Category: About me

14 Random Facts about Me

Happy Friday the 13th!! Today is also my parents’ wedding anniversary, so I am thinking of them today as they celebrate 33 years 🙂

Today I’m excited to start a new series on my blog with a random list of things every Friday. I’m going to try to stick to 14 things on each list and I have a bunch drafted and ready to go, but I wanted to start this first one with 14 random facts you might not know about me. The last time I did a post like this was around my birthday a year and a half ago. I recycled 2 facts from that post so don’t check it out yet. Haha.

1) 14 is my favourite number. Like many kids, my favourite number used to always be my age at the time, but when I turned 14 I decided that would be my favourite number moving forward (my birthday is August 14 – I’m so creative). 😉

2) I play 3 instruments: french horn, piano, and violin/fiddle – however, I hardly ever make the time to play any of them these days. I should really get back into at least one or two of them.

3) I grew up on the other side of the country and moved to the east coast to go to university when I was 19. My mom is from Nova Scotia though so most of my extended family on that side was here, and now my parents have moved here too so Calgary isn’t really “home” anymore. (I don’t feel super sad about this – but there are a few things I miss). I’ve lived in Nova Scotia for 14 years now!

4) I currently work part-time in a permanent position, but I might go back to work full-time when our youngest daughter starts school in 2019. I love the work-life balance of working 3 days a week and spending extra time with our girls but I feel like it is selfish to have so much time to myself (and also, I might get bored) down the road when they’re both in school. We’ll see how it goes.

5) This will be news to no one here, but reading is my very most favourite hobby and although I am much more serious about my reading life than I was a few years ago, it’s always been a part of my life. I love love love love love it and I don’t think a day ever goes by anymore without me reading at some point. However, I mostly only talk to the internet about books because I don’t have tons of super bookish friends in real life. (Although if anyone ever brings up a book or asks me about one I am ALL FOR talking about it incessantly 100%! Maybe that scares less serious bookworms off?!)

6) I’m taking French classes and I love that too – our 6 year old is taking French immersion in school and since I used to be almost fluent, I am enjoying the challenge of learning the language again. It’s one evening a week.

7) Brian and I met online and I am so grateful we met each other (More about our story here or here if you are nosy :D).

8) I am not a super outdoorsy person in general but I do really enjoy it in the fall, and I love camping in the summer. We are antsy to get out camping again with the girls this summer. I have a list planned for things I love to do outdoors 🙂

9) I love keeping in touch with friends and I really need to do a better job of it – my close friends are spread out all over the country but many of them live nearby and I would love to see them more.

10) I try to talk to my parents almost every day and I probably also talk to my in-laws at least several times a week. They are a huge part of our lives and I appreciate our relationship.

11) I used to collect quotes from books and movies, and we have a few framed in our house. I had a major Pinterest addiction when Molly was a newborn and I was up at all hours feeding her. Word art is amazing.

12) Although I appreciate art and art history, I don’t know a lot about it. However, my favourite painting is Starry Night and I wish so badly that I had seen it when I was in NYC in 2008. (It’s at MOMA and I HOPE to see it someday)

13) I am the kind of person who hears a song I love on the radio and then listen to it a million times until I’m sick of it. Then I usually don’t listen to it for a year or so and when I hear it again, it’s amazing again.

14) I love lists and I’ve always made them. I can’t wait to share more FOURTEEN THINGS. I have a bunch of fun ones planned and I think each one will have its own theme. I am hoping it will be a fun and random way to be chatty on the internet once a week. Do you like lists?

So that’s it! What lists have you made lately?!

We have a bit of a lower key weekend planned – tonight Brian is out so I’m going to watch a movie or This is Us, tomorrow night we are having a date night and the girls are having a sleepover with my in-laws and Sunday I’m getting a massage and we will do some fun family things. I got most of my housecleaning done yesterday so I hope we can relax a bit this weekend!

All about me quizzes

Happy Wednesday hump-day! Today is a day I’ve been looking forward to for months…going to see Beauty and the Beast tonight!!! 🙂 I will share my thoughts tomorrow or Friday. 🙂 

I saw this on Kate’s blog Mom’s Radius earlier this week. I used to be totally hooked on these types of online personality tests – and I still really do enjoy popular psychology and personality testing in general. Does it define my entire life? Absolutely not. Is it ridiculously fun? Absolutely. Feel free to steal this idea and search out some aspects of your own personality (via the internet, aka, not totally valid) 😉

1. WHAT IS THE MEANING OF YOUR NAME?

The meaning of the name Heather is: A flowering evergreen plant that thrives on peaty barren lands as in Scotland.  (source)

Here’s some heather for you to enjoy:



2. WHAT IS YOUR MYERS-BRIGGS PERSONALITY TYPE? (LINK)

I took this test years ago, and surprisingly, my personality hasn’t changed much since high school. I am a: 
INFJ PERSONALITY (“THE ADVOCATE”)

The Advocate personality type is very rare, making up less than one percent of the population, but they nonetheless leave their mark on the world. As members of the Diplomat Role group, Advocates have an inborn sense of idealism and morality, but what sets them apart is that they are not idle dreamers, but people capable of taking concrete steps to realize their goals and make a lasting positive impact. (more here)

3. WHAT IS YOUR ZODIAC SIGN?

Warm, action-oriented and driven by the desire to be loved and admired, the Leo have an air royalty about them. They love to be in the limelight, which is why many of them make a career in the performing arts. (source)

I don’t fall completely into this, but I do have some Leo tendencies. 

4. WHAT HOGWARTS HOUSE WOULD YOU BE IN? (LINK)

I’ve taken the test before on Pottermore, so I was not surprised to see again that I am a Hufflepuff. When I first found out about this, I was kind of devastated (I know this is ridiculous LOL), but I have accepted it and realized that there is nothing wrong with being a Hufflepuff. I’m not brave enough to be a Gryffindor. (Okay, enough about a fictional Harry Potter house, lol). Coincidentally, I also enjoy a lot of books on this list. 

Pottermore Sorting Quiz (all possible questions)
Your Result: HUFFLEPUFF!
Congratulations! You have been sorted into Hufflepuff, the house of loyalty, hard working, acceptance, and fairness. You are amongst other Hufflepuffs such as: Tonks and Cedric Diggory

GRYFFINDOR!

RAVENCLAW

SLYTHERIN!



5. WHAT ARE YOUR LEARNING STYLES? (LINK)

I took the quiz and this is what I got:

  • Visual 3
  • Aural 3
  • Read/Write 9
  • Kinesthetic 5
You have a strong read/write learning preference.

This isn’t surprising to me in the least.

6. ARE YOU MORE OF A LEFT-BRAIN OR A RIGHT-BRAIN PERSON? (LINK)

I really had no idea what to expect with this, but my result was:
















So I guess that makes sense.

7. WHAT IS YOUR BLOOD TYPE?

A+ (I know this from donating blood).

8. WHAT CAREER ARE YOU MEANT TO BE IN? (LINK)

Writer…well, I guess I should start writing more! haha




9. WHAT DIVERGENT FACTION DO YOU BELONG IN? (LINK)

Amity. This likely won’t make sense unless you’ve read this series 😉

You belong with the peaceful. You hate when people fight over the stupidest things, and you’re never one to argue. You’re chill, always laidback. You’re open to the opinions of others, and you love being surrounded by people. You’re at your worst when you’re not on good terms with somebody, and you hate making enemies. You’re willing to make sacrifices if it means keeping the peace, and you usually play mediator. You’re fashion is always bright and vibrant, and you’re not afraid of color. You love music, art, and games—anything that will make you laugh, dance, or have a good time.

10. WHAT DOES YOUR BIRTH ORDER SAY ABOUT YOU? (LINK)

The Firstborn

Stereotype: Natural leader, ambitious, responsible. 
Why it’s true: The eldest, for a while, has no competition for time (or books or baby banter) with Mom and Dad. “There’s a benefit to all of that undiluted attention. A 2007 study in Norway showed that firstborns had two to three more IQ points than the next child,” says Frank J. Sulloway, Ph.D., the author of Born to Rebel. Firstborns tend to be surrogate parents when other siblings arrive, hence their protective and responsible nature.
When it’s not: Parents can set high expectations for a first (or only) child. “When he feels like he has disappointed his parents or can’t measure up, he may veer off in another direction,” says Kevin Leman, Ph.D., a psychologist and the author of The Birth Order Book.


So, what do you think?! Kinda fun, right?? What’s your Myers-Briggs type? Anyone else a Hufflepuff?? 


31 Things you might not know about me

I turned 31 just over 2 weeks ago and I wanted to share 21 things about me you may not know in honour of the beginning of my 32nd year on Earth 🙂

1) I play the french horn, the piano, and the fiddle. I don’t play any of them very regularly anymore even though I do own all three instruments. I’m trying to get back into it when I find the time!

2) I am extremely passionate about Cape Breton culture and fiddle music (Irish/Scottish). If you’re wondering what I’m talking about, here’s a great video of a live performance. I also love orchestral/wind ensemble music (hence the French horn love)…a particular favourite in that genre is here.

3) I used to get in trouble for reading late into the night as a child and my dad once took my copy of A Wrinkle in Time and hid it so that I would go to sleep (he claims this never happened, but it did!)

4) My extended family coined the term Heatherpedia to describe me after they realized the way my memory works – wedding anniversaries, birthdays, house numbers. My memory for random events and numbers has definitely gone downhill since having kids, but it’s still pretty good.

5) I haven’t really had hard liquor in 7 years. I was getting really sick after only having one drink, so now I just stick to wine and beer when we’re socializing (no regrets!)

6) I am pretty torn about whether we will ever own a pet. I didn’t grow up with one, and although I do like dogs, I can’t reconcile the amount of work owning a pet would be at this stage in our lives (so right now we’re waiting :))

7) I am passionate about research and analysis. I’m not a big lover of non-fiction though.

8) I played ultimate frisbee in a league for about 5 years until this summer when we couldn’t make it work with our schedule. Brian and I both hope to get back to it someday, but our kids’ activities are going to be a focus for the next few years. It’s SO much fun though.

9) I love playing board games. This is a love that Brian and I share, and it makes our lives a little bit better 🙂

10) I also really enjoy trivia and used to do quizzes on Sporcle regularly and go to trivia nights at the pub with friends. I really like learning about random things. My friends don’t like playing trivia games against me though…haha.

11) My favourite ice cream flavour is mint-chocolate chip but I also love candy cane ice cream that only comes at Christmas time and I tend to stock up a bit then 😉

12) I often experience nostalgia – missing a friend who I was once very close to, missing Calgary where I grew up, the ease of a single life or our life pre-kids or our dating days…but I don’t actually want to be BACK at that point in life or anything.

13) I was in a competitive swim club for 5 years as a kid, and I still love swimming. It was an incredible addition to my childhood both socially and physically.

14) 14 is my favourite number (what an original choice since my birthday is Aug 14)

15) My Masters thesis was published in an academic journal this year, but I did minimal work to get it published.

16) Since leaving university, all but one of my jobs has been a contract or “term” position – partially due to being on maternity leave twice, but also just the luck of the draw. Someday I’d like to make the choice myself about leaving a job. haha.

17) I love to make lists and used to spend a lot of time making lists about my favourite books, movies, etc.

18) To my knowledge, I’ve only ever finished 2 games of Monopoly in my lifetime. It just gets old after awhile, ya know?

19) I won an award for getting 100% in computer class in grade 9 and I think this was the year I really developed excellent typing skills. I often wonder if my own children will learn to type or will they mostly learn to swipe?

20) I don’t see us living in our current house forever, but I am also really reluctant to move. I love our area even though we don’t have close friends nearby.

21) I didn’t drink coffee until I was in grad school doing a summer internship. I hadn’t tried sushi until that summer either – and now coffee and sushi are two of my favourite things (not together though!) I am at about 1.5 coffees a day with a splash of milk right now so I don’t consider it to be a bad habit 😉 (yet).

22) I don’t really feel like I have a “best friend” right now, and I am 100% okay with that. I have a large social circle, and a lot of wonderful friends who are there for me whenever I need them, including amazing parents and siblings. I remember this being something that I used to obsess over as a teenager though.

23) I am not an overly girly person and I think that’s part of why #22 is the case.

24) I cry wayyy more now than I ever used to. I don’t necessarily mean because I am upset about something, but little things make me more emotional than they used to. #hormones?

25) I used to record songs from the radio onto my tape player. Did anyone else used to do this? I would sit and wait for hours for a song to be played (it was usually a popular song that was played multiple times a day) and then hit record & be able to listen to it forever after that. It was ridiculous, but it kind of makes me sad to think that this generation won’t know what that thrill felt like. haha.

26) I’d love to do a sprint triathlon someday, and possibly a half marathon. As of now, I have no desire to ever run a full marathon…but who knows, maybe someday?

27) I’m picking away at improving my French because Molly is starting French immersion next week. I was close to bilingual when I finished high school, but you lose it quickly!!

28) I feel like I used to do a lot more coffee dates – now we often get together at people’s houses.

29) I don’t see myself ever leaving Halifax, but I think where we ultimately end up will depend on where our girls settle as adults (this is what happened to my parents who just moved here last year).

30) I’ve mentioned this before, but I always had 3 bands/artists that I really wanted to see live: Bruce Springsteen, U2, and Coldplay. Only one to go (Coldplay)!

31) I’ve never left the continent…only been to Canada and the US. Someday!!!!