Smiling through Life

Next week I will add another 20 something year, to my 20 somethingness. I'm not too worried about adding another year as I would be ridiculous to worry about being in my twenties. I've felt like an adult for a while now, getting married at a young age and accepting the responsibility that comes with that will do that to you. (And I wouldn't change anything about it!) I will admit that I have begun taking fish oil to help prevent any heart issues and getting blood work done to make sure everything is working the way it's supposed to. (So far so good…) I also work out and have a healthy diet, but these are just preventative measures so that when I am 50 I won't be in a hospital bed complaining of chest pain and told I'm prediabetic. There is one thing I have been slightly concerned with as adulthood has basically become official: Wrinkles. Yes even my young adult 20 something self, is concerned with wrinkles.‏

I have a small secret to admit to cyberspace and those who actually read my silly little blog. I’ve used under eye wrinkle cream since I turned 20. My tall, Dutch, nursing school, friend Alice was the one who got me started. She was talking about how she knew she would get wrinkles because her parents weren’t even that old, and the signs of the sun had creeped upon their faces. I wasn’t super concerned because my mom looks pretty darn good for her age, and my dad looks pretty good too. Still, I didn’t want to leave it all up to genetics, so I bought some eye cream and started using it religiously.

My little preventative winkle regimen isn't an exact science. Sometimes I will buy a generic brand, sometimes some Oil of Olay, once I used Garnier, or Kirkland brand. All of them pretty much have the

same ingredients, but for science’s sake I should have been more consistent.

As I approach my additional 20 something year, I have noticed that my anti wrinkle regimen has not worked. I have a few little lines starting to show under my eyes. This really isn't the biggest deal in the world, but I

mean, I'm supposed to have genetics plus my preventative creams on my side! I tagged teamed those wrinkle with my best ammo, and I’m still seeing the tell tale signs of aging.

I have come up with a list of possible reasons as to why I have some under eye wrinkles and the list is as follows: Make up, perhaps Bare Minerals isn't as amazing as it claims to be? SPF, maybe I should have listened to my mom and put on that extra coat of sunscreen? Or perhaps my circadian rhythm disorder from night shift nursing is getting to me? Maybe generic brands don't work? Maybe my parents passed on the nondominate wrinkle gene? There are endless possibilities.

The other night we went to dinner with my parents and brother for a pre birthday celebration for my mom and yours truly. I told my dad about my winkle predicament. Of course he knew just what to say, "It's because you are smiling your way through life!" He was half kidding, but I like the idea of my smile wrinkles, and I'm going to roll with it. I'll still use my various eye creams, (because who knows maybe I would have more wrinkles?!) but I'm definitely not going to stop smiling. Bring it on wrinkles. Bring it on.