There's red, and then there's RED!

I've been missing my grandfather lately.  He was a rough and tough man, but there were the little quirky things he said and did to let me know that I was loved, even if he couldn't/wouldn't say so.  This photo is now several years old, but I wanted to post it, because it is the best illustration I have of the thought I am pondering today.

In this photo is myself (in the blue), my cousin (in the brown) and my sister (the only woman left).  We're in the shade, so our hair color isn't true to life.  But my cousin Lauren has RED hair.  The kind of red that makes you pause and watch her when she walks by.  It's stunning.  I have a much lighter shade of red (my dad says strawberry blond).

Opa (what we called my grandfather) would often call Lauren "Red".  Every once in a while, he'd use the nickname for me also, but never when the two of us were together.  If anyone gets to claim that title, it's Lauren!

Anyway, over the last few months, my husband has been very cute, in letting me see what would happen if he were to grow his hair a little longer.  It's a little messy, but I love it.  He's endured a bit of ribbing from the guys at work, but keeps it that way because I think he looks so darn good.

During a hair discussion one afternoon, he asked me what I would think about going "Lauren red".  First off, I have to make clear that I have never dyed my hair--not even highlights.  So, the prospect of changing my hair color makes me nervous. 

While I absolutely love Lauren's hair (and have often been jealous of it), the thought of trying my hand at being a RED head gives me pause.  Do I try it because Bob wants to see what it looks like?  I guess in the back of my mind, my biggest fear is that I will come out of the experience with hair resembling the color of Twizzlers.  While I'm a candy fiend, and don't want to look like it!

My heart is always to please my husband, so I may just need to put my nerves aside and go for it.  But, if over the next few weeks you see me and the hair color didn't come out quite right, remember that I did it for love, and not for vanity.