Five Things About Me

1.  I was home-schooled for the first 12 years of my education. If you ever talk to a home-schooler about the subject you'll probably get the impression that his or her education was more challenging than a public schooler's. I'd say that's the rule more than the exception. Mine certainly was not easy. Just for fun I have a picture down below of me writing a paper. I was probably in 11th or 12th grade. As you can see, I didn't think the challenging education I received was so great at that exact moment.

2. I'm from Northern Minnesota. Yes, it's cold there. Yes, there are lots and lots of lakes. We call casseroles "hot dishes" and when we say "bag" or "tag" the "a" is pronounced "ay." It's also a great place to be. It has good people, all kinds of outdoor activities for all four seasons, and most every place has character and heart.
My hometown is Duluth. Here's a great skyline view of the city. Love the rainbow!

3. I am the youngest of seven: five girls and two boys. My parents are Kathy and Dennis, and the seven of us, in order, are: Christine, David, Mary Matthew, Sarah, Ann & me. Here was then --

This is now. I can't believe it's been almost 25 years between these two pictures. I feel like it was forever ago, yet only yesterday when we were all living under one roof. Coming from a big family has taught me so much. I am so glad my parents chose to have a big family. I'd better, because being on the tale-end of the siblings I wouldn't be here if they didn't!

4. I really, really, really like to make delicious food. Whether it is grilling, baking, roasting, or toasting, cooking scrumptious morsels is my ultimate favorite "me" activity. I think I got the fever from my mother. Growing up (and even now) she was always making something yummy from scratch. Even with seven kids she baked dozens of loaves of bread every month without batting an eye. I call her at least twice a week (in addition to to my calls to chit-chat) with questions about her old recipes, how she would make such-and-such, how much of this, do I add milk to that, etc. I've discovered I'm not the only sibling to do this! We all call her up frequently with food questions. She should open a 1-800 hotline for cooking emergencies and make a few bucks on the side. I hope you're reading this and taking notes, Mom! In keeping with my picture-posting habit the following is my first batch of homemade bread. I now make homemade bread for my family every other week. Here's to keeping traditions alive!

5. I guess it's about time to talk about the four-legged member of our family. Her name is Sunshine.

She's been a part of my life since August 2006. She is a well-traveled soul. Sunshine and I lived in Minnesota until February 2008 when we moved to Maryland. She's been back-and-forth from these two states by car five times. That's pretty impressive for a little long-haired chihuahua (I know, her ears are floppy. She's not a perfect specimen of the breed by any stretch of the imagination)!

Sunshine's a nervous dog. She only loves me and at most tolerates others. I was worried about how she would be with JR. I do have to supervise when they're together and would never trust her to react well to him cornering her. Other than that though, she's very good about his treatment of her. JR loves the dog. He loves it when she licks his forehead or starts running around the house like a maniac (doesn't every dog do that at least once and a while?). He also loves feeding her, which can get annoying as he doesn't know when to stop. Oh, well. You have pick your battles.

There you have it, folks. I hope you learned a bit about me from this post. JR is presently beginning to feel abandoned by his blog-addicted mother. Until next time. Hosta la vista, baby.