Now that Brooke started beauty school, she started her own blog too. Keep up with her on her new blog at http://nycbeautyschoolgirl.blogspot.com/

Stay tuned for a new blog here, coming soon!

Adventures of a New York Beauty School Girl

This blog comes to you from the other half of the Hunt clan today. Normally Alan would be writing to you on our behalf. However, there has been a big change in our lives that I'd like to tell you all about. I have decided to go back to school, but not in the traditional sense. As many of you know, I've wanted to be a hair stylist for a long time and on Tuesday (Feb 17th) I became a student at the Carsten Institute for Cosmetology here in NYC. It's an Aveda concept school, which means they use Aveda products and techniques (for the most part) but they are owned by a family. The owner, Carsten Wilms, is a world-renowned stylist who has developed his own cutting technique, which he created and mastered in France. So let me tell you how I came to make this decision.

When we lived in MN, I used to get my hair cut and styled by students at the Aveda Institute. I knew that there was an Aveda Institute in NYC so I called to make an apt. but they couldn't get me in so I was researching other beauty schools online and that's when I found Carsten.  I fell in love with the school the moment I walked in the place but at that point I didn't even considered becoming a student. I had sort of given up on that dream. But visiting Carsten stirred something in me and I started to think about becoming a stylist again. When I went to the school to get my hair done, I chatted with a student who was in the part-time night program. She worked full time and went to Carsten every night, Monday through Friday. No way would I EVER be able to have that kind of discipline. But she told me all about her life, and she had a very similar story as mine. When she started the program, her husband had just finished grad school. She worked full time and couldn't afford to quit her job to go to school. When I left that night, I really started to think that it was something I would be able to do. But I honestly couldn't imagine giving up all my free time for a year. When I got home, I talked to Alan, and instead of worrying about how much money it would cost or about how much time it would take, he told he that I should do it. He told me that he had a chance to follow his dream and go to grad school so I should follow mine and go to beauty school. My original plan was to start this fall so that I could enjoy the summer but I was getting so excited to start. There's no time like the present. So that brings us to today.

I just completed my first week and so far I am LOVING it. On the second day we were already doing hands-on work and cutting hair (on mannequins of course). It's very exhausting though, having to work during the day and go straight to school at night. I don't get home until 10:30. I am getting used to it, but it's going to be hard to keep this schedule up for a year. 

So, my plan for the future. Part of the reason why I'm doing this is because I have always wanted to be able to work for myself. I am not a fan of Corporate America and I'm much too antsy to sit in a cubical for the rest of my life. What I really want to do is be a freelance stylist focusing on the wedding industry. I would love to be a personal stylist for weddings. For my wedding, we had our hair and makeup artist come to us. It was such a good experience! I also plan to get my makeup license eventually, and I'd love to learn hair and lash extensions. I want to be a full-service stylist! My goal is to be able to be working but still be able to stay home with our kids. 

So, I'm going to continue to keep you all updated on my own blog, but I haven't set it up yet. Stay tuned for the url! 

xoxo

The Hunts go to Washington

This past weekend (1/30-2/1) we rented a car with Chad and Nicci

 and stayed in Washington DC. This visit was our first and was a wonderful experience. We were blessed to h

ave stayed with some friends of Nicci and Chad for the weekend. They live a short drive and train ride away from down town DC. We did most of our touring on Saturday but went down town on Sunday as well. I just wanted to post and let you guys know about the trip.

On Saturday we started the day off on a light note by touring the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. We didn't get to see everything in it but the exibits we veiwed were extraordinary. The exibit that I thought was intriguing was about Nazi Propaganda. It explained the environment, pysche, visual images that influenced all that happened in Nazi Germany. The other notable exibit was the Hall of Rememberance. Here is a description of this hall from ushmm.org. "Diffused sunlight illuminates the Hall as it passes through the translucent glass of a high, center skylight. The floor is red granite, spattered and cracked by natural fissures. Narrow openings on the side walls let in light." All of this sets a reflective atmosphere for visitors. It was very cool.

After lunch we visited the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Here we saw artifacts ranging from some of the first flying airplains to Neil and Buzz's re-entry capsul in which they returned from the moon in. It was a blast!

In the evening we set out on a mad rush to visit the White House, The Washington Monument, the Reflection Pool, and the Lincoln Memorial. Our visit to the closest point of the front of the White House was stopped short by DC police who were evacuating the area. While we were there we saw a lot of activity around an assembling motorcade in the driveway in front of the house. We are confident we saw one of Obama's cars (the one used in the Inuguration day parade). We can only speculate but we know they wouldn't have evacuated the area for the period of an hour just so the cleaning crew could leave. It was all very exciting.

My favorite part of the entire visit was the Lincoln Memorial. It was breath taking! We walked the length of the Reflection Pool to arrive at the Loncoln Memorial. The grandiosity of the structure was amazing! I was told that one of the big marble tiles on the first tier of the stairs marks the spot where Martin Luther King Jr. Gave his "I Have a Dream" speech. So as I approached that spot I watched for the marker. When I found it I steped onto it, turned around as if I were there to address the masses and said to myself "So this is what Martin Luther King saw that day.", and my eyes teared a little. It was the thought of what it must have been like back on that day in the 1963 combined with the weight of Obama becoming the President that promted to me to feel emotional. I thought of how proud I am of this country, my country, which ascribes to such liberties as Obama said during his Inagural speech, which are the reason ". . .why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath."

Visiting DC was a wonderful experience. I hope every person who lives in America can experience its beauty, history, and story.

Miss you all very much and love you all even more!

Love Alan and Brooke