ABOUT ME

Hello and welcome! My name is Christy, but I use “HH” here on my blog as my nickname. I’m so grateful you stopped by!

To help you get to know more about the person who’s writing all of this, I’ve shared 25 random facts below about myself. (I like games – I think this counts!) This list really sums up who I am – an organized, messy, tough, wimpy, cookie-eating, fitness-loving, laid-back, strict, happy, northern-southern (now northern again!), stay-at-home mom.  :)

 

25 RANDOM FACTS ABOUT ME

1. I am proud to be a stay-at-home mom to my four precious daughters. (The link takes you to a post I wrote after I was criticized by a reader “for wasting my education in order to stay home and sort laundry” – her words. I see my worth as a stay-at-home mom differently.)

Family picture no number

2. I graduated with honors from Harvard with a degree in psychology. (Put #1 and #2 together and you’ve got my blog’s title. In many ways, using the name “Harvard Homemaker” is my way of finally embracing the path I’ve chosen as a homemaker and no longer feeling the need to “apologize” to critics for my own personal choices in life. I have no regrets. Read more here.)

3. I married my college sweetheart – who also happened to be one of my brother’s best friends.

Wedding picture

4. We lived in Raleigh for 15 years, but we moved in 2014 to Pittsburgh when our kids were 11, 9, 7, and 2. It was an emotional move for us. I share the honest truth about how hard that time was for us (me!) here in this post.

5. Roller coasters absolutely terrify me. I’m the kid who used to throw up at the county fair. Awesome.

6. I have never met a cookie I didn’t like. (My girls and I love to bake, which further complicates this matter. Click the image below to find the recipe for these amazing oatmeal chocolate chip cookies!)

7. Although I try to be organized, my kitchen is usually a complete disaster when I go to bed. It doesn’t get much neater during the day either.

8. I love to tell stories. Growing up, my family always said that the two words I uttered most often were “one time…” I have recently discovered Instastories over on Instagram. This is like a dream come true for this girl! Come find my videos over there to see the “real me” – maybe my stories will even give you a chuckle every now and then. :)

9. I have given birth four times without drugs, but only because I was even more scared of having an epidural (needles are not my friend—see #21).

10. I can play the piano, the drums, and any percussion instrument. The marimba is my favorite. I have even been to band camp three times! Boom.

11. I am a small-town girl from northern Minnesota who nervously went off to college in the big city with a can of mace; I used to carry it inside my mittens. (Minnesota girls always wear mittens – we know how much warmer they keep your hands. Your fingers need to be side-by-side to stay warm. Now you know!) Click here or on the image below to find the tutorial for these simple DIY state canvases.

Minnesota love wall art

12. I grind/clench my teeth when I sleep. I have slept in a mouthguard since I was 13. It’s super attractive.

13. I grew up playing just about every sport on the planet, thanks to my two older brothers. I spent much of my childhood playing goalie in our basement with the couch cushions taped to my legs.

14. I had my ACL (a ligament) repaired in each knee in high school. My senior year, I resembled The Bionic Woman as I wore two absurdly large braces in order to get through the tennis season. Sometimes they would snag together, and I’d fall. Those were good times.

15. I have really neat handwriting. I used to have a business where I designed invitations and stationery by hand. (View the journal entry below here where I gave my 10-year-old a Safe Journal – a place she could feel comfortable asking us anything.)

Neat Handwriting

16. The Bachelor/Bachelorette TV shows are my guilty pleasure. I’ve never missed a season. That’s quality TV at its finest, my friends.

17. I have loved photography ever since I got my first camera in 5th grade. It was turquoise. I used to line up all my stuffed animals and photograph them.

18. I started teaching fitness classes in college because I needed a job, and I also had to squeeze in time for exercise – so I decided to get paid to work out. (I like efficiency.) I’m still instructing as a side-gig to this day. I love it.

19. I am often in a hurry (and on the verge of being late). My husband says he can tell what I ate in a day because I often leave a trail of dishes and wrappers all over the house in my haste to move onto the next thing…

20. I don’t like coffee, tea, red wine, beer, or pop. (Yep, I say pop!) I’m thinking that might make me kind of weird now that I see it in writing.

21. I faint every single time I give blood. I have been told they no longer want my blood because I cause them so much trouble each time I try to donate.

22. I developed hypothyroidism after having my second daughter. Listen to your body – if you don’t feel right, make sure you speak up.

23. I was never a “dancer”, but I love to hit the dance floor. My husband is lucky that we got married before all those fun choreographed wedding dances became a thing. RIGHT. UP. MY. ALLEY.

24. I’m an eternal optimist. I have a sign in our mudroom that says Choose to be Happy. (View this post to see how we encourage our girls to focus on the good in life. And see our entire wall of inspiring quotes here in our mudroom!)

Choose to be happy

25. I started this blog in the fall of 2012 as a hobby and to create a future resource for my daughters, but it quickly became much more for me. It has filled a void in my life that I didn’t even know was there. I feel so lucky to have readers like you stopping by! Thanks so much for your interest. I hope you find a few ideas here that might work in your own life.

HOW TO JOIN THE FUN:

FIND ME HERE ON INSTAGRAM

You can get to know the “real me” best on Instagram. I post pictures fairly often and share a lot of InstaStories where I chat about my life and hope to make you laugh now and then! I also try to show you quick tips (what we’re having for dinner, parenting tricks, a great new store I’ve discovered, etc.) when I only have a small amount of time. Instagram is quick and easy, while sometimes finding the time to blog and post is nearly impossibly these days… ugh!

FIND ME HERE ON FACEBOOK

You can simply click “like” below without leaving this page. Facebook is the perfect place where I can not only share ideas and posts, but we can also chat as a group. You have all helped me so much there with your comments and suggestions. Love this community we have built together!

FIND ME HERE ON PINTEREST 

I try to pin as much as I can! That’s a great place to refer back to all the various ideas I’ve shared over time.

FIND ME HERE ON TWITTER 

I don’t tweet much, but I will always share any new posts on Twitter.

EMAIL ME HERE

Please feel free to contact me via email or leave a comment for me anytime! :) I really do read every single email and comment!

 

FROM THE HEART POSTS

The best way to get to know me on a more personal level is through my “from the heart” posts. Find them here:

How Having One More Baby Has Changed Me as a Mother

I Can Feel It Happening – My Daughter is Slipping Away

Thoughts on Moving: Missing Home and Finding it Again

Thank You Could Never Be Enough: The Liver Transplant that Saved My Mom’s Life

Don’t Be a Hater: Support Your Fellow Women

 

Take care, and thanks again for stopping by! I hope to connect with you soon!

I turned this photo into a large canvas that we have displayed in our home – see the entire wall gallery I had made. I just love how it turned out! (And I highly recommend Canvas on Demand where I had the canvases created – I was so impressed by their quality and service!)