Short and Sweet

Today’s post will be short and sweet.

We have friends visiting from St. Louis this weekend. They have two boys the same age as our boys so everyone is having a terrific time. My oldest son is getting another lesson on the great and popular topic of “sharing”. Some moments are better than others, but I fully expect him to grasp the concept by the age of 18.

I hope everyone has an amazing weekend and I’ll see you Monday!

Wait a Minute, Mr. Postman

We are so blessed. We recently moved into a new home – we LOVE our home and we LOVE our new neighborhood. And with a new neighborhood came a new Postman whose mail delivering skills are slightly lacking. Here is my letter to Mr. Postman…

Dear Mr. Postman,

Would you please “wait a minute Mr. Postman” before proceeding to the next mailbox? It seems as if you have left everyone’s mail in my mailbox except for mine.

I appreciate the mail containing $50 worth of stamps that belong to Mrs. Connor up the street. As a mom who is frequently mailing my children’s latest finger paint masterpieces to grandparents across the country, the stamps will greatly come in handy. And as a tenacious entrepreneur, the stamps will be sure to decrease my marketing expenditures for all my direct mail pieces.

However, I do not appreciate the bills from QVC that belong to Ms. Peterson two streets over. I am a firm believer in giving to others, but I can’t help support someone else’s spending habits – I have one of my own to take care of.

And I thank you for the four month early birthday card I received from Jon and Meredith. How wonderfully nice of them to think of me! (Wait a second! Who is Jon and Meredith?! And where is the money that usually accompanies a birthday card?)

Mr. Postman, I know you have good intentions. I am grateful for the job that you do and I admire your dedication. Come rain or shine, someone is going to receive mail somewhere.
At the same time, I have two children, a husband, a home and a business to run. My only spare moments come around one o’clock in the morning and that is too early in the day to assist you with RE-delivering the mail.

So if at all possible Mr. Postman, let’s try to make sure that Mr. Russell receives his lotto tickets from his relative in Georgia. Though the last scratch-off cards weren’t winners, I’m sure he’s wondering where they are.

Sincerely,
The GlaMOMorous Mom

I’m A Survivor

It’s late at night. The kids have been in bed for a while, my husband is catching up on his Sunday paper in bed (at least I think he is – I haven’t heard any snoring yet), a load of clothes is in the dryer, the dishwasher is going and I am here having my nightly affair with Microsoft Word and QuickBooks.

I’m composing a press release to announce Braelyn Bounty Bug’s efforts to support the fight against breast cancer with the Susan G. Komen Foundation. In the month of October 2009, Braelyn Bounty Bug will be donating 20% of gross online sales of our “Dressy” Prego Planner and “Roundabout Pink” Tot Tag to the Foundation. I hope all of you will “Go Pink” in October and energize the science to find the cures.

Anywho, while typing, it occurred to me that some of you might be curious about the status of Project Keep Lilly Grace Alive. Well, in the words of Beyonce …..

I’m a survivor
I’m not gon’ give up
I’m not gon’ stop
I’m gon’ work harder
I’m a survivor
I’m gonna make it
I will survive
Keep on survivin’

(Hmmmm…great intro into my press release…..)

Oh, and before you go, please notice Lilly Grace’s SECOND pink bud!! Go girl!

Low Maintenance Pet

We recently discovered a fly loose in our home. As annoying as he (the fly) is, my three year old has found some fascination in him. When my son realized that the fly didn’t stay in one room, he began getting more and more curious about him. Before I knew it, my son was running around from room to room looking for his little pet fly. When he couldn’t find the fly, he would say, “Mommy, I wonder what OUR fly is doing?” He would also ask questions like, “Mommy, where does OUR fly take his nap?” Oh, and, “Mommy, I wonder what OUR fly eats for dinner.”

No. We don’t have a pet Labradoodle or a gerbil, or even a goldfish for that matter…we have a pet FLY!!

Well, I finally got the best of our little fly friend during the kids last nap. Now I can eat, work and sleep peacefully without his annoying “rambling” in my ear and around my head. I just hope my son can eat, play and sleep peacefully not knowing where our fly friend is REALLY taking his nap.

It's All About You

If you are a mom, you know what I mean when I say, “The moment your baby is born, the world is no longer about you.” (Though I’m sure my husband would beg to differ.) But I have to admit, the rare moments when it does become “all about you” are fabulous!

As you know, Wednesday was my “super model photo shoot” for the Life In Chenal magazine and my family and I had a blast! The photographer arrived and we began shooting in my home office with the kids climbing all over me as well as my desk. This, by the way, didn’t have to be staged. That is the norm. Like right now for instance, my three year old is climbing in the back of my chair screaming in my ear, “I need a drinky, mommy. I need a drinky, mommy. I need a …..” (you get the point).

After the office shots, we went outside to take some family shots in the backyard. The family photos were followed by shots of me with my Prego Planners. (The whole time I felt like we needed to have loud “Drop It Like It’s Hawt” music playing in the background with fans blowing my hair. Well, let’s forego the fans – it was hard enough to get my short hair in a presentable position as it was.) After that we went inside to get some shots of me on my laptop sitting on the couch. However, that’s not usually how it works. A) I’m never sitting on the couch…I’m never actually sitting anywhere. B) When I’m on the laptop, I’m usually standing up in the kitchen getting a “drinky” or fixing a bottle or preparing the kids lunch.

As I was eagerly waiting for the photographer to announce that it was time for a wardrobe change, he instead announced that they had gotten the shots they needed. My time in the spotlight had come to an end.

After it was over, I told my husband, “There are moments in a woman’s life when she feels beautiful – like on her wedding day for instance. There are moments when a woman feels “Meg Ryanish”, and today was one of those days for me.”

Thinking back, it could have all been due to the fact that it was a complete change from the norm for me. I actually had on “presentable” clothing and not my usual gym clothes. I was wearing a full face of make-up compared to my usual single layer tinted moisturizer. Oh, and most importantly (and if you’re a mom, you will understand), I had a shower!!!

But now, as I write this (sitting in my pajamas while my kids are bathed and dressed), it’s BEING a mom that should make me feel beautiful everyday. With each day that passes, I gain more knowledge. The knowledge I obtain could be straight from the Bible or straight from a Diego cartoon that I shared with my son, but I’m learning everyday. (If you don’t know this already, Diego can teach you a ton about animals. He’s incredibly smart for such a little guy.) I’m also more centered, more grounded and I know what really matters in life. And don’t let me fail to mention the most amazing husband that I have been blessed with. He goes out of his way to make me feel special, needed and loved everyday. THAT, will make a woman feel beautiful!

I pray that each and every one of you reading this blog feels beautiful today. Not only today, but everyday!

5 Minutes of Mompreneur Fame

I randomly and recently read an article on Meg Ryan. It went a little something like this:

I'm sitting at a patio table in the restaurant of the shabby-chic Chateau Marmont hotel in West Hollywood, surrounded by palm trees and tropical foliage, an urn of coffee steaming in front of me, waiting for Meg Ryan to join me for lunch. It is sunny and a little bit cold out here, and the couple at the next table are excitedly talking about which celebrities they've spotted. They saw Lindsay Lohan earlier. Can't wait to see how they react when Meg arrives….

I scan the patio again. Nope, still no Meg. My phone rings. It's Meg's manager. Meg, she tells me, has been waiting inside for 10 minutes--the same amount of time I've been outside…

… She is tall, about 5 foot 8, thin, and looks at least a decade younger than her 45 years. Her lithe body is draped in black yoga pants and a loose-fitting zip-up black sweatshirt, and she wears not a speck of makeup on her pretty, youthful face. Her famously disheveled hair, so often cut short for movies, has grown in cascading layers to below her shoulders, but is still styled in a splendidly calculated mess. "I'm a little out of practice at this interview thing," she tells me. "It's been a while." (Source: http://www.accessmylibrary.com/, Picture Source: InStyle.com)

So when I received the call from Life In Chenal Magazine, a local publication distributed in Little Rock, stating that they wanted to do a story on me as a mompreneur for their June issue, I immediately began daydreaming about how the article might read. It went a little something like this:

I’m sitting at a patio table at the over-priced Starbucks on Highway 10 and Sam Peck Rd in West Little Rock, surrounded by shiny black concrete and busy retail stores, a tall skinny vanilla latte steaming in front of me, waiting for Heather Patterson to join me for breakfast.

It is sunny and quite humid as the weather in the south tends to be. The couple at the next table are excitedly talking about their dear friend who just discovered that she was pregnant. Can’t wait to hear what they have to say when I tell them I am meeting with Heather Patterson, the creator of the award winning Prego Planner and the perfect gift for their friend.

I scan the patio again. Nope, still no Heather. My phone rings. It’s Heather (her manager must’ve been on vacay). Heather tells me that she is running a little late due to a potty accident with her 3 year old.

She arrives. She is standing about 5 foot 4, thin, and looks at least a decade younger than her 30-something years. She is dressed in classic dark wash denim cuffed shorts, a white cap-sleeve fitted blouse and a beautiful pair of red BCBG heels. She wears her new Laura Mercier makeup to cover up the dark circles that surround her eyes from working till the wee morning hours. Her hair, so often cascading in layers below her shoulders, was surprisingly cut short during a recent visit to her usual salon. “It sounded good at the time,” she tells me. “I looked into getting extensions yesterday, the stylist told me they would run about $900. Not worth selling my Whirlpool washer and dryer for.”

Well, needless to say, the interview didn’t go anything like that. Instead, I met with a Life In Chenal journalist by the name of Jesse at my home. I spent the entire day before busting my tail to get this house in perfect order. I brewed coffee, “baked” Danishes (purchased them at the local Fresh Market) and artfully designed a beautiful fruit tray. The interview lasted an hour and Jesse did a great job on the article. Today is my “photo shoot” with a local photographer. I wonder which designers they will bring for me to wear…and who will be the make-up artist…and I’m dying to see what they can do with this silly short hair. Reality: I’ll be wearing white True Religion jeans, turquoise ruffle blouse and Jessica Simpson white heels. Makeup applied by the one and only Me and still not sure what’s going to happen with this hair.

Let Me Get You an And-Aid

I vividly remember the moment I turned on my breast pump for the first time. It was a horrifying moment as I watched my boob detach from my body, shoot down a tube and head to the nearest Kroger for milk. I immediately turned it off.

And I feared for my life as I was attached to my Pump In Style Medela Breast Pump (which was plugged into the wall) while thunderstorms and lighting impolitely danced around my home. (And why would you call it “Pump In Style” by the way? As if there is an alternative to being unstylish when pumping out one’s breast.) But it was all worth it – I wanted my sweet baby boy to have a supply of breast milk that would last him till he was 18. He was (and still is) going to be the smartest kid on the block. He would have that breast milk come electrocution, hell or high-water!

Fast forward 2.5 years to the birth of our second son. I couldn’t wait to bond with that precious boy. He was attached to my breast from the second he left the womb. We were a much more successful breast feeding team than me and my first son. But that was soon to come to an end. Due to circumstances beyond my control, I had to quit breastfeeding my son and was left to bond with the breast pump once again. I was quickly reminded of all the many conversations you could have with a breast pump…the things the breast pump would say as it went “in” and “out”. One day it would say “Don’t jump! Don’t jump!” Other days it would say, “Umpaah, Umpaah.” (I could never get Charlie and the Chocolate Factory out of my head after that. Or maybe it was just the chocolate I couldn’t get out of my head.) Anyway, it was something new everyday – It drove me crazy!

So after a three year “on again, off again” relationship with my “stylish” breast pump, I approached my husband about breast augmentation. This was something I had always said I wouldn’t do, but my “stylish” friend had left me no choice. If the Pump taketh, the Doctor giveth! And the Doctor gaveth (after I payeth) two weeks ago this past Friday. Results: I am now a new woman! (And I think my husband is a new man ;o) And it must have made a huge difference as my 3 year old walked in while I was getting into the shower and said, “Whoa, Mommy! What’s that?!” Completely caught off guard I said, “These are Mommy’s boo boos.” (I don’t know?? What was I supposed to say?) Then he innocently said, “Poor Mommy, you have TWO boo boos?? Let me get you an And-Aid.”

The Life of Lilly Grace

Everyone, I would like you to meet Lilly Grace.

Lilly Grace, I would like you to meet everyone.

First let me start by saying that I know she is not a Lilly. I call her Lilly because I like the name (and I thought it was cute to call her Lilly when she wasn’t one). Her middle name Grace comes from the fact that it is through God’s precious grace that she is still alive (that goes for all of us).

Lilly Grace was given to us by my sister-in-law and her family during their recent visit from North Carolina. When they brought her through the door, I thought she was absolutely beautiful! When I found out that Lilly Grace’s life was going to be left in my hands…I felt the weight of the Great Wall of China land on my shoulders.

I don’t have a so-called “green thumb”. I have what you might call a “black thumb of green death”. Which takes me back to a special moment early in our marriage when my husband who, after I unintentionally killed our only plant, lovingly said, “You know, a green thumb is a sexy characteristic for a woman to have.” Hmmmmmmm……and so are long, smooth, cellulite-free legs. But being 5’4” – long legs are out of the question.

So back to the weight of the Great Wall of China…Isn’t it enough that I work seven days a week from 5 am to midnight trying to keep my 3 year old, 8 month old, husband, home and my business alive (oh, and myself)?? Do I need to worry about keeping anything else alive? Especially when plants are pickier eaters than my children – not too much water, not too little – not too much sunlight, not too little…and so on.

So out of honest curiosity, I asked my mother-in-law (who was also visiting from North Carolina) just how much Lilly Grace would need to be watered. She mentioned that her thirst levels would peak at every 2-3 days. And my sweet mother-in-law must have began planning Lilly Grace’s funeral when I said, “Okay, I will have to set a reminder on my Blackberry.” And I meant it honestly.

Though I made a conscious effort to keep Lilly Grace alive, she slowly began to pass away. Her pretty pink petals fell to the ground, the little white flowers that blushed her cheeks slowly died off and her green turned to brown. Lilly Grace was no longer with us. BUT THEN, by the precious grace of God, Lilly Grace was given life again. Her cheeks regained their color (if you call “white” a color) and one pretty pink flower has already bloomed (as you see in the picture). Welcome back Lilly Grace!

I’m now on a mission! Please continue to follow “Project Keep Lilly Grace Alive” here on the GlaMOMorous World blog.

Okay, the smell of poopy diaper has overcome my office and if that isn’t a reason to sign off…I don’t know what is ;o)

Pregnancy Awareness Month Giveaways

This is our first official blog post and we are ecstatic about this blogospheric adventure we are about to embark on. It has been a lifetime decree to always celebrate the “little things” in life. (Maybe I’m just looking for a reason to celebrate or maybe it’s a little bit of shameless promotion ;o)

So…seeing as to how the month of May is Pregnancy Awareness Month and now marks the “grand opening” of the GlaMOMorous World Blog, Prego Planner is commemorating this eventful month by giving away Prego Planners throughout the month of May. Expectant mommies can register by filling out our “Contact Us” form on our website (www.pregoplanner.com). Please make sure to note “Pregnancy Awareness Month” or “GlaMOMorous World” in the Message area of the contact form. Winners will be chosen at random and will be contacted via email.

Spread the word! If you’re not prego, tell someone who is! On your mark…get set….CELEBRATE!!