Reflections on entering my 30s...

Okay, so I have awhile longer before I actually turn thirty. Less than a year but more than a few months. For some reason today I just realized how old I am. The last few weeks a culmination of things have led up to this feeling. Part of it has to do with having a daughter. "My daughter", it still sounds weird to me to say that. Having a child completely changes your outlook on everything. It changes who you are-there is no doubt about it. Your priorities are turned upside down in a matter of days. Ask any stay-at-home mom and she will tell you that a whole day can pass by and she will not have looked in the mirror even once. This can result in some pretty interesting situations. Leaving the house with food in your hair, or spit up on your pants, not realizing you have spent an entire day with poo on the front of your white t-shirt.

In one of my passings of a reflective surface the other day I noticed what looked like a shadow underneath my nose, just above my lip. Strange, I thought. must be some food or make-up from our date night three weeks ago. I'll rub that off later. And then I was actually spending some rare time putting make-up on to go out to dinner with some girlfriends when I noticed it again. Seriously?!? No way, I can not have a mustache!? really, God? I'm going to be 30 not 60! First, I call my friend Kristin. The conversation goes something like this. Me, "So, have you noticed anything strange on my face lately?" Kristin, "ummm what?" Me, "Have you noticed that I have a mustache??" Kristin, "seriously? no I don't think so. But everyone waxes their upper lip. you should do it too." hmmmm... Then, I make the most henious mistake ever. I ask my husband if he sees my mustache. DON'T DO THIS. take my advice on this. NEVER ask your husband about facial hair or to tell you a detailed description of what it looked like while you gave birth. You don't want the real answer to either of those questions. Anyway, I already knew the answer and knew I needed to do something about it and fast.

So I got a haircut. That's right, a haircut. I brought 3 different pictures to my stylist of Katie Holmes. Katie, with her cropped layered glossy hair, walking through LA in over sized sunglasses and trench coat with Suri on her hip. She looks so chic being a mom...she's 30 something right?? Well, the hairstyle doesn't really look the same when you wear running shorts with old college t-shirts and no make-up every day. I ended up looking more like Kate than Katie. Kate from Jon and Kate plus 8...with a mustache. And then to top off my week I showed up to church wearing the exact same dress as my mother-in-law. Yes, Margaret, Grandma and mommy shop at the same stores. It really isn't as bad as it sounds. My mother-in-law happens to be very hip and stylish. But this just solidified the fact that I am older; my priorities have changed as have my hair growth patterns.

The up side to all of this is that becoming a mom (for the non-celebrity set) makes vanity go out the window. It is really freeing actually. At first you are just too damn tired to care what you look like and then eventually you really don't care. As my friend Brooke put it, "There is so much I would rather do during nap time than shower!" And that's the truth.

Elsie Grace

Psalm 145:8

"The Lord is gracious and full of compassion...and His tender mercies are over all His works."

I want to dedicate today's post to sweet Elsie Grace. She is the beautiful 2 year old daughter of my dear friend Aimee. Elsie has been diagnosed with supravalvular aortic stenosis. In the last few months I have learned so much from Aimee. Listening to her and witnessing her strength has in turn strengthened my faith. This morning Elsie is having open heart surgery. Please pray for her, for her doctors, for Aimee and Sumner and their families.

***7/30/10

update on Elsie

Her surgery was a success and the Waite family has returned home to Greenville. I spoke with Aimee this morning and they are getting settled at home and relaxing. Elsie was such a brave girl throughout their hospital stay. Please keep her and her family in your prayers as she continues to recover.

Summer Love

Margaret enjoying a Chilton County peach

Ahhh, sweet, sweet summer! This summer has been especially sweet for us. My blueberry bushes finally became fruitful, Margaret has been crawling and talking, We have spent long, lazy days at the pool and lake...and on and on. I have a lot to be thankful for. Although the heat in the southeast can be unbearable at times we get some of the best produce from our warm climate. Every Saturday that we are in town we have headed to the Pepper Place farmers market. Margaret loves to pick out the fruits and vegetables she will be eating in the upcoming week. So when we are out of town we all miss it. I recently discovered that Billy Angell, owner of the Oak Street Garden Shop has added an open air market to his shop. The market features fresh produce from local growers. So now if we miss a Saturday market we don't have to go without our local, fresh produce. They also carry Wright's Dairy cheeses! If you are in Crestline check them out.

The Ham and High

While in Montgomery I had the pleasure of checking out The Ham and High. It is a restaurant in the sustainable community Hampstead that serves farm fresh fare. It was amazing to say the least. I believe between the four of us that were there we tried almost everything on that nights menu. My favorite, the seared wild striped bass served with crowder peas and roasted potatoes. We had an opportunity to meet the restaurant's Chef, Jon Sanchez as well. From the "farm chic" decor (The design company that my friend Amanda works for designed the interior) to the thoughtful seasonal menu The Ham and High is not to be missed.

What it's about

This is the first official post on my blog. I literally just finished rocking sweet Margaret to sleep. It is one of the most precious moments of my day. There is nothing else on earth like watching your baby fall asleep in your arms. This was a beautiful ending to a wonderful weekend for me. I spent all day Saturday in Montgomery with 3 of my best friends who I don't get to spend nearly enough time with anymore. We ate, drank and laughed until our stomachs literally ached. On my drive home heading north on 65 I had some time to myself to think. I feel really blessed to have these women in my life and I pray that Margaret gets to experience friendships like these in her lifetime too. I am not sure exactly where this blog will go or even what it is for. I just plan on blogging about the things I am most passionate about. My faith, my family and friends, eating locally and naturally, raising my daughter, natural birth and breastfeeding (I hear the sighs of my friends who are thinking "more of this?!"), my post partum doula work, books and music and so on and so on. So, this first official blog is dedicated to sleeping babies, short stretches of highway and the friends who wait at the end of them, and to the stuff that makes life interesting.