Life Lately: Oliver, My Goals, My Father-In-Law's Book

Blayne Macauley October 28, 2015

Hi everyone,

I hope you are having a nice Fall. It's been a while (4 months in fact) since I've written a post about what's going on with me, so I thought it was time. I have a lot of things to cover, so let's get started.

1. Oliver

Oliver (my 17 month old son) is doing so well. In fact, he's a bit of a celeb. I post a lot of photos on Facebook, and wherever I go people ask me about him. He talks ALL THE TIME. "Hey mama," "uh oh" and "choo choo" are on the top of his phrase list, but he can say just about anything. I think he's going to be a talker like my husband, so his wife is going to be super lucky. :) Oliver's other passion is music. No surprise there since Jimmy and I both love it, but it's very cool to see your joys manifest in your child. Jimmy and I love dancing as much as we love music, and I think Oliver got that love as well.

Fare Thee Well: grateful reflections on being a wife, mother, and me.

Blayne Macauley July 7, 2015

This past weekend Jimmy and I went to Chicago for the Fare Thee Well Grateful Dead Tour. I had a lot of apprehension leading up to the trip. Oliver has become super attached to me, and he calls out "mama" about a thousand times a day. The thought of leaving him induced a pretty severe dose of mom guilt. It's strange to think that just a few years ago my needs were my number one priority. Maybe that's selfish to say, but my main concern throughout the day was getting where I needed to be, doing what I needed to do, and making myself happy. In 4 short years, I met Jimmy, got married, and had a baby. Now it seems like my needs come third, and while I'm so happy where I am in life and wouldn't trade it for anything, I am still struck sometimes by what a major change it is. Being a good wife and mother are my biggest concerns now. Although they are equally important to me, Jimmy does not cry or demand my time, and so sometimes being a good mom takes priority over being a great wife.

Jimmy asked me to go to these shows as a favor to him. I really love music and shows and my friends, but I'm a mom and I'm tired, and getting up the energy for three nights of shows seemed almost impossible. Because I love my husband, and I agreed we could use some time together away from the baby, I packed my bag, dropped the baby off with my mom, and boarded the plane. Almost as soon as we were in the air I felt better. I knew Oliver was well cared for, and I was on my way for 3 days where my biggest priority was being a wife and having fun with my husband. I even started to get kind of excited.

Once we were in the air, Jimmy surprised me and told me that he got reservations at a Top Chef restaurant that night! As you know from this post, Top Chef is my favorite TV show, and I was very excited. It was nice to know he'd done something so thoughtful for me. It reminded me that I am a very loved woman, and my interests matter very much to him.

We met his parents that night for dinner, and it was fantastic! I very much recommend the Little Goat if you are in Chicago.

The next day we actually slept in until 10! It was unreal. Oliver did not wake us up at the crack of dawn! We did not have to go immediately into parent mode. We lounged around for a while and then leisurely decided to meet our friend Adam for brunch. We chatted and laughed and told college stories, and I began to feel more and more like myself.

After brunch we went to a Cubs game at Wrigley Field. I felt so calm sitting at the stadium and watching the game. I absolutely adore baseball, and it was nice to be able to focus my full attention on something I love. I sat next to my father-in-law and watched the game and just soaked up the time.

Happy Birthday Oliver!

Blayne Macauley May 13, 2015

Happy Birthday my sweet man.

This time last year I had just gotten an epidural, and you were making some of your last kicks in my belly. Before we went to the hospital we already had your name picked out, "Rodney Oliver Macauley," and we had been calling you Oliver for months. During my labor your daddy was so wonderful to me that I planned on changing your name to his. I wanted to call you James. I had it all set in my head, but then as soon as you came out I gasped, "Oliver!" and that was that. You've always been an Oliver.

When they handed you to me for the first time I said, "he looks just like me!" It was the strangest feeling to see a baby that looked like me, but I was SO PROUD. There was no denying I was your mommy.