Blogs on More

I wanted to announce my great blog experiment for 2010. On January 10, I turned 39 (yes, true confession – I’m not quite yet 40) and I’ve decided to spend some time blogging a bit more personally.

Being the web editor for More.ca (and before that, 50Plus.com) has really coloured my view; I spend so much time listening to, reading about, interviewing, and writing about women who are truly inspiring that in some way I feel like my 40s can never measure up. But I’m also deliciously aware that this is a time when many of us come into our own; having defined ourselves as workers, wives, parents, daughters, and siblings, we come back to trying to define ourselves.

Part of what I admire about many women over 40 is the way they get out of their comfort zones and push themselves to try new things. I sometimes have a first response to new things that can be summarized in two letters: No. Or even, Oh no! This year I am working to turn that into yes.

I have been trying for at least week to decide what I could tell you about myself that will give you a starting point for where this section of the blog might go. I think I’ve narrowed it down to three things:

- Sometimes, I over think things. Being a planner has served me well in some areas of my life but I increasingly feel like I need to adopt the Nike slogan and “just do it” more often. I will be looking for inspiration and help from you guys in doing more this year.

- My husband and I planned to have kids earlier in our lives but for various reasons, including a perinatal loss, we find ourselves with a 4 year old. I’m so, so, so glad for my son Noah but I have felt that the struggle to achieve that crazy thing called balance has been a challenge. Or maybe I’m just whiny. I want to bounce some of these issues off you all.

- Out of these two challenges I have really lost ground in terms of staying fit. My body is not my best friend! All right, I’ll get real: My body has never really been my best friend for reasons I’ll discuss in an upcoming post. I really want to address this now, because I really do believe that being active is something I want to be for decades. And, honestly – I want to dress and look better too.

So here we go! Feel free to start sharing your advice, responses, and anything I should be reading/trying/thinking about in the comments. And don’t worry – Vanessa and I will still be blogging in the usual way, so stick with us for those posts as well.

With Valentine’s Day coming up here’s another quickie blog giveaway. You can win this Sugar Cookie hand soap and hand lotion set from Baléa. (We here at the office are envious, because the sugar cookie scent is lovely.) My question to you is: What’s the best date you’ve ever been on (or that you can imagine)?

The rules are the same as last time: To enter, leave a comment before noon (ET) on Friday January 29. You must include your email address (which will not be visible on the site) in order to win.

My first reaction when seeing the new Toleriane Eye Make-up Remover from La Roche Posay ($21.50 for 30 units):

“Holy non-environmentally friendly wasteful packaging batman!”

My second reaction? That I need to tone down the geek speak by about 99%.

But after my initial hesitation, I decided to give them a try. Specially formulated with water from the La Roche Posay warm springs in France, (as is the entire Toleriane line), this is a pretty standout makeup remover for women with contact lenses or eyes that are easily irritated.  Many of us with more sensitive eyes just assume that a burning or stinging sensation when removing makeup is normal, when really it may be as simple as changing the remover.

To get back to the packaging, the major plus to this style of individual-use vials is that they’re so airport-ready they should be sponsored by your local passport office.

Each vial gives about two uses  – unless you’re at the Tammy Faye level of mascara wear, in which case you’ve got bigger issues to deal with.

www.larocheposay.com

I was really glad to see Meryl Streep win at the Golden Globes (here’s a clip of her in the press room, where I find her answers smart and classy as usual); I have to admit that Julie & Julia was the surprise movie of the year for me – I really enjoyed it and found it inspirational. Go passionate women!

What did you think of the awards?

Also, I wanted to be sure to announce our winner of the giveaway contest. The comments were all so good that I picked a random number and that’s the comment that won: #23: “My husband and I don’t argue very often and if we do have a serious discussion we try to remain calm and under control. We very seldom yell at each other and try to reason with each other if we disagree-so compromise is always our best strategy. We have been married for 43 years and so far we are still madly in love with each other!!” – Sheila.

Stay tuned for a post around some of your comments; they were really great. Thanks for participating and keep reading for more giveaways and opportunities to share your wisdom!

“We just don’t have anything in common any more.” That’s what one of my long-lost (read: found on Facebook) friends says about her marriage of over ten years, which is now over. I wish I could be smug about it and think that will never happen to me – but I’ve been around long enough to know that’s not the case. So one of my resolutions is to put a bit more time and effort into keeping in touch – really in touch; not just scheduling and parenting – with my spouse.

But I’m intensely curious to know how people really do it. And I happen to have a 50 ml bottom of Calvin Klein’s euphoria for men (eau de toilette spray) on my desk to give away. So I’m asking you to share your tip in the comments (before midnight, eastern standard time, January 16 2010) and include your email address in the appropriate field (it will not appear on the blog!). I’ll pick a winner at random. So post your tip! Remember that the blog comments are on moderation, so it may take a day for your comment to appear – but it is not lost.

Comments are now closed and the winner is – by random selection – comment #23! Thank you all so much for the fantastic tips; I’ll be turning them into a blog post soon – Jenn

Do you still make resolutions? I have read that this is the worst time of year to make resolutions, and I often haven’t kept my own but I still appreciate the cultural ritual of pausing to look back for a moment and determine the way forward, so to speak.

So here are the stories we ran last year that are inspiring me to strive this year. If you have a favourite – on any site – do share yours in the comments!

Georgina Branch-Brown’s story of her second act as an art model
How to start an eco-friendly business
Judith Timson’s look at late bloomers
Vanessa Craft’s profile of women who went from homeless to business owners
Women who’ve taken up competitive sports at midlife
Karen von Haun’s piece on ditching your fashion phobias
And Sarah Moore’s inaugural rant!