Feature Friday: Me Then…and Now

I am so excited to have my lovely friend Michelle for the Feature Friday Blogger this week. Like most every other blogger out there, we connected by chance…mingling over virtual coffee & Twitter before becoming Facebook friends. Visiting one another’s blog and commenting back and forth. It’s only been recently that we’ve connected over our passion for Design and  Color Boards and gotten to know one another as individuals instead of just as bloggers. Michelle has a beautiful heart and I’m so excited to be able to call her a “real life” friend and not just someone I’ve connected with virtually. She’s awesome, so be sure to head over and check her out! 

Hi! My name is Michelle and I’m the writer & designer behind The Momma Bird. I’m addicted to my iPod, coffee, and Grey’s Anatomy. I stress out over a messy house yet mine is always messy. And I’m an animal lover, despite the loads of hair that falls off my dog on a daily basis.

I’m a former teacher turned SAHM turned WAHM. I am married to a military man which means we have the pleasure of living overseas in England! I love writing about our life, parenting, being a military spouse and showing the world my sarcasm.

Life changes us.

Most of the time for the better. But sometimes it’s neither for better or worse – it’s just a change.

I have changed. In my younger, high school years I was outgoing, spontaneous, independent & FUN! Always the life of the party, doing something crazy with my friends and looking for new adventure. On the weekends you could catch me stealing those big orange cones and putting them in various places around our town, throwing mattresses in the community pond, or jumping off a roof of an abandoned house onto five stacked mattresses. Yeah. Insane!

In college I kept up with most of those attributes but toned it down a bit as I was planning my career. Instead you would find me studying on the weeknights but then letting loose on the weekends. I pulled all-nighters, went to clubs, pranked random people throughout the campus and took weekend trips with my friends. Still fun & outgoing – but not as wild.

After college I was still fun but now I had a “real” job. I had to be up early and actually change the lives of children in the community! Whoa! During this time is when I met my man. He & I started dating – one thing lead to another and we were married with two kids, living in England – all in a matter of 4 years.

If I were to describe myself now, it would be – loving, busy & paranoid. I’m always thinking of crazy scenarios that could land us in a life or death situation, cleaning up after my 2 little boys, designing blogs and trying to make sure our house is a home. On the weekends you’d find me staying in PJ’s all day, not showering until the late afternoon & being completely content not leaving the house. Every now and then we may take a trip to London to go be tourists, but that’s not a regular occurrence.

Life changes us.

I may not be the exact person I was 10 years go. But I’m still the same person in my core. I still love with all my heart. I’m still the most loyal friend you’ll ever have. I still know how to make people laugh with my witty sarcasm & I most certainly still try to be silly – even if it now involves dancing like an idiot or hitting myself in the face to make my kids smile. And if that means I take less risks than in my younger years, so be it. I have a husband, children, family and friends who still love me the same.