28 Facts About Me On My 28th Birthday

Oh man, my 28th birthday is today! Friday the 13th. Whatwhat! I was also born on Friday the 13th, which was also Good Friday that year. Ha. I always think that is a fun fact about me. Especially when I tell my freshmen students, they get a little nervous. A good spot to have them in!

Just kidding!

Now that it is basically my birthday, here are 28 random factoids about me you may not know:

5 Things to Know About All This Messy Business

Moving away from my home town has been quite the experience. There have been so much to learn and so many new roads and directions to figure out! There's also been learning the ropes of my  teaching job at my new school and designing new coursework and curriculum for classes. We have way more freedom to do different activities and lessons here, but that means I have to build or rebuild a lot of it from scratch. Because of these tumultuous changes I've taken a break from blogging and we have tried to focus on our new life here.

Now! I realized just how much I miss it and am going to start all over, even if I never become a mega popular blogger where I can leave my day job to communicate and write all day with you guys, at least I have a spot where I can have a great time talking about things that are important to myself and others at this stage. So! Here are 5 things you need to know about This Messy Business moving forward into the new life and phase of this little bloggy and I'm excited for a fresh start!

Back in 2010 

In 2013.

1.  I am a 27 year old high school English teacher and Speech & Debate coach! I've been teaching high school for 5 years now.  I love all things reading and talking. I am hoping to incorporate more book reviews, suggestions, must read lists, and even some lesson inspiration. 
2. Brennan and I are engaged! We are going to be getting married on June 15, 2019 and I gotta tell you... I love wedding planning. If I were to forgo teaching I would totally go into the wedding planning business. It's awesome. 
   
3. I started this blog when I was 19 or 20 to document remodeling and renovating my 3 bedroom 2 bath manufactured home in Grand Junction, Colorado. We sold it in under a week in July 2017.  You could read all about how I staged it to have it move quickly here.
   
   
4. We are primarily a plant-based family! We are working to shift all our products to cruelty free and vegan. Brennan has been vegan for 4 years and I have been working to transition into that same lifestyle.  We love when we get to do a CSA with a farm in the summer, hopefully we find on like what we had in Grand Junction here in Denver! 
   
5. We now live in Denver, Colorado and it is a huge change! We are hoping to go on more adventures that I can document and share with you, try out different awesome restaurants, and find cool neighborhoods. We want to purchase a home in the next 3 years so we need to explore the right place for us.  Right now, we love renting. Read all about why here!
   

I'm hoping reinvigorating the blog and widening my scope from the previous years will make this a place where I can enjoy others, collaborate, and share some fun pieces of our lives. What do you think makes a successful blog? What do you like to read about?

6 New Things You'll See on #TMB

Helloooo, again, everyone!

I am back and you may have noticed... This Messy Business has a new look! It's pretty fantastic. Stream-lined, simplified, and easy to manage. Now that we've got a new look, we're also going to have some new content. I'm super excited about it!

Here are 5 of the things you'll spot on the new and improved #TMB.

1.  You'll still see house updates! I love my little house and plan on still sharing any and all updates that I've got going on. It may not be anything major, like a kitchen remodel, but it'll still be great and fun!

2. Finances! and our Debt-Free Journey. We are working on becoming totally debt-free (except the mortgage) by 30, so you'll see some tips on how to stay motivated, what happens when you lose steam, resources, and money saving help. This will be linked under the "Lifestyle!"

3. Clean living. We are also making a shift towards more clean living and eating in our house. From changing products to investing in our community and learning to grow our own herbs. We are working to minimize, simplify, and live more with less. Check out the "Cook Book" tab for recipes!

4. Fashion! Though we want to minimize and live more simply, I still love my clothes and shoes! So, that's gonna happen. You'll see more posts about that and more! Another one for the Lifestyle tab!

5. Colorado lifestyle and adventures. We are looking to take advantage of the great country and county we live in! We are going to go on some fun adventures this summer from helping with weddings, to camping, hikes, wine tasting, or whatever strikes our fancy. Find these under the"Lifestyle" tab.

6. Teacher Tips. I'm a high school English teacher and High School Speech & Debate Coach. I absolutely love my job. But it is hella hard sometimes. I'll be posting ideas on how to manage and balance teaching, life, and staying sane. Check these out under the "Teacher's Corner" tab!

Have something else you'd like to see featured on the blog or advice as i get restarted? Let me know in the comments below!

Find me on social media:

My Favorite Day

Happy Birthday to Me!

It's sort of weird to think that I am now 23 years old. I know for some people that's not a big deal but it seems a strange age to me. I feel pretty good about it though, I own my house, have a cute dog, great career, fun friends. Life is good!

To celebrate another year in life on the blog I decided to share with you 23 things about me you may not know, unless you're my mom, then she knows everything.

1. I loathe styrofoam. I don't wanna touch it. I don't wanna eat off of it. I hate it.
2. I have to have my nails painted, it's like my thing. I am also a total nail polish snob. I love Essie and OPI polish.
3. I have worn the same size pants since I was 17... I guess that's cool.
4. I haven't gotten my hair cut since August, as I am afraid of scissors.
5. I have 14 pillows just in my bedroom. :) heh.
6. My middle name is Lynn.
7. There is a tattoo on the top of my foot of the Celtic tree of life. It's a more pagan version. That crap hurt real bad.
8. I love taking long showers in the mornings. It's my vice, I need a solid 20 to 30 minutes. I wish I was one of those awesome people that just hops out of bed in the morning, goes on a jog with the dog, and goes to work and leads a healthly successful career. No. Not me. Never will be.
9. I like to play beach volleyball, even though I suck at it horribly.
10. I would love to run in a Color Run kind of thing... so I need to get into better shape.
11. Favorite wine: Moscato right now
12. Favorite movie at the moment is "He's Just Not That Into You." I watch it a lot.
13. I am an Aries....
14. My best friend's name is Christie and we have been best buds since we were 11, her birthday is also today! Happy Birthday friend!
15. I wear a belt every day. I just have to. It's a thing.
16. My ideal outfit is a white V-neck tee that fits well, a pair of dark indigo skinny jeans, a camel toned belt, flippy floppies, and a braid. It's sort of like my summer uniform.
17. I own 6 swim suits. Only 1 has ever been in the water.
18. I don't know how to swim very well, like at all.
19. My doggy's full name is Sebastian Lee Harold
20. My eldest cat's full name is Pouka Lynn
21. I typically don't like other redheads... especially if their name is Megan. Meaghan. Mayghan, Meagan, or Magan.
22. I have this idea in my brain that I will marry a guy that looks like Prince Eric. Therefore it should have to happen.
23. One of my biggest goals in life is to eventually publish a novel.

Well, I think those are relatively random. Hope that satisfied a bit of curiosity out there. Also if you follow me on Instagram, you will likely see some birthday #craycray-ness on there today. 

Ye have been warned.