I have baby fever. I’ve been saying it for weeks. I’m a planner and I’d like to plan for my children to be a certain number of years apart in age. I’d like to plan to avoid being pregnant in the middle of a Columbia summer. I’d like to plan lots and lots of things.

But I learned with Hudson that I can’t plan everything and I didn’t even try to plan everything. And yes, just like with a well-planned wedding day, unexpected things came up that we hadn’t planned. But here we are almost 15 months later enjoying our very happy little boy every second of every day.

And then I wonder, “Do I want to rock this boat? Things are going so well.”

But I also know that I want Hudson to have a sibling or siblings if the Lord blesses us with them. But I will make an extra effort to treasure these very special moments we’re having right now. And not start wishing for something more than what we have right now.

When I was thinking about it, I realized the things that I would worry about if another baby Carroll came into our lives.

1. Sleep. Hudson ended up being a great sleeper, but I don’t really look forward to going through the sleep training process again.

2. Schedules. I have worked so hard to develop a great schedule of activities and fun for Hudson and for me in our daily routine together. I don’t know that I would be patient enough to wait 6 weeks before getting back in to Junior League, choir, exercising, and church.

3. Sharing my time with another baby. I mean this in the best way. Or I’m trying to. I love my time with Hudson and don’t know how I will do when the time comes for me to balance the time between him and his sibling. My dad has told me that he wondered how it would be to love two babies equally right before my brother was born, but he did. And my parents have never shown an ounce of favoritism.

4. Travel. We’re almost at the point where we can think about bringing Hudson with us on trips. Not all trips, but some trips, would be appropriate for him. If we have another infant in our house, we would have to prolong that or leave the little one with his or her grandparents.

5. Money. The inevitable. I want to provide for our family and give them so many long-term gifts. I don’t think I need to explain how expensive babies are, but just how expensive adult children can be is enough to make me want to stop spending my “fun money” and putting it in the bank. {Don’t get too excited, TC!}

So I know that I just need to pray and know that God is going to do what is best for our family and He will continue to bless us in was we may not even realize. But I will enjoy the wonderful things about our family at this moment and stop looking for the next big milestone.

But it is so nice to think about the next sweet baby Carroll to hold and love.

Today is September 2, 2010 and that means two things:

9.02.10… as in Beverly Hills, 90210

I think this is hilarious and I love that this is the only time (in this century) that this will happen. 90210 is one of my oldest, most favorite shows. I remember watching it in the third grade- the year it aired. I’ve written a few other blog posts about my obsession with this show, so you know that I’m on Team Brenda.

But regardless of what team you’re on, let’s all celebrate today!

The start of football season at the University of South Carolina!

The Gamecocks play Southern Miss tonight at 7:30 p.m. at Williams Brice Stadium. It has been a while since I’ve been to a game. Last season I wasn’t all that interested because I had a little baby boy and I wanted to be at home with him. But this season, I’m ready to be back in the land of the screaming Gamecock fans.

My friend, Kristin, asked me yesterday if I’d found any cute game day outfits and I honestly haven’t. I guess it’s good and bad. One of our colors is black, so that makes it really easy to just throw on a black top with some jeans and call it a game day outfit. When I was younger and more fun, I got dressed up for the games and stocked my closet full of black jersey dresses that were cool enough for the hot Columbia nights, but also cute enough to be considered “dressed up.”

I have no idea what I’ll wear tonight, but I’ll have my great husband as my accessory. I love looking back at all the old (old means two and three years ago) pictures of us at Gamecock football games. We were so carefree! Except when we were losing.

Happy game day to everyone!

Two more fun things:

Hudson is wearing this adorable “I heart Tulsa” t-shirt today that my friends Emily and Cate sent to him for his birthday. He actually slept in it last night and I think he looks so cute! And I had to show Emily how cute he looks in the shirt she gave him.

My other friend, Emily — my friend who did the blog sale on my blog– has started her own blog for hosting another blog sale. You must go check it out. She has some really cute shoes and handbags! It’s called Emily’s Closet.

I get a lot of reader emails and I love hearing from readers. But sometimes I hear from readers that haven’t been reading very long. And sometimes they ask questions that I have already answered in old posts that they probably haven’t seen.

So, for everyone’s benefit, I thought I’d answer the most frequently asked questions here.

Can you tell me your favorite brands for dressing Hudson? Where do you shop for his clothes?

I did a big post about shopping for baby boys a few months ago. I still go to the same places and look for the same brands. Kelly’s Kids, Ragsland, Shrimp and Grits, and Blessed Be The Name are also personal favorites. They can all be found online, but not in stores.

Shopping for Your Baby Boy

For the cooler months, I buy lots of turtle necks and long sleeve tee shirts for Hudson to wear underneath longalls. Pants fall down too easily and longalls stay up better. Plus they’re cute and I believe in dressing little boys like little boys.

What are some of your favorite gift ideas for a mom-to-be/new baby?

Right after Hudson was born I wrote this post that showed some of my favorite gifts that we received. These were all things that were either very useful or very beautiful.

Gift Ideas for the Mom-to-Be

What diaper bag do you use?

I have a Kate Spade messenger style diaper bag. It’s comfortable and easy to carry while carrying a baby. I can easily access everything inside. I can adjust the strap as needed. I tried on lots of different bags and this is the one that I thought would be best with carrying a baby and juggling the bag and getting inside of the bag.

And the best part? The inside is nylon and so easy to clean. Bottles have spilled in this bag and I’m so happy I didn’t get a bag that I was terrified of getting dirty!

How have you found other mom/baby friends, and how do you “network” with others in this new work role as a SAHM?

It was hard in the beginning because we were the first of our friends to have kids and none of my friends stayed home. Once I got Hudson involved in activities like Little Gym, I met more people and Hudson met more kids. He was already going to the church nursery and Sundays and getting lots of socialization there, but we were connecting with any of the parents. One of my newest, great friends is a result of meeting at Little Gym and I’m so happy we did!

I think the key is getting out there, finding things to do, and making plans. You may find a play group or a class that your child can join. But I promise there are other moms just like you who are looking for friends for themselves and for their kids, too.

Do you have any tips on how to make a blog successful? How did you take your blog from one that only people that you knew personally read and followed to one that thousands of people read? Was it purely just luck that people came across your blog once and then kept reading, or was there networking efforts on your part to make your blog more known? What will appeal to an audience beyond my family and friends that I know personally.

I am not an expert on blogging. I write my blog for me and for my family and I’m still surprised that more people than just my family come here to read it. For me, it happened when my blog was mentioned on a big wedding blog (because I was planning my wedding at the time) and people I didn’t know came over to check it out. And then I visited their blogs.

The big key is to comment on other blogs that you like. And don’t comment just to say, “please read my blog.” Comment on the blog content. Be genuine. You need to be blogging for yourself and not to gain readers.

I think that readers like authentic blogs. There doesn’t have to be complete transparency, but a little bit of transparency is nice. They want to be able to relate to you– or disagree with you. If your blog is about a specific topic this is a little bit different. You’ll stick to the topic. But if you have a blog like mine that is sometimes about family, sometimes about random thoughts, and sometimes about pretty things, it’s good to be able to put a little bit of yourself in there. And write what you want to write. Don’t write what you think readers will respond to because that never works. Write for yourself and the readers will come.

Another key is to build relationships. Find other blogs that are like yours and try to connect with the writer. When I first started reading other blogs and commenting, I went there every day and got really invested in these people’s lives. And I still feel that way. I don’t comment as often as I used to because my life is different now and I’m lucky if I just get to read.

Another tip I have is to blog consistently. You don’t have to blog every day, but you should try to blog every day. If people are looking forward to hearing from you, then let them hear from you!

If you choose to blog anonymously, try to find a way for readers to identify with you. So if you’re not posting your name, maybe you can still post pictures. My favorite blogs are the ones that I feel emotionally connected to and feel like I know the writer and her loved ones.

Three tips:

1. Be genuine

2. Be consistent

3. Be original

One of my blog buddies, Kate at Nautical by Nature, wrote this post about a week ago and it has a great outline for new bloggers.

Can you recommend any true Southern cookbooks?

I absolutely can! My two favorite Southern cookbooks are Cotton Country Collection and Down By the Water. Cotton Country is from the Monroe, Louisiana Junior League and Down by the Water is from the Columbia, South Carolina Junior League.

You can always bet that the Junior League cookbooks are going to be fantastic and full of fun recipes that have been passed down for years and years.

Of course you can always go with Paula Deen and count on it being delicious.

If you have any questions feel free to fill out the comment form under the “Contact Me” tab. It sometimes takes me a while to write back, but I’ll always try to respond!

I just thought I’d share my favorite Emmy red carpet looks from last night. These types are lists are always so different for everyone, but these women are wearing things that I’d like to wear. And I also think they look drop-dead gorgeous.

Who were your favorites?

all photos from People.com

Lea Michele in Oscar de la Renta, Claire Danes in Armani Prive, Sofia Vergara in Carolina Herrera

And another favorite I forgot about was Julie Bowen in J. Mendel. I think Julie Bowen is absolutely flawless.

Favorite Moments of the Show

1. The opening number of “Born to Run” starring Jimmy Fallon, the cast of Glee, and many other television stars including Jon Hamm (yum), Tina Fey, and Jorge Garcia( yay, Hurley)! I have a school girl crush on Jimmy Fallon. I think he’s so funny and I love that he can laugh at himself. It doesn’t hurt that he can be silly without being rude or crude.

2. Jimmy Fallon’s tribute to the shows that said goodbye was also great! I think it’s safe to say I love Jimmy.

3. Seeing Jon Hamm not as Don Draper. I love Mad Men, but I love Jon Hamm more because he smiles and laughs and gets on stage with the Glee kids.