I Have Real-life Friends | Heir to Blair

Girls Night In: Tacky sweaters & wine & cookies, oh my!

7 Dec posted by heirtoblair

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’tis the season, my friends. THE SEASON OF TACKY SWEATER PARTIES.

Starting in 2008 with my girlfriends from the-message-board-that-shall-not-be-named (Lord Boardamort? ::snort::), I host a Tacky Sweater/Cookie Exchange party at my house one night in December. We call dibs on appetizers, I supply the Two Buck Chuck, & the house is lit with twinkle lights & laughter. My sweater is pink with a fur collar, but that probably does not suprise you at this point.

Picture 6 Girls Night In: Tacky sweaters & wine & cookies, oh my!

The first year, it was so unseasonably warm that we threw open the windows & turned on the air conditioning. Girls from Charlotte & Wilmington came & we uncorked numerous bottles of wine & laughed at how Pami mixed up baking powder with baking soda. (note? the two are NOT the same) Girls wore feather boas & for an entire year, I cleaned up green & red tinsel from Lacey & Amanda’s “belts.”

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HeirtoBlair500x150 v41 Girls Night In: Tacky sweaters & wine & cookies, oh my!

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Filed Under: All about BA, Clever Girls Collective, holidays, I have real-life friends, Recipes, Sponsored, Suzie Homemaker

When life spills over & over & over.

6 Dec posted by heirtoblair

I’m having trouble writing.

Not because the thoughts aren’t there. They are there, spilling over madly because this blog is the capture of life & oh, life is being lived right now.

The up & down & GO GO GO! of life where I am sitting in conference rooms at 8:30am & shoving a sandwich in at my desk, prepping for the afternoon’s conference call. A new assignment that has me flattered & overwhelmed, determined to show the boss that yes! I can do this! The texting of insurance cards & jotting down ideas & making sure we have all the ingredients for dinner & no, Harrison, you cannot have a cookie for dinner.

The epic meltdown occurs & I’m standing there at the end of the day, shoes kicked off & button-down blouse still on & stirring boiling pasta. I look at him & close my eyes, taking deep breaths & trying out that 1-2-3 magic but on myself. He is maddeningly two & woke up this morning on a mission to test all the limits. A piece of me wants to throw up my hands in frustration, but I look back down at him & all I can do is wrap him up in my arms.

He’s here tonight. My friend Beth is not so lucky as her little boy Keegan went to Heaven today. Keegan, not three weeks older than my own little boy.

I am undone. Completely raw for the day in my stocking feet & a little boy who does not understand why his momma is hugging him instead of using the usual exasperated tones at dinnertime.

I put him in bed & pull the red & aqua cover to his chin & I think that I cannot handle Chicka Chicka Boom Boom one more time, but then I remember the momma’s who never got to read it, or who won’t get to read it. I wonder if it would be silly to ask God to maybe read Keegan Chicka Chicka Boom Boom one night, just to let him know we’re thinking of his momma’s heart? & so I pick up that board book, starting to show signs of wear after only a few months because it is loved so.

& my heart, showing signs of wear because it has loved so.

So yes, life is spilling over & I am left breathless & awkward in it’s path.

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Filed Under: Adult Club, All about BA, Fears, Finding Balance, I have real-life friends, Oh em gee, Things I didn't understand until I birthed a child, Toddlers eat your brains

Where I say thank you.

2 Dec posted by heirtoblair

From the bottom bits of my heart, THANK YOU.

Thank you for your sweet congratulations yesterday! You sure know how to make a girl blush & I’m just so sorry I haven’t been able to respond personally to everyone.

Thank you for following me over there, reading my words, & still hanging out with me here. I told the folks on Babble that my ~~readers~~ e-friends were the best & funniest & most loyal that you could ever find, & HOT DAMN, did y’all prove me right.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for sticking up for me & basically delivering the most epic troll beat-down I have seen in years. You basically rolled in the STFU Truck while I was supporting a buddy of mine’s shop opening, & I appreciate you stepping in my absence.

(Also? Thank you for keeping it classy & letting her look like the fool.)

As you may have seen on the Twitters, I discovered that the hurtful words were coming from a woman I previously thought as a friend. I suppose I could spin it into a TRUST NOBODY! conspiracy theory about meeting friends on the interwebs, but the truth of it all is that no matter what parenting choices you make, someone will disagree. Breast versus bottle, BabyWise vs Attachment Parenting, working mom versus stay at home mom. We’ve all seen the battles but we never suspect our friends having cruel thoughts about us, always hidden behind a smile or sweet Facebook note.

So my thoughts on the whole situation boil down to friendship, not parenting – as someone’s friend, you have the responsibility of protecting their heart. Plain & simple. If you think there is an outrageous wrong happening, then by all means speak up! But do it TO THEIR FACE, with honesty out on the table. If you must hide your thoughts behind anonymity & gossip, then it is probably not worth speaking. & if you feel that negatively towards a “friend?” You disagree so strongly with them? It probably means the friendship ain’t worth it, so you cut your losses & find someone that you love unconditionally.

The good news is that in these days, most “friendships” can be desolved by defriending on Facebook. ::snort::

By the way, did I say THANK YOU enough for all the awesomeness yesterday?

Real friends dress up in cocktail dresses & fascinators, then go buy hot dogs on the streets of New York City.

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Filed Under: All about BA, Babbling on Babble, FAIL, Guzzling the Haterade, I have real-life friends, Things that aren't perfect despite my best efforts, Toddler Times, Unpopular opinions

When silence breaks.

28 Nov posted by heirtoblair

There are moments in my life when I doubt. Not fleeting moments, but long moments. Months, years, entire seasons of my life that pass with a bruised heart. Nights of tears falling & I feel my heart pleading with each beat to where I physically ache in my throat & I wonder, “Where are you, God?” Hopes & dreams go unanswered & I hear silence. I lie awake & shake an angry fist to Heaven, knowing that I am unworthy of answered prayers, but oh God, how she deserves it. Above anyone else, please answer her prayers.

The silence is deafening & I begin to resent the silence, to grow weary of it & imagine that He must grow weary of my pleas. My heart puts conditional love on an unconditional promise & I wonder, have I been wrong all along?

oh, ye of little faith.

& then news comes, the kind of wonderful news that moves mountains & shakes the soul & I hear God whisper, “See?” & after all these years, I know. I know that my prayers did not fall upon deaf ears, that I did not plead in vain, & that miracles do happen. I let the tears & thankfulness fall free.

Filed Under: Adult Club, All about BA, Fears, Finding Balance, I have real-life friends, Life in General, Oh em gee, Oversharing Extraordinaire, Things that aren't perfect despite my best efforts

When you’re curious like Curious George… (Harrison’s 2nd birthday party!)

18 Oct posted by heirtoblair

Back when I first started planning Harrison’s second birthday party (you know, the day after his first birthday party), there was nothing greater in his heart than Curious George. Of course, Lightning McQueen & Simba came later, but the little curious monkey was our go-to for entertainment in both books & film for many months. So it only made sense for Curious George to be the inspiration for his birthday party. Red & yellow with splashes of aqua, mostly digging on monkeys & bananas rather than actually splashing George’s face everywhere.

Last year, I spent hours in the kitchen hand-making dips & pies when the Pillsbury sugar cookies were the first to disappear off the table. This year, I decided to cater to the toddlers by ordering $5.00 pizzas from Little Caesar’s & filling a bowl with goldfish. Harrison’s smallest guests sipped on watered-down apple juice while the parents enjoyed water. & of course, I did the ever-popular pigs n’ blankets – best part of the story was when I asked a grocery store worker where he kept his “little weiners.” That was awkward.

Cupcake toppers from the Etsy seller, ClassyAndSimple. As Harrison’s best gal has a serious peanut allergy, the cupcakes needed to be made from home. I mixed up a box yellow cake, then The Momma helped decorate them with cream cheese icing & sugar sprinkles. There is something wonderfully old school about homemade baked goods at a party, you know?

I’ve got a thing for paper lanterns. They just give a little “pop” to the decor, so we hung them from tree branches.

A lot of the details were handmade, either by me or people with far more talent. Like Erika from Bird E. Studios, who made the gorgeous pennant that will now go in Harry’s room. I made the rag wreath at night while we watched Mad Men & Vampire Diaries (I have a rather eclectic taste in entertainment), & sewed the poms to a red tablecloth on Thursday evening, along with whipping up the red checked backdrop for our “photo booth.”

This is a typical family photo with a two-year-old.

I purchased six yards of cotton gingham cloth, on sale for $1.97 per yard, then cut it in half & stitched the two halves together. I didn’t worry about hemming on the edges, but did fold over the top with a quick stitch to fit a rod or ribbon through that would hold it to the fence.

Harrison had a WONDERFUL time & was a fantastic host. Did I mention that he did not want to wear a shirt? Within thirty minutes of the party starting, Harry was shirtless & his friend Holden was dancing on the table. So basically, the party was amazing.