2) Every child is different. What surprised you most about your kids different personalities? How are they alike? Different?
I think what has amazed me about my kids is how they came to me with distinct personalities and unique talents. I'm always surprised by how early their individuality becomes apparent. There are ways they are alike, though. They definitely have physical characteristics that link them to our little family. I think they are all well-behaved and have good manners. They are also really tender-hearted and protective of one another. There is definitely an innate difference between the girls and Ian. I remember when Elise and Ian were small & they were playing Barbies together. Elise was brushing their hair, fixing their clothes and lining them up for a picnic. Ian had them in the air, flying them around like airplanes. They are just different! They definitely have their own personalities.
Elise is super dependable. She has a great memory and if she has put something somewhere or has just seen something around, she can almost always remember where it is or where she saw it. She loves animals. She is a peacemaker. She is so kind to others, never wanting to hurt another person's feelings. One of her strengths is making the right choice and doing the right thing no matter what. She isn't afraid to stand up for what she knows is right, even if it isn't the easy thing to do. She's spunky and fun to be around.
Ian is full of energy. Sometimes I think I can just feel the energy humming off of him. He's very innocent and unassuming in a lot of ways. He loves to hug and kiss Cory & I and his sisters. He also has a lot of physical coordination. He never hits his sisters. No matter how much they may aggravate him sometimes, he never ever retaliates by hitting, kicking or punching. He's also very good with technology. I taught him once how to get to the ring tones on my phone. You have to push about 6 different buttons, choosing different items from different menus. He remembered each step after only showing him once.
Merry Grace has a lot of personality. She's very independent and wants to do things on her own. She is really, really funny and keeps us laughing a lot. She has a contagious laugh that often we all find ourselves laughing along with her, just because she's laughing. She's also very, very motherly for her age. She loves doing "mommy duties" with Paige and also her baby dolls. She loves helping me with whatever task I am doing--cooking, laundry, dishes, making the bed--whatever it is, she will be right there helping. She also loves to go places. If someone is leaving in the car, you can be sure she wants to ride along.
Paige is still really small, so we're just seeing her personality emerge. She's certainly a happy, content baby. She smiles like no other, at anyone who will notice her. She loves attention and loves to be talked to and played with. She is super patient and loving. I can't wait to see what develops as she gets older.
As I thought about each of the kids, I thought about how each person's personality adds and contributes to our family life. Each person's strengths and abilities make our family better and more complete. We interact better when we're all together. I think we're all happiest when we're all together. :)
3) If you had one day where your kids were taken care of, your husband was content, and you had no chores to do, how would you spend it?
I would definitely spend it on the beach with a good book. I would stay from sun-up to sun-down, as those are some of the best times on the beach. I just love being on the beach. I love dosing off in the warm sun (impossible to do with kids) or dragging my chair to the edge of the waves to cool me off. I don't know what it is about being on the beach that just makes life seem better.
4) How has being raised in the South affected your personality? Do you think you would be a different person if you grew up somewhere else?
I love having grown up in the South. I definitely have a healthy dose of Southern pride. I think I'm friendlier for having grown up here. I also think the characteristics I value in others has a lot to do with where I was born and how I was raised. My roots in the South go way back, too. Both sides of my family are Southern as far back as I can trace. The sights, sounds and smells that are wonderful and familiar to me have a lot to do with Southern cooking and Southern hospitality. I love the song "Where I'm From" by Jason Michael Carroll. I think the choruses really nail some of what I love about being from the south. It goes:
"I'm from the front pew of a wooden white church,
The courthouse clock it still don't work,
Where a man's word means everything.
Where moms and dads were high school flames,
Gave their children grandmothers maiden name.
Yes it may not sound like much,
But its where I'm from.
Where the quarterback dates the homecoming queen,
The truck's a ford and the tractor's green.
And Amazing Grace is what we sing.
Where there's a county fair every fall,
And your friends are there no matter when you call
Yeah It may not sound like much but it's
Where I'm from."
I'm sure I would be a little different if I had been raised somewhere else, although the most meaningful parts of who I am, I feel like come from being raised a member of the church. And while I think its being around family that means the most about where you live, I love the South and don't ever want to live anywhere else.
5) How did you and Corey meet, and how do you guys find time for each other?
Cory & I met at EFY when I was 16 and he was about a month away from leaving on his mission. My best friend was in the same group as he was and while getting a drink of water during the first dance, she introduced the two of us. I remember thinking he had the bluest eyes I'd ever seen and he said, "Save me a dance." That's what started it all. :) We wrote while he was on his mission, I graduated from high school in June and he came home July and we actually went on our first date. We dated for a year before we got married, and here we are almost 10 years later. It is really hard to find time together sometimes. The best thing is that we try to go on a date at least a couple of times a month, more if we can manage. We trade off baby-sitting with Cory's siblings which is a lifesaver. Once a week we sit down and talk about how we're doing as a couple, how we're doing as parents and what our kids might need. That is a really nice way to just touch base about how our family is doing. The other thing is that we really try to have fun together, which Cory gets a lot of credit for. He's just fun to be around so he makes everything more fun, whether its cooking dinner together, folding laundry, watching the tarheels play basketball, or work in the yard. I think the more time that passes, the more amazed I am by his many talents and the more gratitude I feel that he's my husband. I'm definitely one lucky gal!
We ate popsicles on the front porch and got stickier than you can imagine.
We mopped the porch with bubble bath. (Which then had to really be mopped up by a grown up. But even that was okay because it felt so nice to be outside!)
We ate Krispy Kreme doughnuts for breakfast. On the front porch.
Sometimes we just went barefoot. That was pretty fun too.
