From the Courtroom to the Playroom

Ok, I shouldn't say horrors. Really, it's just a few adjustments. Yesterday I ventured out with Miller for my first post-partum and post-work clothes shopping trip. There were a couple big differences in the before and after of shopping since leaving my day job. Usually, when I go out to buy clothes, I am looking for work clothes - suits, pants, sweater sets, dress shirts, you get the picture. I probably haven't purchased a pair of jeans in about 4 years. Casual Friday was eliminated at work, and I am lucky if I make it out of a pair of gym shorts on Saturdays, so there was really no need to purchase any. Plus, I am one of those people who live in closet denial. I leave clothes that I can no longer fit into in the closet anyway as inspiration for my weight loss. Usually it only serves to provide inspiration for an argument between Matthew and I about the fact that I have too much crap in the closet. Anywho, I'd rather have 4 non-fitting pairs of jeans in my closet and n...

Being a mom is not for sissys. It takes a lot of work. And it means giving up a chunk of your identity. I have to say that I was a little taken aback when I was first referred to as "Deacon's Mom." I mean, I'm Jamie, right? I wasn't used to being identified by who I am in relation to my child. Becoming a mom helped me realize that my mom wasn't just that either - Jamie's Mom. She's a wife, daughter, colleague, and friend. And once I could fully appreciate that, I could understand better how very awesome she was in her role as Jamie's Mom. In honor of Mother's Day, I have created a top five list of reasons that I love my dear mother. Read on. 5. She tells me the truth.....sort of. One awesome thing about my mom is that she will tell me like it is. This quality has saved me from much trouble and countless opportunities for reputation ruin. Never one to mince words, her two cents may have caused me some heartburn, but ultimately, they saved my re...

Yes, that would be the one and only Miss Martha Stewart, my friends. I've always secretly wanted to be like her. Um, not the unlawful activity and jail part. I have about decided that staying home will provide me with the opportunity to hone my skills (or at lease scrape together one cognizable skill) related to domestic divahood, but recent events at the Avery household lead me to believe I've got one long road to walk. I've never claimed to be crafty. DIY is one dirty acronym in my book. Occasionally, I try my hand at something remotely crafty, but the craftiest of the crafty people I know would probably laugh at my projects being called crafty. And with that, I will make every effort to not use the word "crafty" again in this post. So, as I began to prepare for Mother's Day recently, I decided that I needed to get something cool for my kids to give their grandmothers, Gran and Granny. I decided that we would make stepping stones with their footprints an...

In our marriage, we've decided that there are several words and topics that are off the table for discussion. For example, no one is allowed to talk divorce or bring up negative things from the past before we even knew each other. So, as I am now entering into my third month as a stay-at-home mom, I have added a question to that no-no list, and that question is....So, what all did you do today? (Gasp!) This question is generally asked while shaking one's head as one looks confusedly around a messy house with messy kids yelling wildly and demanding things like gummy bears, or "yummies" as my son says. Never in my wildest imagination could I have anticipated such a seemingly benign question would ignite some serious fireworks for yours truly. Used to be that when I got home from work, I could answer that question with precision and tangible evidence of all the things I had done that day. Took a depostion. Settled a case. Prepared for a mediation. Drafted a ...