1.) I have 5 kids.
2.) I love crossword puzzles.
3.) My favorite subject in Elementary School was Language Arts.
4.) When I was a kid, my favorite color was periwinkle.
5.) I really like rainbows (because of Jane).
6.) And elephants (because of Alex).
7.) And the color orange (thanks to Ethan).
8.) Orange Daylilies are some of my favorite flowers -- they always remind me of Ethan's baptism. I remember seeing hundreds of them growing along the side of the road as we drove to the church that day.
9.) Kevin Henkes is one of my favorite children books authors.
10.) BabyLit board books are my newest obsession.
11.) I've loved Simon & Garfunkel ever since I discovered them in my formative youth years.
12.) I'm not ashamed to admit that I also love me some T. Swizzle (that's Taylor Swift, to the uninitiated).
13.) Sara Bareilles is one of my favorite singer-songwriters -- she's pretty much a lyrical genius.
14.) Same with Mumford & Sons -- although I really wish the swear words were absent in a few of their different songs.
15.) I've lived in 5 different states -- Missouri, Ohio, Utah, Oregon, and Louisiana.
16.) I love oatmeal.
17.) I quilt.
Latest progress on Sophie's baptism quilt.
18.) I also love a good project -- especially of the before and after variety.
19.) I've still never been to San Francisco.
20.) I don't really love to cook.
21.) I go to bed way too late each night.
22.) I've run 2 almost 3 half-marathons.
23.) I still hesitate to call myself a "runner."
24.) Conference times (April and October) are two of my favorite times of the year! (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints holds a semi-annual General Conference each year where we are able to hear our leaders speak.)
25.) I like to listen to Conference talks while I run.
26.) I would love to go to Prince Edward Island.
27.) Anne of Green Gables was one of my very favorite books as a kid.
28.) I would also love to go on a Sound of Music tour of Austria.
29.) While we're speaking of travel, Greece looks pretty amazing as well.
30.) And I hear Prague is the new Paris.
31.) Nothing makes me happier than when the kids are all getting along and playing nicely together.
32.) I've only recently discovered that I'm kind of an intense person.
33.) With extremist tendencies.
34.) Who is also mostly likely saddled with ADD.
35.) Despite these new found discoveries, I like to think that I'm pretty self-aware. Hahaha.
36.) I have to sleep with both a ceiling fan and a box fan on.
37.) I am TERRIBLE at keeping the covers straight at night.
38.) I'm a semi-regular journal writer and have been since the 6th grade.
39.) I have slight pack rat tendencies. But once too much stuff accumulates, I usually end up throwing everything away.
40.) I'm a little "all or nothing."
41.) With a penchant for going big or going home.
42.) I've been every size from a 6 all the way up to a 16,
43.) My favorite guilty pleasure to watch in the summer is Big Brother. (Don't judge).
44.) I enjoy doing family history.
45.) I don't enjoy doing laundry.
46.) I have HRF. Hostile Resting Face. It's a thing. Hahaha. But seriously, if I don't make a conscious effort to make my face a pleasant mask, I look angry. Or at least upset. And I'm not just imagining things here -- it's been pointed out to me from a few different sources. Hahaha.
47.) I'm naturally quite shy, but sometimes I'm not.
48.) I have mild social anxiety in new settings and feel SUPER awkward when trying to make conversation with people I don't know very well.
49.) Yet paradoxically, I'm a very sociable person and NEED time interacting with others.
50.) Which sums me up rather nicely, actually -- I am almost always a walking contradiction in terms.
51.) I went to BYU for college.
52.) The BYU Bookstore is one of my favorite places on Earth.
53.) I really enjoy photography.
54.) One of my dreams is to one day write a book.
55.) It probably won't ever happen, though.
56.) I'd also love to take some art classes.
57.) I love words -- Vocabulary is my thang.
58.) I sang in the choir in high school.
59.) I have an addictive personality.
60.) I go through obsessive phases of things. Paradise Ice, anyone?? Haha.
61.) I regret not keeping up on my spanish speaking skills.
62.) When I was a kid, I used to wish that I could speak every language in the world.
63.) Each of our babies have been brought home to a different house/apartment.
64.) I have major FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out). Hahaha. But seriously, I do!
65.) In a lot of ways, I think I'm a pretty stereotypical firstborn.
66.) I am currently a Relief Society teacher at church.
67.) I love babies.
68.) I'm not good at mental math.
69.) I love getting mail.
70.) The last time I've been home to New Orleans was in 2012 for Mardi Gras.
71.) I love salmon.
72.) I was a T.A. for Physical Science 110A in college.
73.) I'm not very patient.
74.) My biggest pet peeves are incompetence and slowness.
75.) Along with not being able to find something that I need that I know I've put somewhere, because the kids have taken it and moved it.
76.) I don't love roses.
77.) But I think the ranunculus is both cool to look at and cool to say.
78.) I love the smell of gardenias. And peonies.
79.) Lily-of-the-valley also smells heavenly to me.
80.) Brown butter is divine, and chocolate chip cookies made with it are the bomb.
81.) I wish I had a green thumb, but I don't.
82.) I'm not a big phone talker (other than to family).
83.) I've never seen the original Star Wars trilogy.
84.) Whenever I finish a good book or series, I feel like I'm saying goodbye to my friends. And it makes me a little sad!
85.) As much as I love to read, there are only a handful of books that I've read over and over again:
86.) Anne of Green Gables,
87.) Little House on the Prairie series,
88.) Harry Potter series,
89.) Pride and Prejudice,
90.) Jane Eyre,
91.) To Kill a Mockingbird -- the second most influential book of my life,
92.) And The Book of Mormon -- the #1 most influential and impact-ful book in my life.
93.) I love a good thunderstorm.
94.) Sometimes, when the little ones are begging for my food and I don't want to share, I'll lie and tell them it has nuts in it so they'll let it go without a question and leave me alone. :/ (Another "don't judge" moment).
95.) I am HORRIBLE with geography -- I seriously couldn't name the majority of the state capitals, much less locate them on a map.
96.) Having a GPS has revolutionized my life. :)
97.) I'm a big fan of hard copies.
98.) I love a peter pan collar.
99.) And pin tucks and lace.
Ignore the mess, and the fact that you can't even see any of the details on this outfit, but THIS photo encapsulates all those things I love -- Peter Pan collar, check! Pin tucks down the front of the blouse, check! And a lace skirt to boot! Check!
100.) And finally, I am a closet tree hugger. :)
I'm out!!! It is a lot harder than you would think to come up with 100 things about yourself!
Have a great weekend everyone -- I need to go rest my brain now. Hahahaha. :)
