Who I Am {September 3}

Describe where or what you come from. 

The people, the places, 

and/or the factors that make up who you are.

I was born and raised in Vancouver, Washington.  The joke was always, "Vancouver, not BC, and Washington, not DC."  It's a city of about 500,000 people north of Portland, Oregon.  The Columbia River, explored by Lewis & Clark in 1805, is all that separates the two.

Vancouver is located in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, with easy access to rivers, mountains and beaches.  I grew up with an appreciation for the outdoors, enjoyed hiking, visiting the coast where my grandparents lived and loved camping.  I think this appreciation is because of the gorgeous place I was raised.  Well, that, and my dad!

In my family, I am one of four. My parents are still married, thirty years and going strong, and growing up my dad worked at Freightliner and my mom ran an in-home daycare.  I have an older brother, Dalton; a younger sister, Roxanne and a little brother, Dallas.  I think of myself (as a child) as the little mama.  I loved caring for the younger siblings and any babies that were around.  I believe being raised with siblings brings about a sense of selflessness that is priceless.  I also feel that being raised by a stay-at-home mom made me grow up valuing homemaking, caretaking and the role of "mom".

In addition to my locale and my family forming the woman I was to become, I believe my husband has had a hand in that as well.  We met as juniors in high school, and in the thirteen years since then, we have grown together.  Learning from tough jobs, periods of unemployment and getting each other through college only makes this time we are in now even sweeter.

More recently I have been shaped by the appearance of three little boys in my life.  First with the birth of my twin sons, Logan & Jack, and three years later with the surprise arrival of our third son, Wyatt, I have been on a journey.  It's been wrought with heartache (leaving the twins so I could work), sleepless nights, and of course mom-guilt.  But through it all, I am finding the core of who I am.  I am seeing the resolve, strength and determination that exists within me.

More important than who I am, though, is who I want to be.

I want to be a supportive wife, a lovely homemaker, an inspiring homeschool teacher, a creative blogger, a good friend, and an amazing mom.  

Here's to getting there.