100 Things About Me

1. My middle name is Jean just like my mom’s.
2. My firstborn daughter (if I have one!) will have the same.
3. My eyes changed color as I got older.
4. First they were brown.
5. Now they are greenish.
6. I am Catholic.
7. I love being Catholic: the saints, the Pope, the Eucharist, the prayers to our Blessed Mother – the whole bit.
8. I would love to have at least four children.
9. Or more if God speaks to me on this matter.
10. I don’t really enjoy watching baseball on television.
11. I do, however, LOVE watching football.
12. I have been known to watch college football with my hubby for more than 5 hours on Saturdays during the fall.
13. Call me un-American but I do not enjoy the “Star Wars” nor the “Lord of the Rings” movies.
14. I’ve washed my face with Clinique soap every night before bed without fail since I’ve been about 13 years old.
15. Speaking of 13 years old, that’s when my dad suddenly passed away.
16. I can’t even begin to imagine what kind of person I would have become had I not experienced that tragic event.
17. Except for the last couple of weeks I really did enjoy being pregnant.
18. I love when the weather gets super sticky and hot.
19. But I still love the four distinct seasons of living in Minnesota.
20. I traveled to Europe for a month in college.
21. I mostly stayed in London but also traveled to Paris and the English countryside.
22. I am a total news junkie.
23. I love when the beeping comes over the television saying “We interrupt this program to tell you about…”
24. I also follow the local Twin Cities news media like they are the hottest L.A. A-list stars.
25. My husband was in the seminary when I first met him.
26. To be a priest.
27. We started dating in March of 2001.
28. He left the seminary in May of 2001.
29. One of the priests at the seminary who we became friends with officiated our wedding ceremony.
30. We got married at the chapel on our University’s campus on August 7, 2004.
31. I worked as a nanny throughout college.
32. It was the easiest, best and most fun job I’ve ever had.
33. I graduated from the University of St. Thomas with a B.A. in journalism.
34. In college I earned all As and a few Bs.
35. Except in my first semester freshman year when I got a D in calculus.
36. That’s when I knew I needed to get away from math and into writing.
37. So it’s actually a blessing in disguise I guess.
38. Before I had William I worked as a project manager for an HR consulting company.
39. I was really, really good at my job.
40. It sounds like bragging until I tell you that I didn’t really enjoy it at all.
41. Except for my co-workers and my clients.
42. I still keep in contact with both.
43. I was pretty much biding my time until I had a baby.
44. I cashed out my maternity leave and then said my farewells.
45. And then they offered me part time.
46. I accepted the position.
47. And then quit after 5 months.
48. Now I fill my days with cooking, cleaning, baking, blogging and, oh yeah, mothering.
49. I’m a bit on the obsessive side when it comes to order and cleanliness.
50. I do not let my child eat in the car. Ever.
51. I have been known to clean him up with the handheld vacuum after he has a sandwich.
52. And I don’t care if he has a sippy cup until he’s six…if there’s no spilling it works for me.
53. Forks and spoons are also out unless the meal is easy to scoop or stab.
54. This means applesauce and yogurt are still spoon-fed to him.
55. See? I told you I was on the obsessive side.
56. I hate long car rides.
57. If it’s going to be longer than six hours in the car, I start searching for the cheapest plane ticket.
58. I love to read.
59. But not non-fiction.
60. Unless it’s a memoir, those are OK.
61. I’m a stickler for grammar and spelling.
62. If you ever see an error here, it’s completely by mistake.
63. Every girl MUST own a pair of jeans that fits well and makes her look like she can still walk into a bar/restaurant and feel attractive.
64. For me, those are Gap Long and Leans in a size 4.
65. I own about 10 pairs.
66. I also own one pair of Seven jeans that I found at a consignment shop for $30.
67. I buy all my bras at Victoria’s Secret.
68. With those gel padding push-ups.
69. Because I could never even dream about filling up a plain old A-cup without padding.
70. Unless I’m preggers or breastfeeding.
71. Then I go up a full size.
72. They are the best months of my life.
73. I’m not much of an athlete.
74. In high school I participated in tennis and dabbled at golf and track and field.
75. But I am good at rollerblading, ice skating and downhill skiing.
76. I competed in the Rollerblade Marathon with my brother in the fall of 2003.
77. Yes, it really was 26.2 miles.
78. I hardly trained but I still completed it no problem.
79. On January 1, 1998 I marched in the Parade of Roses in Pasadena, California with my high school marching band.
80. I played the flute.
81. Call me shallow but in addition to many wholesome blogs, I frequent People.com everyday.
82. I balance my checkbook down to the penny twice a month.
83. As a rule set forth by me, our family does not own a single game console.
84. I would maybe let this rule slide for a Wii.
85. But only if we never owned a shooting game.
86. I’ve never been to Disney World.
87. But I have been to Disney Land.
88. I love laying out in the sun and am really bad at remembering to put on sunscreen.
89. I also love coffee, lattes and iced coffee/lattes.
90. Caribou Coffee is my favorite.
91. We own 1,000-thread count bed sheets.
92. We can’t afford these, it was just one luxury I couldn’t do without on my wedding registry.
93. We, therefore, have the most comfortable bed ever.
94. Nothing lifts my spirits more than driving my car, with my favorite song on the radio, sun shining, moon roof open and sunglasses on.
95. I wish I could drive my Passat forever.
96. But I don’t think you can fit four kids and two adults in a 5-person car.
97. Sometimes I can’t believe I’ve been married for four years.
98. With a son.
99. And I’m only 27.
100. I guess dreams really do come true.