"If you really knew me . . ."

Thank you, Corie, for such a great idea for a blog post. I'm stealing it from you and I hope you don't mind . . . actually, I know you won't mind cuz you are just so super cool like that.

If you really knew me, you would know . . .

. . . that I would prefer to go bare feet or wear flip-flops every day of the year if I could.
. . . that I like to eat ketchup on my eggs.
. . . that I hate confrontation.
. . . that I hate talking on the phone. I would much rather send a hand-written note or email.
. . . that I am very self-conscious, very sensitive, and I actually care very much what people think of me (not such good traits, but it's me).
. . . that there are actually only 4 foods, that I have stumbled upon so far in life, that I do not like: water chestnuts, celery, radishes, and oysters. If you knew me, you would know that I love asparagus, spinach, sushi, calamari, raw fishes, and yes, liver.
. . . that my biggest inspiration in life was my grandmother, grandma Libby, who I still think about daily even though she passed away 6 years ago. I miss her dearly and wish she was here to see her great-grandchildren. She would find them to be the biggest joy in her life, I know.
. . . that I am a farm girl at heart and always will be. I actually miss not having neighbors, having farm chores to do, having hundreds of acres to roam and explore, having dozens of animals, and living far from town forcing you to appreciate the peace and quiet, life in slower motion, and the beauty of this world. I really miss it.
. . . that I love Oprah and Martha Stewart and hope one day to at least see these marvelous women in person.
. . . that I am a huge advocate of breast cancer awareness. Both my grandmothers had breast cancer in both breasts, and had mastecomies because of it. I lost one grandmother because of breast cancer. The other one, although she was in remission after a double-mastectomy, passed away because of heart complications. I miss them so much. (My grandmother, the one with the heart troubles, is the one I share about in my blog "Grandma's Diary".)
. . . that Neil and I are high-school sweethearts. We have known each other for 22 years. We have been "together" for almost 13 and married for almost 8. He is still my best friend. He is also the most amazing daddy in the world. He goes above and beyond the call of duty as daddy and husband. I am so blessed. We all are.
. . . that I get very sentimental with things. I am very attached to memories, hence, maybe that is where my passion of photography and capturing moments so they stand still in time forever, comes from? I think it is. I have a really hard time letting things go. One day when we do move from the house, I know I will have a hard time. This is where I lost my 3 babies. This is where I had my two miracles. This is where we made our life. This is where my life has really grown.
. . . that I love to paint walls. I love to paint murals ON walls. I actually wish I had more time because I would probably take up painting on murals if I had it. I love art. I love drawing. I wish I had more time for it.
. . . that I don't cook very often even though I really enjoy it. I think it's partly because my kitchen is so tiny and not very efficient. It makes it nearly impossible to be a very good cook at times. My poor hubby. But thankfully he is patient with me and looking forward to giving me a bigger kitchen one day.
. . . that my friends are extremely important in my life. They always have been. I think that is why 7 of my dearest friends have been friends since kindergarten (or before). I try very hard at keeping in touch with every one of my friends who I have met in this journey of life. They are the ones who have kept me "going" time after time. They are very important in my life. I wouldn't have survived without them. (So take this as an official "thank you", guys. You know who you are!)
. . . that some of my very best friends I have met since becoming a mommy.
. . . that my mom is one of my best friends.
. . . that I love old Disney movies. They are some of my very favorites.
. . . that I miss my sister-in-law so much. I hope one day that we can live closer together. I hope regardless, that our baby girls can still grow up to be the bestest of friends.
. . . that I believe in blessings, that there are no coincidences. I also believe in miracles.
. . . that, like my friend, Corie, I LOVE QUOTES!
. . . that I have a really bad habit of picking the skin around my fingers. I find myself doing it when I am stressed or nervous.
. . . that I love to travel but absolutely hate to fly. It sends me into extreme panic.
. . . that I have a anxiety-panic disorder.
. . . that I love smells. I love the smell of plastic, I love the smell of new out of the package, I love to smell of my daughter's Cabbage Patch Kids and Strawberry Shortcake dolls. I have realized over time that these smells are actually connections that I have because they bring me back in time. A certain lotion smell reminds me of one of my spring break trips with my girlfriends, a certain shampoo reminds me of college, a certain smell reminds me of my youth. It's bizarre but kind of neat at the same time. (But Neil reminds me that this probably isn't very healthy, especially when I sniff plastic, haha.)
. . . that I remember names and faces really well and I can spell really well. (I even won some spelling competitions in grade school!) But I can't follow directions (like figuring out north-south-etc) very well. I also still can't remember my way around the mall that I've been going to since I was born. I am 100% right brained.
. . . that I love love love books and buy them all the time for myself and my kids. But I rarely ever actually sit down and read. I will read to my kids, but I hardly ever pick up a book to read even though I really do love to read. (Does that make sense?)
. . . that I am a home-body.
. . . that I have a disorganization problem.
. . . that I still hope to adopt one day. (We were in the process of adopting when I got pregnant with Noah.)
. . . that I take offense to things easily.
. . . that I love lists, I love filling out those questionnaires in magazines, I love getting surveys in the mail, I love filling out those postcards in magazines where you check what information you want to send off for. I love just getting mail! (I realized in college from one of my professors, that this is a right-brained creative thing!)
. . . that it's really hard for me to throw things away. I even keep retail store bags. You never know when you'll need'em, right? But even then, I just like the design of many of them. Another thing that my professor told me that us art (especially graphic art) people do.
. . . that I really enjoyed doing this blog entry.