2011 January | Heir to Blair

Marching for babies.

31 Jan posted by heirtoblair

& this weekend, I opened up the most beautiful picture – her three babies, swaddled in a row, snug in their shared crib. Finally home with their parents. Standing in a crowded ballroom in Nashville, I burst into tears of happiness, thanking God for this miracle. Born at 28 weeks gestation, these triplets fought long & hard in the NICU for 67 days. These babies are fighters. I am so proud of them & equally in awe of their parents.

Years ago, they may not have stood such a fighting chance. But thanks to the March of Dimes, my sweet “nieces” & “nephew” were welcomed to the world with the equipment & knowledge to help them succeed. & for that, I will walk on April 30, 2011 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

I don’t normally ask you for donations.

But if you have an extra dollar or two & would like to contribute, I am raising money for the March of Dimes in honor of Toby, Eleanor, & Callista. & I would so appreciate your support.

All you have to do is click the purple badge at the top right of your screen. It will take you to my March of Dimes page, where you will see that I am part of the Peanut Butter Jelly Time! team.

HeirtoBlair500x150 v41 Marching for babies.

17 Comments
Filed Under: I have real-life friends, Life in General

Travel doesn’t have to mean the death of a diet. I promise.

31 Jan posted by heirtoblair

Traveling while weight-watching is not easy. There’s airport food & restaurants & not knowing when/how/if you will eat on a regular basis. & if your food is provided, what will it be like? What if they serve hamburgers the entire time, or fast food on the road is the only option?

The good news – I got lucky with Blissdom this past weekend.

I accepted a water & small bag of pretzels on the plane as a snack. When I arrived at Opryland, I did a little wandering around on my own & settled into a pizzaria to have lunch & do some office work that I brought with me. I settled on a slice of cheese (thin crust) & a side salad – a big step for me because I am not one to grab a salad. I’m glad I did, though, because that evening’s supper meant a cheeseburger. umm, holy cheeseburger, Batman – the thing had TWO patties on it, so I took off one in absolute horror. Two patties? For real? No wonder America is fat.

The interesting thing about Blissdom was the food – it was tasty for the most part, but I think that for the first time in forever, I was served actual recommended portion sizes. & while I walked away satisfied, I didn’t walk away feeling like I needed a nap & an oil change.

It was nice. & a good learning exercise.

That whole “eating until you pop/clean your plate” thing is so over-rated & I am officially done with it.

I even got my fitness on at Blissdom with a power walk on Friday morning. Even though walking around that acres-huge hotel in 3-inch heels should count as a fitness regime. Seriously.

I didn’t lose any weight, but I didn’t gain. Which was pretty much my goal for being out of town for four days. p.s. my fat-size black work slacks are falling off of me & I’m down a belt-notch.

But I also have to say that seeing pictures of myself at Blissdom is making me so thankful that I’m back on McFatty Mondays. I managed to make it to Nashville with one suitcase, two carry-ons, & three chins.

What did you learn this week? Any new tips? Breakthroughs? I would love to hear them!

18 Comments
Filed Under: McFatty Monday

I’m a donkey & not ashamed.

25 Jan posted by heirtoblair

Here’s the thing: Not all of us are Secretariat right out of the Gate of Motherhood. Some of us are donkeys.

I should have known that I would be slow on the up-take when I asked the nurse to teach me how to push Harrison out. (You know, while I was supposed to be doing it.) The first most instinctive, primal part of motherhood & I couldn’t even wrap my head around that.

I still can’t decide whether I should have raised a red flag of DANGER ZONE! or a white flag of I GIVE THE EFF UP! about the first year of motherhood, but I think the important thing to say is that motherhood was not organic to me & I’ve finally decided that I’m not ashamed by it. Maybe I was too selfish or non-maternal or disillusioned by childhood dreams of motherhood. Maybe the guilty party is the postpartum depression. Maybe I’m just not a “baby” person. I’m pretty sure it’s d) all of the above.

But I had a hard time with swaddling. Comforting. Entertaining. Feeding. Pretty much everything in the book made me feel like a failure & I would pore over blogs & magazine articles for tips. I saw women that were seamlessly in love & in tune with motherhood. I compared them to my own dark cloud that seemed to settle over my life & wonder if I would ever get there. If I would ever “know” what my child’s cries meant when he felt like such a stranger to me. If I would ever act instinctively rather than talking myself through the motions.

A few weekends ago, I met up with BFF Carrie with Harrison in tow for brunch. While we sat, Harrison squirmed in the stroller & let out a “tssssss” sound. I quickly sifted through my bag & produced a sippy of apple juice, popping the lid. He grabbed for it & settled back into his seat. “How did you do that?” Carrie asked. Confused, I asked what she meant. “How did you know he wanted juice?” she clarified.

Donkey xing thumb 640 300x300 Im a donkey & not ashamed. It hit me – I just knew. I don’t know how. Obviously, Harrison isn’t talking yet. But I just knew that the squirm & the “tsss” sound meant juice. Organic, natural, instinctive motherhood. The way that I know when he needs a nap, or a snack, or his stuffed monkey. The way I know when discipline means a loving redirection or a stern warning, depending on the day. I am aware that he’ll change it all on me soon. But for now, I’m digging being on top of my Momma Game.

It just took me a little longer to get there.

36 Comments
Filed Under: All about BA, Fears, My kid hates me, Postpartum Depression, Things I didn't understand until I birthed a child, Things that aren't perfect despite my best efforts

How I know I’m more attached.

25 Jan posted by heirtoblair

The idea of leaving Harrison for four days is making me short of breath.

What was so easy to do last year suddenly feels monumental.

In typical dramatic fashion, I think I could saw off my right arm & not notice it as much as I’m going to miss that little fellow. Even when he head-butts me right in the eye socket.

22 Comments
Filed Under: Fears, Postpartum Depression, the uphill battle, Things I didn't understand until I birthed a child

So, you’re going to a blog conference?

24 Jan posted by heirtoblair

So in roughly forty-eight hours, I’ll be hopping on a plane to hit up Blissdom, the blogging conference in Nashville that I might have mentioned before. Maybe. Anywho, folks going to Blissdom have been worrying about what to wear, what to say, & whether or not anyone will like them. & I figured that since I went to BlogHer last August, I’m pretty much a wealth of blog conference knowledge & it would be a damn shame if I didn’t pass along some of my conference wisdom to any other nervous newbies.

1. Be sure to put your best face forward.