Steel Magnolia

Yesterday and today were shockers for me, as well as my fellow South Carolinians when we learned that our governor, someone that my family and I have supported during his controversial refusal of government stimulus money, had been cheating on his wife, and, truthfully, the state of South Carolina as a whole. Through all this madness, googling for pictures of this woman and reading emails that were published between Sanford and his mistress (yeah, I googled, I admit it), I forgot to read one little iota that probably many have skipped over - the statement released from Mrs. Jenny Stanford, First Lady of SC and my new hero.

As a young woman who experienced first hand what leads up to and the aftermath of failed marriages and now, as a woman with a husband of my own, my heart truly aches for this woman and her four children. I could not imagine how heartbreaking it would be to learn that my own husband found another woman more desirable than me and willingly broke vows made before God to be with someone else. But I can not fathom how personally humiliating it would be for everyone in the world to know and have a comment on his actions, to see correspondence between him and HER, and to fully understand that perhaps I was now left to fend for myself and my children alone. No, Mrs. Sanford will never want financially. But as we wives know, marriage is more than money. It is love and friendship and most of all trust between a man and a woman who commit to go to the grave joined as one. Can you imagine what this woman is going through?

I ask that we hold this woman in our prayers. I don't know her personally, but I do believe that she is probably a good woman and wife and mother and at this time is heartbroken over the public infidelities of her husband and the tearing apart of her family.

I think we can all learn and use what she said, as released in her statement:

"seek the wisdom of Solomon, the strength and patience of Job and the grace of God in helping to heal my family."

WELL. They asked her!

You'd have to be living under a rock to not have heard about the Miss USA "Controversy" that's tearing up the internet and has made front page on Fox News' website. I was until I got to work this morning.

Apparently, there are some Conservatives left in good 'ole California! When asked whether or not she believed in gay marriage, Miss Cali gave the answer heard round the world: a big fat "I believe that marriage should be between a man and a woman. Thanks and buh-bye." (I made up that last part.) And you know what? The question was asked by Mr. Flamboyent himself, Perez Hilton. I watched the video and you should have seen the look on Perezzer's face when Miss Cali said that! He looked ticked, ya'll. But why? They asked the question. Is it now acceptable to lie and just tell the judges what they want to hear in order to win the competition? I mean, I know it's just a beauty pageant, but these women have spent some time and major moolah to win the title. Miss Cali may be tanned up, toned up, and smiled up, but she hasn't sold out. Her morals are still intact. And even though she didn't win, she made a statement that will be more remembered than anything else. And as of now, she isn't saying she's sorry. Go girl!

P.S. I would so love to have her body...wonder if she Jazzercises?

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness

On July 4, 1776, our Founding Fathers declared independence from England's tyranny. In that Declaration is a phrase that has been perverted and distorted so much that it has given people a false image of what they deserve:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

I usually try not to get political with my thoughts on my blog, but today's coverage of last night's town hall meeting with President Obama in Ft. Meyers, Florida, has disgusted me. First there is Julio, a college student (good for him) that has been working at McDonald's for quite some time (also good for him). His issue is with health insurance. He can't get it. Or says he can't. Or maybe he can't stomach the fact that his pay check will be dramatically decreased each week when the company takes out his insurance payments. Welcome to the club.
Second is Miss Henrietta, who has allegedly been living in her car, is unemployed, etc. She begs the President to help her out of her situation. No one questioned her on WHY she was unemployed, WHERE her former home went, or WHAT she spent her money on. She was automatically labeled as a victim of circumstance, which may or may not have been the case.

The audacity of these people boggles my mind. When did it become an unalienable RIGHT to own a home? To have health insurance? I thought that my rights were life (thank goodness I didn't get aborted), liberty (better not say too much or I could offend someone), and the PURSUIT of happiness. I take that to mean that I am entitled to pursue my OWN happiness, not pursue OTHERS to give me happiness, wealth, a home, health insurance, etc.

What happened to personal accountability? Or personal pride, for that matter? I grew up in a family that figured things out themselves. They didn't rely on the government or anyone else to pay their bills, be it their mortgage or any other creditor. I'm thankful that that attitude has been passed on to me. Yes, I do have some outstanding bills that my husband and I are working to pay off. But we get up every day, dust ourselves off from working the day before, and go at it again with a vengenance, thanking God that we have another day to work! We aren't going to sit around waiting for a government handout. And neither should anyone else.

The Year of the Scarf

I have always loved scarves, but never knew how to wear them. I would see pictures of people with their scarf tied just so and become really jealous because I had this one great striped scarf circa 2000 from the Gap that I LOVED and refuse to part with (is it old enough to be considered vintage?), but every time I tried to wear it, the scarf ends would hang from underneath my peacoat. Was it the scarf or me? I was too embarrassed to ask because shouldn't I know this? I mean, I'm a girlie girl, but honestly, the whole scarf thing had me stumped.

Obviously, I was not alone in my scarf shame. One of the people that I blogstalk - Angie at Bring the Rain - did a totally cute vimeo that shared her scarf woes. She was answered by Big Mama in a brilliant blog (complete with video) on how to tie a scarf. I have to give a major shout out to Big Mama because I actually used her video while tying a scarf and her lesson totally worked!

Today I took the plunge. I purchased my first "springy" scarf at Target except mine is in pink. "PINK is my signature color." I plan to wear it with a simple long sleeved tee, jeans, and flats. I'm hoping that my scarf tying skills will be up to par! By the way, Target has not let me down with their selection of cute spring things. Even though I was saddened by the loss of the Isaac line (even though I found his clothes to be a bit under par and a little over priced), I feel like Merona and Mossimo have stepped up to the plate. There is a sweet black and white canvas like bag I am eyeing, as well as some Wayfarers. I am so into Wayfarers right now and really wish I could afford a pair of Ray Bans, but, alas, I always lose sunglasses, so cheap is the smart way to go.
And while I'm on the Target bandwagon, can I just give a shout out to their pajama/lingerie department? They have got THE cutest Valentine's day pj's and I LOVE the Gilligan O'Malley line - can we say soft, budget, AND matchey matchey in the same sentence? LOVE IT! Okay enough, because I obviously have a shopping problem and my husband may read this blog.

P.S. A quick shout out to Frack and her new kicks - I saw them with my own eyes yesterday and they were splendificant and totally worth $14. Good shopping, Frack, you did me proud. :)

Deal of the Day

Does anyone out there get super intimidated by going in clothing shops? I really feel like I am being judged every time I set foot in one - like my hair isn't quite right or my outfit choice was completely wrong. It's crazy - I mean, the people working at these places are just regular people, but just happen to be employed at a place where people CARE about your clothes, unlike at my job where I sit at a cubicle and nobody really notices what I'm wearing (except for Leslie & Julie, but they are kind to me).
Anyway, I had a moment like that in Ann Taylor Loft today where my self-esteem peaced out and I was left feeling quite wretched. Or maybe it had something to do with me feeling bad because I did not spend much time with the regularly priced merchandise, but instead hung out with the Final Sale items, which brings me to the point of this post - my deal(s) of the day:
Today at Ann Taylor Loft, you can get 25% off all sale priced merchandise. After much perusing, I settled on a patterned navy/white knit tunic top with beading that was regularly $59. I got it today for $11.16. I feel like it will look quite fetching with my white linen Ralph Lauren pants come April (and I got those pants on sale at Macy's, too). I also purchased a green, navy, and yellow printed knit top regularly priced at $39 for $7.41. I am hoping to score some sweet navy pants at some point soon to wear with it.
Hopefully one day soon I will be able to again afford regularly priced merchandise, but at this particular "I'm on Dave Ramsey's plan" juncture, I'm all about the sales. I'm even thinking of purchasing a Lilly dress off ebay for Easter. I'll let ya'll know how that one goes.

It Really IS A Wonderful Life

Chad is taking this really hip, cool class right now - something about Film As Art - and he has to write a paper on a famous director from a certain period. Chad chose Frank Capra, the man responsible for films like "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" and yes, "It's A Wonderful Life." So last night, being the supportive wife that I am, I sat down with Chad and watch "It's A Wonderful Life" for the upteenth millionth time. So I thought. But the older I get, the more this movie touches me even more. Maybe it's because I understand more about not having much money, being dependent on your job to get your through, not being totally satisfied with your career choice, not being 100% happy with where you are in life...but most importantly, I understand what it's like to forget how much MY life impacts the people around me.
The most poignant part of that movie for me is when Jimmy Stewart's character, George Bailey, is erased from the face of the earth by his guardian angel, Clarence, and he's at the grave of his younger brother Harry, who earlier that day had won a Congressional Medal of Honor. But because George Bailey had never been born, Harry Bailey died when he was 9 years old by drowning because his older brother hadn't been there to save him and thus didn't complete his life's purpose because of the absence of George.
It just really made me think about how my life, as small and insignificant as it may seem, touches so many people - or at least I hope it does - and that I am important - to my family, my friends, my job.
Anyway, if you haven't rented "It's A Wonderful Life" or caught it on TBS when it plays nonstop during the Christmas season, watch it again. It's still very relevant to life today and it really is a great movie!

The Winds of Change

Well, he did it. Mr. B. Hussein Obama is now president-elect of the United States of America. He has made history as becoming the first black president to be and while I know that a lot of my fellow countrymen are ecstatic about his win over McCain, I am so depressed I can't stand it.
Obviously I did not vote for Obama, mainly because I did not agree with anything he stood for, from partial birth abortion to his views on spreading the wealth to his stance on the Iraq war. Do I think that he is a bad person? No. Do I believe that you are judged by the company you keep? Absolutely. Am I afraid for our country? Yes, because I think that he lacks the experience and strength of character needed to be a leader, and no because throughout everything this country has been through, God has remained on the throne.
I believe that no matter who you wanted to be president, you must pray for our leaders, agree with them or not. I pray that Obama makes the right decisions for our country in the next four years. I pray for safety for his family, especially his children, who have now been thrust into a media circus.
Now is the time more than ever that Christians need to stand strong in their faith and beliefs. Don't let anything sway you, no matter how good it seems at the time. Politics are just for this lifetime. Eternity is forever. Remember that our hope is in the Lord Jesus Christ, not in Obama or Biden or any other candidate out there. And I'm taking my own advice - I'm not going to stay depressed today, even though that would definitely be the easy thing to do!
Republican or Democrat - I hope everyone out there has a happy day!

One Day To Go...

Politics, it seems to me, for years, or all too long, has been concerned with right or left instead of right or wrong. ~Richard Armour, poet

It seems like this has been the longest election season in history, and in many ways it has been since the candidates have been running for the past two years. Now it's down to the last 24 hours and tensions are high everywhere, with everyone waiting to know what tomorrow will bring.
I consider myself a conservative based on my moral, economic, and social beliefs. I really don't like any of the Presidential nominees - both have their pros, but the cons outweight them by far. Obama seems to have a charisma that McCain lacks; however, McCain has a history of serving our country, almost to the death, that Obama can not lay claim to. The only candidate that I am even interested in is Mrs. Sarah Palin. Her story amazes me - small town girl, no Ivy league education, big family, strong values, and even though she is now part of the political machine, it has not wavered her beliefs one bit. That is someone we, especially women, can look up to and admire.
Most of us are not and never will be part of the Hillary Clintons in the world. Most of us aren't going to have the opportunity to attend a college like Wellesley (where the cost of tuition per semester is around $18K), go to law school at Yale, or have our husband be the President of U.S. But most of us ARE like Sarah Palin - state universities, a job or two before we settle down to our career, a husband that works hard labor, and having to work and be a mom at the same time. It amazes me that behind the Tina Fey jokes, the discussion about her wardrobe (um, what woman would not want to spend some big bucks on clothing when she has the chance), and the media questioning whether or not she's a bad mom because of her daughter's unexpected pregnancy, lies a woman who is so similar to you and me.
No, tomorrow is not going to decide whether or not Sarah Palin becomes president. But it is going to be a turning point if she is elected to the vice presidency. History will be made as she becomes the first female elect vice president and one that makes it okay to be a regular woman again - not some hyped up, liberal minded female, but a regular do it all and still maintain a fabulous hair style mom. I think that's all something we women should think about.
Vote smart tomorrow, do as much research as you can, and think about the future. Also, please pray about your decision.