I remember this date so distinctly because the very next day was Easter, and because he and I had stayed up so late talking, I was exhausted and ended up leaving our family Easter party early. Little did I know, in just over two short years we would be married! And in just under three years we would be buying a house. And in just under five years we would be having a baby!
That May, in 2008, I turned 25. Shortly thereafter, in July, Brian turned 32. In an effort to come up with a creative gift, I ended up making Brian a photo book for his birthday and included a pair of boat shoes for an actual gift. I had known this fella for all of five months at this point and didn't want to scare him off with just a book of photos of us. This was the start of photo books. I didn't have an option to put a photo on the front of said book, so I drew on it with a black sharpie. The title of the book was 32 = You!
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| The infamous book. |
Inside this birthday book was a little story about deciding on a birthday gift for him with photos of some of our adventures together that we had experienced thus far. That is a separate post in and of itself, but in honor of MY 32nd birthday today, I thought it would be fun to put together a little series with 32 things about me. (I will try my hardest to do the same when Brian turns 38 this July!)
So without further ado, here are 32 things about me that you may or may not have known:
1. Growing up, I wanted to be a news reporter or an astronaut. I actually had intended on becoming an astronaut up until I was 18. Hindsight tells me that I should have gone into something that allows me to film and/or edit videos, but hindsight is always 20/20 and I've learned a lot about other things along the way.
2. My Mom told me that she wanted to name me 'Ariel' but my Dad nixed that real quick. Since The Little Mermaid came out when I was just seven, I was thankful that they decided on 'Erin' instead of 'Ariel'. I could have quickly turned into being the butt of all jokes at that age.
3. I remember my first day of Kindergarten. I was getting picked up by the school bus and my Mom was with me at the bus stop. She reassured me that I was going to "have a great time" and "learn so much" and "make lots of new friends". I remember that day so vividly. Of course she was right. Being a Mom now, I know it was a bittersweet day for my Mom to see me get on that bus. It brings tears to my eyes just thinking of Kate going to school.
4. In reference to #1, in Elementary school I was part of the news program that aired once a week. I would go through the lunch menu and my co-host, Mark, and I would discuss current events. I always had a secret crush on him! Hopefully that footage has been destroyed and is never to be seen again...
5. Aside from using Sun-In once when I was in high school, I have never dyed my hair a different color. I'm too wary of the upkeep and I'm not sure what color I would even choose, so I just stay au natural and I love how easy it is!
6. Speaking of hair, sometimes I love my frizzy, thick, curly, unruly, [insert hair adjective here] hair, but a lot of times I am envious of those girls that can get out of the shower, give their hair a quick brush or blow, and be on their jolly way with nearly perfect hair. My hair and I battle every day, multiple times a day. I lose more often than not, but sometimes those good hair days make up for the bad ones. The strange thing about the whole hair debacle is I've gotten compliments on my hair my whole life. Sometimes I kind of want to see my hair through these people's eyes who are commenting.
7. I took Spanish classes from 5th grade all the way through college. I love speaking the language to people I pass that speak it as well. The ignorance that we plead when someone in our country speaks another language disgusts me. Spanish is a great language and I find that even when you try to speak it to others, they are very appreciative. After all, they are trying to speak our language too. I would love to be more fluent/use this language more often but I think that may require us moving to Spain or Mexico...not that I really would be opposed to either of those...
8. I am a perfectionist at heart. From my handwriting to my want for extreme organization to my desire to excel at all things I put my mind too, they all have a part in me being a perfectionist. Sometimes it is great to be a perfectionist, sometimes it is not. That is something that I'm working on because I've found that sometimes my home chaos (read: disorganization) affects my life chaos (read: mood) and I don't like feeling overwhelmed with chaos.
9. I am as stubborn as the day is long. NO ONE will argue with that point. (NOTE: Kate may or may not have this very same trait.)
10. I am also EXTREMELY creative. I am reminded of this special skill when ideas don't flow as freely in others. It is something that I thought all people had but chose not to use, but the more I grow up the more I realize that it is truly one of my gifts. And I am so grateful for this gift.
11. Despite owning a dog, I would consider myself a cat person. I've had three pets in my life so far: a cat, Bayne, who lived until I was about 17; a bunny, Bun, who I became the adoptive parent for; and our current pup, Jack, who is almost five but is still very much a puppy.
12. I never used to really like the color pink. That was, at least, until May of 2012 when we found out we were expecting a little girl. Now, I LOVE ALL THINGS PINK, and I'm not afraid to admit that! As a matter of fact, my favorite flower is a pink spray rose. You cannot go wrong if you get me a bouquet of those, people.
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| The pink color on this flower is perfection to me! |
13. In most cases, I would still totally rather sit at the Kids table. It's not that I don't like talking to adults, it's just that the Kids table is so much more fun!
14. Throughout my whole life I have always struggled with my self-confidence. I sometimes don't see what other people see. It is my journey that I continue to work on and while I have come a very long way since Middle school I still struggle sometimes. Surprisingly enough, becoming a Mom has made me more confident in the role that I'm in than any role I've ever been in before: daughter, sister, best friend, wife, etc., and I am striving to teach Kate confidence in herself and her decisions.
15. Speaking of self-confidence, I have always been very self-conscious about my skin color. I am pale. Very pale. I would consider myself bordering on albino, but I know that is probably the exaggeration that I see in the mirror and not real life. In High School I was told that in order to get a nice tan, I had to use oil instead of sunblock. I had NO IDEA it was that easy! I found out quickly that it wasn't. I left the beach sunburnt to a crisp and redder than a lobster in a matter of minutes. I swore my lungs were even burnt because it hurt so bad. Sunblock has been, is, and will always be my friend. Oik? Not so much. And while I still go through self-conscious phases, this is also something that I continue to work on and, again, have come a long way from where I was. Which I am grateful for.
16. I love brushing my teeth in the shower! It is so nice to brush your heart out, get as messy as you wish, and just rinse your face in the running water. I always feel like I get the best teeth cleaning with my shower brushing. (NOTE: this does not work well with electric toothbrushes which I also love.)
17. If I could choose one instrument to have learned and practiced my whole life, it would be the piano. I love the piano and its sound, and the thought of being able to sit down and release your emotion through playing a song just inspires me. I got a keyboard for my birthday a few years ago and even took lessons, but have had a hard time finding the extra time to practice, so I still only know that knuckle song on the black keys...
18. Speaking of music, I LOVE music. It speaks to me in ways that other things aren't able to capture. Some songs just touch my emotion and I really enjoy having that outlet.
19. If I lived on a deserted island and could only eat one thing for the rest of my life, I would choose watermelon. I love watermelon so much that I'd probably name that island Watermelon Island and I'd probably live on Watermelon Way and the beach would be called Watermelon beach and the mountain would be called Watermelon Mountain. Yep, sounds like paradise to me!
20. I enjoy running for exercise, stress relief, a moment to myself, etc, but I LOVE running in the summer rain. (It has to be hot enough to enjoy water...outside.) Nothing makes my run better than being caught in a major down pour, running through it, and coming home sopping wet! On the flip side, I despise running when I'm cold. DESPISE.
21. I clothing shop almost exclusively for deals and/or clearance items. I honestly cannot remember the last time that I bought something at full price. Even when I find something that I like that is full price, I can usually find a deal/discount/coupon to use to make it that much sweeter of a deal! I love a good bargain, but I don't care for crowds. I won't go Black Friday shopping for deals, but I will snag a few sweaters for yours truly if I'm Christmas shopping for someone else and the store is offering a deal that I cannot pass up!
22. I've always admired those girls that can pull of jewelry and hair perfection every day. Even when I splurge on signature jewelry pieces and clothes, they are still very simple. That's just who I am - a simple kind of gal. And I'm ok with that.
23. I've lived in three states so far in my life - Maryland, Virginia, and Ohio. And I've visited ten countries outside of the US: Germany, France, England, Spain, Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland, Wales, Canada, and Mexico. I am a wanderlust at heart and would love to continue travelling. Australia and New Zealand are two places that I would love to spend an extended amount of time in.
24. Surprisingly enough, with being a wanderlust, I am 100% a homebody at heart. Most days, there is no place that I would rather be. I heart home.
25. I loathe garlic. The taste, the smell, the aftertaste...all are NOT my cup of tea. I joke with people that I'm a vampire, but there's a small part of me that actually thinks it's true based on how much I don't like garlic. I could never be a foodie.
26. I have one tattoo. I randomly decided to get a tattoo when I was in college. It literally took about that long to decide. I went to the tattoo shop with my girlfriend, asked the artist what 'girls' get, and decided on a butterfly hidden right below my right hip. I can even hide this small tattoo with my bathing suit! The tattoo artist picked the colors (purple and yellow) and I have never looked back.
27. I never really used to concern myself with germs. I'd use public bathrooms, I'd open public doors, I'd sit in public restaurants, but ever since having a baby, I have become such a germaphobe. And I hate it. I do not like being consumed with the thought that germs are lurking everywhere but I haven't been able to shake it. My hand washing/anti-bacterial soap using has increased by a hundred fold, and I NEVER used to be an advocate of those easy anti-bacterial thingys.
28. I miss my family. Growing up, all I wanted to do was get out of the house. Now, all I want is to be back home again, near my family. I guess it took me running away to figure that out, but I miss them dearly…every day.
29. I rowed on the crew team my freshman year of college and I loved it. It was hard getting up for practice at 4 in the morning and balancing work/school/practice schedules (which is why I only did it for one year) but I love being part of a team and the stars that decorated the sky on those early morning practices were unlike any I've ever seen. They were amazing!
30. I am a firm believer that the grass is NOT greener on the other side; it is greenest where you water it. No matter what you are doing, working on personal goals, working on marriage goals, working on professional goals, everything needs work, always. There is no auto-pilot in life, and that is a good thing. Add a little TLC to all of your endeavors and continue to maintain that TLC and the grass will always trend green!
31. Some of my fondest memories of childhood are the times spent with my Grandma in North Carolina. She was the most amazing cook and the most beautiful piano player and the sweetest lady. I wish I had more time with her. I wish she could meet my daughter. I wish I could talk to her more about her life. But she was overcome with Alzheimer’s about 14 years ago, and it has been slow and devastating demise. Despite the sadness, the Carolina’s still hold a very special place in my heart.
32. If my older self could say anything to my younger self, it would be: be strong, be confident in yourself, stay true to who you are and and stand up for what you believe in. There are no guarantees in life. Cherish each and every day because we never know when it will be our last.
And one for good luck:
BONUS: I still like rainbow sprinkles on my ice cream!
And there you have it. 32 (plus one bonus) things about me! I am thankful for each and every year that I add to my life. While I look back and think that I would've done things differently, I am confident that everything happens for a reason and I am on the journey that I am supposed to be on. Each year I grow older and wiser and more confident and I look forward to all that the future holds.
Thank you to everyone who supports me. I am lucky to have you all in my life, by my side on this journey!
And Happy Birthday to me!
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