In Style... or not?

**Today I am guest posting for Cameron over at Ingenue Mom!  She is doing a birth story series and asked me to share my experience!  Be sure to head over there to read the story of Princess #4's birth!**

I crack up once every month.  Well, more than that.  But in particular I crack up once every month when I go to my mailbox and find my In Style magazine waiting for me.  Why, you may ask?  Because In Style is so not me.  At least, not the me I am now.  The ponytail sporting, hoodie wearing, flip flop kickin' kinda mama.

You want to know what's ironic about me receiving In Style once a month?  I subscribed because it was cheap - $5 for a year.  And that subscription cost is probably the cheapest thing you can find in that magazine.  I'm not sure who they are targeting as their main audience, but I assure you it is not 30 something suburban mama housewives living on one income (or on second thought... maybe it is...  ooh, aren't they sneaky??).

The truth is I just don't relate to much in that magazine.  I'm not in the market for any bling, I barely wear makeup these days and if I do I promise it's not $100 foundation.  I buy my shoes at Payless and I haven't seen the inside of a salon in over a year.  I'm pretty certain I have little to nothing in common with the celebrities that are interviewed about "My Best Year Yet" and "Beyond The Glamour, Getting Real".  In fact, I have a hard time not being cynical about those articles, as if any one of them are really in touch with reality.  I really don't care about how many kids Brangelina have or what sort of crazy Speidi has gotten into.  Ok, maybe I do care a little bit about what Speidi is up to, who can ignore that kind of crazy?

And while we're on that subject, when did we decide it was cute or cool to squish the names together anyway?  It's a good thing I'm not a celebrity or I'd have to spend my days being known as "Qubs" or "Heenie".  OK, not really since obviously our names are not really Queenie and Hubs.  But trust me, the real combo is neither cute nor cool.

And yet, in spite of all that, when that magazine gets shoved into my mailbox every month, I try not to think about the number of trees it took to print it spend my evening thumbing through the pages.  I guess I have to grudgingly admit it provides a nice little break from my reality.  And although their suggestions for "weekend wear" are both entirely inappropriate and ridiculously expensive, it's sometimes fun to transport myself to the world of The Devil Wears Prada, if only for an evening.  As long as I can still wear my hoodie and flip flops.  So maybe even though I'm really more of a cross between Mothering, Real Simple, and Dwell, once a month I get a good laugh, realize how NOT In Style I am, and appreciate the life I've got.  It's a good one.

My friends, are you an In Style kinda mama? (It's ok if you are, we can still be friends :-D)  Or is there another sort of magazine that is more your speed?  Just for fun, what would your celebrity couple name be?