Here's the next part of my challenge. I had to leave off on the kids portion since I have none!
College years:
*Did you attend college or a trade school of some sort?
I started college in Louisiana and finished in Missouri with my Bachelor's degree
I'm currently pursuing my Master's through an online program
*How did you choose what you wanted to be when you grew up?I still don't know the answer to this question. I know that I like jobs where I get to help people...customer service, administrative, education or service industries...I like to help people in some way even if it's putting together an outfit that makes them feel good about themselves
*What did you think was the hardest thing about your chosen profession at that time? Did it turn out that way?I think I just haven't ever found on particular thing that I loved to do. I liked aspects of all of the things I studied: Education was a great thing to study because I got to see people learn and grow, Psychology was fascinating because you see how people's minds operate and understand why they are the way they are, Business/Marketing was interesting because I could find a way to communicate with the masses in effective and productive ways. So far, I have used every thing I learned in every different subject area at some point in every job I have had. Guess it was worth it!
*What dumb things did you do during those years?Wow, there is not enough space or patience to describe all of these answers. I fell off the wagon for a while in college. I lost myself and then attempted to find myself all over again only to discover I was a different person than before. I couldn't ever go back to being the person I once was, so I had to learn to cope with the one I had become.
*What good things did you do?There was a lot of wonderful during my college years as well. I met people that I love like family, made incredible memories, laughed...A LOT, learned a lot about myself, and grew up. Sounds pretty good to me!
*Did you live on your own? How well prepared were you for that?I lived on my own for a while during school and moved back home until I was married. I pretty much always had roommates, but I think I did really well taking care of myself for the most part. I had been taking care of things off and on for a while growing up so I was pretty well prepared.
*What life lessons did you learn?Again, too many to recite. A few I learned included that you have to be a little bit tough sometimes to get things done. It's ok to be a little bit selfish when it affects your personal situations. Not all things last forever (friendships, bad grades, bad days, heartbreaks, etc).
*What choices did you make that affect where you are now?So very many! I went to Mizzou which caused me to have to pay a lot more money for school (can we say student loans FOREVER?), I didn't date just anyone that would have me which led to my being single when my sweet husband came into the picture, I didn't get a full-time job right out of the gate which led to my freedom of schedule that also led to meeting my husband through mutual friends, and I ended a really rough relationship that would have drug me into a place I didn't want to be and gave me a brighter future.
Work:
*What jobs have you had?
My first job was working for a tanning salon (where I met one of my best friends, Danielle)
Then I worked at a Christian Coffee House (where I learned that I loved espresso drinks, met another best friend, Miranda, and my sis-in-law, Kristin, and made some very special friendships with people I cherish)
Next I worked at a clothing retailer where I worked off and on for many years (here I learned so much about jobs, retail, management & the in's & out's of jobs and reports)
Then I moved to working at a local college (first part-time, later full-time, moved up to new jobs and better positions every 2 years; met some of my favorite people and the man who officiated my wedding; learned how to be a grown-up and got experience doing an enormous variety of skills)
*What did you like/dislike about each job?
The usual things but sometimes it was my schedule, or the inability of others to take the leadership positions they held and were paid for, sometimes it was the mean people I worked next to or knowing how to make a place better and not having the authority to do it
*Have you used any of that knowledge in later years?Like I said, I have reused everything I have ever learned in the next job
*Who were your bosses? Did you like them/get along?I have always been fortunate to have wonderful bosses! My current one has been so understanding, encouraging and supporting. It will be hard to have any other!
*How did you get along with your co-workers?I have always gotten along great with them. I am a people person naturally so we always find something in common
*Which was your favorite job?I loved aspects of all of my jobs, but working at the coffee house was likely my very favorite because it combined so many things I love into one place.
*How many years until you retire?A million (or so it seems)
*Do you have any big plans for your retirement? Live in a van down by the river
Or just spend time with the family I hope to have at that point!
Marriage:
*How did you meet your spouse? Was it love at first sight or did it take some time?Hmm, it was definitely over time. Dave and I hung out with the same group of people off and on for a small window of time in our lives. I met him through a group of his high school friends and after developing a friendship we tried to make a relationship from it. I fought it like crazy at first only because I didn't know how to date someone that was older than me and had their life together. It was a foreign concept! He turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me. Glad I finally gave in!
*How long did you date before you got engaged? How long was your engagement?We dated about 2 1/2 years before we got engaged on New Year's Eve 2012. We were married on Sept 1, 2012, so our engagement was 9 months.
*How did you get engaged? (The story.)We decided to spend New Year's Eve in that year. My friend and her fiance joined us for a low key night of food, fun and games. We went outside on the back patio around midnight to wait for the neighborhood to shoot off fireworks. My friend and I were poking fun at Dave for not asking me to marry him already and what was he waiting for...then right at midnight he pulled out the ring and told me to change my facebook status to "engaged" (I know, real 21st century proposal there!) I said yes and cried for about 3 hours afterwards calling everyone I know!
*Who did most of the wedding plans? Who helped?I planned the majority of my day myself, but my mom was also a big part of everything. Dave was a tremendous help and cared a lot more about the details than I ever expected him to. My bridesmaids were also really great for helping me with ideas and doing some grunt work. My aunt helped us decorate and fill in the details the day of the wedding.
*Describe the details of your wedding: the colors, the cake, the decorations, etc.Our wedding colors were purple & green with hints of silver and antique white throughout. Purple is my birthstone and favorite color and green is David's so it worked well together. The theme was love birds mixed with southern charm. I had lots of bircages and decor throughout with fluer-de-lis elements mixed in. The cake was white with black and silver swirls and had peace roses on top.
*Where did your wedding take place? We got married in a charming plantation home in St Louis
*Who performed the ceremony? Do you remember any words of advice given?
My dear coworker performed the ceremony. He's a wonderful man of faith that I trust and really have a great deal of respect for. Words of advice we were given were to trust in God to lead our marriage and hand it over to Him. We were also told to communicate and remember the way we felt on our wedding day every time we got angry or sad.
*Who attended your wedding?
Most of the people I love most in the world. We were so lucky so much of our family made the trip to spend the day with us.
*Where did you go on your honeymoon? What adventures did you have?We went to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico for our honeymoon. It was beautiful and my first time out of the country. We had a bit of a few blunders on the trip down there such as thinking we weren't going to be allowed in/out of the country because of a flaw in Dave's passport, being swindled into time-share wars, being put into a room with two small beds b/c the king bedroom we booked had been given to someone else, a toilet that sounded like whale cries when you flushed it and banging in the ceiling that sounded like someone breaking in every time the air conditioner kicked on, and finally birds (and their crap/feathers) jumping all around the tables/plates/forks eating area and swooping over your head while you tried to eat in the outdoor restaurant. It was a rough first day!
Then we had some great adventures including taking a sunset dinner cruise in the harbor, riding atv's through the desert and along the beach (and crashing it upside down), visiting Sammy Hagar's Cabo Wabo bar, and some general wandering around different parts of the town. It was a wonderful trip!
