Even though I don’t have a weekend recap for you guys this morning, I couldn’t resist popping in and wanted to share a super random but hopefully semi-interesting post with you guys! I saw this idea for a blog post pop up on Ashley’s blog a couple of weeks ago and bookmarked it because I thought it was so fun! Inspired the 73 rapid-fire questions Vogue poses to celebrities in an ongoing video series, Ashley answered a slew of short questions on her blog and I loved reading her answers. This morning I’m answering a bunch of short questions as well (I grabbed my list of questions from Ashley’s blog post and this 73 questions post) and would love to hear your answers to some of them in the comments section of this post. Let’s get to it!
73 Questions
1. What’s the best thing that happened to you this month? Visiting my family in Florida and seeing my boys with their baby cousin
2. What’s your favorite game? Catch Phrase or Taboo but I’ll play pretty much any game. Game nights are my fav!
3. When are you most inspired? First thing in the morning after a cup of coffee or on long solo walks with Sadie (aka my BEST thinking time)
4. If you could teach one subject in school what would it be? English
5. What’s your favorite beverage? Sparkling water
6. What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received? I had a woman in Target tell me I had wonderful children and that they were a reflection of my parenting. It was an incredibly kind compliment that stuck with me because it meant so much to me. Her compliment also inspired me to reach out and give strangers more sincere compliments.
7. What is your favorite birthday cake? Ice cream cake! But if that doesn’t count, I’d say red velvet cake with buttercream icing.
8. What is one thing you still have from your childhood? A stuffed animal cat named Snowball that Chase has now adopted as his favorite stuffed animal
9. What is your favorite movie? Father of the Bride
10. What is something you can’t do? French braid
11. Window or aisle seat? Aisle for sure
12. What makes you laugh no matter what? Chase and the things that come out of his mouth — lately the fact that he calls TV “TD,” and doesn’t know the word “or” so he always says “for” in its place — “Do you want to play with me for no?”
13. What does creativity mean to you? Embracing yourself and your passions
14. What are your favorite lyrics of all time? “You have no rival. You have no equal. Now and forever God you reign.” (What a Beautiful Name by Hillsong) I sang these lyrics over and over again in my head on my way to prenatal appointments when I was pregnant with Ryder and filled with fear and anxiety following our miscarriages. It was the best reminder that God is the most powerful and He is GOOD.
15. What is your favorite holiday? Christmas!!!
16. What’s heavily played on your music playlist right now? Particula by Major Lazer & DJ Maphorisa
17. If you could raid one woman’s closet who would it be? Probably Katrina from Tone It Up because her style always looks feminine but comfy, too! Plus, she has the cutest workout/athleisure clothes! (And while I’m at it, I’ll take her hair as well.)
18. Must have purse item? Snacks and baby wipes
19. What did you want to be when you grew up when you were 12? A dolphin trainer or a news anchor
20. What is something you will not be doing in ten years? Changing diapers
21. What is an important life lesson for someone to learn? Hurt people hurt people. When someone intentionally tries to hurt you, it’s very likely because they’re hurting inside themselves. Truly happy, kind people do not go around trying to make other people feel miserable.
22. How do you start your day? Quiet time with my latest Bible study and coffee followed by work before the boys wake up
23. Would you ever live anywhere besides North Carolina? Never say never but Ryan and I agree North Carolina is the best place either of us have ever lived
24. What is your favorite dessert? Ice cream — no contest
25. Is there a dessert you don’t like? I’m not a huge fan of chocolate and fruit mixed together in desserts (like chocolate and raspberry or vanilla cake with fruit in the middle, etc.) but I’ll never turn it down
26. It’s brunch! What do you eat? Quiche
27. Where was the best vacation you’ve ever taken? The Galapagos Islands is hard to beat!
28. Favorite Disney animal? Timon and Sebastian
29. What is a book you are planning on reading? I’m currently in the middle of reading The Wicked City by Beatriz Williams, but thanks to your recommendations on last Thursday’s blog post, next up on my list is The Banker’s Wife by Cristina Alger
30. What did you read most recently? I’m Fine and Neither Are You by Camille Pagán and I would highly recommend it!
31. Favorite solo artist? Bob Seger or Elton John
32. What is something you’re tired of? Social media perfection. Curated Instagram feeds with all professionally-shot and perfectly staged photos. It’s exhausting.
33. What’s a city you wish to visit? So many! We’ve been on a bit of an overseas travel hiatus during this phase of life, but I’m dying to visit Reykjavík, Iceland to see whales in the wild. Inside the United States, I’d love to visit Juneau, Alaska for the very same reason.
34. Heels or flats? If it’s a semi-dressy outfit I would absolutely say heels but I opt for flats most of the time because #momlife
35. Where does one go on a perfect road trip? Ireland! Ryan and I still talk about our amazing Ireland vacation. It was the perfect place to go to rent a car and drive all over the country without a ton of advance planning required.
36. What do you do on a rainy day? Try to find a fun indoor place to take the boys so we don’t all go crazy
37. What’s your favorite exercise? Burn Boot Camp!!
38. What was your worst subject in school? Math
39. What is your spirit animal? Dolphin
40. What do you usually eat for breakfast? I change it up a lot but lately it’s some form of oatmeal (collagen baked oatmeal, overnight oats, triple chocolate protein oatmeal, etc.), smoothies or chia seed pudding
41. What do you usually eat for dinner? I love trying new recipes and meal planning so we rarely eat the exact same thing week after week. You may see what a week’s worth of dinners looks like in these posts!
42. Cooking or Baking? Baking for sure!
43. Favorite baked good? Oh man this is hard! I’d say freshly baked cookies or some kind of an apple/peach crisp but only if I can pair it with ice cream.
44. What is something you wish you could be good at? Choreographed dance. It does not compute in my brain.
45. Skiing or Surfing? I don’t know how to surf so I’ll say skiing… but something about surfing greatly appeals to me, probably because of my love for swimming and the ocean
46. First celebrity crush? JTT — Jonathan Taylor Thomas — what a dreamboat
47. Most recent celebrity crush? Batman aka Christian Bale (based on looks alone — hubba, hubba)
48. What color was your prom dress? Junior year it was a bright fuchsia and senior year it was blue
49. How do you manage stress? Make a list. Wake up earlier than usual to get things done. Remind myself that I can always handle it and that in one month, year, etc. the thing that is stressing me out likely will not matter anyway.
50. What do you do to relax? Read
51. Age when you were first kissed? 13
52. Place you were first kissed? On the couch in his basement. Ooooh midwest basement life!
53. Favorite fashion trend of all time? High-waisted leggings. Never giving them up!
54. Best fashion advice you’ve ever received? Dress for your body type
55. What is your current favorite piece of clothing that you own? If I’m going with the item I wear the most, it would probably be my lululemon align 7/8 leggings. I discovered them thanks to your recommendations when I was pregnant and still wear them all the time. They are the most comfortable pregnant/postpartum/everyday life leggings!
56. Shoes or Bags? Bags mainly because I wear sneakers and comfy/functional sandals most days
57. How do you know if you’re in love? You cannot picture your life without them and you deeply feel their happiness and their pain
58. Television show you’ve binged on recently? Still waiting for the day when I have time to binge-watch TV again
59. Who do you turn to when you’re sad? Ryan — He somehow seems to know just what to say or do to make me smile again
60. Leather or lace? Lace
61. Vintage or new? New
62. What is your Kryptonite? Sugar
63. What are you most enchanted by? Surface-level: Fashion influencers and social media moms who are always all done-up and put together. How are you so darn perfect?! Really?! Deeper level: God’s creations. I often find myself driving and looking up at the sky and feeling mesmerized by the beauty of this world. Also, babies. And the thoughts that go through a child’s brain.
64. What is your biggest strength? Optimism
65. What is your biggest weakness? Over-analyzing/getting in my head too much that I feel frozen
66. What are 3 words to describe living in Charlotte? Beautiful. Fun. Variety.
67. Cutest thing on planet earth? Babies laughing
68. Favorite color? Coral or mint green or yellow
69. Best first date idea? Some kind of activity where you can really interact and “play” together followed by dinner
70. Favorite time of day? I’m a morning girl all the way
71. What do you first notice about someone when you meet them? Their smile and energy
72. What’s your guilty pleasure? Eating a full pint of ice cream in one sitting
73. Favorite band? Dave Matthew’s Band — so many memories from listening to their music
Questions of the Day
- When are you most inspired?
- What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received?
- What’s one thing you cannot do?
- Cutest thing on planet earth?
- What do you do to relax?
Or pick any of the questions above and share your answers below!
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Girrrrrl, I am reading your responses to Numbers 21 and 32 and thinking “YES!!!!” 🙂 So, I figured I should answer one of your QOTD. Best complement I have ever received was when I was leaving a job for a new company. Someone that I worked with, and didn’t know very well, said “You made me feel like I mattered.” Basically, he would walk by in the afternoon and we would exchange hello’s. That’s it. So simple, and yet it meant something to someone else!
That is such a kind compliment! It would absolutely stick with me as well. ?
I have to agree that the cutest thing on planet earth is laughing babies! And one thing i cannot do is draw–still waiting for the day I graduate from stick figures
This is fun! That picture of Chase with your stuffed animal is soooo cute! What pints have you eaten in one sitting?! Have you ever tried Been and Jerry’s Tonight Dough?! That is a yummy one! I totally agree with you about hurt people causing hurt and there being way too much perfection on social media!
I taught seventh grade English for nine years before I had my first son! It was fun! I was inspired to teach that grade/subject after reading Judy Blume’s book, Just as Long as We’re Together. I even had my students write the same paper one of the characters wrote in the book! The topic was “I Used to be (blank) but I’m not Anymore”. I would write an inspirational quote on the board each day and we would start class by discussing it. :-). I recently reread that book because I had kept my copy from childhood. I was now the same age as the min character’s mom – 38! Soo strange! Did you have a favorite chapter book as a teen?!
“Cutest thing on Earth?”
My boys (5 and 8) have a special handshake they do every morning before school and tell each other to have a good rest of the day… melts my heart every morning! <3
I hope you have that on video!! So sweet!!
Julie – I have a question for your next list. You are a mom who loves to be on the go and taking your kids to do fun outings (like me! Mom to a 2.5 year old toddler boy). As you have family in Florida, how come you haven’t taken Chase or Chase & Ryder to Disney World? Do you have insider information – like you think they should be older? I would LOVE to see a Disney trip report, especially focused on traveling with young kids! Thanks!
it’s absolutely on our radar and i cannot wait to take them one day! right now i cannot help but feel like they need to be a little older to really enjoy it though i’ve had friends take their little ones at this age and everyone raved about it so i may be overthinking things! chase also doesn’t know a ton of disney characters yet (though he does love the movie cars) but ryan is dying to take them so it may happen sooner rather than later! if/when we go, i’ll absolutely share all the disney mayhem + fun!
We are at Disney now ! We have been taking our kids since they were young (they are 14 and 13 now!) and they said it’s their favorite childhood memory We love it here!!
When are you most inspired? – reading interesting work from other people, regardless of industry
What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received? – that my 10 month old son has my pretty blue eyes
What’s one thing you cannot do? – use scissors! I’m left handed, and left handed scissors weren’t really a thing when I was in elementary school, so I tried to learn to cut with my left hand using right handed scissors. It doesn’t work.
Cutest thing on planet earth? – my sweet baby boy playing with Mama & Dada
What do you do to relax? – read. Or watch mindless tv, like Kardashians or 90-Day Fiance
This is so much fun!!! I really loved reading your responses. Have a great week!
I agree with all Ice cream answers! And the one about binge watching a tv show… I don’t have time either! I always feel left out of conversations my friends have when they discuss Game of Thrones or Real Housewives. I feel like I have no idea what’s going on. I also work from home and have a baby and need to sleep and read so there’s just no time for tv.
same!!! never watched game of thrones and i don’t think i’ve seen an episode of real housewives since before i had chase! one day… 🙂
Ice cream ☑️
“You cannot picture your life without them and you deeply feel their happiness and their pain” – well dang girl, well said
Julie! SOOO happy to see you answer these questions — it’s a really fun post to read and to write. We have a lot of similarities — Dave Matthew’s Band, dessert, and thinking we may end up on TV news too hehehe. Happy Monday to you, momma! Have a wonderful day with your boys!
I used to live in Juneau and do environmental testing of the cruise ships that visit. I’d totally recommend a cruise to Southeast AK if you do ever take a trip there. It’s the easiest way to see a lot of Southeast AK since nothing is connected by road and the cities are small. Also, Disney has a ship that visits in the summer. I had to ride it for work and it was awesome even as a 30 yo and is probably mind blowing for a kid!
SOCIAL MEDIA PERFECTION 🙁 🙁 🙁
I bumped into a childhood friend & her mother, hadn’t seen them in years. After chatting, her mom said, “I love how you turned out.” Sweetest compliment ever!
Happy Mother’s Day! Enjoyed your answers
When are you most inspired? In the morning, after coffee
What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received? Recently, I was asked if I was a college student or a professor (I’m a 35 yr old mom of 2)
What’s one thing you cannot do? Many things, but I cannot do a chin-up. I’m working towards it!
Cutest thing on planet earth? Babies laughing fo’ sho’ or in my case my 2 yr old cracking himself up
What do you do to relax? MASSAGE. The only me thing I do – 90 min massage every 4-6 weeks.
a massage every month sounds like heaven! love that you do this for yourself — much deserved!! <3
Reading #12 made me laugh. Three year olds are so fun to talk with! My daughter can’t say spaghetti yet. For a while she called it ‘guppies’ and now it’s called ‘debbies’. ?
Cutest thing? Either black lab puppies, or my children. Definitely a tie there. 😉 How do I relax? Running or working out! Something I cannot do? Play volleyball – HORRIBLE AT IT!
#21 Reminding myself of this every day. After my husband asked for a divorce in November days before transferring our embryo from IVF (already have a 2 year old), he has turned into a completely different human being. Very difficult to comprehend how he treats me the way he does after going through everything we have been through.
Julie! yes!! Such a fun post, I found myself smiling along to your answers .. hellloooo JTT haha Thank you for sharing!!
Love this type of post!
When are you most inspired? When I run… though I haven’t had much time in the last couple of years with kids.
What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received? Usually people tell me I’m unique or different and mean it offensively. But one time someone said that God made me unique because it was the most beautiful version of me he could dream up. That really stuck with me and I have since embraced my quirks.
What’s one thing you cannot do? Wink
Cutest thing on planet earth? My daughters
What do you do to relax? Take a bath or go near water (lake, river, ocean).
I’m with you on number 17, Katrina from Tone It Up’s wardrobe, hair, workout clothes, style, interior design (no stalking promise!)!
I can’t French braid either #10 and having short legs and long torso I’m with you on 7/8 leggings #55, except I go for Fabletics 7/8 leggings. They’re the perfect ‘legging’ length and are so comfy! And yes to high waisted shorts and leggings #53. I’m hoping high waist is here to stay for a few years. I don’t want the low waist of the 2000’s to return!