The Story of Our Lives...

Day 1: The story of your life in 250 words or less.

Born the second daughter in a family of four girls, I always had a friend close by. Mom says I would tell jokes that went on for ages, with no real punch line, but they always ended with me laughing hysterically. I believe these jokes were the beginning of my love for stories; reading them, telling them, hearing them and writing them. After moving to Lynden, I grew up surrounded by family and cows. Summers were spent playing make-believe in the yard, mixing up mud pies in the tree house, riding bikes through the endless berry fields, and family camping trips. I was good at school but felt like an outsider. It was hard for me to be the tall girl with glasses, braces and no self-esteem. College was when I really came to like myself. I made friends and am still close with many of them. I stole cups from bars and Joel stole my heart. The day I graduated college, I became a fiancé. I was so excited to marry the man of my dreams, I forgot to say yes! A whirlwind year later, I was married, living two hours from my hometown, and buying a house. Together Joel and I have traveled, lived, and lost. We try to make time for all of our friends and family, because they all mean so much to us.  I may appear to be an adult, but I am still that goofy kid ready to tell you a stupid joke.

 





Nearly 33 years ago I was born in a hospital in Everett, WA and became the second child in a family of four. My whole childhood up through high school was spent growing up in a big country house outside Snohomish – where my parents still live today. Growing up in a country house with acreage, our family was always raising farm animals so many of my summers were spent carrying grain to the cow, driving the tractor around to fix fence posts,  and riding horses through the woods. I spent much of my early childhood in 4H, showing horses at the state fair, riding in the drill team and riding in Snohomish parades. As I grew older I craved more rough and tumble actives which is when I started taking Karate. After many years of practice and tournaments I became a green belt, which I still have tucked away in a drawer somewhere. Around the same time I started Karate our family grew by one and it was not a newborn. A long lost step sister re-joined our family making me the third child in a family of five. My junior high and high school years were spent goofing off with my best friend Brandon and doing Church youth group activities, including several missions trips to Mexico. My college years were some of the best years of my life, living away from home for the first time, having great roommates (which I still keep in touch with), and meeting the friends who would introduce me to my wonderful wife Jessica. After two years of dating I proposed to Jessica on her college graduation day and one year later became the luckiest man alive. We now live near Seattle in our house of two years and spend our time doing all kinds of outdoor activities, spending time with friends, and enjoying each other’s company.