Fifty Shades of Jan Q&A

Hello, friends! I am finally caught up on all of my editing for now, and I’m waiting for my hair to dry before I head to the gym to do the mural wall for November. I still have no idea what I’m going to make.

Advertisement

Super Specific Liebster Award!

Hello, friends! Life has been pretty crazy as of late, and I know that my blog has just been sitting here, collecting oodles and oodles of dust. For that, I apologize. I’ve been doing a lot of working out, cleaning, freelance work, and potty training lately (my son, not me, obviously), and time just keeps slipping away from me.

Sunshine Award!

Hello, friends! Recently, I’ve been super busy with lots of fun projects (which you will learn about in the near future), as well as some real-life stuff (my birthday is this week!), and my own blog has taken a backseat for a little bit. Don’t worry, that will soon change, but in the meantime, I wanted to share with you this neat, little thing that happened today!

Re: The Sandman’s Q&A #3

Hello, friends! The Sandman is back with yet another fun, little Q&A, and I thought I’d make this a thing, and go for round 3!

Re: The Sandman’s Q&A #2

Hello, friends! For those who don’t remember, several months ago, a fellow blogger posted a short Q&A on his blog, and invited others to join him in answering. I decided to participate, and you can read my answers here. Well, The Sandman is at it again with a second Q&A! So, I thought I would shake off these stormy weather blues, and do a bit of writing today, since things are pretty chill in my house today. You can read the questions, and my answers, below!

#1) Describe one moment from your youth that is impenetrably seared into your memory.

Honestly, my memory is pretty fuzzy when it comes to things that happened in my childhood. I’m not entirely sure why. I am able to recall certain things in vivid detail, but for the most part, there are huge gaps in my memory, where I can’t remember a damn thing. High school was particularly traumatic for me, and many of it is a blur. Middle school is basically the same story, but slightly less severe. Maybe I just didn’t care enough to retain the memories. Who knows?

There are two memories in my life that often pop into my head, presenting as vivid, flashbulb memories. The first, and possibly the earliest memory of my life, is of the backseat windows of the first car my mom ever had with me. One of the back windows had two parts, and the back part was shaped like a shark fin, and had little black dots on it. I remember looking out this window as a baby. My mom said she got rid of that car before my first birthday, and that there is no way I could have remembered it. But I do.

The second memory is from middle school. When I was in the sixth grade, I had a crush on a boy in my class, named Billy. He had an older brother, who was in the eighth grade at the time, and I liked him, too. However, neither had any interest in a relationship with me, friendship or otherwise, and were often cruel to me, teasing me, and spreading rumors about me. I had a pretty thick skin back then, and it didn’t bother me much.

Until the final dance of the school year.

I showed up alone, but immediately met up with a few friends of mine, who reassured me with urgency that everything was going to be okay. I was confused. Long story short, Billy and his brother had created a fake AIM (AOL Instant Messenger) profile, using my name, and faked a ridiculous conversation between “me” and themselves. Then, after fabricating numerous embarrassing confessions, they printed out copies of the conversation, and plastered them all over the walls of the cafeteria, where the dance was being held.

I was furious. I confronted the duo, who were sitting in the back of the cafeteria with friends, too cool to participate in the dance, while my friends took down the posters. I made it very clear that I was not embarrassed, and that I felt sorry for them for being pathetic and immature enough to put so much effort into trying to humiliate a girl they supposedly had no interest in. I got my point across. I remember telling a chaperone, who was probably a parent, and not a teacher, and they said they couldn’t do anything about it. And that was it. We took down the posters, we danced, and we moved on. I got over it. After that night, the boys never bothered me again.

#2) Would you be upset if a long-term partner confessed that s/he’d committed a serious crime before you met? How do you think it would affect your relationship?

Honestly, it would depend on the crime. There are many unforgivable crimes. Was it assault? Burglary? Rape? Murder?Did they go to prison, or is this a deep, dark secret? Have they turned their life around for the better? Everyone makes mistakes, and does stupid things in their lifetime, especially when they are young and stupid. I can forgive things like assault (assuming it was justified in some way, and not some sort of hate crime), certain kinds of theft, certain drug offenses, traffic violations, etc. I am a pretty forgiving person, as long as they have changed for the better, and treat me well.

However, there are things that I can not forgive. There are some crimes that are committed by people, often more than once, and it defines what kind of person they are. A lot of times, they don’t change. I won’t go into detail, but whatever you’re thinking that I’m talking about, you’re probably right. Sometimes, there are no excuses, and no coming back from something. If I discovered something horrible in their past (and chances are, they probably didn’t go to prison for it if we’re in a relationship, meaning it was a secret), I would confront them. I would hear them out. But in the end, I probably would not stay in the relationship. And, depending on the seriousness of the crime, I may even turn them in.

Well, there are my answers to The Sandman’s Q&A #2. I invite you all to answer these questions for yourselves, either in the comments, or as a pingback post. Thanks for reading, friends!

Jan

Re: The Sandman’s Q&A

Hi, friends. We’re off to a very rough morning in my house today, so I decided to sneak away to the internet for a bit while the kiddos are eating breakfast. I stumbled across a little Q&A post from a fellow blogger, Sandman, and thought it would be a neat little way to pass some time, and cool my head. So here are my responses to the questions he posed!

Do you unbutton your shirts before you take them off?
I honestly don’t remember the last time I even owned a shirt with buttons! I’m a tee and sweatshirt kind of gal.

If your life was on stage, would it be a drama, a comedy or a musical (or a combination thereof)?
My life is so damn dramatic, you’d think a drama… but I find it all kind of hilarious. Kind of. Comedy. I don’t want to hear anyone around me sing!

Would you star, be an understudy, or hiding in the back doing tech stuff?
I think I could pull off any of the three. I’m not so afraid that I would shy away from the spotlight… but I certainly don’t have an ego that demands I be the star. I don’t mind being a supporting role. I also have done work behind the scenes, and have enjoyed it! Those are the real MPVs!

If you could, who (anyone living or dead) would you hire to write it?
Any of the writers from Mad TV.

Have you started your Christmas shopping yet?
Not even close. Shh. We don’t speak of it…

What do you think of Daylight Savings Time?
It can go straight to… well, not being a thing. Pleeease.
————————————————

Thanks for reading this quick little Q&A, friends! I’m off to pick up the food my toddler just threw on the floor, then finish cleaning up the orange juice that was spilled all over my carpet. What a great morning.

I need coffee…

Jan

High School Memories

Hey, friends. I’ve been meaning to upload a vlog about everything that has been going on lately, but honestly, I’m too depressed. Kyle has been away at school for three days now, and we just found out that his classes actually last five weeks, and not three weeks, like he was originally told. Five weeks, followed by four to six weeks of driving on the road with his instructor. I haven’t been this bored, lonely, or sad, for a very long time. Luckily, I am able to Skype with him for a few minutes after his classes, but I miss him. Liam and I both do.

50 Questions You’ve Probably Never Been Asked

Hello, friends! I’ve been spending a lot of time with my little family this week, since my mom is here visiting, so I haven’t had much time to focus on writing prompts, or vlogging, so I thought it might be fun to post these silly questions that I found online, and answer them. Just for fun. So here are 50 Questions You’ve Probably Never Been Asked!

1. What’s your favorite candle scent?
Despite not buying into the whole pumpkin spice everything craze that comes around autumn, I absolutely adore pumpkin spice candles. I love warm scents… and food scents. Pumpkin spice, or maple, or warm vanilla… mmm. *drools*

2. What female celebrity do you wish was your sister?
My sister? Probably Anna Kendrick, or Emma Stone… but that’s a bit awkward, since I also want to marry them both. And Mila Kunis.

3. What male celebrity do you wish was your brother?
I can’t decide between Christian Kane, who played Eliot Spencer on Leverage, or Aldis Hodge, who played Hardison. I love them both.

4. How old do you think you’ll be when you get married?
I am hoping to get married in the next year or two. We’ve actually been engaged for two years now, but we’re not in a rush to get to the altar!

5. Do you know a hoarder?
Thankfully, no.

6. Can you do a split?
Ugh, I used to be able to. Not so much these days.

7. How old were you when you learned how to ride a bike?
Really, really young. Maybe 4? I don’t remember!

8. How many oceans have you swam in?
I think just one!

9. How many countries have you been to?
Two! United States, and Canada.

10. Is anyone in your family in the army?
Hm… I don’t believe so. No.

11. What would you name your daughter if you had one?
We have a name picked out actually… not telling. Although, funny enough, I recently found out that it is the same first AND middle name as a famous YouTuber. Weird!

12. What would you name your son if you had one?
Our son’s name is Liam Thomas. But we do have another boy name picked out… and it may, or may not, be after a famous pirate.

13. What’s the worst grade you got on a test?
I’ve probably failed a few.

14. What was your favorite TV show when you were a child?
I used to looove Sesame Street! And Barney. As I got a bit older I got really into Rugrats, Hey! Arnold, Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Goosebumps, Spongebob… so many!

15. What did you dress up as on Halloween when you were eight?
I think probably a witch? I was a witch a lot. Or some kind of vampire sorceress.

16. Have you read any of the Harry Potter, Hunger Games or Twilight series?
Well, let me tell you, I was (and still am) obsessed with Harry Potter when I was in school. I am 26 now, and it still holds a special place in my heart. I read all the Twilight books in high school as well. Never read the Hunger Games books, only saw the movies.

17. Would you rather have an American accent or a British accent?
BRITISH. Obviously.

18. Did your mother go to college?
She did!

19. Are your grandparents still married?
Actually, neither set are. Huh.

20. Have you ever taken karate lessons?
I went to karate once with my friend Kayla. Ages ago. It was fun!

21. Do you know who Kermit the frog is?
Of course I do!

22. What’s the first amusement park you’ve been to?
Hmm… probably Funtown Splashtown in Maine.

23. What language, besides your native language, would you like to be fluent in?
I would love to be fluent in French, but realistically, Spanish is the way to go.

24. Do you spell the color as grey or gray?
Gray.

25. Is your father bald?
Nope, full head of hair at 51.

26. Do you know triplets?
Actually, I know one set! A million sets of twins as well.

27. Do you prefer Titanic or The Notebook?
Honestly, neither.

28. Have you ever had Indian food?
Maybe once? I like curry.

29. What’s the name of your favorite restaurant?
I don’t have one. I do really enjoy Bonanza, Culver’s, and Steak ‘n Shake though.

30. Have you ever been to Olive Garden?
Yes, and it is overpriced, and not worth the hype. The last two times I went, in two different locations, we had bugs in our food. No joke.

31. Do you belong to any warehouse stores (Costco, BJ’s, etc.)?
Nope.

32. What would your parents have named you if you were the opposite gender?
That’s a really good question, I should ask my mom… I have no idea.

33. If you have a nickname, what is it?
Jan, Jan Jan, J, Super Jan… So original.

34. Who’s your favorite person in the world?
My son… though my fiance is a very close second. ❤

35. Would you rather live in a rural area, in the city, or in the suburbs?
Suburbs, but I actually enjoy the city as well.

36. Can you whistle?
No… and now you know my dirty secret.

37. Do you sleep with a nightlight?
Kind of. Our bathroom light stays on, with the door cracked, but mostly so I can see in the hallway if I have to get up with my son in the middle of the night. I like the dark. Sorta.

38. Do you eat breakfast every morning?
Usually, yeah, because I eat with my kiddo.

39. Do you take any pills or medication daily?
Tylenol, and a multi vitamin… because 26 is the new 46.

40. What medical conditions do you have?
None that I know of!

41. How many times have you been to the hospital?
A bunch of times when I was little for various flues and sicknesses, but never anything serious. I’ve never broken a bone, or even had a serious sprain, or any other injury. I was in a few car accidents with my mom, which warranted hospital visits, but I was always unharmed. Also, when I had my son, obviously.

42. Have you ever seen Finding Nemo?
Who hasn’t?!

43. Where do you buy your jeans?
JC Penny usually, or Target… that’s really it. My current favorite pair is actually from Maurice’s, but I can’t afford to shop there too often.

44. What’s the last compliment you got?
“Your son looks so much like you!” And he is pretty damn cute, so I’ll take it.

45. Do you usually remember your dreams in the morning?
Usually! I write them all down if I do, and type them out into my Dream Journal.

46. What flavor tea do you enjoy?
I’m not picky. I like all the tea!

47. How many pairs of shoes do you currently own?
One pair of sneakers, which are following apart, and two pairs of boots, which it is way too hot to wear. I need new shoes…

48. What religion will you raise your children to practice?
I will not raise my children in any religion, but I also will not shelter them from the beliefs that exist. I will answer their questions honestly, and fairly, and allow them to make their own decisions on what they want to, or don’t want to, believe in when the time comes.

49. How old were you when you found out that Santa wasn’t real?
… What? Santa isn’t real? HOW DARE YOU.

50. Do you have a Tumblr?
I do! You can click here to see it, but I haven’t been giving it much love lately. Sorry.

That’s it! Hope you guys enjoyed reading my answers. Feel free to copy and paste to your own blog of choice and fill in your own. It is just a fun way for people to get to know you more.

Thanks for reading, friends!

Jan

Mommy/Daddy Birth Interview Assignment

Hello, friends! Recently, my good friend, Lindsey, asked to interview Kyle and I on our pregnancy/birth/baby experiences as part of a school assignment, and I was more than happy to do it! I thought it would be fun to share with you our answers, so you get a chance to hear a bit from the daddy part of our parenting duo. I had so much fun doing this interview, and it made me miss being pregnant! The baby fever is REAL, guys! Here was our interview:

Mother: Janise
1. How did you find out that you going to become a parent?
We weren’t trying to have a baby, per se, but we weren’t preventing it. We both wanted a baby, and after a while, I had my suspicions that it finally happened. I went to the store and bought two of those 88 cent pregnancy tests, the ones with the silly droppers, and sure enough, they came out positive!

2. How did you react when you heard the news?
I was excited. Really excited.

3. What was pregnancy like?
A breeze, honestly. They say something like 2/3 of women experience morning sickness, which can last for months, or the entire pregnancy, but I never had any at all. I never had any symptoms at all until the last few weeks when my feet swelled, which was awful!

4. What was the birth process like?
I wish I had been more informed of my options, and what could go wrong during labor and delivery. Despite a healthy pregnancy, I developed preeclampsia during labor, and had to be put on a Magnesium drip to keep my blood pressure down, but then it dropped really low, which made me incredibly sick. I had an epidural as well, and Pitocin to help my labor, so I didn’t feel anything at all. I was exhausted though, and slept a lot. I labored for about 14 hours, and pushed for an hour and a half. The pushing was the worst. My epidural had started to wear off, and I was starting to feel again. It was weird though, because I didn’t feel pain, just a LOT of pressure. My partner had to leave the room, and after pushing on my back for an hour, they had me switch to the supine position (on all fours), which was awful, and a lot harder. I felt like I didn’t have a lot of control or say in what happened, and when they would tell me to push, I felt like it wasn’t the right time. Yet when I knew it was time to push, they told me not to. It was really stressful, and I felt very alone, despite being in a room full of people.

5. What do you remember the most?
The moment they handed my son to me. I was still on my knees and elbows, and they handed him to me through my legs. I felt completely numb, and overwhelmingly happy, seeing his face for the first time. That made all the pain, the sickness, and the 4-day hospital stay totally worth it!

6. What do you remember about the first month after the baby was born?
Pain. A lot of pain. You hear a lot about the pain of birth, but no one ever talks about what your body goes through afterwards. I bled for six weeks, and because I suffered a 4th degree perineal tear during delivery, I had a hard time doing much of anything. Housework went completely undone, because my partner had to go back to work early, and I was alone all day, every day, with this newborn. It was a little overwhelming.

7. Is it what you expected?
Honestly, some things were easier, and some things were harder. Not to toot my own horn, but I discovered that I was kind of a natural at the whole motherhood thing. I knew exactly what my son wanted based on his crying, and that made things so easy. He was such a good baby, too! Slept great, didn’t have any colic, and ate like a tiny linebacker. The hardest, most disappointing thing for me, personally, was not being able to breastfeed. I had all these hopes that I was going to exclusively breastfeed, but it never happened for us. He just wouldn’t latch, and I found it impossible to pump enough. I still feel guilty about it.

8. At what point did you feel “comfortable” with a new baby and taking care of him/her?
Within weeks, if not earlier. The first few nights were a bit of a shock, and really confusing. I didn’t have any family or friends to help me, or answer questions, so I relied a lot on the internet to get me through it. I read a lot, and it paid off. He was only a few weeks old and I felt like a pro. It relieved a lot of stress and worry.

9. Did having a baby change your outlook on your partner?
Honestly, yeah, a little bit. Getting him to change a diaper, even 13 months later, is a fight. He used to get frustrated so easily when the baby cried, and he didn’t know why. It is frustrating, feeling like you are doing 99% of the work in raising your child, especially when the other parent is actually there, but he helps out when he is able, which I appreciate.

10. Did having a baby change your sex life?
Completely. I feel really bad about it, really, because we had a great sex life before, even when I was 7 or 8 months pregnant. But thanks to my traumatic delivery, it has been difficult. My body took a very long time to heal, and it is still uncomfortable for me to have sex now, but there isn’t much I can do about it.

11. What is your least favorite thing about being a parent?
The judgment. Parenting itself came easily to me, but the judgment that I’ve received from family, friends, and even complete strangers, is disheartening. Every little thing that I post online, someone always has to say something. Everything from not being able to breastfeed, to co-sleeping (which we stopped doing when my son turned 6 months old), to letting him use a pacifier. Someone always thinks you’re doing something wrong. It took me a long time to adjust to that, and to realize that my son is happy, healthy, and crazy far ahead in his development, so they can go find someone else to judge!

12. What is the best thing about being a parent?
Lately, it has been being able to actually PLAY with my son. He is finally walking and running around, and it makes life so much more fun. Before, when he was just a tiny thing, we could only play on one spot, on the floor, which was great… but this is so much better. Seeing him grow and develop, and learn new things, it is so amazing.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Father: Kyle

1. How did you find out that you going to become a parent?
We kind of knew for a while that it was going to happen. She bought a few pregnancy tests, and I was outside the bathroom door, and then we knew she was pregnant.

2. How did you react when you heard the news?
I was a little scared, but I was happy, too.

3. What was pregnancy like?
Not very different really. She didn’t have any cravings, or mood swings, or anything like that. Her stomach just grew.

4. What was the birth process like?
Scary. I wasn’t able to be in the room, I just couldn’t handle it. I was still there, on the other side of the curtain, but it was still scary. I was expecting her to scream, like they always show on shows and in the movies, but she didn’t scream at all.

5. What do you remember the most?
I remember when Janise threw up on me, because she had to take Magnesium, and it made her really sick. She wasn’t even completely awake when it happened. They didn’t let her eat anything, but then they gave her an apple, because she was so weak, but it didn’t stay down. That, and cutting the umbilical cord, which I did do!

6. What do you remember about the first month after the baby was born?
A lot of crying. I got really sick right after he was born, and we found out it was because of my blood pressure, and probably stress. So I remember a lot of crying, and being sick all the time.

7. Is it what you expected?
No, it was actually a lot easier. I thought it was going to be like death, or the end of everything normal, but it has been really easy. He is really good.

8. At what point did you feel “comfortable” with a new baby and taking care of him/her?
Umm, I think after he turned 5 or 6 months old, and he wasn’t so tiny anymore. It was less scary. I was always afraid to do anything when he was really small.

9. Did having a baby change your outlook on your partner?
Not really. It has been really cool to see her as a mom though.

10. Did having a baby change your sex life?
YES. It did! Drastically.

11. What is your least favorite thing about being a parent?
I can’t really think of anything. I didn’t have a life or friends previously, so not much has changed about my social life, except now there are three of us here. She’s made it pretty easy for me. I don’t have to change any of the bad diapers.

12. What is the best thing about being a parent?
Seeing how goofy my son is. He’s just like me. The weird faces he makes, and just how silly and funny he is, it just makes my day. He is a funny kid.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for reading, friends! Thanks again to Lindsey for choosing to interview us. I hope you enjoyed our answers!

Was your pregnancy/birth experience similar to ours?

Jan (and Kyle!)

The Liebster Award

What is the Liebster Award?

The Liebster Award is a new-comer award given by bloggers to other bloggers, it creates a great platform for new blogs to be discovered and build communications. The best thing about this award is, it creates a lot of encouragement and support within our blogging community.

I had never heard of this award before, and was pleasantly surprised to be nominated by the fantastic Christina (aka justbluedutch)! I am so excited to answer some questions, and nominate 10 more individuals for this award. I also urge you all to check out Christina’s blog, which is filled with beautiful images and words about living life to the fullest. She is just wonderful. Thank you again, Christina! 🙂

Now, for those who have not heard about the award, here are the rules:

1. Thank your nominator.
2. Share the award on your blog.
3. Answer 10 questions asked to you.
4. Ask 10 questions to 10 new nominees (who have less than 300 followers).
5. Notify them via social media.

Here are the ten questions that the lovely Christina asked of her ten nominees, including myself, which I am more than happy to answer!

1. What have you learned from Blogging?
   Patience. Lots of patience. I’ve dabbled in blogging off and on for years, but have had the hardest time sticking with it. In the last year, my life has changed so much, and I’m constantly surrounded by inspiration for writing. I’ve finally found my groove, and I hope I’m able to stick with it this time!
2. What do you love about the place where you live at the moment ?
   Unfortunately, not much. This area holds a lot of bad memories for me, and I would love nothing more than to move away before something else tethers us here. The best thing, I would have to say, is that Kyle’s family is nearby.
3. Where is your happy place?
   Deep within the pages of a good book. Or buried deep within the warmth of my covers.
4. How do you keep your posts original & interesting?
   I don’t know that they are original OR interesting! I write about my life, and what I’ve experienced as a new mother. The most original and interesting thing would definitely have to be my dream journal. I am lucky enough to experience vivid dreams, which I am usually able to remember. It makes for fun writing!
5. Where do you get your inspiration to write?
   My day-to-day life, as well as my brilliant baby boy.
6. If you had to travel to an isolated location, far from civilization, to live for 2 months without internet, name three books that you would bring with you to read.
   Oh, man. I’ll be honest, since having my son (a year and 2 days ago), I haven’t picked up a single book, and I miss it! I have no idea what books are even on the shelve these days! And I’m kind of weird about rereading books… so I’d probably just sunbathe on the beach and relax!
7. Would you still blog if you knew nobody was going to read it?
   Of course. First and foremost, I blog for me. Being able to articulate my thoughts is very therapeutic for me. If people enjoy reading about it, then that’s great!
8. Who is your favorite Blogger at the moment?
   Too many to list!
9. What is your vision for  your Blog for the next 3 years?
   I honestly have no idea! Who knows if I’ll even be writing 3 months from now!
10. What is the best thing about your Blog?
    Hmm… my personal favorite is my dream journal. I enjoy looking back and reading through them, laughing about how bizarre my mind is.

The following bloggers/blogs are my super awesome nominees for the Liebster Award, and I hope they are as psyched as I am!

1. Where In the Life
2. Life Beyond Mommy
3. Crazy Grad Mama
4. That Crunchy New Mom
5. Its A Mum’s Life 2016
6. This little life
7. Mars Gone Mad
8. The NYC Mom
9. The Flip of the Switch
10. Confessions of A SAHM Site

And here are my ten questions for my ten nominees:

1. If you have someone in mind, who would you say has been your greatest writing influence in terms of your own writing style?
2. Aside from blogging, what are some of your other hobbies?
3. What are three books that you have read more than three times?
4. What is your favorite genre of music? Does the music you listen to affect your writing in any way?
5. Do you find writing by hand more preferable, or typing on the keyboard?
6. Do you consider yourself a full-time writer, or a part-time writer?
7. What time of day is most productive for you in terms of finding time to write?
8. If you were to start writing a book right now, what would it be about?
9. What is your favorite topic to write about?
10. What advice would you give to other aspiring writers?

This was so much fun! Once again, a huge thanks to Christina for nominating me, and putting my name out there! I can’t wait to read what my fellow newbie writers in the community post.

Thanks for reading, friends.

Jan