100 Things

Welcome to my 100th Post....

1. I am the middle child - two older siblings, two younger siblings. Not quite sure what it means, but that's where I fall.

2. I have three brothers and one sister.

3. They would lay on tracks for me. I would do the same for them...at any time for any reason.

4. My parents have been married for 44 years. I admire that so much. They have seen it all.

5. I have five nieces and only one nephew. I tell him all the time that he's my favorite nephew. So far, the nieces haven't asked who my favorite niece is.

6. I earned both my undergraduate and graduate degrees from Virginia Tech. I am a Hokie.

7. I spent 15 years working with middle school students and teachers. It annoys me when people make a face about middle-schoolers, but I get it. It takes a certain person to work with middle school students. Luckily for both of us, I get them.

7. My favorite number is 4.

8. I was born on the 4th day of September.

9. I am my mother's fourth child.

10. My first condo in Washington DC was apartment number 4.

11. If you add the digits of the day I met my husband.... yep, they add up to 4. I could go on...

12. I met my husband on a blind date.

13. We both have entirely different stories about what happened that night, but it all ends the same. We clicked. Simple as that. We made each other laugh, we flirted, and I just knew there would be a second date.

14. I just didn't realize he wouldn't kiss me until the fourth date. I mean, seriously. Didn't he know about the third-date rule?

15. I am a perfectionist. Always have been.

16. I can remember wanting my handwriting to be perfect in kindergarten. I wanted it to look like the teacher's.

17. My twenties taught me to let a bit of that go.

18. Speaking of my twenties, what a decade of change. I entered and exited that decade an entirely different person. I thank God for that growth - with all the hiccups that came with it.

19. I am a pleaser. If I offend someone; it bothers me. I have worked on this a lot, but I like to make others smile.

20. I was a classroom teacher, resource teacher, assistant principal, adjunct professor, and district administrator.

21. I used to joke that I couldn't hold down a job. I think part of that might be true.

22. I am very proud of what I accomplished in each of those jobs.

23. I am now a stay-at-home mom. I sometimes miss work.

24. I am not sure I miss it enough to return any time soon.

25. The checking account will ultimately make that decision for us.

26. I worked full-time after my son was born.

27. I would daydream about staying home and making him a home-made breakfast each morning.

28. I laugh about that now as I try to convince him to eat the granola bar in the car on our way to preschool.

29. My husband makes me laugh every day. Every day.

30. I love to cook. In another life, I would love to be a chef. Education is my calling in this life.

31. I am Catholic.

32. One of my favorite things is when we drive by our church and my son says, "That's my church; I am Cat-lick. Are you Cat-lick, Mom?"

33. It took us one year to get pregnant with our son. That was hard. I know so many have it worse, and others have it easy. It was a long year of waiting, and then it happened.

34. My husband was fixing our digital camera when I took the pregnancy test, so I have a picture of me the moment I found out. Well, the moment right after I left the bathroom.

35. I was not a happy pregnant person in the beginning. I was really sick for the first sixteen weeks. It stunk.

36. I felt exactly the same when I was pregnant with our daughter.

37. After two pregnancies in two years, I have four different sizes of clothing in my closet.

38. I am working my way down though; the larger two sizes are gone.

39. I hate dieting. I hate exercising. Not a good combination for weight loss.

40. I love to decorate.

41. I enter people's homes and mentally move furniture around. Fortunately, everything I think doesn't come out of my mouth.

42. Decorating my children's nurseries were the most fun projects for me.

43. Although, I did change my mind after spending a ridiculous amount of money on my daughter's nursery. I dragged my poor sister shopping two weeks before the baby's arrival. Within 48 hours, the nursery was completely changed down to the paint. Nuts. It's one of my favorite rooms now, so it's all good.

44. My linen closet only has white bath towels. Bleach is my friend.

45. My MIL re-did my linen closet one day without me asking. On a normal day this would have sent me over the edge, but it is still the neatest closet in my house. For this, I am grateful.

46. I love Benjamin Moore paint. My favorite color is Broken Arrow. My second favorite is Saybrook Sage.

47. My husband and I were married in Old Saybrook, CT. We were married outside overlooking the water.

48. There were only 32 people at our wedding. Just family and a few close friends. It was perfect.

49. We memorized our vows. My husband had them memorized first, and he helped me to remember them. I hope I never forget that.

50. I am afraid to fly. The last time I flew on an airplane was for our honeymoon. I really wish I wasn't so afraid. I wasn't always this way. It happened after 9/11. I am not afraid of a terrorist. I am afraid of equipment failure.

51. People tell me it's a matter of control, and since I can't control the plane, I am scared. I disagree. The last thing I want to do in this life is control a plane.

52. I won't let my fear of flight prevent me from taking trips with my kids. When they're old enough and we have the means, we will travel.

53. I was born at St. Vincent's hospital in Manhattan.

54. I lived in the Bronx until I was twelve.

55. We moved to Virginia and lived in a quiet suburb. My friends were convinced I lived in the country. Any block with grass and without a candy store on the corner was considered the "country."

56. I was excited about the move mainly because I was going to have my own room.

57. My husband jokes that I still sometimes wished I had my own room. Sometimes, he is right.

58. I have a dog (a Bichon Frise) named Prince George Bailey Butter (and then our last names hyphenated). We call him Bailey. I named him after George Bailey from It's a Wonderful Life.

59. Everyone thinks I named him Bailey after Bailey's Irish Cream because I am Irish.

60. I had Bailey before I met my husband. I think sometimes he looks at me and asks what I did to his life. He was my prince and got all the attention in the world. Now, he's lucky to get a decent walk each day.

61. I added Butter to his name because this dog could fly through the air if butter were made available to him.

62. I hyphenated the dog's name when my husband and I got married.

63. I didn't take my husband's name, but my dog did.

64. It seems like the most normal thing in the world for me to keep my maiden name. It's the name my parents gave me, and it was my dad's name. Our kids have their dad's name. It just makes sense to me.

65. I sometimes think about changing my name, but to me that would be like wearing socks outside of your shoes. It wouldn't feel right.

66. Does that make me a feminist? It's really less of a political statement and more of a personal feeling.

67. I am an Independent. I don't vote down the ticket. I vote for the candidate I respect the most. This means the one I think is the smartest.

68. I love living close to Washington DC. It's a beautiful city.

69. Hydrangeas are my favorite flower. I just love them. They were in my wedding bouquet and on every table at our wedding.

70. Impatiens are my favorite annual.

71. I used to be addicted to magazine subscriptions. Now, I can't stand the clutter. I stopped renewing all of them. Well, except for People. Once I get the old issues out of my house, I will start up again.

72. I'll re-order Cooking Light first.

73. I love People magazine. It's my favorite Friday night activity. I put the kids down, pour a glass of wine, put my feet up, and read People cover to cover.

74. I think about having another baby quite a bit. I am not sure where I stand on that decision, but I think about it almost daily.

75. I wish I was more organized. I love organization, but I have a hard time keeping everything in its place. It's a daily struggle.

76. I love playing tennis. I took lessons when I was very young, I played in HS, and I play any chance I get. Unfortunately, it's not very often.

77. When I shop, I try to buy classic pieces. I do not follow trends.

78. I shopped at Talbots when I was in my twenties even though my father teased me about it. I will shop there forever.

79. I love my Lilly clothes.

80. I wanted to name our daughter Lilly. My husband vetoed it. He knew the reason behind the name.

81. My brother refers to all of my Lilly Pulitzer pants as my happy pants. He's got that right. I wear them, and I'm happy.

82. My godmother sent our daughter her first Lilly dress. I have the best Godmother ever.

83. When I was little, all of the gifts my Godmother gave me were monogrammed.

84. I love stationery. I spent hours and hours picking out my children's birth announcements. It takes me forever to pick out Christmas cards.

85. I framed all my nieces and nephew's birth announcements - they're hanging in my laundry room. I also framed our moving announcements. They are fun to read as I load that machine.

86. Shopping at Home Goods is one of my favorite activities to do alone. I could spend hours in there looking around.

87. I used to be very crafty. I lost a bit of that over time. I don't even know where my hot glue gun is... for a long time it was attached to my hip.

88. Some of my favorite blogs are written by very crafty women. I envy their talent, especially the sewers.

89. One day I will learn to sew and knit.

90. I want to retire in Hilton Head, SC. I call it the land of mulch. I love the tennis, the golf, and of course, the ocean.

91. When I am completely stressed out, I take a bath.

92. During the most stressful time of my life, I took so many baths that I needed to see a dermatologist to deal with the dry skin.

93. When I am stressed, my skin breaks out. It's a sure sign of stress.

94. I check on my kids every night before I go to bed. If I forget, I get out of bed to do it. I can't sleep without checking on them.

95. I have accidentally woken them up several times, but this doesn't stop my nightly ritual.

96. We named our daughter after my grandfather's sister. I wanted her to have my great-aunt's name because my grandfather and great-aunt were so close. I want my children to be close. It's one of my greatest wishes for their lives.

97. I want it for my children because I am so grateful for that love in my own life.

98. If I won the lottery, I would buy a second home at the beach. I think it's an investment in family.

99. My parents have a second home at the beach, and it's one of my favorite places to be.

100. I made it to one hundred! I started this blog to share because I have enjoyed so many other blogs, but I also want to document this life that I am so grateful to be living....