Before I was a Boy Mom
I have never been career driven, ever since a very young age, I wanted to get married and have kids and be a full-time homemaker. I think this stemmed from being raised by a very hard working single mom. In my mind, I wanted the fairy tale two parent home, with a mom who baked cookies and a dad that considered me his princess. Since that wasn't going to happen, I reconciled to be the soccer mom myself and find a husband who would take care of me and treat me like his princess. EVERYONE tried talking sense into me - telling me I needed a degree, that I was too smart not to go to college, and that my desire for an old-fashion family was, well, completely old fashion.
Interestingly enough, I found myself dating the valedictorian of our class, who was headed off to an Ivy League school after graduation. With no proposal on the horizon, I had to do something, so I enrolled at a local private college and spent 3 semesters living on campus. I had a 3.8 GPA when I decided I'd had my fill of the college experience (I majored in English/Secondary Education with a minor in Sociology) and dropped out. I also broke up with my med-school bound boyfriend because sheesh, he wasn't going to be marriage ready for years -lol (no seriously, there were other things, too!) I got my own charming little apartment(which I loved decorating!), and a job at Merck Pharmaceutical doing clerical work. Working for such a power-house company at that time I was actually earning a salary that exceeded what I would have made as a new teacher. I worked in the same department for 5 years and quit when I had my first son.
I am happy to say that I did travel quite a bit, including to Europe, before having my kids, but it's something I wish I had done more of! I was also lucky enough to have a mom that took us to museums, Broadway shows and five star restaurants - none of which I get to indulge in raising three young boys and having no babysitters to speak of. It's a season ;) I have no regrets about not finishing college, and I never feel inferior or embarrassed about it. Hey! I was smart enough to marry a good guy, and they are hard to find!
Jonathan + Jan
My husband and I met at church. At the time I was very seriously dating someone else, and he was too - but I didn't know it! In fact, I kept thinking he was an attractive, well established, kind gentleman and who could I set him up with? His girlfriend at the time attended her own church and since that is the only place I saw Jonathan, I didn't even know he was involved. As it worked out, both our relationships ended and I started to think maybe I should be the one to date such a nice guy! So my girlfriend at church invited us to random things together - like watching the hockey game at her house, leading a game for the teen group, etc. Finally, Jonathan asked me out on a date, but I still had an obstacle to clear....our almost 12 year age difference! I've always been considered "mature" for my age, and I was living in my own apartment with a full-time job, so I didn't know if Jonathan had a clue that I was only 20 at the time, while he was in his 30's - gulp.
Also, many people were convinced that Jonathan would never marry. One woman told me so at a ladies retreat and that I was setting myself up to be heartbroken since he was too happily independent to wed. A few months later, she sang the solo at our wedding ceremony ;) We dated a year before he proposed, and were engaged for nine months. This January we will celebrate 10 years of marriage. I'd call it wedded bliss, but marriage is HARD. I know we'll be together forever, but we certainly have our peeks and valleys.
Think Pink!
Jonathan and I have always wanted 3 or 4 children. Right now we both feel pretty maxed out raising our boys, but neither of us are ready to close the door completely on a fourth child. I do feel a certain sadness that I might not experience raising a daughter - braiding hair, dolls, prom dresses...they all give me pangs. However, when I'm pregnant "worry" isn't my middle name, it's my first - and my pregnancy with Graham was full of scares - low HCG levels, a cervical polyp that caused lots of bleeding, a cyst on his brain that I was told could be a soft marker for Down Syndrome, my high blood pressure, exposure to Fifth's Disease, the cord around his neck during delivery AND the fact that I hemorrhaged afterwards. I'm not sure I can sign on for any of that again. It's something I pray about often, and right now I can say I don't have a peace either way - so the decision remains unclear.
You need to get a hobby!
Hmm...other interests...I love to read, but it goes in waves and I'm really picky about what I like. I mostly enjoy realistic fiction or memoirs - a recent favorite was The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls and an all-time favorite author for me is Kaye Gibbons (I'm not interested in Nicholas Sparks or Twilight but you can bet I loved the entire Shopaholic series) I also love my "celebrity rags" and subscribe to both People and Us Weekly. I watch almost no tv and I hate the movies. Going to movies, renting movies, previews for movies - just not my thing. When I do watch tv it's all reality shows, all found on 3 channels - HGTV, TLC and Bravo (Real Housewives are a guilty pleasure). I have a lot of fun hosting game nights - Taboo, Guesstures, Pictionary - I can get competitive! Obviously, I love to shop - but not just for myself! I adore buying clothes for my boys (especially layette!) and also buying for/decorating my house. Logistics prevent me from other things I enjoy - going out to eat, bike riding, working out, tennis, skiing, boating, actually relaxing on a vacation...but there will be time for those things again when my boys are older.
I don't work or work out
As mentioned above, I do not work out. I wish I did, because while I have gone back to my pre-pregnancy weight, trust me when I tell you that nothing is firm. I would love to tone up! My excuses for not exercising are as follows:
-No babysitter
-Paranoia about leaving my kids in the childcare room at the gym
-a baby who only lasts 15 minutes in the stroller when I take him on walks
-laziness
-I'm too tired
To keep my weight down, there is no secret to tell. I'm hungry! I try to eat as little as possible. It makes me cranky. It also makes me prone to using my calories on Starburst and potato chips instead of real meals. I am a very average weight for someone my height, and feel self conscious about my body, like most women do. In order to look good in the pictures I post, I take about 20 until I find an angle that flatters - lol.
Okay - that covers about half the questions that were asked, the others are more fashion oriented, so I will be back to answer those in another post! If you fell asleep reading this, wake up - shakes shoulders - its over!
I have pretty small feet, and can make anything from a size 5-6.5 work. I had heard that these shoes ran small, but I went ahead and ordered the 6 and they are perfectly roomy for me. I found them to be wonderfully comfortable, with plenty of room width wise, as well. The tweed is darling, and reminds me of the Twilit Skirt, because some of the threads are metallic, it's very subtle, but a cute touch. You can see Maria's review for another take. I tried mine on with tights, so you could see them that way as well.
The shoes are squeal-worthy adorable in every way!
But alls well that ends well. Anthropologie's 
Most days I'm running after kids, running errands, and running up the credit card bill...
