Every Day In May: Day 2

So, today I'm supposed to educate you on something I know a lot about.

I don't know a lot about much, but I know a little bit about a lot of things... so this is really hard for me.

So, instead of telling you why you should always use Pampers Newborn diapers vs Huggies, or how to saddle a horse (yeehaw!), I've decided to educate you on little things that I've learned over the years, that you could probably benefit from.

1. I know that dairy makes my stomach hurt, but I eat it anyway. This probably isn't smart, and I don't suggest that you follow my lead here.

2. I know the difference between there, their and they're. I wish more people did, too. 

3. I know that I'm so much happier when I don't procrastinate. 

4. I know that chocolate is better when you can wash it down with a soda. 

5. Do things that require heavy lifting while pregnant -- because you won't have to do any of the heavy lifting. We went camping when I was seven months pregnant, and I was all "Ohhh, sorry guys. I can't lift anything heavier than this tub of Cheetos." So brill.

6. People will get annoyed with your constant picture taking, but four years later, they will thank you for it. 

7. When I'm around people with accents, I find myself trying to talk in their accent... this is horribly offensive, don't do it. 

8. Summer days don't live up to their full potential if they're not set to a country music soundtrack. I promise. 

9. To be a good blogger, leave yourself notes in your phone. This is probably old news, but I just learned this after I had a baby, so it's brand new to me. I find myself being a much better blogger since I can remember things that I wanted to write about, five days later.

10. The "Check Oil Soon" light on your car doesn't ever change to "CHECK OIL NOW, YOU MORON", so you should probably just drop everything you are doing and get your oil changed when the suggestion comes up. You're welcome, procrastinators. 

Every Day In May: Day 1

The Story of My Life in 250 Words Or Less

I was born in Tacoma, Washington on July 8th, 1984. I'm the oldest of two; my younger sister Katie came along in December of 1986. We grew up in a small town called Roy; we lived on 20 acres and did "ranchy" things: rode horses, built forts in the woods and drank water straight from the hose. We didn't lock our doors at night, and the keys stayed in the ignition. I have the best memories of picking fresh raspberries with my grandma, and manipulating my little sister to run out and feed the horses while I "timed her" so I didn't have to do it myself. We went to church on most Sundays, which was never something I looked forward to. God was scary and intimidating and was always watching and ohnodidhehearmetalkbacktomyparents and I couldn't wait until I was a grown up and didn't have to go to church if I didn't want to. I loved God, I didn't need to sit in a building to prove that.

I showed horses competitively for years. Won a few world titles. I was homeschooled in Junior High and returned to public school in 9th grade; the homeschool liaison for the program I was enrolled in had her office set up in an alternative school. Funny how that works, right? My parents homeschooled me to keep me safe, and I ended up around all the kids that got kicked out of public school for drugs and alcohol. Woopsie.

As luck would have it, I fell in love with the man of my dreams when I was fifteen (haha), he broke my heart (which no one saw coming), I thought my life was over. My parents enrolled me in the local public school if for no other reason than to get my social life and self-esteem back on track. I made great friends, became a varsity cheerleader for our record-breaking 4A football and basketball teams, and had the high school memories that movies are made of. I mean, complete with the printed out lyrics to Vitamin C's Graduation Song in Comic Sans and Brush Script on the cover of every binder and on every mirror in my house.

I got my own apartment and a job with our family friends at a local real estate office right out of high school, where I stayed for almost 6 years. I partied, I charged up credit cards, I had a good time... I thought that was how "adulthood" was supposed to be, until the credit card companies turned me over to collection agencies and my heart could no longer be explained through lyrics to a Kelly Clarkson song. Then I got fed up with life and decided that I wanted to change things: I found a new job, and I also allowed a coworker from the real estate office to drag me to her church on one hungover Sunday morning, because why not.

Clouds part, angels sing. I was home.

I met some amazing people, became convicted, dove in head first and never looked back. I learned the truth about grace, and realized that the God-sized hole in my heart was something I'd been filling with everything but Him, which perfectly explained why I was never satisfied with what I had in my hands.

I became pretty good friends with a really cool guy named Paul, who had grown up in the church. He and I became best friends over the next few years, and then I became his wife four years later - in October 2010. We got married in what had become our church, alongside twenty (!!) of our best friends and incredible family members. Today, he is the worship leader at our church, we are planted and deeply rooted in God's house, and I learn more about what true love is every day.

In December of 2012 we welcomed our first perfect son, Porter Alan Burton.

BAM. That brings us to today!

Way more than 250 words, guys, but I'm going to be 29 in a few months, so I'm exercising my rights as a grown up.

May Challenge!

Jumping in on this awesome May challenge! Check out Jenni's blog to link up each day! I can't wait :)

Here are the rules, from Jenni:

1. There really aren't any rules. If you miss a day, you can make it up or skip it. The blog police will not come knocking.

2. I will be including a linkup option at the bottom of my post each day, so you are welcome to leave your links here for others to peruse, as well. 

3. You can still post other things every day, too.

4. I'd seriously love you if you also include the "blog every day in May" button (below) either on your sidebar or at the end of your posts, but again, the blog police will not come knocking. My main goal here is to get us all back to the basics of blogging, not to gain a million new readers (though I wouldn't mind that). 

5. Here are the topics. You can be as creative and awesome or as boring and bland as you like with these. Take 'em and run with it. Use creative post titles. Interpret each "prompt" however you like. There's no wrong way to do it. Have fun.

Day 1, Wednesday: The story of your life in 250 words or less (or one paragraph... no one will be counting your words... probably)
Day 2, Thursday: Educate us on something you know alot about or are good at. Take any approach you'd like (serious and educational or funny and sarcastic)
Day 3, Friday: Things that make you uncomfortable
Day 4, Saturday: Favorite quote (from a person, from a book, etc) and why you love it
Day 5, Sunday: Publicly profess your love and devotion for one of your blogger friends. What makes them great? Why do you love them? If you don't have blogger friends, talk about a real-life friend or even a family member
Day 6, Monday: If you couldn't answer with your job, how would you answer the question, 'what do you do'?
Day 7, Tuesday: The thing(s) you're most afraid of
Day 8, Wednesday: A piece of advice you have for others. Anything at all.
Day 9, Thursday: A moment in your day (this can be just a photo or both a photo and words)
Day 10, Friday: Most embarrassing moment (s). Spill. 
Day 11, Saturday: Sell yourself in 10 words words or less
Day 12, Sunday: What do you miss? (a person, a thing, a place, a time of your life...)
Day 13, Monday: Issue a public apology. This can be as funny or as serious or as creative as you want it to be.
Day 14, Tuesday: Ten things that make you really happy
Day 15, Wednesday: A Day in the life (include photos from throughout your typical day - this could be "a photo an hour" if you'd like)
Day 16, Thursday: Something difficult about your "lot in life" and how you're working to overcome it
Day 17, Friday: A favorite photo of yourself and why
Day 18, Saturday: Tell a story from your childhood. Dig deep and try to be descriptive about what you remember and how you felt.
Day 19, Sunday: Five of your favorite blogs and what you love about them
Day 20, Monday: Get real. Share something you're struggling with right now.
Day 21, Tuesday: A list of links to your favorite posts in your archives
Day 22, Wednesday: Rant about something. Get up on your soapbox and tell us how you really feel. (a pet peeve, a current event, a controversial topic, something your husband or roommate or neighbor or boss does that really ticks you off)
Day 23, Thursday: Things you've learned that school won't teach you
Day 24, Friday: Your top 3 worst traits
Day 25, Saturday: Something someone told you about yourself that you'll never forget (good or bad)
Day 26, Sunday: Something you read online. Leave a link and discuss, if you'd like.
Day 27, Monday: A letter to your readers
Day 28, Tuesday: Only pictures
Day 29, Wednesday: Five songs or pieces of music that speak to you or bring back memories. Use Grooveshark or YouTube to include them in the post
Day 30, Thursday: React to this term: Letting Go

Day 31, Friday: A vivid memory