Sunday, February 22, 2009

Painting Easter Eggs...

Oh, wait. I mean paint and Easter eggs.

Well, not really Easter eggs. Just eggs.

Oh, let me explain.

When I knew that we would be moving into a new home in Nashville, TN, I secretly began to dread the thought of painting a new home. Or, maybe not so secretly. Pretty much every one knows I abhor painting.

But I wasn't even excited about picking out paint colors, even if I could convince Jim that we should hire a professional painter.

Then, I stumbled across The Nester, and found this gem of a post. My worries were over.

We couldn't get Tobacco Road matched, but we used SW Blonde, which is pretty darn close, for the kitchen, dining, and guest rooms. We selected, at The Nester's good word, Svelte Sage for the living room. And we trusted Emily's choice of Oyster Bay, though I'll admit we went up (over?) one shade on the paint swatch, for our master bed and bath. We love all the rooms, and The Nester became a proven decorating maven in my book at that point.

So, there's her intro. I love her.

Two weeks ago, she posted news about the fabulous L. Herbert Designs that she's showcased in her beautiful home before. But not just news -- a giveaway.

And I won.

I am SO excited about this. I have a vision for them -- right above our garden tub. The big space is just dying for something this classy and fun and sophisticated.

I'm one lucky duck. Or bird, as the case may be. =)

Thank you, Nester. You rock!

Friday, February 20, 2009

Fancy Feet

One of the perks of BlissDom'09 that I haven't told you about is some of the fabulous swag that we got. With sponsors like Disney, Little Debbie, and Lands End, I knew it'd be good.




One of the surprises in our swag bag was a Crocs gift certificate.




My first exposure to Crocs was in 2004, in California, where my dear friend Melissa sported the original classic in orange. Melissa is one of the coolest people I've ever known, and therefore, Crocs were cool, in my book.




I balked at the price tag, though, and never gave in to the hype.




Then, this past Christmas, I received these Mammoths as a gift.








Love. Them.




So, when I saw the gift certificate for $50 worth of Crocs merchandise in my BlissDom swag bag, you better believe I booked it to their website to pick me out a new pair.




Okay, I didn't exactly "book it." I waited a couple weeks until I stumbled across the paper in the bottom of my day timer.




But still.




Look what my swollen, pregnancy-ballooned tootsies will be sporting this summer:






How cute are those? And seriously, if you, too, are still holding out on your first pair of Crocs, let me tell you, they are as comfy as you've probably heard, and, I'm now convinced, worth the money. (PS -- the Mammoths are on sale right now. All you northerners, rumor has it more snow is on the way this weekend, so now is your chance to snatch up a pair!)

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Better than the last

Updated: I changed the privacy settings on Vimeo, so you should be able to access the site now.

Although necessary, I know the last video I made y'all watch was a little sobering.

I promise, this one is WAY funnier.

This is Jim's solution for Seth's too-big wardrobe.

Enjoy.

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

If you're a mommy, please watch

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2DVfqFhseo

We go back and forth right now between the carrier and the convertible seats, but I'm thinking maybe we need to install the convertible rear-facing for a while longer.

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

BlissDom '09: Part II

They didn't really stress the "why" of this, but they definitely did stress: "buy your domain."

So I did.

While you can still find me at http://writerchicnlawnboy.blogspot.com/, going forward, I'd rather you find me at....

Drum roll....

www.thewriterchic.com

I know, I know. Where'd Jim go? Rest assured, he's still as much a part of all this as ever, but let's be honest....it was a loooong name.

I'm still publishing through blogger.com, so the look of Writer Chic will remain unchanged, but I have the simplicity and professionalism of a dot com now. Go, me!

And on a housekeeping note, if you are a follower of my blog or if you have it bookmarked on your desktop, can you please change it to www.thewriterchic.com? I'd love for any further links or references to take any new readers to the new address. Thanks!

Monday, February 9, 2009

BlissDom '09 Recap: Part I

Did y'all remember that I was away this last weekend?

I was at BlissDom '09.

A blogging conference that I touted as a "writers conference." But now that I'm on the flip-side of it, I'm don't feel that "writers conference" is as much of a fib as I'd thought. I think that what I learned in the two days spent at Hotel Preston will make me a better writer.

I plan to blog this week about what I took away from the conference. There will be some changes coming to WriterChicNLawnBoy, in both look and in name. And I have a bunch of new blogs to share with you.

But for now, the first thing I'm going to leave with you is the BEST quote of the weekend, in my opinion.

In one of the sessions I attended, Melissa Michaels of The Inspired Room shared with us an experience she had with some negative reader feedback. During a necessary and not-all-that-intentional bloggy break, a reader left Melissa a comment regarding why she wasn't "getting on with it, already." (Meaning, why aren't you posting more?) First of all, can you imagine the gall? Second, how rude! And third, I LOVED it, because, well....I've been feeling the pressure of "getting on with it, already" since we've been here in Tennessee.

No one has hounded me to write more, post more pictures of Seth, or put up pictures of the new house. It has all been a self-imposed pressure to show you all that life here in the South is fine.

But to be honest, I'm tired. This pregnancy, while healthy thus far, is kicking my butt. Big time. I'm not sleeping well. Most nights I'm on the couch rather than in bed. I'm constantly nauseated. Thank God that Jim is so patient, because my culinary skills have fallen to demanding french toast post haste the minute he walks in the door. (Too bad it only lasted about an hour -- what a waste of a super yummy dinner!) I'm bone weary. My body already aches from shoulder to hip and it takes most of my energy to keep Seth happy all the live-long day.

So, is my pregnancy an excuse right now? You betcha. It is why I'm not "getting on with it, already." The "IT" being blogging more, posting (or taking, for that matter) more photos, unpacking the final dozen boxes.....

And I learned -- or rather, had it validated -- this weekend that it's OKAY that I'm not. My life comes first -- and right now, staying healthy for this baby trumps all else. As Melissa explained to us that she responded to her impatient, irrational reader, her blog posting doesn't rule her life. Her LIFE fuels her blog posting.

So even though I take WriterChic seriously and want it to be an integral part of my daily life and our family diaring (is that a word?), it needs to fit where I have room. And I haven't (had room).

And it felt really good to hear this weekend that that's okay.

I realize that this is a horribly written post. And maybe it makes sense to only me. But you know what else I learned this weekend? That writing for me, and not necessarily the reader, is okay, too. But that's a post for another day.

And on a completely unrelated note, thank you all for your well wishes on Friday's post. It feels so good to finally have our news be public. Hope you are all ready to take this itty bitty journey with us!

Friday, February 6, 2009

Labor Day

Labor Day was always kind of a non-event in our family. I mean, it was a day off work and/or school, but I don't ever remember really celebrating it in picnic/barbecue fashion.

Once I was college age, Labor Day was just a day spent going through registration, purchasing books, and settling into a too-small dorm room with two or three strangers.

Last year, we had a really enjoyable Labor Day picnic with some of our dearest friends (hi Jay and Andrea!!!) at their lakeside campground, eating ribs and holy-cow-these-are-hot jalapeno poppers, and roasting s'mores. To date, it was the best Labor Day on record.

But something tells me that this year will cruise into the winners' circle with the in-the-flesh arrival of this little itty bitty, on or around September 5th.

It is with great pleasure and no small amount of relief that Jim and Ifinally introduce you to our 5th child, currently about 10 weeks gestation. S/he has a beautiful heartbeat of 185 beats per minute, and looks "perfect," according to the ultrasound technician.


His/her head is at the bottom right, and looking right to left, you see the left arm ("holding" the yolk sac), the belly, and the left leg
I will post more about this pregnancy -- how I found out, how I told Jim, how I'm been feeling. But for now, merely rejoice with us over our newest blessing.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Today's blog, brought to you by the letter "M"

I have several "real" (read: actual content) blog posts in the works, but they're not ready to publish.

So, Christy was nice enough to assign me a letter for a little midweek meme. She gave me "Z" to begin with, buttering me up with the compliment that I'm "creative enough to come up with some great things," but then she came to her senses and let me work with "M."

So, here we go. 10 things I love that being with the letter "M," in no particular order:

Maternity clothes. They are comfy and styles today are super cute.

Monday night TV. Jim and I got suckered into One Tree Hill after Seth was born last winter, and besides The Office, it's the one show we faithfully watch together very week. Sometimes, I think Seth's first full sentence is going to be "what's under the clothes, Brooke Davis?"

My Best Friend's Wedding. I love Julia Roberts' movies, and this is one of my favorites. I love the concept of the story plot, and the soundtrack to the movie is really good, too.

Maraschino cherries. I could eat them right out of the jar.

Macaroons. I went through most of my life thinking I didn't like coconut. Oh, how sad. Once I discovered the combination of dark chocolate and coconut....heaven!

Matte photography. I do NOT like glossy prints. Yuck.

Macaroni and cheese. I like all kinds: gourmet and blue box. It's probably my number one comfort food.

Massage therapy. It's not something I do regularly enough -- it's expensive! But I LOVE getting a massage -- especially reflexology, where they just focus on hands and feet.

Mustangs. As in Ford. My first car was a white, '97 Mustang, when I was in college. Nothing better than cruising along the gulf coast with my best girls, Sonic limeades in the cup holders and wind blowing through our hair.

Marriage. I'm SO glad my days of being single and dating are over.

If you want to play, I'd be happy to assign you a letter, too!