100 Things About Me

I am finally ready to post this list. It was harder than I thought. Maybe because I am still learning who I am. Maybe because I wanted to include different things than I listed on my birthday post and my happy list. Whatever the reason- it is done now and it is the real me!

1. I can listen to The Return of the King Soundtrack (The Lord of the Rings) ALL day long.
2. I have driven 40 miles with the radio on scan- I guess I don't really like the radio.
3. I am more judgmental than I'd like to be.
4. I have one volume- loud.
5. Green was my favorite color for 14 years. I still love it, but my favorite color changed a couple of years ago to barn red.
6. Sudoku and Electronic Yahtzee are how I waste my time.
7. I believe there is a science to eating sandwiches and it requires them to be cut in triangles. (Then you can eat the crust all the way around and your last bites are the center, which is the very best part!)
8. I have five children- I like to say we have a "hand-full" (with a little giggle- I'm so proud of myself for coming up with that!) {With my five cute children, enjoying the lights at temple square}
9. I yell at my kids- a lot. Hate that.
10. I talk with my hands.
11. I love to read aloud in my children's classrooms.
12. I own over 400 rubber stamps (not including my alphabet sets). {The stamps shelves I commissioned Jill's husband, Randy, to make and hang for me!}
13. I graduated from BYU in Elementary Education.
14. I love to play D(ance) D(ance) R(evolution).
15. I am a visual learner.
16. I think it is impossible to have too many cute bags. {The super cute orange purse that Michelle gave me.}
17. I LOVE newborn babies. LOVE them! If you have one, I will come hold them for you all day and all night! Well, I'm not really free to do that. But I totally would if I could!
18. I love food. I eat for comfort, for entertainment, for boredom... I have to try really hard NOT to eat! My favorite excuse- my kids drove me to eat! (Yes, I know Oprah would just die! I'm over it!)
19. I have long legs. That means my pants have been too short most my life. How I LOVE that they now make 12 LONG!
20. I love dessert. I have it after every meal. {One of the yummy desserts on my cruise}
21. When I cook, whatever the sugar is supposed to be- I make it a heaping one!
22. I love taking dance classes with Kelly- I like to imagine us doing the most amazing dance routines in my head. Too bad we really look so ridiculous!
23. Making dinner and putting my kids to bed are the worst parts of my day!
24. My drink of choice is lemonade- freshly squeezed, pink, strawberry, mint (really, it is way good!)... just don't give me that diet garbage! If I'm gonna have a lemonade, it better darn well have sugar in it!
25. I'm not funny. I don't enjoy comedies. I don't appreciate a good joke. Although, I enjoy funny people. Funny.
26. I cry when I laugh.
27. I love to sing, loud of course! But, I can't carry a tune.
28. I am addicted to paper.
29. I prefer caramel over chocolate but never turn down chocolate!
30. I want a convertible. I really, really want a convertible.
31. Fall is my favorite season. I love spring bulbs, the first snow, the Fourth of July... but I love everything about fall!!
32. I have a crush on Jennifer Garner- still.
33. I prefer to wear socks and I like them knee-high!
34. I think games are a waste of time, but I play because Kelly likes to.
35. I like the table set. In my ideal world, silverware would match, water would be served in a glass pitcher and napkins would always be cloth. In the real world, I settle for a clean tablecloth.
36. I think BIG- but I never pull off exactly what I plan.
37. I am always late. Everything takes longer than I think it should- especially getting out the door.
38. I love to organize.
39. My imagination is excited by walking through Office Max. Don't you love those pink pads for taking phone messages?!
40. I can't ever remember what movies I've seen or what books I've read. I have to ask Kelly if I have seen/read something.
41. I am finally learning to act on good intentions.
42. I try to always have a book or magazine with me to read while I wait for school to get out, at the doctor/dentist, before church meetings... I have read a lot by doing that!
43. I love to vacuum. I worked at an art college in high school. I had to vacuum this really long hallway. I'd start at the far end and match my lines so that when I finished, there were 6 really long, straight lines down the entire length of the carpet. What a happy sight!
44. I have taken 11 months of piano lessons in my whole life- they weren't enough! I really wish I could play the piano.
45. I took one semester of string orchestra in high school to play the cello. I really wish I could play the cello.
46. Megan is taking violin lessons. I really wish I could play the violin.
47. I lived right on a lake in Washington but only water skied once- it was a disaster!
48. I have a hard time getting myself out of bed, but then I feel guilty for wasting my morning.
49. In this world, there are spenders and savers. I am a spender. I married a saver.
50. I'm the oldest of 8 children. There are less than 11 years between me and my youngest sibling.
51. I don't hang on to things- I have a single box with a sample of art work, school papers and what not from my five kids. They'll thank me when I die and don't leave them a house full of junk!
52. I love throwing things out! Cleaning out the closets, the toy box, the drawers... and getting rid of what we don't need!
53. I love to fondue. {Cooking fondue on my birthday}
54. I secretly dream of making money by selling my handmade books. Right now, it is just a dream.
55. I have to call Kelly every day to ask him how to fix my network or my xbox or how to use my computer or get into a program... I am definitely technologically challenged!
56. I feel overwhelmed with gratitude every time I see the American Flag.
57. My favorite time to go shopping is Back To School- notebooks, crayons, pencils... everything new, sharp and organized. Delightful!
58. I love a clean house. I don't mind cleaning my house. I HATE that every job I do is undone within the hour and every room I clean means another one was trashed... it's like Mr. Incredible said, "Sometimes I just want it to stay saved! You know, for a little bit? I feel like the maid; I just cleaned up this mess! Can we keep it clean for... for ten minutes!"
59. I crave a Dr. Pepper about every 6 months.
60. I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have felt a witness that it is true and living the gospel brings me the greatest happiness in life.
61. One of the most common misconceptions about me is that I am a social person. I imagine myself throwing fabulous parties and carrying on conversations with ease- but I am actually socially inept and talking to people I don't know is really hard for me.
62. I never played sports. That's not true- I played Lacrosse for two weeks but then the coach quit and we never found another one. That was the extent of competitive sports for me.
63. My current hobby is book making. {The wedding book I made for my sister, Kathryn}
64. I do NOT garden- I can't stand dirty hands and I can't get anything to grow.
65. I do NOT camp- I can't stand dirty kids and I can't build a fire.
66. I pre-ordered 12 boxes of Girl Scout Cookies. Samoas are my favorite.
67. I am a fast walker.
68. Once I have gone to the trouble of coming up with an idea, I feel like I should mass produce it. I have a talent for efficient production lines! (I think I developed this talent by helping my dad staple handouts for classes he taught.)
69. I could not survive without a dictionary. (Too bad I don't have a memory for all those words I looked up!)
70. I hate the smell of coffee- heaven forbid I should have to walk past it in the grocery!
71. I would love to travel down the Pacific Coast on a train.
72. One of my best childhood memories is playing The Three Billy Goats Gruff on small bridge behind my house. It is still one of my favorite stories to read to my children.
73. I want to be a learner, though it is not easy for me. (Still no memory. Isn't that annoying!)
74. I do so much better with things that are convenient!
75. My first response is "the glass is half empty," but I work to see that "the glass is half full."
76. If I had more cupboards, I would have more dishes- I love cute dishes! (And they would be so helpful for #35).
77. If I could change one thing about the way I look, I would get rid of my double chin. (Thanks Mom.)
78. I like to be surprised.
79. Hands down, my favorite scrap booking product is rub-ons.
80. My heart races every time I see a Harry Potter trailer- can't July come any faster?!! (If you didn't know, that is when the fifth movie and the last book are released! Yipee!)
81. I always imagined I would be a nicer, more involved mom than I am.
82. I have a short temper.
83. I am easily annoyed.
84. I have very little tolerance.
85. I'm working on all of these.
86. I'm not a good phone talker (see #10).
87. I always wish I could do more.
88. I'm sure I have the wisest mother ever and I love being around her!
89. I will make my bed at 10:00pm so I can crawl into a made bed an hour later. (There is just something about a made bed and clean sheets that makes me sleep better!)
90. I love going out to eat. If I was asked to pick a favorite, it would be hard. But, I would probably pick PF Chang's (lettuce wraps and honey shrimp) or Outback (alice springs chicken and cheese fries). Boy, I'm hungry! :)
91. I don't like to drive. I prefer to ride. I am too easily distracted by thoughts, conversation, signs... (that does not change #30!!)
92. I have a passport that will be stamped for the the first time in April, when I go to Paris with my girlfriends!!
93. My favorite days are the ones when you can open a window.
94. I love coats & jackets, but I rarely put one on.
95. I wasn't going to start a blog (gasp!) but Jill convinced me. And I am SO glad that she did!
96. I love photos that are close up!
97. It lifts my spirits to look out my bedroom window at Mount Timpanogas.
98. I love writing with a really sharp pencil.
99. I don't think I'm really good at any one thing, but I am happy with all the things I have tried: photography, scrapbooking, book binding, dancing (ballroom, salsa, folk and ballet), gymnastics, piano, cello, calligraphy, toll painting, floral design, fondue, candy making, napkin folding...
100. I am happiest now, at this stage of my life, then I have ever been.