Today’s post will be much more casual than the other more informative posts I’ve been writing. I’d like to share some facts about myself so that you, wonderful reader, can get a better sense of who the author of this blog is. While the “interesting” part is up for you to decide, I hope this post at least provides some context and background into my life, and gives you a glimpse into my inner world. Without further ado, here are 5 interesting things about me!

• I consider myself to be pretty health conscious. Maybe it’s from the fact that online content regarding health and longevity have become super popular within the last few years, but I’ve been making numerous lifestyle changes when it comes to my health. These have been implemented gradually over the years, building on top of each other after reaching certain milestones, but I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished thus far. Of course, this journey to better health has been a bit of a rollercoaster, with many setbacks that often felt like I was back to where I started. However, little by little, every small victory began to stack together into meaningful habit changes. Some examples of this include: exercising routinely, eliminating synthetic dyes from our family’s diet, cutting back on added sugars while leaving room to enjoy it for social events, walking and moving more throughout the day, and eating more fermented foods.

I know there are still many things I need to improve on (like getting a good night’s sleep on a regular basis – where are my fellow night owls at?) but I know at the end of the day I’m working toward becoming the role model I wish to be for my kids. I want to teach them the skills and knowledge it takes to make healthy decisions, knowledge that wasn’t prioritized or taught when I was growing up.

• I ran a marathon back in 2014. Continuing on with the topic of health, one of my proudest achievements (other than having my children) was completing a marathon while I was in college. The year prior, in May 2013, I had completed my first half-marathon, which was the longest I had ever run up to that point. I was so motivated after finishing that race that I knew immediately I had to run a full marathon. For six whole months leading up to the race, I would run at my university’s recreation center on the treadmill before and/or after classes. I distinctly remember running up to 15 miles in a single run on those treadmills – it would time out and stop after an hour of running, so I often had to painstakingly wait for it to restart in order to finish the run.

I’d love to get back into serious running again. Unfortunately, I’ve been dealing with diastasis recti since the birth of my first child, and it’s only gotten worse with each subsequent pregnancy/birth. A lack of knowledge caused many avoidable mistakes that reset any progress I had made with targeted core strengthening workouts, so I took the time to educate myself in order to finally heal my core. It’s a current work in progress, but if when I get to that point I’ll be sure to write about it here.

• I once seriously considered becoming a professional baker. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it seemed like everyone was getting into baking as a hobby to pass the time. It was all the rage, something that anybody could do to pass the time while on lockdown, and had a wide appeal that seemed to pull in unsuspecting individuals. Including myself. Once I started, I thoroughly enjoyed the process (and the end results) and got super passionate about baking – especially decorating. I went the whole 9 yards and bought multiple decorating kits, new cake pans, and had a blast baking various treats and goodies that I could decorate how I wanted. Check out the pictures below to see some of the products from my crazy baking obsession.

Just a side-note with that third cake, I made the flowers and décor entirely out of fondant. The party was themed “You Are My Sunshine.” I was so proud of that one, and still am to this day.

It wasn’t just cakes that I was baking either, so in between birthdays and holidays I was also making cookies, cupcakes, pies, and muffins. Suffice to say, my husband was getting pretty tired of all the desserts, and I realized that baking an excessive amount of sweets didn’t exactly mix well with a health-conscious lifestyle. The passionate energy I had toward this hobby died down soon after restrictions were lifted and we were allowed to travel more freely again. Although I still enjoy baking treats for special occasions, I’ve switched to creating healthy alternatives for the desserts we have more frequently, finding a good happy-medium for our family.

• I began a life of music at a very young age. At around age 4, I began taking piano lessons, following in the footsteps of my older siblings. We were able to acquire my great-grandmother’s piano back when we were still living in our tiny apartment. My mother really advocated for us to have piano lessons even when they couldn’t really afford it, because she knew how beneficial music lessons were for children. If you want to read more about the brain benefits music has in young children, click here to see the recent post I made about this topic. In her own words, she viewed these lessons as an investment into our future. That one difference – having a piano in the house – was the catalyst that forever changed my life.

I was fortunate enough to have a childhood filled with music. I still remember when my mother would play the piano for us, back when she could still play and her fingers didn’t ache from arthritis. My four siblings and I would all take turns practicing the piano, even sometimes playing the same song together simultaneously. The eldest chose to participate in band in 6th grade, and the rest of us followed suit. Our home was always filled with a cacophony of sounds that only young aspiring musicians could create. It was chaotic, but it was also so beautiful. As a child, I never appreciated what it all meant, how it would affect our maturation into adulthood. But now looking back, I have all of these wonderful memories I will forever be grateful for.

• I am half-Japanese – but can’t speak, read, or understand Japanese. To be more honest, I do know a few words and simple phrases, and can recognize most of the alphabet (Hiragana and Katakana), but other than that I wouldn’t be able to tell you what it meant, let alone hold a conversation in Japanese. It’s a shame really, and it’s something I’ve always had a desire to learn. My husband – who is half-Austrian – knows more Japanese than I do, due to his participation in a Japanese immersion program at his elementary school that went through high school. After we got married in 2017, we flew to Japan for vacation and while we were there, an elderly woman said something to me in Japanese on the train back to our hostel. She, of course, didn’t realize that I couldn’t understand her. Embarrassingly enough, I had to turn to my very tall, very Caucasian husband and ask him to tell her that I couldn’t understand.

Our family has recently decided to set a goal of learning Japanese before our next trip to Japan. Since it will be a group effort, we’ll all be more likely to stick to it and hold each other accountable. If you have any tips for learning a new language, let me know in the comments below.

*Bonus*

• I love to read. From the time I was a small child, I’ve always loved reading. Immersing myself into stories with faraway lands, mythical creatures, and intricate plots spanning across a series took up the majority of my free time. I tend to gravitate toward the fantasy genre, but enjoy any story that has a gripping, emotion-inducing plot and a satisfying conclusion. Nowadays, reading has regrettably been put on the backburner, but from time-to-time I’ll pick up my kindle and read what I can. I know that when life starts to slow down again, I’ll get back into reading once more.

I hope you enjoyed these 5 interesting things about the author (with a free bonus). Do you relate to any of these things mentioned above? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below. Thanks for reading this fun, get-to-know-me post and I’ll see you in the next one!

Featured Photo by Florencia Viadana on Unsplash