This weekend might not have actually been centered entirely around my shoulder – there were also birthday parties & dinners & running through thunderstorms too, after all – but it sure felt like it was!

Going down for my second appointment I was really excited, and a lot more prepared than the last time. I ate a huge lunch before hand, brought movies for distractions (Jurassic Park & Hot Fuzz), and instead of water I brought gatorade and a slurpee- anything with sugar to help keep my energy up. I sat for just over two hours for the outline, and I knew the colour would be longer but I had no idea how long I would be able to sit for. I wanted to get it finished though and while I’m definitely not brave, I have determination coming out of my ears.

We hadn’t talked about the colour at all up until that point, and I couldn’t wait to hear what Rich had in mind. We talked about the cherry blossoms starting pink and fading into white, and the branches being all different shades of greens. He recommended that we finish it in two sittings, but I asked if we could call it as we saw it, so we sat down and started.

I really surprised myself, because I was able to get it all done in one sitting! It took a little longer than I thought and I ended up sitting from 4:30 – 9:00! We took a few small breaks through the evening, but I was so proud of myself for being able to just ride it out. Between both appointments, it took seven hours for my shoulder to be finished. I think that means I should get a badge that says I’m Tough Stuff :)

The only downside was that I took a stronger version of Tylenol towards the end of the sitting (in Canada you can get over the counter Tylenol that has a little codeine in it) and discovered that sometimes codeine makes me sick! When I got home from the appointment I became extremely light headed and started feeling like I had the worst flu I’ve ever had in my life. Mister was a honey about it, but we had almost no sleep on Friday night, and I’ve felt pretty beat up all weekend trying to catch up.

Over all, I’m incredibly happy with the finished product. The colours are going to be much more faded when it heals, but I love how feminine it looks, and how the pink fades out to white in all the pedals. I can’t get over the shading in the branches, and I can’t wait to see it when it’s healed! I wanted to take some better, closer pictures, but the reality is I’m just too tired! I’m going to have a little photo shoot later this week for my June Six Months + Six Dresses post and I’ll show you more then.

I just love being finished something I’ve been waiting so long for :)