Drops of Awesome

Personal Blog of Author Kathryn Thompson

Kathryn

A Little Guilt and a Little Money

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I’m feeling a bit better today, one million supplements later and a trip to the naturopath that scored me a prescription for antibiotics — ear infection. I didn’t even know grownups could get ear infections, nor did I expect to be put on antibiotics by my uber-natural naturopath but I suppose I need them so there you go.

My post today at Parenting is about my sickness and woes and how the kids are dealing with it. They’re actually dealing quite well. I applaud their bouce-backishness. I’m bouncing back too, thanks to a little help from someone I’ll hereafter refer to as The Pregnant Cleaning Lady. I call her this only because she is pregnant and a cleaning lady.

Stephanie told me that a friend of hers was having a rough time and really needed work cleaning houses. I’ve never hired anyone to clean my house but I wanted to help her out and I guess I’ve been wanting to help her out subconsciously for weeks now because between the road trip and the plagues, it’s been far too long since my house has come in contact with a cleanly hand.

Enter pregnant cleaning lady. It was a strange sort of feeling to hire a woman in her late second trimester to clean my house. I knew she needed the work and I knew I needed help but it was very strange and guilt-inducing to have someone in that state scrubbin’ away at the mess I’d built up because I had a case of the sniffles (and an earache people, let’s not forget the ear ache… and the fever… and the sore throat… and the chapped lips… and the adult acne.) But even with all my infirmities, it still felt wrong to have a pregnant person cleaning my house. If she’s pregnant, she probably has all those infirmities and many many more and they’re all normal because, you know, she’s pregnant.

So I showed her where my supplies were and gave her strict instructions not to bend much or pick up anything too heavy or do anything that made her the least bit uncomfortable. Then I headed to Costco with the kids. When I came home, it was like a fairy godmother of joy had vomited pixie dust all over my house. The entire main floor was spotless. In 2.5 hours she had cleaned my kitchen and dining room from top to bottom, including buffing things that are supposed to be shiny but never are, scrubbed the bathroom, dusted, vacuumed, washed windows and straightened up everything.

Now as I blog in my immaculate house, what earlier today felt so wrong is starting to feel so very very right and addictive. If only I had the money to do this every week. My word, it would be fantastic.

Lots of fun is happening at Seattle Mom Blogs this weekend. We currently have a book giveaway and a great set of organizing bags for kids’ toys. In the next few days we’ll be giving away gDiapers, Method products, luxurious pregnancy-friendly Belli facial care items and more. Keep checking it.

Also, my lovely friend and neighbor the homeopath has made her blogging debut in honor of Earth Day. If you have a moment, please go give her some comment love.

Anyone Can Do It

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We’re all green around here. At this moment, my sinuses are all over the green movement. I hate them. I want to rip them out. I want to stomp on them and run them through my Cuisinart, squeeze them dry and then light them on fire. I have great displeasure with regard to my sinuses. But enough about my ongoing battle with the plague of death that continually resurfaces just when I think it’s safe to stop buying honey and lemons by the truckload.

Laylee and Magoo are trying to be more green. Yesterday I discovered that Laylee had gone commando to preschool. She couldn’t tell me why but I can only assume it was to save space in the washing machine and conserve energy.

Magoo likes to “reuse” the water in his cup at dinner by repeatedly backwashing the same liquid (and a few of its friends) back into his cup.

Both of them are vehemently opposed to slave labor, especially when it involves me forcing them to pick up their eleventy billion tiny plastic toys from all over the floor and under my bed pillow without compensation. I’m pretty sure they’re both for fair trade too. At the very least I frequently hear my little activists chanting about things not being “fair” and whining to each other that they want to “trade” toys.

I think I’ll take my little green nasals to bed now but before I do, I have one question for you – Does it count as “clean living” if behind my sink full of filthy dishes I have a garden window full of vegetable starts?

We’re giving away a couple of copies of a great book over at SMB.com. Go enter the fun!

clean living

Greener Than Yesterday

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If you’ve read this blog for long, you know I’m not the stereotypical Seattle Eco-Mom, rallied round my family with a pocket full of granola. I’m acutally not sure anyone is that mom. I am trying to do better though. I’m making baby steps to a minty green type of life.

It’s exciting and I want to talk about it without driving everybody crazy or giving the impression that I’m an all-or-nothing Al Gore disciple. I just want to be healthy. I just want to feel like every aspect of my life is reaching towards harmony with my moral code.

If I truly believe that people should treat each other well and that the earth we live in is a gift, then I should be trying to buy more products that are produced fairly and with less pollution and less toll on the earth’s resources. It’s hard to do because I’m not rolling in money but I do lots of hard things. I think it’s possible to be healthy and have a positive impact on the planet without my brains exploding because I’m thinking too hard or draining my life savings.

I need help though. That’s where you come in. Starting today on SeattleMomBlogs.com, we’re counting down to Earth Day next Tuesday by encouraging women across the blogosphere to write about ways they’re being more mindful of the environment in their homes and in the world. Are you saving the planet, even just a little bit more than you were yesterday? Click over and find out what you can do to help. Throughout the week we’ll be giving away gDiapers, Method products, Gorgeously Green and more.

Wigging Out

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Glamor Shot! I’ve had a few comments about my new profile picture over at Parenting.com. What?! I actually had a decent photo taken of myself to use as a bio picture when I write and attend conferences?! I’m no longer using the 2-year-old picture of myself makeup-free, crouched by the door at my in-laws’ house cropped close so you couldn’t see the kids snuggled up to me?!

My sister Becky is a photographer and she took me and the kids into the studio for an impromptu photo session while we were in Utah. We had a blast and came out with some great shots, although I sort of wish I’d thought to wash Magoo’s face and lose 30 lbs beforehand. I also wish Dan had been there. She’s a great photographer, eh? (Mouse over the photos for commentary.)
This is how he "smiles"Sitting cross legged and looking "casual"Administering disciplineAdministering ticklesThis is so fun...... until it isn't
I DID get my hair cut and colored a few days before. I went in for highlights and had been so impressed with the hairdresser’s style that I told her to do whatever she wanted. She gave me bangs and made me blonde. It’s not something I would have ever been brave enough to ask for but I really love it. This is the first time since Junior High that I’ve had bangs I liked.

When Laylee saw me, she said, “You don’t look like my mom!”
Sweet peaAdministering comfortSweet pea with a crazy face and wide angle.

The truth is I look like her mom with a wig on her head. But it’s a good wig, a wig I enjoy wearing, a wig I probably can’t afford to upkeep for very long. It’s fun.

I was teaching my 9-year-olds at church today and they were sort of blown away by the transformation. One little girl kept repeating, “You look SO different.” Finally I told her, “Yeah, it’s different but we’ll get used to it.”

“No,” she said, “I will NEVER get used to it.”

Okay.
Where's Dan? Maybe I'll photoshop him in.

Reaching Out

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One of the major highlights of my Blogher New York trip last week was reconnecting with Jen Lemen, a beautiful woman inside and out whom I met in Chicago last year. She is one of the most genuine and loving people I have ever met. To be around her is to feel good about yourself and hopeful about the world.

She is gathering donations for a trip to Rwanda to spread hope and relief and visit the daughters of a dear friend who is not able to travel back home to be with her girls. If you have a few spare dollars in your couch or PayPal account or if you have some free money left over from your tax return, please send it Jen’s way. I can guarantee you that good will be done on your behalf.

The Big Trip Report

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Shines like the top of the Chrystler building
I have so much to tell you but honestly I’d rather just ask you for a band-aid. My feet are SHREDDED from all the cute shoes I’ve been wearing around the city. It seems that everything less than 5 miles away in New York is considered “close” and people just View from my hotel room2hoof it all over the city to save on cab fare. This would have been fine if I’d stuck with the white tennis shoes but I swapped them out for heels, heels, heels and I’m paying the price for my fabulousness. Mir hooked me up with several band-aids this morning but they’re failing miserably at this point. I’m not sure what kind of adhesive they use in Georgia but it doesn’t adhese as well as I’d like.

Still, I’d rather wear a non-sticky band-aid from Mir than a proper Northern band-aid any day. She is that rad. The first time I met her 2 years ago, I was providing her with a band-aid to help with what I believe was an unfortunate shaving incident.
View from my hotel room
Speaking of shaving, when I asked the lady at the deli next to our hotel if she had a razor for sale, she said, “Like for shaving?” and pantomimed running a razor across her chin and cheek. “Yes,” I replied. “Perhaps I didn’t pluck well enough,” I mused.

My blisteringly fabulous shoes were a topic of discussion at the closing keynote session today. Earlier in the day Elisa Camhort Page (who needs to stop adding names) commented on their cuteness and like any savvy shopping woman I smiled proudly and told her, “SIX BUCKS!” These little babies were on clearance at Fred Meyer and I liked them so much that I picked up an extra pair in a random size to give away to the first lucky size 10 Cinderella I came across.

So during Elisa’s closing session interview of The Budget Fashionista, she shared my story and I got to stand up and show off my bargain to a room full of bloggers and business people. Sweet. You’ve got to love a women’s conference. And I did. I loved the conference.
What a lovely panel
I was speaking on a panel with Method and A Squared Group about their Detox Seattle program, coming soon to a city near you, and I didn’t know quite what to expect from a blogging business conference. I blog but I’m not a business, although I do work with them from time to time in my blogging endeavors.

The conference was much more intimate than BlogHer’s main event and I felt like I really got to spend time building relationships that I had started with waves in passing at other conferences. The pace was good and there was a ton of information to absorb about good blogging practices, building buzz, working with marketing firms and businesses and what kind of wipes to use for your potty-training toddler.

My cousin says the kid of Sleepless in Seattle would have frozen at the top of the ESB on Valentine's DayMy panel went really well, a case study on using social media as part of a successful marketing campaign. (Click here for the live blog. I’m case study #4) Method really did everything right in Seattle, a personal, sincere, respectful pitch, a great product, something valuable in exchange for my time, and excellent relationship building and follow up. Besides all that, every person we’ve met from Method and their marketing firm have been amazing people, people you want to hang out with, people you want to stay up all night giggling with and braiding each other’s hair while dancing to Milli Vanilli cassette tapes. (If they ever ask you to engage in those activities, accept their offer without delay.)

The Empire State Building is a freezeI had fun up there because I had a positive topic to speak on, my fellow panelists were rad, and the attendees were intelligent, positive, encouraging and engaging. (If they ever ask you to speak at BlogHer Business, accept their offer without delay.)

I got a brief chance to experience the city, crazy cab drivers, touring Times Square with Gabby’s too nice relatives, visiting the Empire State building with my cousin who lives in New York and didn’t act at all annoyed to be briefly tour around with me. She even humored me by taking one of those little bike trailers back to my hotel when we had a tough time hailing a cab. For 10 dollars, a very friendly and superhumanly strong man Strong biker shuttle manshuttled us for 10 blocks, being careful to swerve too close to moving vehicles and laugh at our reactions. I suppose near-death is part of the fun of the experience and he expects a bigger tip for taking you to the edge of safety without dropping you off the cliff.

In an attempt to increase the frequency with which I invite strange foreigners to my hotel room, I had a nice chat with Sarah, whom I see becoming a great friend and collaborator. She is really someone worth knowing and not just because of the accent or the fact that I’m hoping she’ll show me around next time I’m in London.

Too embarassed to exit this thing at the Affinia, we got out accross the street at Madison Square GardenThe main message I’d leave with marketers is that bloggers write about experiences. If you can give them a great experience with your product or service, chances are they will write about it because it’s part of their life and they want to talk about their life. By in large they do not want to talk about your potato chips or premium shoe laces. They want to talk about their life. If you can find a creative way to make your brand a part of their life in a mutually beneficial way with an experience attached, chances of getting your message out are greater. If a blog is a representation of me, then I’m not going to write about something unless it reflects who I am and what I want to be associated with. So choose carefully who you market to and find a way to partner with them, rather than expecting complimentary advertising.
Big Fat City
Now I have one last thing. As I was walking through the airport this afternoon, I caught my reflection in a mirror and noticed that the back of my skirt was caught in my laptop bag and my back-ish half was hanging all kinds of out. I don’t know how long I’d been like that, but I’d been walking around for at least 10 minutes with my bags before I noticed it. For the love of human dignity, if you see someone walking around like that, let them know, I BESEECH YOU!