If you’ve lived in Dallas for any length of time, you have probably read a blog post or twenty on OhSoCynthia.com. A local celeb, the delightful Cynthia Smoot arrived in her always-fashionable shoes by accident. If you have the pleasure of meeting her, you won’t be surprised that this self-proclaimed country girl with champagne taste on a soda pop budget charmed the city she loves to call home.

Cynthia owns Gangway Advertising with her husband, Randy. She calls herself the Coordinator of Chaos and oversees social media, digital strategies, and media relations for the firm’s clients. In 2008, intrigued by the increasing popularity of blogs, Cynthia decided to start a blog of her own.

“Our family doesn’t live here, so I thought it would be a fun way to keep those we love up to date on my son Jackson and our adventures in Dallas,” she said. “I found the mommy blogger community to be so warm and validating. It’s like we’re all in it together. As a first time parent, there is a primary fear all moms share: whatever you do, just don’t screw-up your kid!”

“I used to have to email my family a link to new posts to remind them to read, so when businesses starting calling me I was shocked,” she recalls. “I remember how excited I was to tell my husband that Glade wanted to send me their new toilet bowl cleaner – for free!”

And then, the inspiration for Cynthia’s blog learned how to use the Internet. “Jackson was in the 5^th grade so he was coming into his own and quite proud of not being a little boy anymore. One day, his teacher asked the class to Google their own name. Most of his classmates didn’t find much, but Jackson found pages of search results!”

“It was in that moment that it clicked for him exactly what “the blog” was,” Cynthia laughed. “Jackson said, MOM why am I all over the internet?! No more pictures without my permission!”

Cynthia didn’t want to annoy her son any more than a good mom must, so she respected his wishes. Determined to keep blogging, she turned the camera off of her family and onto Dallas. “I like to consider Oh So Cynthia as my love letter to the city,” she said.

Now we’re all happily entertained and in-the-know because Cynthia stays in the middle of the action and shares it with us! I recently had the pleasure of chatting with Cynthia about life, her two favorite men and Dallas over a glass of cabernet. Neither of us wine aficionados; we had a good laugh about preferring two 8-dollar glasses to one 16-dollar glass.

Behind the scenes: Cynthia and PureWine staffer, Gina Lynn, dish about The Wand™ from the wine cellar at The Ranch at Las Colinas during our PureWine pairing event.

Me: You have three full time jobs – Jackson’s mom, Gangway Advertising and OhSoCynthia.com. How do you do it?

Cynthia: I do juggle a lot, but I really enjoy the energy of it all. It’s part of a woman’s DNA – we’re multitaskers because we have to be. I can barely sit down for a two hour movie without getting up to do something else at the same time. I call Oh So Cynthia a “hobby gone wild”, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Me: Your natural passion for Dallas stories comes across on your blog. What drives that?

Cynthia: With a background in PR, telling other people’s stories comes instinctively to me. This city is an amazing place to live and to work. It provides a fantastic landscape for entrepreneurs, the arts, fashion, business, technology, food, etc. And of course, the people! There are so many inspiring people who make Dallas special, and many of those people are out there changing the world. People are also very charitable here – their willingness to give to meaningful causes is unbelievable. I love telling these stories.

Me: Let’s pretend you had an entire day off. What is your Dallas dream day?

Cynthia: Well, it would start with sleeping late – until at least 8:30am! Followed by brunch on a patio, maybe Bread Winners in Uptown. And then I would go to NorthPark Center and spend the entire day wandering in and out of the stores, admiring the art and the perfect landscaping. I consider fashion wearable art. It’s like a museum thanks to the Nasher family.

Me: And what about dinner?

Cynthia: I would have dinner with my two favorite boys, my husband and my son, at Hillstone. It’s one of our favorites. And then I would end the night with a Real Housewives marathon.

Me: Sounds like the perfect day! Would wine be part of this imaginary day?

Cynthia: Yes, of course! Wine is a special part of my non-imaginary normal everyday. Plus, I have a teenager. How do you raise one without drinking wine?!

Me: Well, I know for a fact you’re not alone! Moms and wine have a special relationship. What types do you like?

Cynthia: In the spring and summer, I tend to drink sauvignon blanc. I like the crisp taste of it. In the cooler months, I switch to reds, mostly cab and merlot. But, it doesn’t need to be fancy. I’m a pretty simple girl at heart – I really couldn’t tell you the difference between a $20 bottle and a $200 bottle.

Me: I couldn’t either. It’s more about the experience that goes along with the wine for me.

Cynthia: Me too. I know when I have a glass of wine I’m going to sit down and exhale. It’s a treat. People are busy. Wine is a gift I give myself. And not only am I enjoying the wine, I’m either having a quiet moment to think, or connecting with the people I love the most – my friends and family.

Me: Have you ever had an allergic reaction or sensitivities to wine?

Cynthia: Yes! In fact, I quit drinking red wine for a long time because it started giving me horrible headaches. I basically gave it up for 10 years. When I heard about The Wand, I was really intrigued. It works for me. I’m giving reds another chance now! I also find that Italian red wines cause fewer headaches for me.

Me: As a woman in the know, what are you most excited about for our city?

Cynthia: I love that we are seeing continued growth for the city in all areas – technology, fashion, the arts, retail…we’re attracting large businesses, entrepreneurs, and lots of fresh talent. This is one of the most financially sound cities in the world. We’re growing in all the right ways and I’m excited for what’s to come.

Cheers, Cynthia! Thank you for your time.

Don’t forget to read-up on all things Dallas at OhSoCynthia.com. Also, Cynthia has a promo code for The Wand™ in her blog post from yesterday, 9/19! It’s good for one month, so don’t miss out.

Savor every sip! To learn more about wine allergies and potential solutions, like us on Facebook or visit us at DrinkPureWine.com.