50 RANDOM FACTS ABOUT ME

I started a list of random facts about myself. I'm not a vlogger, so I'm just posting my list here on my blog. Hopefully it isn't TOO boring to read. :)
I'll first refer you to my other blog (Christ in the Clouds), where I have already posted some random things about me.
HERE and HERE.

1. I lived in the same small ranch house in a small community throughout all of my childhood.
2. I was a very shy child, even throughout my middle school and high school years. I gained more self-confidence, after attending a Christian college for 4 years.
3. I have 2 older brothers and a younger sister. 
4. I met my husband in a single's ad in the local newspaper. I wouldn't have answered his ad, if it weren't for my younger sister, who posted and answered ads to meet guys all the time.(She definitely wasn't shy) I was reading through the ads one day with her and saw his ad and said he sounded like a nice guy. My sister talked me into writing to him(I think she even helped me write the letter). The rest is history.
5. Well, maybe not quite that simple...we dated for about 7 months. Then I decided to go to Ohio into missions for 1 year, working with deaf/hearing impaired children.

   

   Me, with my deaf kids

   I lived in a house with 4 other people - 2 other single women and a newly married young couple. It was a very challenging, yet at times rewarding, year.
6. I didn't have any contact with my future husband until 1 1/2 years later, when I moved back home. A year after that, we were married.
7. I played handbells and was in a traveling choir in college. My grandfather (who loved the handbells alot) purchased used handbells for me to play after I graduated. I played solo handbell music in several churches and weddings, including my own wedding.(See an example of a handbell solo player: HERE)
8. When I was married, we first lived on a 4 acre farm in the country and had lots of different animals - from ducks and geese, to goats(which we milked) and sheep, to cows and horses. The house was 150 years old and we added on to and remodeled the entire house. For many years, we only had a woodstove for heat in the winter and my husband used to cut all the wood for the stove in the woods behind our house.

   

   Our old farm house

   

   Me, with my horse, Sunny

9. We lived there for 14 years, but my husband had lived there many years prior to us marrying. Then we moved to a newer housing addition. We lived there for for 11 years, until we moved to our current cottage on a lake.
10. When we were married, I became a stepmother of 2 children - daughter(A) was 10 years old and son(J) was 8. They didn't live with us, but visited every other weekend. We had our son(T), when the step-kids were 14 and 16. I had a cesarean section because he was breech. He was full term, but weighed only 5 lbs, 10 oz. and wore preemie outfits for the first month. 
    

11. My step-daughter made me a grandmother when I was only 35 years old. (17 years ago.) O.k., don't lie. I know you're doing the math. Let me spare you the brain overload - I'm 52. And I now have 3 grand-kids!

My oldest grandbaby, born on June 17, 1996. Next to me is my son(T), - who became an uncle at age 4

 12.  My favorite Christian musician (other than my son) is Chris Tomlin. I have been to 3 of his concerts and will be going to a 4th on October 18th of this year! Can't get enough of his worship music!

 13. My step-son was tragically killed in a car accident his senior year of high school on December 26, 1996.

 14.  My favorite books, movies, etc. are historical fiction or biographical - most notably, from the late 19th-early 20th century time period. 

 15.  My least favorite are scary, murder, or super-natural stories...ghosts, demons, zombies, etc.

 16. When I was 5 years old, I had half of a kidney removed - a birth defect caused it to function improperly. I have not had any problems with it since then. 

 17.  My two favorite foods are mac & cheese and peanut butter. I could eat them every day and never get tired of them! 

 18. In the U.S. I've traveled as far west as Colorado, south as Florida, east as North/South Carolina, and north to the U.P. in Michigan. 

Me (holding my son, T) and my stepson(J) at the top of Pikes Peak in Colorado - summer, 1994.

 19.  The only time I've been out of the U.S. was to visit relatives in Montreal, Canada several years ago. 

 20.  My favorite movie of all time is "Under the Tuscan Sun" with Diane Lane (my favorite actress, of course). Of any country, I would LOVE to go to Tuscany, Italy. Maybe one day!!

 21. I'm not a very patient person, but have learned to be more so, being married to my hubby, who takes his time doing almost everything! I'm thankful that God matched me up with him, among other things, to teach me this important lesson.

 22.  I do not like to do housework/clean, even though I absolutely LOVE the feeling of having a clean and tidy house. Soooo, I only do it because I know what the end result will be.

 23.  My favorite time of year is summer...I love early morning sunrises, and late evening sunsets, wearing flip flops, fishing and swimming in the lake on hot days, going to all the outdoor events - festivals, fairs, open-air markets, etc. 

24. As you may have noticed by reading some of my older posts, I like creating crafts and decorating. In high school, I actually considered going to college to be either an interior decorator or architect. (I actually used to draw up my own houseplans, just for fun). But I'm not good at math and I wanted to attend a Christian college, which didn't have degrees in either of those areas. So, I ended up with a psychology degree...just a bit different from my first interests.

25. I'm a bargain shopper and rarely purchase anything full price. I love to shop at Goodwill, as I will almost always find a deal to buy and bring home. Most of my clothes come from Goodwill.

26. I also like antique shopping, but do not like to go to garage sales. Don't ask me why. I'm just not a big fan of driving all over the place, only to find mostly junk in the sales. Guess I just don't have the patience for that...again reminding me how impatient I often can be.

27.  As a child, I used to have really bad allergies to pet dander(especially cats). My parents had to get rid of our dog, "Punch", when I was little because of my allergies. I used to get regular allergy shots as a child and hated it...as I got older I grew less and less allergic and now have very little, if any, reactions to pets. I have owned both cats and dogs for many years, now. I still do react to rabbit hair, though.

28. In high school, I owned a parakeet, named "Sparky".  I taught him to say, "Hello", "Pretty bird", "Whatcha doin'?", and "Let me out of the cage."

My dog, snoopy(poodle mix, so no shedding) and Sparky

29. I collect quilts and teacups/teapots. I also have a nice collection of angels...even though I don't collect them now, I have kept several of my favorites that were gifts from friends and family members.

30. I am a family genealogy buff. I found documents of my father's French Canadian heritage (my maiden name was St. Germain) that goes back 12 generations, to the 1600s. The first family members to immigrate from France to Canada (at that time called New France) were Jean Saint-Germain (a French officer), who married Jeanne Bouche' (one of the filles du roi) sent from France to be married off to French officers in the new land. I love the history, as it has such a romantic aura! My grandfather, Canadian born, married my American (German/Scot) grandmother here in America in 1921, but didn't become a citizen until the 1950s.  

•  If you are a history buff, like me, you might find more interesting information on Canada's history HERE (especially take note of the part labeled "New France". My family history was a part of those events and involved some of my distant relatives!)

31. My real first name is Annette. I'm not sure if I was named after Annette Funicello, but since I was born during the era when she was a star, it wouldn't surprise me. When I was in elementary school, everyone called me "Annie". When I got into middle school, for some unknown reason, it got shortened to Ann. My husband will often call me Annette, which kinda bugs me. Not sure why he does use my full name or why it bugs me. Might be a good discussion topic sometime. 

32. I absolutely love sweet tea (no, I'm not from the south!) I will not drink unsweetened tea - iced or hot. I will often put honey in my hot tea, instead of sugar, though. Guess you could say I'm a bit of a sweet tooth! 

33. I'm deathly afraid of heights. So, you'll never get me to go bungee jumping, sky-diving, or in a hot air balloon!

34. I'm also "Agrophobic", which basically means when I am in a crowded room I start to panic and experience anxiety. I dicsovered I had this when my hubby and son and I went to Medieval Times to eat and the crowd was waiting in a big hall area to get into the arena and we got separated and I went bezerk! I also hate shopping the week before Christmas and try to avoid it at all cost. I won't get into a crowded elevator, either. I just hate being in large crowds, especially in tight places.

35. My first job was a clerk in a small department store, back before the days of WalMart and Meijer. I hated it SO much! I worked there one year. My second job was a cashier at a grocery store/then switched to deli worker at the same store and I loved it!! I was there, on and off, from junior year in high school to after graduating from college.

36. I have lots of good friends, but my very bestie in all the earth is my friend I met in college, Kathy. We have been through SO much together! Weddings, divorces, kids, moving, and so much more! We've been friends for over 30 years and even though she now lives in a different state than I (only 2 hours away, though, so we still meet up now and then), we are still very, very close!!

37. I played volleyball from 7th grade to my senior year in high school. I quit the team after the second game my senior year because the coach (who I think disliked me) wouldn't let me play at all, but, (and I'm not kidding), she let EVERYONE else play, even if it was a short time. I called her one day before school and said, "if you aren't going to let me play, then I'm quitting." and she said "that's fine". I never played on a team again. I know, kind of a sad story, but true. Of course, the team went to state that year!

Senior year- I'm left front.

38. I had my gall bladder removed almost 3 years ago, after having a major attack. My hubby and I went out to Red Lobster for our anniversary and ate LOTS of greasy, butter saturated seafood. The next day, I wasn't feeling well. By midnight I was puking my guts out and went to the doctor the next day. Had my first ever Cat-scan that revealed a gallstone. Scheduled surgery for a few days later. What a crazy week that was! To this day, I won't eat at Red Lobster again!
 
39. I have no idea what color my hair is....yep, I bleach my hair! Most of my life, though, I have been a blonde...but several years ago, I started hi-lighting. If I go by my mom's hair color...hers is now half brown/half gray...so I'm a bit scared that I'll find out I have dirty brown/gray hair. (I know, that's nothing to be scared of, but I just like having blonde hair)

40. My mom was a beautician(retired now) and had her own beauty shop in a room behind our garage. I grew up surrounded by the smell of permanent. To this day, I love the smell of permanent. Whenever I walk in a salon, I get a relaxed, comfy feeling....like I'm home!

41. Recently, I have been into wearing nail polish and will sometimes change my nail colors to match my outfit. Then I'll wear outfits that match my nails for several days. (I know, kinda weird, but just don't like having mismatched nails to my outfit.)

42. My absolute most hated housecleaning chore is cleaning the bathroom!!!! (Toilet, shower, tub, sink, all the above!) I gag at the sight of hair in the sink or tub drain. Gladly, my hubby had no problem and will do this job for me!
 
43. I think I spend way too much time on the internet! Yeah, I think I may be addicted to Facebook, blogging, watching Youtube videos. I probably spend around 2-4 hours online every day. Yikes. (But, I don't watch a lot of TV, mostly just Netflix movies and usually only with my hubby).

44. When I was freshman in college, I was in a car accident with my brother, who was driving. We were the last car in a 5-car pile-up. I ended up the windshield with my head and had a concussion.(A piece of advise: ALWAYS wear your seatbelt!) My head bled profusely, but I didn't need stitches. as I had lots of small pieces of glass that cut me.  I stayed in the hospital for a few days. I have no memory of the ambulance trip to the hospital!

45. I don't like the taste of coffee, but absolutely love the smell.

46. I've never smoked cigarettes or tried an illegal drug in my entire life. I didn't try alcohol till after I was married (mid-20's) and currently don't drink, except on rare special occasions. Just not my thing. (Plus I have a family bloodline of alcoholics, so why chance it?)

47. I am by nature, a night owl. I can be up as late as 1 or 2 a.m. and I don't like mornings. It takes me about an hour to totally feel awake, even though I can get up and go through the motion of getting ready.

48. Even though I don't like to, I can go through long hours without much sleep. Some may say I'm an insomniac. My hubby is totally amazed at this, as he usually needs at least 7 hours of sleep a night. If I do get tired during the day, a cat nap usually helps immensely!

49. Last spring (of this year, 2013) I had arthroscopic knee surgery, after my knee went completely out from under me and I couldn't put ANY weight on it. I've been told the surgery is a temporary fix and I'll eventually need knee replacement. My mom has had double knee replacement, and my brother(2 years older than me) has one knee replaced. I don't look forward to it, though! I absolutely HATE being put under anesthesia!

50. I'm thrilled to finally be done with this blog series! It was much more difficult than I thought it would be to come up with 50 different facts that you don't know about me. (I suppose, if you count the lists from my other blog, there really are more like 85-90 things I have posted about me. Wow!)

Thanks for stopping by!