I'm Lindsay Ferrier, a Nashville writer with a passion for family travel, exploring Tennessee, and raising kids without losing my mind in the process. This is where I share my discoveries, along with occasional deep thoughts, pop culture tangents and a sprinkling of snark. Want to get in touch? Use the CONTACT form at the top of the page.
December 31, 2009
>This is one of my favorite posts to write each year, mostly because it’s amazing to look back and see all that’s happened. This year, looking back has just made me very, very tired! Here’s why…
January started off with glorious memories of my flying crotch. and quickly segued into the first of what would be several catfights over WAHMs vs. SAHMs vs. WOHMs (check out these comments!) I know, I know, I shouldn’t bait trolls. I blame lack of sleep. Punky started acting class and the experience gave me a case of the dry heaves. Then I endured another sighting of Gym Mom. After that, I persisted through the trials and tribulations of raising teens. Next, I got what I believe to be the first and only publishing Twitterjection in history. I wore my Snuggie to lunch, a groundbreaking move that landed me on national television! I reflected on what it means to have a boy after three girls. And I wrote the story of my first year in television news, parts I, II, III, IV and V.
In February, I invited a friend to what turned out to be the messiest playdate of all time. (We never got together again, and now that I think of it, this might be why!) I became embroiled in Nannygate 2009. I recounted the many social faux pas I’ve commited on Facebook. I wrote a diatribe against Valentine’s Day and many of you agreed with me. I spoke out against “Me Time” and then co-hosted a CheeseBurgHer Party at Mom 2.0 in Houston. I decided that mommyblogging isn’t what it used to be and hit a nerve with a whole bunch of you.
March began with me wondering whether you minded me linking to my writing on other sites. You overwhelmingly said NO. Thanks for that. I got sick and starred in my own personal horror movie. I attended a dinner at which every woman at the table began texting. You all had some choice words about that experience! I began writing about my religious beliefs, and boy did you all ever respond! I made what will hopefully be the most embarrassing video I’ll ever make in my life. I wrote what’s probably the most-read post ever written on this blog, about some of you out there who believe I have no right to call myself a Christian. And then I wrote about the time I accidentally joined a cult! FUN! Oh, and my baby boy turned two.
April opened with a very interesting discussion on why God “allows” great tragedies in this world. I told the story of how and why I can identify human cremains, you know, in the event that you need somebody to do that. I lamented the fact that my daughter would never be four again and then celebrated her fifth birthday. I outed our local Book Bully. I had a little fun with a truly idiotic PR rep. I admitted my most shameful secret. And then I admitted something else that was truly embarrassing. It was a month for admissions, it seems. I wrote about Bruiser’s obsession with using my bra as his own personal pocket. In public. I was shocked when an old friend was murdered by her husband in an event that made headlines around the world. Days later, my daughter’s beloved ballet teacher died. It was a rough month.
May got better when I went to Disney World with a bunch of other mom bloggers. Best. Mommyblog perk. EVER. I hit a nerve when I wrote about the ugly that is Urban Outfitters. I got caught up in the swine flu panic that was sweeping the nation. I hosted a BlogHer Backtalk episode in which we questioned whether breastfeeding really is always best. We said goodbye to our dog, Dipper. I met probably the two rudest teenagers in middle Tennessee and boy, did they ever get you guys riled up. I wrote about the widespread practice of kindergarten redshirting. I almost died. Again. I exposed American Apparel for the style-sucking unfashionable clothier that it is. I started another big blog brouhaha when I wrote about why I think review blogs and personal blogs shouldn’t mix. I introduced you to the Most Annoying Man in the World (and I just saw him again about 15 minutes ago!). We had a rousing discussion on whether to spank or not to spank. I offered some good (and unheeded) advice to our high school graduate.
I launched off June with an expose of Cathy Anderson and her White Teeth, which became a major Twitter controversy. Punky had a major milestone and I was grateful to be there for it. I found out one of my newspaper columns had been plagiarized by another “journalist.” Hey look! Another blogging throwdown! This time over whether work-at-home moms have it easier than work-outside-the-home moms. I wrote a column calling for married men and women to return to having bedrooms (and bathrooms!) of their own. I examined the effect my need for makeup is having on my five-year-old daughter. I started yet another fracas by admitting I let Bruiser run hog wild in a restaurant once. The fallout continued the next day. I used proven animal trainers’ techniques to train my husband- and it totally worked! And I decided that mommyblogging was no longer a radical act. The post was quoted on Newsweek.com and published in the just-released Kirtsy anthology!
In July, I got an amazing response from a post I wrote about the difficulty I’ve had in finding Christian friends. Katie Granju dished it out and I gave it right back when the stepmother took a blog beating. And then I determined that where I go, throwdowns follow, both on my blog and in real life. I tried out the Divado on camera, with hilarious results. I gave my husband a very special birthday present, which resulted in a Beauty, Uncensored column that every man I’ve run into since has somehow managed to mention. My daughter decided she was The Chosen One and I must say, I agree with her! I went to BlogHer and came back a Swag Hag in a post that was later picked up by Ad Age and quoted completely out of context! WOOT! I co-hosted the best Cheeseburgher Party yet! Seriously, y’all, even the London Times covered it! I called out Kraft for advertising on a webcast about a porn star mom and in response, they quickly pulled the ads. Thanks, Kraft!
In August, I asked for advice on telling my daughter that her ballet teacher had died and you gave it to me. Despite this, I still managed to botch The Death Talk. Hubs and I struggled to deal with an 18-year-old heading off to college and a five-year-old starting kindergarten. And so did Bruiser, in what’s become one of the most read posts on this blog ever. I experienced the car rider pick-up circle of hell and found I was far from alone. I began the arduous process of Letting Go of my daughter. I ranted about the advertisements that come home in my daughter’s school folder and you all were so with me on that one!
In September, I reassured mothers that preschool isn’t absolutely necessary for kindergarten preparedness. I compared my suburban neighbors to zombies. Yes. Zombies. Together, we discovered that we all have super powers, and some are way better than others. We made our first pilgrimage to Chattanooga to visit my stepdaughter and had a blast. Kindergarten began to take its toll on all of us. I was dissed at a cocktail party in favor of Twitter. TWITTER! I asked for your bad doctor stories and Wow. Just. WOW. And I showed you all the tartastic Halloween costume options out there for teens and tweens.
I began October with one of the all-time greatest moments of my life– I even caught it on video. A Very Important Phone Call was pretty much ruined. We all discussed whether or not to vaccinate our kids for Swine Flu. I investigated the frankly scary world of Extreme Coupon Clipping. In a post that resonated with many of you, I tried to find balance between my work and mom lives. And then I tried my hand at lazy, I mean, free-range parenting. I had an embarrassing shopping moment that set lots of you off. And I ran the mall kiosk gauntlet and wrote what has turned out to be a very popular column about it.
And that brings us to November, an uneventful month for this blog, mostly because it was a very eventful one in my personal life. In November, Punky got engaged. I discovered, thanks to my perceptive mother, that I have a deformity. I decided to go cold turkey on arguing with my husband in front of the kids, and have been mostly successful. I got dissed by my PTO. And in a post people are still asking me about at Kroger, I interviewed an adult baby.
This month, I told a completely untrue story about my oldest stepdaughter. I got a surprising thoughts on love from the creator of Cheaters. President Obama began reading my blog. I discovered I’m not the only one peeved with people’s inability to RSVP. I introduced you to a new batch of Bad Santas. I decided the toy makers totally have it out for parents at Christmas time. We all got Swine Flu. My daughter gave me the best Christmas present I’ve ever gotten. I started a style blog, where we can go and argue about people who wear pajamas in public and moms who dress to match their children. I proved, once again, that my son looks JUST LIKE ME, despite seeming evidence to the contrary. And I told you all about the craze that’s sweeping the neighborhood and causing mom throwdowns in toy aisles across the city: Silly Bandz.
It has been an eventful year for me, full of challenges and traveling and change and lots of love, and I have been so honored to have all of you along for the virtual ride. I hope each and every one of you has a wonderful new year and that all of your dreams for 2010 come true. See you next year!
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.