I thought in honor of my 30th birthday today I would get a little more personal on here and share 30 interesting(?) things you may not know about me--the girl behind Absolutely Emilia!
1. My name is Caitlin, but I've always wanted to go by Cait, so I'm finally trying it out. Although, I'm kind of bad at it because I always introduce myself as Caitlin.
2. I attended UCSD and majored in Political Science--this is where I met my hubs, Dan, in a lower division science class.
3. I grew up in North Orange County and loved every second of living there, but have lived in Northern California for the past 5 years and it finally feels like home.
4. I'm the oldest of three daughters and my sisters and I are incredibly close even though we live 500 miles apart. We text and talk on the phone and Facetime multiple times every day.
5. I'm a total anglophile--I love all things British. I actually have a reoccurring dream that I meet Kate Middleton and she gives me a pair of her shoes because she thinks I'd look cute in them.
6. I love good television. My favorite TV show of all time is Downton Abbey. I'm a TOTAL Mary.
7. I love, love, love to read. I especially love historical fiction from the WWII era and Victorian era books. Some of my favorite books are Pride and Prejudice, Wuthering Heights, Love in the Time of Cholera, and Suite Francois.
8. I nannied for a French family for three years in college and they showed Dan and I around Paris after I graduated.
9. I almost didn't go to UCSD and instead went to another small university on a theater scholarship---a total 180 from what I ended up doing and loving.
10. I taught middle school social science for about 3 years before I had my oldest daughter. It was a really tough job, but a lot of fun.
11. Once I dislocated my shoulder sneezing while sitting in bed watching David Letterman. It was so severe I had to be taken by ambulance to a trauma ER. And people still don't believe me that it's really how it happened! But it's true!
12. My favorite place I've traveled to is the Lake District in England.
13. I'd like to travel a lot more with my family, including going back to the UK.
14. I recently did 23 and Me genetic testing and was surprised to find out that my ancestry is mostly Irish/British/Scottish. Growing up, I always thought I was mostly German.
15. I have two daughters with rare traits--Emilia is left-handed and Isla is a redhead!
16. My first car was a stick shift because my parents thought it was important that I could drive any car.
17. I know a ridiculous amount of facts about vintage radio shows. Everything from The Shadow to Our Miss Brooks--I love them and grew up listening to them.
18. I'm now a total Podcast junkie (I think thanks to the above fact!). Some of my favorites to recommend are Reply All, Liar City, Heavyweight, and Mystery Show. And I'm really into this one right now, Slow Burn, that examines Watergate.
19. You've probably gathered by now, that I'm a total nerd. It's my dream once the girls get older to go back to school and just study whatever I want for fun.
20. I used to hate working out, but I have become addicted to Pilates. It's my favorite thing to do for "me time" and really funny that I only recently got into it because my sister is an instructor.
21. Dan proposed to me at Snow White's Wishing Well at Disneyland. I LOVE Disneyland and it was absolutely perfect. I still keep my Annual Pass even though I don't live close anymore!
22. I've stayed in one of the haunted rooms at the Hotel Del Coronado. My grandma and I are fascinated with its ghost's story so she requested the room for us. Though we didn't see Kate, who is pretty notorious for showing up, it was definitely one of the creepiest experiences of my life.
23. I grew up dancing and then got into theater as I got older. As a result, I love seeing musicals, plays, ballets, anything really if it is live and beautiful!
24. My hidden talent is that I can remember song lyrics, jingles, taglines, and commercials like nobody's business. I really don't have a good memory otherwise, but I can sing to you the jingle for Empire Carpets or Angel Soft or the whole opening song from Beauty and the Beast no problem.
25. I'm a homebody. I love to stay in with my family any day over going out. Home is definitely where I am happiest.
26. I struggle with anxiety, but am a pretty positive person. Becoming a mom has helped me so much, ironically.
27. I had very elaborate imaginary friends when I was little. They stuck around for years and came pretty much everywhere with me. Their names were Chickie, Rocky, Odis, and Poodis. Pretty weird haha!
28. I took the LSAT, applied to Law Schools and did not go. It was definitely the right decision for me, but I do think I would love studying law some day.
29. My number one goal for 2018, the year I am 30!!!, is to cultivate this blog and create a community in my little corner of the internet! I hope I don't disappoint!
30. Finally, the most important fact about me probably, I love Mexican food more than any other food. ever. My favorite is a huge carnitas burrito from my favorite Mexican place in my hometown. Seriously, I pretty much force my parents to pick one up on the way from the airport every time I visit.
If you got this far, bless you. You are a saint. Because 30 facts is a lot of Cait(lin). Love you all and look forward to getting more personal on the blog this year!