25 Random Things About Me

The 25-Random Things has been going around on Facebook. It has been a lot of fun to learn new things about some of my long-time friends. I thought it would be a great way for people to get to know a little about me, too. Here are 25 *very* random things about me in no particular order. They're written in the order in which they came to mind. So....

Get to know me a little....

1. I am a people-pleaser which is one of those traits that is probably good, but definitely bad. I care too much what people think, and I’ve made too many decisions based on what others will think of me. God is working on me in this area.
2. I am the mother 2 although one of my children is in Heaven already.
3. I was planning to go back to school and get a degree in sign-language when I found out I was pregnant with Brandy. I was in nursing school and barely completed my first semester when I found out I was pregnant with Ryan. Since I can’t seem to get pregnant now, maybe I should just go back to school. That should do it!
4. I have a bachelors in Family and Consumer Sciences Education (fancy term for Home-Ec teacher). I taught for about 3 years…LOVED the kids…hated the politics of the public school system.
5. I left teaching because of Brandy’s birth and subsequent health problems. I don’t regret it at all.
6. My dad adopted me when I was somewhere between 2 to 3 years old. As a child we didn’t have the greatest of relationships although today I consider our relationship as pretty good. He’s a good man. I’ve never met my biological father…he’s a doctor somewhere in Florida.
7. I love Jesus. He’s my Lord and Savior and I’m learning to follow him totally and completely every day.
8. I have 3 dogs and 4 fish.
9. I used to breed Boston Terriers for additional income.
10. I love being a mom. It’s the most amazing thing in the world. It’s also the most challenging.
11. I had a pet ferret as a kid. He was the neatest pet ever. I still miss him and there are times I wish I could have another ferret.
12. I was one of those book-smart, nerdy kids in high school. I’m still kind of nerdy.
13. I was also a band nerd. Trumpets rule! I loved band.
14. I wear very little make-up and some days I don’t wear any.
15. My favorite style (for myself) is casual sports attire such as jogging pants and a t-shirt.
16. I’m not a girly-girl. However, I struggle at times with wanting to be a girly-girl and being stylish and a bit more high-maintenance. I guess it’s just not me though. I’ve tried at times. I always feel so fake.
17. I grew up in a small (very small) town in Oklahoma. My favorite activities as a kid were riding my bike and playing “house” with my friends.
18. When I was about 13 my family moved from the very small town to a bigger small town in Oklahoma. At the time it felt like a huge town. Those who know where I live are laughing now.
19. I really enjoy home remodeling projects. I tiled our kitchen and dining room. I also remodeled our bathroom (husband installed the bathtub though). I laid laminate flooring in my son’s room while he was in the NICU. If I had all of the other skills necessary, such as carpentry, I would really enjoy buying one of the houses that was foreclosed on during building. I think it would be great to be able to take an unfinished house (just had the frame up) and finish it out exactly like I want it.
20. I got married when I was 18 to a man 13 years my senior. I love my man! We’ve been married for 11 years. Now you also know my age. Hmmmm. Ohhh…and I wasn’t pregnant. We got married because we love each other.
21. I would love to have a large family (maybe not 14 kids but 4 would be good). Considering how much trouble I have keeping my kids inside I would feel so incredibly blessed if God would bless us with just one more…healthy and at least *close* to full term.
22. Someday I would like to go back to nursing school and finish that degree. I would love to be a NICU nurse someday.
23. I have literally lived in a waiting room in a hospital for nearly 6 weeks. We slept on the floor, ate the hospital food, washed our clothes in the hospital’s courtesy washing machine and dryer. I only left the hospital twice in that 6 weeks for a couple of hours each time.
24. Regardless of what anyone says I will always feel partly (if not even primarily) responsible for what happened to my baby girl because I didn’t listen to my mother’s intuition. I will forever have what-if thoughts about that.
25. I am sometimes a difficult person to get to know. I have a tendency to be very, very reserved when it comes to letting people get close. Even my closest friends probably don’t know a lot of things about me. I get scared when I’m in vulnerable situations. Letting people really, really get to know me is a pretty vulnerable situation. God is working on me in this area too.