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| High School Graduation 2014 |
I thought it might be fun to go into a little more depth about myself as the author of this blog, so here are a few fun things about myself to help you get to know me a little better.
1.) I am a Fourth Degree Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do
Tae Kwon Do is pretty much my favorite thing in the whole world, that and other martial arts as well. Unfortunately, since moving to Utah, I have not found a new place to train yet, but I am looking! I have another place I will looking at here real soon, so I am very excited! I started Tae Kwon Do around five years old. I might have been a little older, I don't remember, but I do remember the day I started. I still remember my first class, learning how to stand at attention, and learning when to say "yes sir" and "yes ma'am." Despite the challenges that always come with starting something new, and the frustrations with not just understanding everything right away, I never wanted to quit. Eventually I found a place to start teaching, and that is where I discovered my passion for teaching. So I guess that's another thing: I love teaching.
2.) I Love Horseback Riding
I honestly don't remember when it was that I started riding horses. My grandma has had them for as long as I can remember. I've mostly only rode for fun; competitions and such were never my cup of tea. I loved getting the horses all dolled up and riding in parades though, with streamers, and flags, and fancy outfits. Shortly before meeting my husband, I had the opportunity to go on a limited distance endurance ride. It was my first and only so far, but I absolutely loved it. I would have done more if I had not moved to Utah after getting married, but I definitely plan on doing it again in the future. Hopefully within a few years from now, we will have horses again, and I will be able pursue that dream of mine.
3.) I Love Acting and Musicals
Whether it be through acting or watching, I love musicals! I love the singing, and the memorizing lines, and the interactions with other characters. As a kid, my grandma and I used to go to musicals all the time. I remember one in particular, Auntie Mame, it was the first musical I didn't know anything about before going, so I was nervous, and not as excited as usual, but after it was over, it was an instant favorite! Turns out Utah does a few plays and musicals of their own in different cities around Springville, so I may just have to try out for the one next year. Until then, I am perfectly content just watching and enjoying.
4.) I Love Food Way Too Much
I love food. I love going out and enjoying a greasy burger and some fries. I love pizza, and I love sushi. My husband likes to tell me I eat Mexican food like a pregnant woman, which I have to laugh, because it's kind of true. Or maybe a little more than kind of. Sadly, I am not one of those women who can eat whatever she wants, whenever she wants, and however much she wants, and still stay thin, so I have to very much limit this love of mine, but it is definitely a good motivator when it comes to getting more exercise!
5.) I Seriously Enjoy a Good Toy Store
This a picture from a date my husband and I went on a month or so ago. I took him on a surprise date earlier that day, and this is a place he wanted to show me on the way home. It's called Blickenstaff's, in Provo, Utah, and it is awesome! So many fun and exciting things to see! Plus, they have the fridge filled with fun soda flavors, and old fashioned sodas, and oh my goodness I had a blast! I guess that's the just the little kid in me, but I loved it.
6.) I Am Learning to Quilt
This is project number one. My quilt is currently on a table ready for me to hand quilt it. So far, I am loving it. As a kid, I did a few projects with my grandma, but my attention span was not quite long enough at the time. Now that I am older, and have a real purpose behind it, I am super excited. I collect t-shirts. It seems to me the best souvenir to get anywhere I go, because I can actually use it, and it sparks conversations in public. But after a while, shirts wear out, and I started to get way too many. What better way to preserve the memories than put them in a fun quilt? It's looking great. I will have to post a picture of the finished product once it's done.
7.) I Love Camping
Oh yeah, I'm so strong I can lift a boat! Nope, not really, but I felt pretty cool in the moment anyways. I love being in the woods. Whether I am staying in a cabin, a tent, or trailer, I love it. I am definitely one who prefers to be near a shower, but if there isn't one, that is not going to keep me from a good camping trip. I will say though, I have never been winter camping. My husband claims to love it, and insists I will stay warm enough, but I am not yet convinced. I guess maybe I just haven't experience the wonders of the woods covered in snow. From a cabin, yes, but not so much a tent. Hopefully when we do finally get to go, it will be a good experience!
8.) I Think Sharks Are AWESOME
My husband used to tease me there for a while there when we were dating, because every time he would call me in the evening, I was snuggled up on the couch watching some shark show. One of my favorite things in the world is sitting and watching shark week. I love learning about the different kinds of sharks, and I especially love watching the shows with tiger sharks, and great white sharks. I don't so much watch these shows anymore, as my husband and I do not have a t.v., but Netflix sure has a few. I wish I knew where the pictures were, but I think this interest was sparked when I first visited California with my grandma and great aunt. There was a shark piece playing on the news, and the day after was when I first stepped into the ocean. It was a little unnerving. This is the souvenir I brought home. I found it while going through a box of old things. Good memories.
9.) I Love to Sing
I LOVED choir in high school, and have been happy to be involved in multiple choirs after. I sang in an all women's audition choir in high school, and was lucky enough make it to all-state in Idaho, and participate in Idaho's International Choral Festival. It was a great way to meet some great people from other countries, some which I still talk to every so often. If I am comfortable enough, I am that person who never stops singing. Ask anyone who has ever lived in the same house as me, and they will tell you. Lucky for me, I married a man who loves to hear me sing. Whether that's because he actually loves my voice, or he just loves me, it doesn't matter. I lucked out big time with this one <3
10.) I Enjoy the Little Things
It is so true when people say it is in the little things. I think I could tell you the exact moment my husband and I fell in love. We went on a date to the Botanical Gardens in Boise, Idaho. Somewhere outside all the flowers and bushes and trees there is a field, and in that field there is a labyrinth pattern cut out of the grass. We had so much fun just walking along the path toward the center. Even though we could very plainly see where the center was, we had an absolute blast talking and laughing along the path. It was so simple, yet so fun. A couple months later, the last time I saw him before we got married, we went on a date to Walmart. It was freezing outside, yet we went and found some plastic spoons and dairy free snicker-doodle ice cream, then sat in the car holding the ice cream up the heater so it would get just soft enough to be like a soft serve. Still, I think that might be one of our favorite dates. Like I said, I love the little things.
11.) I Hate Flying!!
I didn't tell anyone this for a long time, because I felt it was kind of dumb. They say more people die in car crashes than planes, yet for me, that is little comfort. I'm not so much afraid the whole dying thing, as I am falling to that death. I guess it's more of a fear of falling that it is of planes. Any time I know I am going to have to get on a plane, I thank my lucky stars for narcolepsy, because I fall asleep so easily sitting in one place for too long. That, and if I purposely stay up the night before, I am sure to be able to sleep. Then I can sleep instead imagining myself falling to my death, it's great.
12.) I Love Hiking
I love everything about hiking. One of my favorite parts is the exploring. I love hiking around and finding new things, and I
really love a destination hike. I love hiking knowing I am headed somewhere, like a pretty waterfall, a camp sight, or somewhere I get to look over a hill, or valley, or lake. In this case, Lance and I were taking a drive up the canyon, and we found this spot with a pretty red rock wall and a river flowing by, with a big log to sit on by the water. It was beautiful, and a great way to escape the outside, or rather inside, world for just a few short moments.
13.) I Love Gingerbread Houses
For a long time, every year at Christmas my family would head over to Grandma's house where we all got together and made gingerbread houses. We all brought our assortment of candies to share, and grandma showed us how to make frosting icicles and trees and other fun stuff. My favorite was making clothing for the little gingerbread people out of Hershey's kiss wrappers. I used to make an angel for the top of my home every year. The best was when grandma did her gingerbread competitions. She made the most realistic gingerbread houses; it was really cool to see. Of course we were always jealous of grandma's houses, because they were always the best. Might have to start that tradition again here in Utah.
14.) I Am an Animal Lover
There was always a pattern in my house growing up; no matter who's pet the animal technically was, I was the one to take care of it. Not necessarily all the time when it came the feed and water, although that was definitely a common thing, but when it came to being a vet, that vet was me. I got to do the feeding of the medicines, and the giving of the shots, and other such unpleasant things, but I guess that was just because I loved our pets. I was patient enough to make sure the animal got healthy again, or stayed healthy. I don't currently have any pets, as my husband is allergic and we live in an apartment that does not allow them, but I still enjoy them a lot. This is a picture of the Puppy Barn in Utah. It's a really neat place. They have all these puppies in different areas that you can go pet and hold and play with. It's great because these puppies get used to people, so they can be a good fit to any home. That, and they always take good care of their puppies, putting up signs here and there to give the puppies a break from people to rest and eat and drink. This is definitely a good place to go for a new puppy.
15.) I Hate Driving a Stick Shift
Yeah yeah, I know it's a good skill to have, and I know that a lot of stick shift drivers give others crap for not being able to drive a stick shift, but I am not concerned with that. I learned to drive first on an automatic, and that is still what I prefer to drive. Probably because I have not practiced enough in a stick shift, but as of now, automatic is my preference. I am still learning though, because I do think it is an important thing to know. That, and I would really like to be able to say that I know how to drive one. The progress is slow because of my very apparent lack of interest, but I still try. This is a picture of me driving to Idaho with my husband. It wasn't bad after a while. Now I just need to work on my around town driving.
16.) Fall is My Favorite Season
I love the Fall. It's cool enough that I can wear cute jackets and scarves without getting too hot, but warm enough that all I need is a jacket, and I'm not freezing all the time. I love corn mazes, and corn pits, and pumpkin flavored goodies. I love a warm cup of hot cocoa and some kettle corn while carving or painting pumpkins, and I love seeing all the kiddos with their super cute Halloween costumes. That and Thanksgiving. It's probably one of my favorite holidays, especially when it comes to the Wizard of Oz, pomegranates, macaroni and cheese, and pumpkin pie (it's a tradition with me and my grandma, a movie and our goodies).
17.) I Love to Read
I have always enjoyed sitting down to a good book. I have to laugh sometimes looking back, because there were times my mom couldn't do anything else to ground me, but take away my books. It's what worked. Until I got a phone, then things changed a little. I remember coming home from school and wanting nothing more than to sit down and read my book. My mom would ask me to go do something, and I would make sure I had my book with me, so I could read a couple pages as I completed my task, and then run back down the stairs, or in the house, or wherever it was I needed to be. And then of course, I was a night reader. A good book sure makes it difficult to get to bed on time.
18.) I Love to Draw
I don't believe myself to be any sort of amazing artist, but I do enjoy my doodles. I think it is fun, and I do well enough that I can do something with some of my drawings. My mom used to tease me and call me her personal printer when she was primary chorister at church. We didn't always have a printer, so when my mom needed something drawn for a lesson, I would draw it. I loved it, because I felt like it gave me a purpose in some of my abilities. This a picture of the Plan of Salvation I drew as a part of a Personal Progress goal.
19.) I Love to Journal
I am not very good about journaling every day, but I do try to pull out my journal at least once a week. I wish I had been better about it a lot sooner, because I love going back and looking at different memories, and milestones in my life. I love the idea that someday, my posterity will be able to look back at all the things I have tried to keep documented as they do their own family history. I love looking back at ancestors and finding their stories; it's probably one of my favorite parts about family history. For anyone who doesn't already, I highly recommend getting a journal. It's a great way to see unrealized blessings, and settle down after a long day.
20.) I Love Family History
It hasn't been until recently that I have really gotten into family history, as far as searching names, putting together trees, and taking names to the temple, but the small flame of interest definitely started with this amazing lady right here. This is my Granny, my great grandma on my mom's side. Every year for Memorial Day we used to drive to Twin and other nearby areas to decorate graves, and tell stories of loved ones passed. I wish I remembered more of the stories, and all the graves we visited, but I do remember a few. What I remember most though was my Granny's respect for family, and her testimony of eternal families. That and her love for a good all you can eat restaurant! It was a tradition that at some point along the trip we would all go out to eat before driving back to Boise from Twin Falls. I won't ever forget those trips... or the belly ache from all the food I ate!
I have to say, this was a fun post to write. I have never thought of myself as a very interesting person, and I often times have envied those who I thought were: those who play multiple instruments, speak multiple languages, and do multiple sports. For a long time I have always thought, the only interesting thing about me is my experience with martial arts, and even that is becoming decreasingly interesting. So for anyone who feels like they are not interesting, I challenge you to write down everything interesting about yourself, anything unique, anything you might enjoy, whether it be big or small, a favorite animal, or color, or hobby, or book, anything, and I would like to hear about your experience.
Feel free to comment below! (I get notifications, so I will respond!)
For more About Me, visit
http://blog.allthingstristen.com/search/label/About%20Me
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