my new home

Hi! I have a new domain! It's over on wordpress at www.extraordinary-ordinary.net

I have no idea yet if your subscriptions are going to transfer over--whether you are subscribed by email, via RSS feed or google friend connect. So, stay tuned. (Please.)

In the meantime, go check out the new site! (Please.)

Once we figure out what happens to all of you who are currently subscribed, I will pass along some more information. For now, I'll continue to put all new posts here, for those of you who subscribe. I'll also be posting a new post on the new site and who knows? Maybe it will magically transfer for subscribers? We shall see...and if that's the case, you won't have to do any of that re-subscribing stuff.

SIDENOTE: Yeah, this is all so technical, it makes my head spin, but it's going to be OKAY.
(that last part was a note to self)

Thank you, friends.

of course

After lunch and before Asher's nap, and after dinner and before bedtime, we have cleanup time. I'm not one of those you-have-to-clean-as-you-go-throughout-the-day moms. Maybe I'm just too lazy to stay on top of that, so we do it twice a day. It works for us.

Today as I was walking through each room before lunch, picking up strewn about clothes and Legos while the boys cleaned up the toy room, I noticed the difference in the sound my feet bring to the hardwood floors. It's louder than before. I'm heavier. My ever-growing belly (and other areas) weigh more and more by the pregnant day.

There was a strange comfort in the sound. thud thud thud.
There I am. I'm here. Doing this. I can hear me, I must be here.

So often a person can feel kind of invisible, just trapped in their own home and mind.

This made me think of a conversation I had over Twitter with my friend Lyz yesterday. She said she almost panicked when she couldn't find me. That's because if a person types in the previous .com (url) for this blog or has it bookmarked or clicks on my link in a sidebar or a profile page of mine or something, they're getting an error message. This blog no longer magically appears. (I explained in my last post about losing my domain. Subscribers via RSS or email are still able to find me, that's the good news, but non-subscribers who try to visit in any other way have no luck--long story.)

Anyway. I jokingly tweeted back to Lyz:

"I DID panic. I'M LOSING MYSELF, I said. But I still exist. I think? I mean, if 80% of readers can't find me, I still exist, RIGHT?"

And then she responded with her typical hilarity:
"Doesn't the saying go "People can find my website, therefore I am."

Of course, this was silly banter, and also of course, this got me thinking more philosophical thoughts (this time about narcissism and online identity), since that's how my thoughts roll--they refuse to stay light.

I'll admit, this whole website thing has been bothering me. I'm fighting some pretty ridiculous thoughts, stomping my loud puffy feet. I'll think things like, Over four years of growing a readership and now no one can find me! This is of course ridiculous and irrational because the comments on the last post will prove that many people COULD actually find me. And! Do I really write here only to "grow a readership?" I think not. But when something like this happens, that single-minded kind of narcissism is tempting for a blogger and I can admit that.

Before I was writing here, the words were building in me and then I found this place to voice them, to be heard. Like I'd been pregnant with words and then I walked around and I cleaned them up and emptied them out, my feet sounding off across invisible interweb waves. You see, there is a beautiful and powerful kinship in being heard in this way, this way that is what my friend Ann calls bearing witness. My stories are here and when people come to read them, something happens, something in the mingle of the witness. Maybe I can't see you and I don't know what all of your reactions are, but there is something in knowing that a crowd, however big or small, is out there in the void. Your witness steals some of the power from my pain and amplifies my joy.

:::::

As I said in my last post, Sarah has been working on this website mess for me and has therefore been moving me to Wordpress from Blogger. (Because why not? I'm kind of starting over anyway.) She was moving the comments yesterday and while all of your words were transferring from one host to another, Sarah said "it's on comment 9,000 out of 20,000."

I couldn't wrap my mind or heart around that.

20,000 comments. There have been 20,000 moments in which someone took the time to let me know they heard me. What a gift.

Then I thought about Sarah, the way she is so often my sounding board, on the receiving end of my stories, my rants, of so many many of my words. I thought about the way she's my friend because we met in this online space and how that has turned from, Huh, she's cool, to Wow, I think this far away person may have become one of my best friends. We witness each other's words, Sarah and I, in and out of the blog world. We, just two people, are listening to each other walk around the house.

I guess what I'm saying is, of course it's okay if not everyone can find my blog as it gains a new address. Because I have irreplaceable ears and hearts in my life. That's different than a crowd, but not less. Which is something all bloggers need to remember about blogging. The numbers really are just numbers. What matters is that the words are getting out, released, unfurled, relieving us and making us feel less alone with them. They go from stirring circles around and around in just one place, to stirring circles in many places. We don't even ever get to know where they end. We speak, and even more importantly, we get to be a part of the crowd that receives, that hears. And being a part of a crowd that hears, big or small, is one of the most important jobs in our relationships, online or off. To listen to people, to really listen to them, like they're a good book or a captivating movie, that is one of the most beautiful gifts we can give.

Magically, when we give that gift, it brings us the same rewards in exchange. I read Ann's post about bearing witness yesterday and even though it is not about blogging (it's about so much more), it gave me what I needed as I heard her. It helped me to remember that I have the honor of bearing witness to footsteps heavy or soft and that in doing so, I serve the people that I hear.

That truth means more to me than numbers. Of course.

this is about how I don't have a web address anymore. So. How ARE you here? wow. you're good!

If you're here, I'm kind of surprised. *waves excitedly*

A person can't get here via the web address for The Extraordinary Ordinary anymore because I sort of kind of completely and totally forgot to pay for another year and then the web address gods were all "NO MORE extraordinary-ordinary.com for you!"

(I'm a girl who really really needs her reminder emails, and since I did not receive even one, well...I failed to pay.)

So for now, we're back to a blogspot address. (www.theextraordinaryordinary.blogspot.com)
I'm working on getting back my .com or switching to a .net or doing the hokey pokey or something; hopefully I'll get it all figured out soonly. (Actually I don't know how to figure any of this out, but Sarah does and she is so kind to help me. Thank you, my friend.)

For the most part, for now, I think this means hardly anyone will find this space. Which is such a bummer because I'll miss you. You can tell because I'm talking to you and you're probably not there.

Okay then.

To be continued...

*cue dramatic music*

Maybe it was an episode of Touched By An Angel (in which we play the people who can't think)

I got home from Nashville last night wiped out and ready-ready-ready to sit with my boys. We read books and talked about the last few days and we watched some sort of superhero dog movie. We were so happy to see each other, and I swear to you, they aged a year while I was gone. Thicker and longer and deeper and wiser. It's insane.

Later, after the boys were in bed, Ryan said, I still don't know how you guys did that. He was referring to a story I told him the night before. I said that what we had done makes perfect sense to me--that Katherine and Ellie and I would have such a day with such an ending on our final day together in Nashville. I mean, we attended a conference with approximately 600-something other women, and as much fun as that is, it's also exhausting. It does things to you that are similar to newborn sleep-deprived-brain. So by Saturday, after having been at the conference for four or five days, we were all experiencing some serious brain deficiencies.

It all started with the three of us standing in front of the Opryland Hotel talking with some young men from the hotel's transportation company. They pushed steered us toward using their company rather than a taxi to go spend a few hours in Nashville. We agreed to do just that because everything they were saying was only semi-clear, blurred by our exhausted and slow-to-snap synapses.

You want to go to Hillsboro Village? That's just a mall, they said.
OH. Weird. We don't want a mall. We were told it was a hip little neighborhood.
Yeah, you don't want that area...you want (such and such and such)...
OH. Okay. Take us there then.

We ended up being dropped off in a Borders bookstore parking lot with a Have fun ladies and just call a half hour before you want to come back and we'll get you right away.

We stood in the parking lot and looked up and down the street. We saw McDonald's and Taco Bell and what seemed like a million other chain restaurants and stores. We had wanted and requested Nashville charm, so we started to walk to look for it, confused as to why the young men from the transportation company would think this location matched our "kitschy and quaint" request.

We walked and walked and found nothing we hoped for and while we did, the pregnant one among us (that's me!) grew hungrier and fussier and quieter. So we sat on a curb and looked at smart phones, begging them to tell us of a very nearby eating joint that wasn't a chain, something unique to Nashville.

We thought we found something promising, but it was too far to walk, so we grabbed a cab. (cha-ching!) We gave the cab driver the address and he said (I kid you not) Where is that? We answered with something along the lines of uuum, maybe just follow the numbers on the buildings or the order of the streets or something.

It turned out it didn't really matter where it was because it was closed. 11:30 on a Saturday...closed.
So we three weary ones stood in front of the dark building on a curb and tried to figure out what to do next, hoping for less cha-ching and more AH-HA.

We started walking again, heels and soles slapping the sidewalk and big sighs our only other sounds. (Seriously, we were mopey.)

Then...hope arrived (or so we thought) in the shape of a rectangle sign and letters painted in the color red, pronouncing--"Named Nashville's best restaurant 3 years in a row!"

We thought we'd finally hit the jackpot, even if the neighborhood was nothing like we'd hoped for, so we followed the sign's arrow and came to a door, a door that read,

Gone Fishing.

(True story.)

Our six shoulders slumped and we started to wonder if maybe we had spent far too much money for a round-trip ride only to give up and go back to the hotel with no idea what else to do...Yes, we were about to give up...

And then a couple walked toward us, fresh from their car, on their way to doing their Saturday things. We stopped them and asked them kindly for help, could they please point us in the way of a Nashville area that's more..."Nashville-y"?

They started by saying we'd been dropped off in the totally wrong place and then they tried to explain how we needed to go right and then left and then right again (or something like that) and they were pointing far away and my head got all fuzzy and I was thinking about how there's NO way we could walk that far while being that hungry and disoriented and then they said it...

How about we just bring you over there?

We let out a collective REALLY? (Probably a bit too loudly.)
Then they opened the doors to their car for us and they climbed in front and asked all about us, interested and kind. On the ride talked about being at a blogging conference called Blissdom and they understood that and had even heard about it, rather than the usual, "What does that mean?" We felt totally safe (no worries Mom!) and loved being with someone who knew where they were going when we had felt so lost.

We pulled up to just the kind of neighborhood we'd been looking for, with great little gift shops, book stores, ice cream and coffee shops and hole-in-the-wall eateries.

The BookWoman bookstore

We went straight to eating and I had the best salad of my life and we talked and shopped and strolled, all thanks to our Nashville stranger-angel friends, Matt and Lisa.

Jackson's Bar and Bistro

Later, about a half hour before we needed to go back to the hotel, I called for our return ride.
Then a cheerful voice responded with, I'm sorry, it will be well over an hour, probably an hour and a half or longer, until we can get there...we're on a shift change.

Greeeeaaaat.

So we sat and waited...and waited...and waited...
We talked, we felt really sleepy and we talked some more. We grew more impatient and frustrated, having such a bad experience with our expensive transportation.

We were sitting silently for a moment, watching the traffic go by when Katherine suddenly said, I KNOW WHAT WE SHOULD HAVE....done...her words trailed off and her face turned sheepish and then her hands came up to cover her eyes...

What? WHAT? What is it? Ellie and I laughed and watched her, ready for something but not expecting this:

You guys? she said. I have a car here....I drove to Nashville!

The End.

Katherine

Ellie

P.S. Here's the thing, friends. Not only had Katherine forgotten (as we stood in the hotel parking lot trying to figure out our transportation) that her car was in the parking lot, but we all had this conversation at that very same time:

When are you driving home, Katherine?
Tomorrow morning.
Oh. How nice that you're close enough to drive.

(and stuff like that)
(then we turned to the guys and asked if we could get a cab)
(I told you we were tired)

The Real End.

Oh wait. Just kidding. Not done. WE HAVE OUR ULTRASOUND TOMORROW!!!

Really REALLY The End.

merciless beauty and the critical beast

Next week in Nashville, I'll be speaking at the Blissdom '11 Conference with friends Arianne and Cecily about writing and fighting the internal voices that try to hold us back.

Taken from the Blissdom website, the description of our session~

Merciless Beauty and the Critical Beast:

"Your story is bold. Your perspective is courageous and true. You sit down to write mercilessly, vulnerably, and then you hear them: an invisible army of critics in your head. Before you even hit publish, you begin to anticipate the feedback from your outspoken audience. And so you pull back and self-censor. Or do you? How much do you edit yourself before your strong voice becomes watered down by the focus-group tendencies of social media audiences? How can we confidently respect the integrity of our stories while being mindful of our readers? Learn to write with unadulterated beauty while nailing down elusive terms such as “voice” and “authenticity” without having to look those tired words in the eye. Own your space and encourage others to do the same."

Of course, the three of us will not pretend to have all the answers. This will be a philosophical conversation, in which we share our personal journeys with the struggle to write from our hearts while also considering the audience, blogging's immediate feedback, and the fear that sometimes tries to creep in.

Despite our nerves, we're doing our very best to prepare a session that will inspire and teach. I'd love it if you'd share your thoughts or ask a question in the comments if something came to mind as you read the description of the session. I want to be sure to address what people are really looking to know and I'd so appreciate your help. Hopefully by now you know that I think the world of you, the people who take the time to visit this space. Your thoughts really do matter. A lot.

And that's just it. What you think matters...but I can't let what I assume you think stop me from writing what I need to say when I sit down to publish a post. It's a fine balance. If you blog, how do you handle that? What are your fears? Where do you find your confidence? What would you hope to learn from a session like this?

People ask me all the time, How (or why) do you write so publicly about such personal things? I hope this session sheds some light on that, and I believe that it will. If you're attending Blissdom this year, please come by and offer us some support, on Friday, in the writing track. (Thank you!)


This will most likely be my last conference experience for quite some time (with the acorn due in June), and I'm so looking forward to it. I get to share a room with Ellie and Ann and see loads of other friends I've come to know and love. And I get to leave the frozen cold tundra that is Minnesota for a few days which is a much needed thang, believe you me.

Peace out, friends.

In 2010...

{I'm joining Steph today in recapping my words in 2010. Thank you, friend}

In 2010
I said,

Oh friends, here's my truth
and then you were so gracious to me,
all year.

I told you about the want want want
and the freedom of a safe place
and ended up helping you and me both
in our understanding of addiction and its propensity
to steal a person.
(I want to always always remember the people in that post.)

:::::

In 2010 I came away from many conferences and it
made me want to say,
I am not a "big" blogger and neither are you and neither are they-
we are all the same and fighting rhinos. (yes, rhinos.)
(and I also called Mommybloggers the Mary Kay ladies of the Internet)
(ahem)

:::::

Then strangely enough I ended up on TV
and then it was weird to hear my thick accent
and see my frown lines up so close.
But you were still so kind and supportive
and loving and I thank you.

:::::

And then I said that I'm pregnant
and I named this little person in me
The Acorn
but right now he/she is the size of a lemon.

I love lemons.

:::::

Cheers! (Raises glass of bubbly...water and calls it all,
every hard and beautiful moment,
GOOD.)


Happy New Year, friends!

{Feel free to join in--recap your 2010 with Steph at Adventures in Babywearing.)

Creative Alliance '10: what is was and what it wasn't with a pretty song and pretty pictures

I like to just say it like it is. So here's the dealio. Word on the social media street is that the Creative Alliance event was thought to be some kind of elitist thing. There was an impression that there were secret invitations sent out and that everything about it was exclusive and somehow fancy.

That's okay. Those are the misconceptions that happen all the time with this kind of thing or that kind of thing or all things.

In reality, this event was more of an experiment than anything else and therefore it was casual and profoundly simple in the best kind of organic-focus-on-what-matters kind of way. As a member of the team that was involved in making it happen (I take only a very very small bit of credit for that), I can admit that none of us really knew anything except that we trust Lee and her vision and her heart.

As it turns out, there really aren't words to describe what being in this particular space (Calliote Canyon) with these particular people was like. It was simply music-slideshow-worthy, so here you go:

(Seriously. Watch it. Because there's something for everyone in it, even if you weren't there. I hope. And also, it took me a long time. So please pretend that the resolution of some of the pictures didn't get all wonky. Because that was driving me crazy.)

Okay then. I give you...

song by Mindy Gledhill - whole wide world on Anchor

I really really hope there's a next time.
And now I must thank Lynn from Moji and Kirsten from Paper Culture. These two companies were truly the perfect match for this event and we appreciate them so much. And I am not just saying this because they showed up and supported we social media GENIUSES...but because I truly love their companies and their missions and you should totally check out their products because the holiday season is coming and you won't be disappointed!

For realio.

And lastly, Lee, thank you for your vision and drive, for making Creative Alliance '10 in Ojai a reality. As one of my first connections in bloglandia, you openly accepted me, my quirks and my ability to cry at the drop of a hat right along with you. I'm so thankful for the chance to know someone who encourages me strive to be more, the way that you do. You help me believe in me, and that's priceless. You may not realize this, but you've taught me so much simply by being the confident, brilliant, empathetic, lovely woman that you are. Thank you for being my friend. Because that's what we are, dude, no matter how strangely we met.



The End.

titles are for suckers (at least that's what I say when I can't think of one)

7 days since my last post. Now that's a record. I am far too wordy for this kind of blog break.

I spent Thursday through Sunday of last week in Ojai California for the Creative Alliance event. I'm so rarely speechless, but friends, this experience has left me speechless indeed. Therefore, I'm working on a creative way to share the memories with few words. Which is to say that I'm working on a bit of a project. Which is to say I'm doing something I don't really have time to do. Which is to say that nothing much has changed about me.

Except a lot of things.

Yes. Dare I say that this past weekend was life-changing? Because it wasn't just helpful and informative about all things social media, it was inspiring and encouraging, centering and affirming. It was about personal strengths and goals and believing. It was about life and soul sister friendship. It was just so good.

Apparently I found some words. Go figure. I just can't stop myself.

For now I'm simply popping in to say HELLO and to let you know that Nicci from Changing the Universe won the I_Blog conference pass! Congratulations, Nicci! Random.org really likes you. And so do I!

I hope your weekend was good, too. If you have a moment, tell me something good that happened, big or little, doesn't matter.

Happy Monday. (Is that an oxymoron? I hope not.)

A picture story and an I_Blog Ticket giveaway!

You're welcome.


I'm totally not as freaking hilarious and adorable as these two toot knockers, but if you'd still like to meet me and hang out and stuff, I'm giving away a ticket to the I_Blog Conference in Iowa this November 5-7! I'll be there, waxing philosophical on all things blogging as a speaker, and then at night I will be happily tucked in my bed at the beautiful Hotel Pattee, where the conference is being held. It's truly an honor to be a part of this enriching and well-planned event full of great informative sessions and opportunities to get your chat on with fellow bloggers.


To enter for the free conference pass:

• Leave a comment on this post. (If you have trouble with my comment thingy, please email me at heatheroftheeo(at)gmail(dot)com with your entries. I apologize if you have to do this, but sometimes that thingy is wonky and I just don't know what to do about it.)

Extra Entries:

• Get the word out about I_Blog (there are limited tickets remaining) on Twitter and/or Facebook by tweeting/sharing a link to this post. (one extra entry for Twitter, one for Facebook).
• "LIKE" the I_Blog Conference on Facebook
• Follow I_Blog on Twitter
  

Please leave a separate comment for each thingy that you do, mkay?

This giveaway will close on Monday, October 18th at 12 noon (CST). I will choose the winner on random.org.

Also. If you decide to register for the conference before this giveaway ends, you will be reimbursed! If this is an option for you, please register by clicking on the link to I_Blog in my sidebar. Thank you!


P.S. If you're from The Minnesota and are planning to go (or would like to go) to the conference, I will be road tripping it....so, you're invited to join me, if you'd like! (if you pass my husband's Are You Safe? test and meet my pit bull who can sense mean-ness and will eat you before you get in the car if you're a killer.)

Ahem...We could sing!

UPDATE: THE GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED. I WILL BE ANNOUNCING THE WINNER LATER TODAY!!!

UPDATE AGAIN: OKAY, SO...IT WAS A BUSY TRAVELING WEEKEND AND I CAN'T CATCH UP ON MILES AND ASHER GOBBLING...SO I'M SLOW ON POSTING THE WINNER. I DID CONSULT RANDOM.ORG AND THERE IS A WINNER, BUT I'LL ADD THAT TO MY POST FOR TOMORROW. I REALLY REALLY WILL. THANK YOU!

3

On this day 3 years ago, I published my first blog post.

October 3, 2007.

It was a simple post sharing pictures from a day at an orchard. This space had an entirely different name then, and I had very little idea what the blog world was all about. I certainly had no idea what this blogging gig would end up meaning to me. I had no idea it would be this meeting place, this connection to people I've come to know and love, people who have supported me with or without telling me they're reading, through so much.

Three years ago, I had no idea, about so many things.

In these last few years, our family has walked through Asher's diagnosis and surgery, moving, my addiction and decision to get sober, and all the changes that every new year brings for any family. I've shared so much of our journey in this space. This space that has connected me to kindred spirits, given me a creative outlet and led to so many experiences I never could have expected.

So much has changed since the start, but I'm still me and I still love doing this, so today this post is much the same as the very first one.


A day at the farm, like the beginning...





























The bliggity blog is 3 years old. We are 3 years older. I am sober. We live in the country. I am writing a book. And I still love marshmallow Peeps and my family.

Happy Birthday, EO.

type-a moms are...

I had the honor of speaking at the Type-A Mom Conference in Asheville, North Carolina last weekend. I had such a great time, I really did. If you're considering conferences in your future, this is an excellent choice, yes, even if you are SO not Type-A, like moi. The sessions were informative, enriching and inspiring, the location was beautiful and the size and flow of the conference itself were just perfect. A big thank you to Kelby for all the hard work making this gig happen. Lady, it was so good.

~~~~~
I thought I'd take a moment to tell you what Type A moms are like.
In an effort to keep you informed. Ahem...


Type-A moms are:


always connected...

Arianne

and creating...

Allie

and energetic...

Danielle

and fantastic...

Katherine

Megan

Sara Sophia

Ashleigh

and willing to eat fancy desserts with me...

maple vanilla cake at French Broad Chocolate Lounge (I ate every last bite)

~~~~~

And now,


I thought I'd share what a not-so Type A mom looks like out on the town...






FIERCE...


Isn't it so sad the photo is blurry?

(I think not.)


Also. More yummies. Just for funsies...



And lastly...ahem....

Can you guess the true identities of any of these beauties?

I just wanted to be sure to let you know that every single one of these masked women tried to steal my Gussy bag right off of my person. ("My person" being...me.) But I would have none of it.

But who wouldn't try to grab up some Gussy, really?



All I have to say about that is...Gussy for Christmas, yo.

~~~~~
Yesterday was a really big day over here at the House of EO. Let's just say that there was a camera and lighting and microphones attached to our shirts.

No, not a reality show, friends.

More soon...

the base

I'm pretty sure that one of the strangest experiences a mother can have is to spend some nights in a hotel room alone. Strange and good and surreal and lonely and wonderful. That's how it is for me anyway, especially since I'm traveling so much lately.

I sat here last night in the silence, in Asheville, North Carolina and felt all of these opposite clashing emotions and of course they were, each of these feelings, tinged with a hint of guilt. Guilt is always the glitter on a mother's art project, it seems.

(Unless we work really hard at not feeling guilty, but that's pretty difficult to do when we're already exhausted.) (Amen?) (AMEN.)

I'm convinced that one thing we mothers have got to try is living more and thinking less. Recently I heard it said that if you want to change how you think you have to live yourself there. It sounds so simple when I type it out like that, but I have a history of taking myself too seriously, all of this over-thinking, stopping me in my tracks. If I let myself go down that road I end up doing the very things I say I don't think are right. Like not following my heart-gut. Like allowing the guilt to bring me to a rumination that brings me to doubts that bring me to insecurity and comparing.

I've probably learned this before and I will probably have to re-learn it again in no time at all, but after I finish letting this out I'm going to hit publish and then I'm going to think of my boys the whole time I'm here without adding the glitter. And when I get home we'll spend time together like we always do. But for now, I'm going to walk out my hotel door and meet a lovely new friend in the lobby. I will probably forget my key and I'll keep my comfortable shoes on, just so you know.

And later I'll go see downtown Asheville with a group of women I'm honored to know. They will inspire me and things will happen that I never could have predicted, good things, I'm sure of it. We'll walk back to the hotel all sleepy and giddy and I will climb into my soft white bed in the silence again and wake up tomorrow to speak to my blogging friends on a panel or two. And then I'll go home with new layers of connection and inspiration tucked away in a part of me that used to hold too much worry.

I hope my boys will see those layers someday, so for now, I'm choosing to believe that my experiences as "Heather of the EO" will enrich my Miles and Asher because I have been enriched. I'm always their mother, sprinkled with guilt but still art. Art like a unique mural painting made up mostly of them, my two boys, with my heart-gut experiences as a base underneath. A base that coud, if I allow it, bring out their best colors.

Now that's an analogy I'm going to have to remember.



Happy weekend, friends...

I flit. I flit. I flit-I flit-I fly

Sabrina and Kelly

Last weekend I got to hang out with Sabrina and Kelly, two friends I don't get to see enough now that we moved. I miss these girls. They are each so freaking fantastic in every way, they truly are. Every day I'm just in awe of the women in my life. Just saying.

We went to a local art fair and snatched up some handmade goodies. And some mini donuts. I took just this one photo and then my camera battery said zzzzzz. Sometimes my camera is so lazy.

Anyway.

I'm leaving tomorrow morning, bright and early, for my trip to North Carolina to speak on a panel at the Type A Mom Conference. I need to do laundry and pack and do a whole lot of other Very Important life things like paperwork and the paying of the bills. I was aware of this to-do list both Monday and Tuesday, but here I am with so much left undone, writing a blog post. And yesterday the boys and I painted the playhouse and then I pulled out the winter clothes and put the summer things away and then we went to Goodwill and the recycling center. These were all things we could do another time. I make no sense. Apparently I like to procrastinate so there's a sense of danger and excitement or something. Or, I'm going to the wrong conference, because I'm more of an end of the alphabet kind of mom--like Type N or P or something. Especially when it comes to potty training. But I digress.

I also must let you know that there are only a few tickets left for the Creative Alliance event taking place in Ojai California next month. If you're a blogger and prefer small gatherings, this really is the thing for you. It's going to be relaxing and laid back and the goal is authenticity and lasting connections. What could be better, yo? You can find all the details on the Creative Alliance site.

(No. I don't know why I'm saying yo lately.)

And since I'm on the subject of conferences today, I wanted to let you know that if you live in the Iowa-ish (Midwest) area, the I_Blog Conference is near you in November! There's a ticket sale this week only, so check out the deals today. Don't procrastinate like me because these really are great deals. If you decide to go, let me know you'll be there! (Please.)

Lastly, I think my comment thingy is still sort of wonky. I've gotten some emails from people saying that they can't comment. So. What I need to know is, what does that mean? Is there no option sometimes? Do you get confused as to what to do? Does your comment disappear? Does it refuse you altogether, screaming in your face NO COMMENT FOR YOU? What happens? I could totally use your help so I can fix it. Thanks, friends. (And yes, I realize that if you can't comment, you can't comment to tell me why you can't comment...so if you try and don't succeed and you happen to have the time, you can email me at heatheroftheeo at gmail dot com)

Alright. That's all I got. I'm going to go do some more random things that aren't on my to-do list now. Like the daily newspaper crossword, another dear friend of mine.

Have a good day, YO.

The Minnesota Bloggers Conference (Alternate Title: I came. I spoke. I survived.)

All week I tried to prepare for speaking to my Minnesota blogging cronies. I tried and tried and felt more and more scattered and then more and more anxious due to the unpreparedness.

I got in the elevator on Saturday morning with Minnesota JoY (who saved me in the parking lot by generously giving me the parking fee I neglected to remember to bring) and Matt Logelin and Chris Ann from LoveFeast Table. That was a really good start.

I asked Matt if he was
ready for his keynote.
He said no.
I felt better.

(Did you notice how I just said that last thing Logelin-style?)

(Am clever.)

Check out the lovely place we were able to call home all day Saturday. (A big thank you to CoCo for allowing a bunch of Internet Geeks to take over their space.)







Yeah, you betcha. I want to work there. The commute would be Uff Da Long, but the huge windows with their light, the brick, the hardwood...I was a bit swoony.

Moving on.

It felt so good to be surrounded by so many people I've come to know through blogging (and The Twitter), and every one was so...well...Minnesota Nice. (No, not the fake-ish passive-aggressive nice, but true and genuine KINDNESS. It was everywhere.)

(she actually IS all things bright and beautiful, my friend Elle.)

Steph, this one's for you...

This is Molly. I know that you can see that she's gorgeous,
but I get to tell you that her loveliness
is all over her insides, too.

And yes, I did some speaking. I like to call it rambling. I had notes, the ones I tried and tried to put together with no success, but I think I only looked at them twice. And I think it went okay. I stood up, I said some things and I hope (a lot) that those things helped someone in the room. It was more than an honor to talk to this particular crew of people, I'll just keep it to that. Except to say a huge-mongous thank you to those of you who attended my session. You rock the party.

(In the 2nd photo I'm saying vroom vroom while pretending to push a car around.
I'm the mother of 2 boys. I just can't stop doing that.)

Lastly. I don't know how to tell you about Matt's keynote. Here are just a few words to describe it: inspiring, authentic, humble, hilarious, moving, creative, hilarious, sad, good, hopeful and hilarious. Thank you, Matt. You are the real deal, fine sir. I'm glad to know you.

Matt, being introduced by Missy, one of the hard-working
creators of the event.

This coming weekend the Gala and 5k to raise money for the Liz Logelin Foundation are a-happenin' in The Minneapolis. If you're local-ish...come and support this endeavor to help shower a little grace on families who have lost a partner and parent. (click Gala and 5k above for details)


Matt's keynote ended the conference on the perfect well-spoken note. He talked about community, the very thing that, for many of us, defines blogging.

I know I said "lastly" but this conference did not change the fact that I'm wordy and scattered, so one last thing...

I need to show you my new Gussy bag (pronounced baaayg). It was so good to see Maggie and then throw all of my super important items from my old bag to the new. It's beautiful, this lady's work. Hand sewn and quality beautiful things, that's what she provides. But you knew that...


I loved Saturday.

The End.