>Suburban Turmoil- The Year in Review

>I’ve had this blog for just two and a half years now, but honestly, it feels more like ten. Ten in Internet years, anyway. So many things have happened this past year, I’m surprised I was able to work so much into just 365 days… Anyway, here are some of the highlights…

In January, an uninvited guest came to stay at Chez Ferrier. He has since departed this mortal coil and not a moment too soon, I’d say. The battle lines were drawn as you moms sided up on either Team Smocking or Team Overalls. And that minor skirmish was just a prelude to the Great Circumcision Debate of 2007. I learned more about foreskin that month than I ever, ever wanted to know. Suffering through the various trials and tribulations of the third trimester, I also asked for your most embarrassing pregnancy stories and boy, did you ever deliver!

February marked my most important Perfect Post Awards ever. I introduced you guys to a blog about a beautiful young mom who was in the midst of a battle against lymphoma. Lots of you headed over there from here and ended up regularly commenting and even donating a sizable amount of money when Leanne’s husband went on a fundraising bike ride. One Suburban Turmoil reader even realized that she had lymphoma after reading about Leanne’s symptoms. Sadly, she recently died. The good news for Leanne, though, is that she did indeed give lymphoma a beatdown. You go, girl!

On a lighter note, I created my now-infamous Baby Unregistry for all the baby gifts I definitely did not want to receive at my baby showers. I wrote an impassioned defense of the epidural and a bunch of you chimed in. And I created a pictorial history of how I lost my Cool.

In March, Kimberly threw me a surprise blogging baby shower, complete with awesome pictures of Suburban Turmoil readers’ pregnant tummies. I reciprocated with one of my own (was that really me?!) Suffering from a wide variety of third trimester maladies, I decided to induce labor the natural way with a tried-and-true eggplant recipe, prompting a local anchor to try it and go into labor herself. And yes, after three days of eggplant leftovers, my water broke and baby Bruiser was born, nine days early and weighing in at ten. Freaking. Pounds. Of course, the birth story had to be told. A few days later, I admitted that breastfeeding sucks (at least in the beginning), and a lot of you agreed.

In April, I was understandably busy taking care of a very fussy, reflux-riddled baby. But I still managed to find time to write a post about my take on media coverage of the Virginia Tech shooting, which ended up being picked up and run on news websites across the country. Over at Suburban Turmoil Reviews, I asked for your best dumping stories and got some doozies.

In May, I had yet another botched run-in with heavy metal has-been Cinderella. (and I’ve discovered that more than one of them lives near me, but they look practically identical at Kroger, so hell, what do I care which one is which?) I rued the recent invasion of the prostitots,
spurred by Club Libbylus across the nation. I wrote about the frustrations I experienced during Bruiser’s first six weeks and plenty of you chimed in in the comments. I asked that age-old question that many a mother has wondered: Will my son be gay? And I decided to breastfeed Bruiser whenever and wherever I pleased, disapproving old ladies be damned!

June found me trying to get a Second Life (because I’m not, you know, busy enough in my first). I decided that being a stay-at-home-mom was not that hard, a statement that provoked all kinds of impassioned responses, not to mention posts on other blogs. Bruiser and I went to San Francisco, courtesy of my blog! I went all ape shit on United Airlines, and you guys had plenty of your own bad airline stories to share in the comments. And I proved that, despite the naysayers, Bruiser does indeed look like me.

In July, I blunk drogged for the first (and hopefully last) time. I also started my blended family blog for Parents.com. The family and I made our annual pilgrimage to LA to visit the in-laws, and Punky got to meet one of her heroines at Disneyland. And I went to BlogHer, where I met Amy Sedaris, passed around a very stinky cheese, got smacked down by Penelope Trunk, and totally (albeit inadvertently) crashed a Real Simple party. Let’s not talk about what the place looked like when I got home.

In August, I got sick. Really, really sick. Then I got well and decided I was actually dying of something else. I wrote an epilogue to the Real Simple Swagtroversy. We lost a friend that had become an important part of our family. I watched the relationship blossom between my two youngest children. And I spilled the beans on Martina McBride, in what’s become one of the most infamous Nashville Scene “Suburban Turmoil” columns of all time.

In September, McToiletgate swished into high gear, culminating in a few angry phone calls and one of the best hate e-mails ever. I celebrated The Year of the Mom in a pictorial recap of New York Fashion Week. I introduced you to George, my candidate for Worst Soccer Dad Ever, Preschool Division. I engaged in some age old marital manipulation that totally worked! And I admitted that Bruiser still wasn’t sleeping through the night, prompting a flood of great advice from you guys (advice that worked! Thanks!).

In October, I stirred up a new controversy with my tale of The Babysitter Thief. I asked for your all-time worst baby names and got more than 327 RESPONSES. Gah, y’all! I came up with the one must-have item for every new mom. I wrote a rant about PR companies’ assumption that mommybloggers are idiots who will be so thankful for PR e-mails that they’ll give their clients free advertising. And I conceived of a dastardly plan to foil rude trick-or-treaters and managed to piss off a message board of “Halloween Lovers” in the process.

November basically sucked ass. Hubs apparently was allergic to an antibiotic he was given for a staph infection, so allergic that his liver temporarily stopped working. He feels fine now, but we’re still waiting for all of his blood levels to slowly return back to normal. Meanwhile, I made friends with a merry band of doll lovers and got some much-needed retail therapy.
I also admitted that I’m raising Bruiser without the help of experts, something a lot of y’all seemed to need to hear. Then I promptly forgot he existed at a soccer game, making me glad I’m not Britney Spears; the paparazzi would’ve had a field day. And Punky decided she’s ready to be a big girl, just like her older sisters.

That brings us to December, a month for Doodlebop hating, baby weaning, and crushing blows to my mommy ego. I introduced you to the Ferrier Family Circus and admitted that for the last few months, postpartum depression has been kicking my ass. I gave you a helpful list of Santas to avoid. And I decided that where stepparenting is concerned, love is a tough business.

And that was 2007, a year filled with laughter, milestones, heartache, and an awful lot of love. Thank you all so much for sharing it with me. I continue to be in awe that so many people out there stop by here each day for a visit, and that even in this online world where things can get really nasty, the vast majority of you are completely non-judgmental and supportive, no matter how many mistakes I make. I feel like you’re all my extended family network, really, offering advice, holding me accountable, commiserating and making me feel like I’m not alone. Thank you so much for that. You’ve changed my life and given me perspective. Have a wonderful new year and I’ll see you in 2008!

*And if you want to see my favorite things that I got to review this past year, head over here for the best of the best.