Hair Clips

Hi, everyone! Many of you have asked for handmade hair clips, so here they are. Great for all ages, as a hair accessory (may also be clipped onto a headband), clothing accessory, great as photo props, and makes a cute gift as well. Perfect for fancy days, chic for casual days.

*Please do not leave young children unattended with small objects - they can be a choking hazard*

Click on image to enlarge.

Single Flower:

Single Flower with Faux Pearls:

Flower Bow:

Flower Bow with Lace:

Flower Bunch:

These are the items that are available and ready to ship. If you would like a custom order, please e-mail me at Leics16@gmail.com. Turnaround time for special orders may take up to two weeks. Thank you!

First Haircut Since Chemo

I did it! After months of hesitation, I finally walked in a salon, sat on the chair and got my first trim since Chemotherapy. Prior to losing my hair, my last cut was at City of Hope. My hair started to fall out the day after I received my last round of chemo, so I called the hairdresser to my room and she chopped my hair off. I had a boy cut. Haha! I still remember that day like it was yesterday. I was crying so hard. I didn't want to cry. I wanted the lady to leave my room before I could start crying, but I couldn't hold my tears  back. They just started rolling down my cheeks. She said I still look beautiful, of course, that was a lie. She gave me a mirror and I cried even more when I saw myself. I'm sure you all are tired of me talking about my hair... blah...blah...blah. I went from having long hair to having none! So it is a big deal to me. But what is more important is that I am alive. God has given me a chance to become a better person. I'm grateful for everything He has done for me, for changing my heart and my priorities in life. He has given me more time. More time to be with my loving husband and my sweet daughter. I love them so much.

 The LORD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.  Exodus 15:2 

Before chemo:

8 months post chemo:

1 year, 3 months post chemo (got my hair trimmed today):

  

Family Picture

Here is our most recent family picture, taken by my sister, Viv, at a baby shower. My younger sister's baby shower, that is. She is having a boy and we are so excited to meet the little booger (what his mom calls him). His name is Nicholas and will be out of his mom's belly in a couple of weeks. Hooray, we finally have a boy in the family (other than the husbands and the dog... lol).

I am one year and three months post chemo.  I wear  my short hair on a side pony. Not too shabby.

Happy Birthday To Me

Well, it's not really my actual birthday, it's my bone marrow's 1st birthday. LOL. If you're new to my blog, I had a bone marrow transplant (I had Aplastic Anemia and Paroxysmal Nocturnal Hemoglobinuria) on May 24, 2011 at City of Hope in Duarte, CA. I can't believe it has been a year. My blood counts have been normal and I haven't had a transfusion since June 4, 2011. I'm glad those days are over with. I can't imagine getting transfusions every week, like I used to. That is why I'm so grateful to my donor, he really did save my life. Because of God and because of my donor, I'm alive and enjoying life with family and friends. I love my life. I appreciate everything and I don't take anything for granted, because I know how it feels to not be able to walk, I know how it feels to not be able to breathe, I know how it feels to be poked with a needle at least six times a week, I know how it feels to be disabled. I've learned so much from my experience and I'm glad that I'm here and able to share my story with family and friends. God is good, all the time. He always has a reason for everything that happens in our lives. God is much bigger than we are, if we just give everything to the Lord, He will take care of everything for us. When we surrender to God, joy and peace can be ours. 

Jeremiah 29:11-14 says, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity. 

Here I am, one year after chemo and transplant. My hair is getting longer. It's super curly, so I flat iron my bangs. My mom treated me out to dinner at Cheesecake Factory for my first birthday. Now, I have two birthdays. I feel so special =)

Happy 1st birthday to my bone marrow. May you live long and thrive!

Anniversary Dinner

Last Tuesday, May 1st, Raul and I celebrated our 2nd year wedding anniversary. It's so cool how things worked out for us. On May 1st, 2001, he asked me to be his girlfriend, I said, "yes." Eight years later, he asked me to be his wife. Of course I said, "yes." We got married on our ninth year together... May 1st, 2010 (which ended up being a Saturday... how perfect!). I thought it was pretty neat that we got married on the same date we started dating. So, we have one anniversary date. Yippee!

Anyway, last Tuesday for our anniversary, we had dinner at Roy's Hawaiian Fusion in Woodland Hills. The food was amazing. I loved everything we got. For appetizer, we got the Lobster California Roll. Raul had Lobster and Steak, while I had the Misoyaki Butterfish. The butterfish was a bit salty, but the texture was just perfect. We also got drinks, I got a virgin drink since I'm not allowed to have alcohol due to my meds. But the best part was dessert. Before I forget, I wanted to share that Danica got a free meal and dessert. We had a total of 3 desserts, but we only ordered one. What we paid for was the Chocolate Souffle, then we got a "Happy Anniversary" dessert, and Danica got ice cream on a chocolate mold. Of course, I didn't give it to her because she's too young. I don't want to introduce her to sweets yet, because I know she will like it. Haha! I'm very careful with what I feed her, too. She mostly eats chicken (white meat, preferably), veggies, eggs, fruits and dairies.

Alright, that's all for now. Happy anniversary, hun (if you're reading this)! I know you will. Can't wait for our New York trip! We'll have so much fun! Love you =)

P.S. - I'm almost a year post Bone Marrow Transplant. My hair is so curly, especially on the back. I flat ironed my bangs. Hehe. I can't wait until it gets longer. Cheers!

Self-Portrait

I took some photographs of myself yesterday. I am 10 months post chemo. My hair is growing like Lion King's hair. LOL. My cheeks are still uber chubby secondary to steroids. Hope I won't scare you away. Hehe...

Got a New 'Do

Hi, everyone! I dropped by the wig store near my Mom's house and bought a new wig. It's called a 3/4 wig. Basically, I just clip it from the crown of my head. I like it, so far. The best part is I get to wear my own bangs. The only thing is that my hair is like a dark brown but can pass as black. And they don't have a perfect match, so I got like a lighter black shade. That sounds weird... light black. Ok, I don't really know how to explain it, but it's not jet black. Here's a photo:

Hello there!

Just wanted to drop by for a quick hello! Raul and I are on our way to the Magpantay's for Poker night. Wish me luck ;)

I'm 8 months post chemo :)

More on Hair...

It's 11 pm and my husband caught me searching for more websites on hair growth after chemo. I am obsessed with my hair! Anyway, I want to share some tips on growing hair after chemo. Use sulfate-free products. Visit a hair specialty store, such as Planet Beauty or Naimie's, and ask for sulfate-free products. Do not go to a salon, because they will sell you expensive, brand name shampoos. Trust me, I've used Paul Mitchell and it made my hair very dry. Same thing with Enjoy. Kiehl's from Nordstrom is good, but I'm not sure if it's sulfate free. The one I'm currently using is made by DSLaboraties. I bought the shampoo for $27 at Planet Beauty. They also have the conditioner, but my wallet was running on "E" that day. Sales associates will also try to sell you supplements, but I don't think it's a good idea even if they say that they're all "natural." Because you just have gone through chemotherapy, you're body is immunosuppressed and you don't want to take something that is not prescribed by your doctor. Plus, if you're on at least 10 different medications like me, I'm sure you don't want to add to that list. My second advice is, don't use any gel or hair spray. Your new hair is very thin at first and you want to avoid breakage by not using products, such as gel. Take care of your baby hair like you would a baby's hair. Hahaha! Does that make sense? And here's my last advice, when you shampoo and condition your hair, massage your scalp gently. This stimulates hair growth. Hope this helps. Love the new "you" and be patient...

Happy 2012

It's a new year and I wish you all good health! I started the year by celebrating my parents' 35th wedding anniversary and surprising my husband with birthday cards and a new Calvin Klein (his favorite brand) shirt. Also, Danica is 11 months old today. Ahhhh... she's growing too fast!

Anyway, I got a lot of things done today. Celebrated Raul's birthday, ordered Danica's cake (can't wait to show you guys!), got groceries for the week, picked up Danica's birthday invites, cooked dinner... to make a long story short, I did it all and I am tired!

Let's switch to a different subject, shall we. I've been googling "post chemo hair" and found several sites where women posted pictures of their hair growth and blogged about their chemo experience. I thought it was a great idea and very brave of them to share their head shots online for others to view. Most of the sites I found are of women who went through chemotherapy due to breast cancer. I, on the other hand, did it in preparation for Bone Marrow Transplant. I received Fludarabine for 4 days and the 5th day I had Melphalan (the one that caused my hair to fall out and made me really sick). Basically, all my blood cells were killed using these Chemo drugs to make room for my donor's bone marrow cells.

I wish to contribute to the "post chemo hair" search on google. So, here goes.... Before chemo, I had long hair (past my shoulders). Any girl would agree that losing hair is the hardest part of going through chemo. When my doctor told me that I will lose my hair, I cried. And he said, "It's just hair, Leica, it will grow back." Well, to me, it's not "just hair" ... it's "my hair" ... "my long hair." I started growing peach fuzz about a month after chemo, then the following month it turned black (my natural color), but the growth was uneven. I had a bald spot on the front for a while. It wasn't until the fourth month when everything finally evened out and I decided to wear it in public without any wig or scarf. Yup, I got people staring at me because I looked like a boy with make-up on. I felt so ugly. Not only did I have super short hair, I was also fat due to steroids (Prednisone). I ran into a co-worker while doing some shopping and she said, "You look so... " and I said, "different?" .... she said, "wide." HAHA! Damn Prednisone!!! Back to my hair growth. I'm now seven months post chemo and my hair is longer. I've learned to like the new me. The new me is a stronger person, healthier, more outspoken, brave, energetic. I always tell people that I look different because I am a different person. I may not be attractive (and I'm not saying I used to look like J. Lo... HAHAHA), but I'm alive and enjoying life with my family and friends.

Post chemo hair growth is different for everyone. If the google search engine brought you here on my blog, you're lucky because I've decided to release some photos (HAHAHA). I hope you found my contribution helpful. Here's to give you an idea on how hair will grow after chemo:

5 months post chemo:

six months post chemo:

(with my Baby Danica and cousin Chelsea)

seven months post chemo:

before chemo:

So there you have it... I'm currently seven months post chemo and I have cute little curls on the back and the side. HAHA! As a new year's resolution, I will update my blog more often and take more pictures to share. If you haven't yet... follow me =)

Have a blessed 2012. LIVE, LOVE and LAUGH!

My Short Hair

So last Sunday after church service, Raul and I went to the Filipino store to buy food for the week. You would not believe the kind of stares I got from the people at the store. They looked so disgusted at me. Okay, so I decided to be myself and not wear my wig in public for the first time. I figured, I do look like a girl with make-up on and I have a pair of earrings on... so people shouldn't mistake me for a boy. Boy, was I wrong! I got all types of stares... I mean people were just straight out staring at me. One girl even asked her father if I was a girl or a boy (in front of me). I looked at her and told her, "I'm a girl." I was so irritated and mad, but she was maybe only 9 years old. People are so quick to judge. I ran out of the store with Danica. Sometimes I wonder what they think about when they see me (Filipino girl with post chemotherapy hair, tan), my husband (Honduran but looks like a white boy), Danica (light skinned, chinky eyes). To top things off, I look like a teenage mom.

I say... never judge a book by its cover! Everyone has a story to tell. Yes, I'll admit, my post chemo hair is not so attractive... but this is who I am and I just want to let you all know that even though I don't look my best, what's important is that I'm alive, happy and now also healthy.

P.S.
I hate going to Filipino stores =X
but I can't live without my food