It had been a particularly difficult night, with your sister waking up several times every couple of hours. I received little rest, as I got up each time to help get her back to sleep. So by the time Mommy left for work around 6:15 AM, I collapsed on the couch in the living room, as I trusted you to take care of your sister while I was out of commission.
When I woke up about an hour later, I was delighted to see that, in your creativity, you took it upon yourself to transform an Amazon shipping box in to a couple of helmets for both you and your sister to wear, in the boat you also constructed from the same box.
I am always so proud to see you take initiative to lead your sister in fun activities, which require no direction from me or Mommy. It’s important that you figure out on your own what to do with your time, without needing me as your entertainment supervisor all the time.
The look on your sister’s face, too, is just priceless. She obviously didn’t quite understand why the two of you had box helmets, but she gladly went along with it; just like the day before when the box actually arrived:
You convinced your sister to walk back and forth from the far end of the living room, to the far end of the kitchen, with both of your heads in the box. For good reason, it reminded me of the kind of horse costume where it takes two people to walk; one in the front and one in the back.
I’m just glad that because of your creativity with a shipping box, I was able to catch a solid hour of sleep, while getting confirmation you’re old enough to take care of your sister with your sleeping dad on the couch.
With my daughter turning 2 years old in April, I figured it would be a good idea to share the “gift search experience” with anyone else out there who is also deciding what to get a 2 year-old little girl they know. Perhaps you’ve been invited to a birthday party, or are just looking to send a gift to whoever the little girl is that you know. Either way, I hope to help you in deciding what to get her.
My wife helped me out with this, by giving me links to gifts that she has either already bought our daughter, or is considering buying.
Unless you happen to be the parent of an almost 2 year-old daughter in 2018, like my wife and I are, it can be difficult to figure out just where the child’s development level and interest skills are, in relation to an appropriate gift; one that will not be too much too soon, or too little too late.
So today, I share these with you, in hopes I make your life a little bit easier. Remember, all you have to do is just click the link to the gift idea, and you’ll get straight to the product on Amazon to learn more; and to potentially purchase it right there.
Thanks for checking out my blog today. Good luck on your search for that special almost 2 year-old little girl in your life. If nothing else, you might stumble upon the perfect gift once you get to Amazon from one of my links.
In case you’re planning on watching me attempt to find my doppelganger on that Campbell’s Go soup package on the new Lifetime show, “This Time Next Year”, please note that the network has changed the date of my episode:
It will no longer be airing on February 20th, as The Olympics would serve as direct competition to viewership. Therefore, I am currently waiting to hear from The Lifetime Network on when the official new air date will be. Stay tuned to my blog, as you can imagine I will immediately advertise the new date of Episode 6 of “This Time Next Year”.
I predict the soonest that the new air date would be is March 7th. I know for a fact that my episode has not been delayed by only one week, as Lifetime’s schedule onlineshows that Married at First Sight will be airing February 27th, which is the week after the date my episode was supposed to air originally.
My episode is the season finale of Season 1 of “This Time Next Year”. So while mine is the last to air, I am grateful Lifetime made the executive decision to change the original air date to make sure it doesn’t get overshadowed by the Olympics.
I am so excited to be able to share my experience with everyone in America. Just imagine what it would be like if you had one year to find and meet your doppelganger. Imagine what it would take and what it would be like if you actually accomplished your mission.
And of course, the whole journey is documented over the course of that year.
If nothing else, hey, I got to meet celebrity host Cat Deely!
I suppose once I see the official description of my episode of Lifetime’s website, the new air date will be confirmed. You better believe l will share it here on my blog.
I assume an explanation is in order, for those of you who know me as Nick Shell, the daddy blogger. It’s just that in another corner of the Internet, I am known as Nick Shell, the hair loss guy. I have quietly gathered over 3200 subscribers on one of my YouTube channels dedicated to this topic; that’s nearly 3 times people who like Family Friendly Daddy Blog’s page on Facebook.
Therefore, it’s clear that I hold value as a spokesman to younger men who are concerned with the first signs of hair loss. Of course, when people hear about my alter-ego as “The Hair Loss Guy”, their response is, “Wait, you? You still have a full head of hair, don’t you?”
Exactly. Well, like many 36 year-old men who are mainly of European descent who still have most of their hair, I also have some slight, yet largely unnoticeable receding and thinning.
I couldn’t have planned it this way, but around the time I started noticing these signs getting worse, I coincidently made some changes in my life, that arguably, have made some progress in slowing down, stopping, or possibly even reversing hair loss.
Because I’ve had people constantly asking me about this on my YouTube channel, I figured it would be a good idea to write a blog post on it too, as I am now noticing that the few times I have written about hair loss, those posts have ended up becoming some of the most consistently popular articles here on this blog.
So what are the 5 main reasons I believe I still have this much hair, when I assumed during my teen years and my 20s that I would be bald by age 35?
I technically have a decent amount of Asian DNA.
One of my theories on hair loss is that Asian men in general are less likely to go bald, but they’re also less likely to grow a good beard. (Meanwhile, in general, most men of European descent are more likely to grow thick body hair but are more likely to go bald young.)
Because of my Mexican grandmother, the MyHeritage DNA test I took shows that I am 21.6% Central American. That would indicate my ancestors who were likely Mayan, Incan, Aztec, etc. In other words, they were Native American, in modern day Mexico.
To me, it’s common knowledge that Native Americans descended from Asian, thousands of years ago, when they crossed the Bering Strait. My mom’s 3 brothers, all who are “half-Mexican”, still have all their hair, despite being in their late 50s and early 60s.
Therefore, I believe that having nearly a quarter of ancient Asian DNA has helped slow down my hair loss, compared to had I been born with only European DNA.
In case you’re curious in finding out your own ethnic background, like I did, here’s a link to the same test I took: MyHeritage DNA test.
I apply a mixture of Rosemary and Argan Oil on my hair each night.
After learning about a report that apparently showed how men who regularly applied Rosemary oil on their scalp had similar results to men who used Minoxidil instead, I decided to prove the report to be either right or wrong.
Since Christmas Day 2016, I have been faithfully applying a certain mixture of essential oils on my scalp before I go to bed each night. The general consensus among most of my YouTube subscribers is that the oil is working, especially in comparison to videos I did before I began applying it. Here’s an example:
I only use all natural shampoo, which also contains the same oils that I apply each night.
While I’m not faithful to a certain brand, I faithfully only use shampoo that specifically does not contain all those weird chemicals found in mainstream brands. By default, the shampoo I use contains the same mix of essential oils that I apply each night.
And in case you’re interested in trying out some shampoo that contains some of the oils I use everyday, here’s a link to Amazon.
I am a vegan.
Let’s face it: I’m probably one of the few, if not only, male vegans you’ve ever heard of. With now 6% of the American population being vegan, still only the minority of vegans are men. But what gives my vegan lifestyle more value when it comes to potentially preventing hair loss is the fact I’ve been a vegan so long: March 6, 2018 makes 5 entire years.
I don’t consume hormones like estrogen and testosterone from other animals since I don’t eat any animal products. Testosterone is linked to DHT. Some men are more sensitive to DHT, which is linked to hair loss. Therefore, since I am consuming zero testosterone, only producing my own, it is possible that my vegan lifestyle helps prevent further hair loss.
I have the right hairstyle.
There are definitely hairstyles which help downplay a receding hairline, without completely hiding it. I typically keep my hair short on the sides and back, and around 2.5 inches on top. I don’t comb my hair back, nor do I comb it forward.
I can’t say for certain that any of these 5 things truly prevent hair loss. However, I can’t say for certain they don’t. To me, it’s all just an experiment- and I am no professional, for sure.
The irony in all this is that I truly don’t care if I actually go bald. I am a person with a healthy self-esteem and a great understanding of my identity. I do not require hair to be happy, confident, or successful.
However, I do recognize that thousands of younger men rely on me to help them find ways to deal with their hair loss. So that is the reason I continue to be spokesman for hair loss when I myself still have most of my hair.
I hope you found this article to be helpful. To get a daily dose of my hair loss help, I officially invite you to check out my hair loss channel of YouTube:
I guess I am learning that every Valentine’s Day at our house is like a “mini” Christmas morning. And speaking of Minnie, she was part of your gifts from Mommy and me:
Pilot Minnie, which includes a pink purse and a pink suitcase.
It is my assumption that little girls your age are equally obsessed with Minnie Mouse and Elmo, with the same mania that teenage girls went crazy over Elvis in the 1950s or The Beatles in the 1960s.
Here is how I perceive things with you right now:
It’s as if Minnie Mouse is your best friend and you want to be just like her. So it’s no surprise to me that yesterday, you clutched her tightly in your hand for both your morning nap and for bed at night. It was like a sleepover.
You just think Minnie Mouse is the coolest girl ever!
And as for Elmo, well… I’m starting to think he’s more than just a friend.
Each time I read you the Little Golden Book, Elmo Loves You, and finish the last page, with a big smile on your face, you lean down and kiss Elmo right on the face: “Mmmmmwhah!”
It’s not like anyone gave you this idea. You just immediately did this the first time, and every time, I have read you the book.
Mommy and I have learned to be careful about even saying Elmo’s name in front you. Because often when we do, you get caught in a trance:
At that point, I have to either give in, and take you upstairs and let you watch one of your Elmo DVDs, or I have to find a clever way to distract your train of thought.
So yeah, I convinced: Minnie Mouse is your best friend and Elmo is your boyfriend.
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