A Little About Me...

I just received a comment to my Britney post, and while I felt like some of it was pretty spot on (I agree that both in the post and in my personal life, I fall into some of the same stereotypical thinking and skewed assumptions that fueled my vitriol about Britney's situation), I realized there are some things/misconceptions that I should probably speak a bit about on here. And because I'm trying to stay away from all sorts of work at the moment (like, say, lesson notes for the past week), here you have it: all kinds of things you probably never wanted to know about me.

1. I am a working mom, with kids aged 8 and (almost) 4. My daughter is a very active third grader who plays soccer, is on student council, and takes creative writing classes. My son is...a typical four year old boy. He makes a mess just about everywhere he goes, he is constantly on the go, and has the ability to stay up for incredibly long hours before finally conking out in a pool of blankets and sweat. Did I mention how much this kid eats? No? It's uncanny. I work for a small company that does test prep (SAT, ACT, SAT II's, etc.); I work in the office during the days and teach one on one lessons at night. I generally start work at 9:00 after dropping the kids off, and have lessons until 7:00 (unless, of course, it's tonight when I'll be going until 10:30! Lord, I can't wait until the October 6 SAT!). I am a very busy girl, but I like being like that--I don't think I would change it if I could. Because of this rather harried lifestyle, I hardly ever go shopping "in person" unless I'm heading to GapKids or Old Navy or something. Most, if not all, of my shopping is done online. I am lucky in that I know what size I am, and am pretty good about returning things if they don't fit the way I like.

2. I am not small. I am between a 12 and 14 (probably more towards the 14 side), depending on where I shop. That said, I don't despise my body. In fact, I think I'm pretty sexy about 80% of the time. My body is what it is. Yeah, I'd probably like to be smaller, but I'm not, so I don't care. I love to cook and eat a range of yummy foods, and I wouldn't change that for anything. My son and I share quality time baking together, so in my eyes, the extra pounds are well worth it. I do work out mostly every morning, and feel like I am in pretty good shape for my size and age. (My work outs are all strippercise and from The S Factor by Sheila Kelly-- I would recommend this to anyone. My husband recently bought me a pole, and let me tell you, nothing works your upper arm wobblies like pole work!). Anytime I talk about clothing that I like or have bought, you should imagine it on my body--a real woman's body.

3. I do not have a ton of money. Yes, I work hard, and make good money for what I do. But I live in the Bay Area, and honey, it ain't cheap. Plus, I did mention how much my son eats.... I do not spend a lot of money on clothes--in fact, I probably spend less than a lot of women I know. I scope out sales, I use hella coupon codes, and yes, I do focus on quality rather than on quantity. No, that doesn't mean that I'll drop $800 on heels because I think they are good quality. To me, quality can come from lots of places, but it's all in the texture, the stitching, the way a garment hangs. I have bought quality items at Target, and I have bought quality items at Nordstrom. I buy very few trends, and I research items before I buy them to make sure I'm getting what I want. That's not to say that I'm a perfect shopping robot--I do make some big mistakes. Case number 1: the frilly front shirt I bought (on sale) from J.Crew last year. I put it on, and my husband said "Oh, so are we dressing as our favorite Seinfeld episodes today? Because I have that "Master of My Domain" shirt." Seriously. But overall, I do quite well for what I have.

All that is part of the reason I write this blog. I am tired of looking at fashion magazines and feeling like shit because I'm chubby and don't have $400 sitting around that I can spend on a scarf. I like reading other blogs (like the ones on the side of this page) that are about women who are in similar predicaments and who are, above all, real. I want to live in a world where fashion is fun for everyone, not just a select few who have spent the last year smoking a cigarette for lunch and squeezing the buttons shut on a Rachel Roy dress.

Further, another reason I write this blog is because I believe that we can all do better with ourselves, myself included. Sometimes, before I buy something, I think about this blog and what my 3.7 readers would have to say about me buying another black long-sleeved t-shirt. Boring, they would say. For God's sake, Morgan, they would yell, eyes rolling. I want my readers to have that voice inside their head too. Maybe it could be...my voice (if it is my voice, make sure it has a drawl...I have a decidedly Southern twang). Maybe when you get up in the morning, and reach for those misshapen khakis, you could say to yourself, "Wow... I could really feel better about myself today if I took the 3.2 extra seconds and put on a skirt." And maybe it could be because you read this blog. I don't know. Like I said, I'm not perfect, I'm not even a good fashion role model. But I do think that we all deserve, no matter what size we are, no matter how much money we have in the bank (or don't have, in my case--thank god for payday tomorrow) to participate in fashion and let ourselves look as good as possible. Really, there's no good excuse for not looking your best. And I hope that if I do anything with this blog (other than waste my own time), it's to get you to think about that.