1.) If you could live in a book, which one would it be?
I'm an avid bookworm, so this is a VERY hard question to answer. As a child, I often longed to literally be transplanted into one of my favorite paperbacks. It would be a toss up between Little House on the Prairie, Caddie Woodland, The Outsiders, or any Mildred D. Taylor books. I've always said I was born in the wrong era.2.) Where do you see yourself in five years?
Knocking on 30...wow! If the good Lord is willing, my hubby will be a practicing PT and I will be a tenured, certified Reading Specialist (eek!). Hopefully, (again if it's the Lord's will) our little family will have grown by one or two (or 3, who's counting?). Maybe we'll have started building our house? Those are exciting things!
3.) How would you spend a billion dollars?
Funny, everyone was just talking about this due to the lottery being at the largest it had been in years. Even my 2nd graders were discussing it! Hubby and I did have that conversation, and I tried to get him to be serious about it. We would definitely invest, purchase some businesses, and become donors to some different projects. But it took him a while to get past buying a boat, a truck, moving to Florida, etc. He did, however, mention donating to all the churches in our denomination and giving them renovations. I personally can't wrap my mind around that amount of $, but I hope I would be able to do big things for my community and my school. I also see myself giving some money to Answers in Genesis (The Creation Museum, The Ark Encounter, etc.).
4.) Why did you choose your profession?
I didn't. My profession chose me. I am one of those blessed individuals who truly heard their calling. I remember talking to a dear friend in high school who said he didn't know what he wanted to be when we "grew up". I told him to try to find his calling. He told me he didn't hear anything. I guess that's true for some people, but I was never one of those people. I knew from a very young age that my gift is to teach. It is my passion, my hobby, and my talent all wrapped up into one.
5.) In what ways do you hold yourself back?
Public speaking. Give me a keyboard, a pen, or a one-to-one convo and I'm golden. Put me in front of a group of people, and I crumble. Which is sad, because I do think it truly does hold me back.
6.) How do you want to be remembered?
This is something I think about from time to time. We've all been to those funerals that are a little harder to conduct than others because the memoirs don't flow so beautiful and fondly. I constantly remind myself that I want to leave a legacy of love. I hope that I will be remembered for making people laugh and for pointing people towards Christ. That's really all I could hope for.
7.) If you could master one skill you don't have right now, what would it be?
SINGING!! My mom comes from a long line of musically inclined individuals. Mom sings a capella in Church and her dad can play any instrument by ear. By ear, people. And I can't even hear notes. I took a choir course in high school and a music class in college and my professors just shook their head at me. My friends have received many laughs from my car concerts. I would l-o-v-e to be able to belt out a beautiful sound. I would give all of #3 to be able to do that.... ok, half.
8.) What's on/in your nightstand?
On top- a doily, a lamp, a cluster of flame-less candles, a picture from our engagement shoot, and my Bible. I removed a drawer and set a basket inside that contains my iPod, chap stick, Vaseline, colored pens and stickers (for grading papers of course), highlighter, pen and journal for devotional time, and my phone charger.
9.) Your top 5 beauty items:
Easy! 1. My Clarisonic Mia that lives in my shower. 2. My True Blue products-shampoo, conditioner, body butter...that can count as "one", right? 3. Batiste Dry Shampoo <---- seriously don't think I could live without it. Best 5$ you'll ever spend. (And I tried all the expensive, fancy ones. They don't compare.) 4. Anastasia brow pencil, because my brows have always been sparse. And 5. my pink, little, oval-shaped, squishy-goodness, magical beauty blender.
10.) If you could change one thing about yourself what would it be?
The fact that my neck breaks out in red blotchy patches at the drop of a hat. It happens whenever I'm aggravated, nervous, upset, anxious, or just overly stimulated. It never fails someone always points it out. And if you happen to be one of these lucky individuals who is blessed with a tell-all neck, then you know how ridiculously annoying this can be.
11.) What is "home" to you?
In a general sense, southeastern KY. Always has been, always will be. I am rooted in my Appalachian mountains. Have you heard the saying, "what would you be if you weren't a hillbilly? Ashamed", well, that's how I feel. Home will always be gravel roads, coal tipples, white wooden churches, packed basketball games, home-grown meals, and curvy roads. In a more specific sense, home is where my family is. A couple years before I married, we moved from the home and holler of my childhood. I thought I would be devastated. It did take me a while to get used to, but I soon found out that home wasn't my house on Caney Creek. "Home" was the people inside of it. But, if I had to narrow it down to one place, it would sound like a very cliche answer. Cliche or not, "home" is my husband's chest. I always tell him when I curl into his side and lay my head on his chest that that's my home.
12.) What motivates you to succeed?
I'll keep this one short. My dad.
13.) If you could bring one fictional character to life, who would it be and why?
Very tough question. I always get attached to fictional characters and mourn when I finish a book. But I think it would be the older brother, Mason, from Tex by S.E Hinton.
14.) In what ways are you the same as your childhood self?
I'm still sensitive, still talk to myself, still very clumsy. I really haven't changed much. And I'm actually wondering when will I start to feel like an "adult"?
15.) What's the best concert you've ever been to?
I've seen Brad Paisley twice, Taylor Swift, Miranda Lambert, Toby Mac, Casting Crowns, Loretta Lynn, and The Isaacs. TS was my favorite. It was her first tour, and she still had her long, curly locks and sang sappy high school songs. Being heart broken and in high school, I loved every minute of it. I still love her, but am waiting for her to get married and find her forever. I'm hoping I will one day be able to relate to her lyrics again. I just can't get enjoyment out of jamming to sad or revengeful songs when I'm happy with my honey.
16.) How would you survive a zombie apocalypse?
Since my husband and I share a secret, guilty pleasure of being hard core Walking Dead fans, I feel like I'd survive just fine. I'd channel my inner Michonne and hope Hubbs would find his inner Rick and/or Darrel. (Insert heart eyes emoji.)
17.) What's the craziest thing you've ever done?
I am a first class worry-wart, so nothing too crazy here. But at the same time, I enjoy contained thrill. (Is that a thing?) I've been zip lining and white water rafting. I've done the free falling attraction at the amusement park and I'll ride any coaster. Once, when vacationing at the Keys, my sisters and I went kayaking on our own in the open ocean. We saw sharks (yes, as in more than one) swim right underneath our kayak. We were scared senseless, sore and exhausted, and positive we were going to become castaways. Not to mention, I was burnt as red as a lobster for the rest of our vacation. Definitely crazy.
18.) If you could abolish one piece of modern technology, what would it be and why?
Cell phones! For sure. Ahhh, I can just imagine the incline in human interaction! Why? Because we'd be forced to be a lot more present in the moment. We wouldn't be instantly connected. It wouldn't be as convenient or tempting to access social media.
19.) What's your fondest childhood memory?
I am blessed to have had a wonderfully long and pure childhood. I can recall so many fond memories it'd be impossible to choose. On many summer days, my sister and I would ride our bikes down to my grandma's house where we would watch my papaw feed the birds and peel apples from his apple tree in unending, spiraling peels. We'd take turns braiding Grandma's long, gray braid, eat cornbread crumbled in a glass of milk, and laugh at Grandma laughing at the Golden Girls. I'll never forget those days. Or the sleepovers, the adventures in the haylofts, the nights spent in a camper, the days at the beach, the countless times I licked the brownie bowl, the magic of Christmas mornings, or chasing salamanders and tadpoles in a creek.
20.) Who do you follow on Youtube?
My girls, Jaclyn Hill and Maddie Ziegler.
Answers in Genesis, Ken Ham.
And of course, for my 2nd graders, Readeez and Wayside.
