Getting to Know Me

Hello, my friends! I hope that I am not the only person singing “Getting to Know You” by Rogers and Hammerstein from The King and I. The chorus says, “Getting to know you, getting to know all about you."” If you don’t know that song I highly recommend you go listen to it! It was one of the classic movies that I grew up watching.

I love getting to know more about the person that I am following and thought you might enjoy that as well!

1. Do you have any nicknames?

I’m not really a nickname kinda girl. My favorite nickname is mom.

2. Are you named after anyone?

I am named after my great-aunt Anna. I love that about my name and I always thought that was so fun to have a relative with the same name.

3. Do you have any siblings?

Yes!! I have two older sisters. They are pillars in my life and are always there when I need them. I do remember them teasing me quite extensively but they also probably have memories of me teasing them! Throughout all of the thing in life, I feel very lucky to have had these two to grow up with and to have both of them living nearby. We have always had amazing times together with many more food times to come!

I am also blessed to have my chosen family - a sister-in-law and two brothers-in-law. They might not be related by blood but I feel so lucky to have them in my life and that I can call on them for help any time.

My sisters, Laurie and Mindy, and myself at my wedding.

4. Where did you grow up?

I have spent the majority of my life between California and Arizona. I spent my early years in California and from my teens until I met Bryce in Arizona. Once I met Bryce we moved to California for graduate school and then we had our son, Myles, and realized that we needed the village of family support so we moved back to Arizona. Around half of my life has been spent in Arizona, wowie!

5. What other countries have you been to?

I have spent time in Mexico, Costa Rica, and Canada. There is so much beauty in being in different countries in learning about places and cultures. There is so much art history in Mexico that I would love to experience.

When I was 23 I was able to go to Costa Rica for five weeks,  I was there to study Spanish, and I was there all on my own with the school that I had picked out, and that was a huge growing experience. I took many tours and saw both dormant and active volcanoes.

I also got to take a trip to Canada with my oldest sister. We took a tour of gardens in Vancouver and I have always wanted to go back again to photograph it, someday!

Me in 2003 at the Poás volcano in Costa Rica.

6. What do I remember from the early years of my life?

I grew up in Southern California and my extended family lived in Minnesota. Every summer we would drive across the country to spend time with all of them. We would stay at my Grandma’s house on those trips. She had a good-sized raspberry patch and whenever my middle sister and I were hungry we could just run outside and pick as many raspberries as we liked. To this day whenever I smell raspberries I think of my Grandma.

7. Who is the most interesting person you know?

Oh, wow, that is a hard one! The list is about as long as the number of people that I know! I will narrow that list down to both of my parents. My mom would tell us interesting stories and adventures that she had throughout her life. She was always an amazing person who could tell you about our family history without having to look any of it up! She would often tell us about the great-great (I’m not sure how many greats) grandpa who was left on a doorstep in Sweden. My mom was an amazing woman whom I miss every single day.

My dad tells the most interesting stories about how when he was young he decided he wanted to go Marti Gras and just hopped in his car, in Minnesota and started driving. He also worked in the mines in Minnesota and he has shared near-death experiences with us. You just never realize the amount of experiences that the people who raised you also went through. My dad has a new interesting story all the time!

Photographing cacti at the Botanical Garden in Phoenix.

8. What do I do to unwind?

I have always loved to sit and read a good book, so I try to do that often! Almost daily after dropping off the kids at school, I go for a run. It gives me a bit of time to focus on myself and it gives me great exercise. Where I go running is near the edge of a desert area and there are many wildflowers that grow there. So not only do I get the daily exercise I crave but I get to see flowers and see what new flower is going to come along every season. Oh, and of course, I am always planning when I can come out and photograph them!

9. Who am I?

I am a fine art photographer who loves to photograph nature, especially flowers. I am a sister, a daughter, a friend, a wife, and a mother of two. I am a person who loves to be at home and work in my garden. I am someone who has big dreams of traveling all around. I am a mom who doesn’t get enough sleep and uses coffee as a crutch to get me through the day. 

10. Do you prefer country or city living?

I have lived in Phoenix for the majority of my life, so I am very used to city living. I dream of living in a smaller town and having a bit of land to plant a giant garden, can you imagine how many flowers would be in my garden?! I would love to live with nature all around me. I like to think I could be happy in both places.

And now, my friends, I would love to know more about you as well! Feel free to either email me or drop a comment in the comments area. Also if you have more questions about me feel free to ask them there as well!