so many levels!  Of course, keeping fit and healthy are important as we age to keep up our bone density and flexibility so that one day, u-hem Madeline:)....we can still play on the floor with our grandchildren

It saddens me that we hate aging as much as we do.  We spend so much time, energy and resources keeping ourselves looking young that we aren't really living and enjoying today.  On top of that, we spend too much time complaining about our looks instead of celebrating and being thankful for the lives we have.  More first world problems...and I'm included in this mess! 

But I want to celebrate and learn to love my crows feet, my fine lines or maybe even deep lines and not begrudge them.  It shows I've been around the block a bit and might have something to contribute...at least I hope so..... 

Of course things change - our bodies shift - our skin changes....and it's OK.  We just need to accept these changes and adjust to them.    

I'd like to suggest some ways that we can deal with our "celebration lines" in a positive, healthy way.

First in the list of importance is moisturizing.  Often we use products that strip the natural oils from our skin instead of protecting the cells we have.  Nourishing, revitalizing moisturizing skin care programs are vital for allowing our aging skin to naturally glow! 

So make sure your program is full of concentrated oils and essentials oils so that it doubles down on the hard work of keeping cells healthy.  

Our Luxury Skin Care Line is perfect for mature skin.  I truly believe you won't regret the switch.

Next up foundation.  Wearing foundation can start to become an issue as we age.  Foundation can settle into the fine lines of the face if we don't adjust our technics and products.  One way to be able to wear almost any type of foundation is to moisturize really well.  

I spray Step 2 - Hydrate on my face about three times and then pump twice with Step 3 - Moisturize.  I apply it all over my face and neck excluding the eyes because I still wear eyeliner and mascara. Then I top it with Loose Powder.  

I made a little video where you take these three products to make a DIY foundation in the palm of your hand!  It's a great way to moisturize and even out your skin tone without adding preservatives or extra weight.  It's saved in the highlights of our instagram under DIY Liquid Foundation.  

Then there's the choice of shades.  As we age our skin grows more pale and if we're still wearing matchy-matchy foundation it can actually make us look pasty!   It's a good idea to stick to a yellowish base when it comes to foundation.  It helps to bring warmth to the face.  A'del offers yellowish based shades in either Loose or Cream.

   

For Loose Powder Foundation look for the shades: Golden Fair, Sand and Golden Beige

For Cream Foundation look for the shades: Light Sand, Sand and Dark Sand.

What to do about blush?  Blush placed in the right spot can make a difference when gravity is pulling everything down.  

Applying blush where we used to when we were 20, starting at the cheek bone and moving to the ear, will draw attention to trouble spots.  Try a little color right on the cheekbones instead of in the hollow of the cheek.  It helps to lift the face instead of drag it down. 

Lip color is also really important because as we age our lips fade in intensity.  And application is key because applying a lipstick tube directly to our lips can cause the excess to migrate into the fine lines surrounding the lips.  

Use a lip brush instead to apply your lipstick so that less is applied at a time then work to the outer corners.  And don't be afraid of brighter colors.  Just make sure you use moisturizing lip stick products that are sheer and not matte.  

Cherry Pop is a great choice as well as our Whipped Gloss, Rosie.

And if you're 20ish right now and reading this, simply pass this little post on to the "older" women in your life and go easy on them...one day you'll be there too!