Blog

Navigating Our Way Through the New Year

I really wanted to love New Year’s Day, but I stayed in bed most of the day. I’m not sure if it’s coming off the hustle and bustle of the holidays to face reality once again, or that I should be trying to figure out a way to make myself better in the new year, or maybe I was just tired from our recent trip to NYC. I know there are things I want to do better this year – lose weight, spend more time with my kids, travel more, etc. It would also be nice to finally finish the freaking house we bought more than a year ago and be able to live in it. I’m not sure if being displaced this last year has – wait, let’s be real, being displaced has definitely shaken me to the core. Not only that, we moved from our home that we loved into a rental in January, had to move there because of unfortunate situation into another rental, and still aren’t in our home. Also, being in a renovation going on NINE months is absolutely the worst thing I’ve ever been a part of. I’m tired. And I’ve learned that while finishing details are my jam, they are apparently not everyone else’s jam. I keep trying to tell myself to be thankful, just be thankful. But, if I knew how to do the things that still needed to be done… I would be in there doing them myself. And those of you that know me, know that’s the truth.

Back to being thankful. I do want to live my life with more gratitude. Be more humble. 2022 was super challenging (see above). Earlier this year I had a wonky mammogram, and had to be called back for a spot compression and ultrasound. It’s not unusual for me to have to go back, but this time was different. They wanted me to also have a six month follow-up, which I did on December 21st and everything looked ok this round. But, it definitely gave me that kick I needed earlier on to try to live my life more fully, and to be more present. We took trips, we laughed more, we realized that a conduct mark here and there wasn’t the end of the world. We’re not perfect. Our kids aren’t perfect. And that’s ok.

We made it through our first year at Max Porter. It was tough and I have a lot of respect for owners of retail businesses (I already did, but more so now). I also am lucky to have a really great business partner and business manager. It’s a fun release to be able to step in the store and feel like I’m in a different world of business culture.

Thanks to our advertisers and readers, BayouLife also made it through 2022. We had some changes this year to our staff, but we are in a good place and I have some amazing people that work for me. I have to say that Katelyn McAllister and Courtney Thomas held me together on a lot of days – and if you’ve not met these two gals – you should, they are the best. I get to work with a super talented group of people, and for all of them I am thankful.

This is turning out to be a Thanksgiving post. Maybe my word for the year should be thankful, but I committed to learn… maybe I can have two words. I’ll have to google that. I already know that I have some challenges ahead of me, but here’s what I’m going to hang on to: my faith and my family. I’m going to take a class this year, I’m going to move into my house this year, I’m going read more this year, I am going to get healthier this year, I’m going to travel more this year, I’m going to plan in advance more this year, and am going to love on my family more this year.

I hope that through whatever challenges or accomplishments this year brings, that we can remember to be grateful. We only have one shot at this life – let’s live in the moment.

What are some of your goals for the new year?

Hello melasma. Hello age spots. This is 40 and beyond. I spent a lifetime in the sun and all that exposure has caught up with me. I found out on my 40th birthday that I had squamous cell carcinoma on my face and ended up having Mohs surgery after a visit with chemo cream. Since then I’ve tried to correct some of the damage that I’ve done over the years with blue light therapy, regular sunscreen, and niacinamide. Now, I’m on to lasers – specifically IPL. IPL heats the deeper layers of skin with high-intensity-pulsed light that corrects common flaws such as freckles, rosacea, birthmarks, brown spots, and spider veins. After the treatment, the skin has a smoother, healthier appearance. My first visit at Hopkins Dermatology was a quick appointment (less than 30 minutes) and the first of 3… maybe 4. A lotion was applied all over my face and goggles to protect my eyes from the light. Then the technician went around my face with the wand – each zap felt like a rubber band being popped on my skin. It didn’t hurt, just a little uncomfortable. I was told to wear sunscreen and stay out of direct sun. By the next day little brown dots appeared all over my face (it looked like coffee grounds which is what you see in the pics above). Those small brown spots took about two weeks to fully disappear, but weren’t bothersome. They didn’t itch and could be covered easily with makeup. The most noticeable difference was the texture of my skin. It feels much more hydrated and smooth. I go back in two weeks for my 2nd round and will post my after pictures when everything is done!

I can’t reveal all of our bad habits in one post, but this one is a memorable moment that I will never forget – and neither will anyone in our Baton Rouge hotel in the fall of 2018. My sweet Vivian is the life of the party, she loves entertaining, giving weather reports, and singing. But, she is terrified of storms, heights and elevators. Like her mom, she has a few things that she’s very peculiar about and we didn’t realize the breadth of her fear of elevators until a quick trip to see our LSU Tigers play in Baton Rouge.

My husband and I made a mad dash to the hotel to check in only an hour before the game started. The attendant handed us our 6th floor keys and we darted off to catch the nearest elevator. That’s when things went haywire. Vivian froze. I tried to coax her into the elevator and offered every bribe I could to get her on.. She refused. I stepped out of the elevator to grab her and she took off running and screaming through the hotel lobby. I rushed after her. All I could think was I had to grab her before she reached the front doors. (She was running like the wind…it was mind-boggling how fast she was). I reached out to grab the back of her shirt and off it came. Now she was half naked and I looked like a crazy women chasing a shirtless baby. I caught her right as she was crossing the threshold to the entrance of the hotel. I picked her up and carried her little shirtless, screaming body to the stairs in the back of the hotel. I was shaking and nervous…and mortified. But, so was Vivian. Several guests and a hotel employee came to check on us. I knew what I was thinking, and couldn’t imagine what they were thinking.

When I finally got her to stop crying and tell me what happened, she said that she was scared of getting stuck in the elevator. She was four! I had no clue that she was that terrified. We ended up walking the six flights of stairs to our room that day, and for years after took the stairs. Each time we would go to a hotel, we’d ask for a lower room floor. Trent and Stella would haul the luggage while Vivian and I got to know the stair routes of every hotel we stayed in.

Only in the last few years did we attempt riding elevators. I started by picking her up and letting her bury her head in my neck. Finally, she would ask to push the buttons. And now she actually gets on, but always holds on to me or Trent. We’ve come a long way from that half-naked little nut running through the lobby. Thank goodness for Superior Grill margaritas and Tiger football for getting us through that day.

If you’re asking what my must-have looks are this holiday season, our fashion shoot in this month’s magazine has some of my favorites. https://bayoulifemag.com/all-is-bright/

We initially planned to shoot this at our friend’s home that was already beautifully decorated for Christmas. The day before the shoot we found our her daughter had strep and flu. It just seemed to fit the theme for the December’s magazine (pivoting). We had already wrapped pink and red presents for our cover, so off to The Paper Market I went to collect balloons and confetti, and Taylor rolled down the pink and red seamless for a styled shoot that ended up being beautifully photographed by Kelly Moore Clark.

The white vegan leather pant and blazer from Palette House and Plume is stunning and is by S’EDGE (a company created by Analeise Reeves… a former model for BayouLife Magazine and Atlanta superstar).

The champagne beaded purse from The Nude Nomad is on my Christmas list and hopefully gets to make it with me to celebrate the New Year!

Herringstone’s Show Me Your Mumu psychedelic print coat is what retro fantasies are made of, and is paired perfectly with the blue crop top and flowing pants, but would be amazing with a simple tee and jeans, too.

I would wear any of these looks, and hope you love them as much as I do! Make sure to shop local this holiday season!

I wanted to write an article about embracing my braces at the ripe age of forty, but knew everything I typed would be a lie. I’ve been really surprised at all of the people that have asked why I got braces. Apparently as you age, your teeth shift. I had two upper teeth that were completely turned and had major gum recession. I know that I have to have a gum graft, but my dentist wanted me to fix the problem teeth before the graft happens. So, I have that to look forward to.

My journey actually started with Invisalign. I received 36 trays and was ready to get these pearly whites straightened out… after all, my 80-year-old aunt and I were going to be able to compare stories about our Invisalign journey. She only had a few months to go at the time I got mine. I knew I needed to wear them 22-hours a day. I didn’t. I’d take them out and drink a cup of coffee. Then, I’d decide I needed another cup. After that I’d have a mid-morning snack…and why put them in when lunch was right around the corner, or wine, or a York Peppermint Pattie, or another glass of wine.

After about 6 months, my orthodontist finally laid down the law. I was an Invisalign failure. I don’t like admitting failure, but I needed something that I didn’t have control over – turns out braces was the answer. If I only knew then what I know now.

My first week I got terrible ulcers. Stella’s (my oldest daughter) friend asked me at softball practice if I’d had lip injections. Sadly, only a gnarly blister that was adding major plump on one side of my mouth. While things are getting better, I’ve lost a bracket to Veggie Chips, had to give up movie popcorn and have been told I look like a teenager more times than I can count (believe me it’s only the braces…the wrinkles tell a different story). I have become the go-to mom for 10-year-olds in need of wax. It’s something to commiserate with your kid’s friends over how miserable braces actually are. I hope to come back to this blog and tell you that I don’t regret it one bit. Until then, I’ll keep taking terrible pictures and finding curly kale in unseen brace places hours after eating it.