Jess12

I recently finished my degree in Outdoor and Environmental Education/ Adventure Programming. I love being outside and teaching kids (and adults too) about the wonders of nature. I think being outside is an important part of childhood and hope to inspire parents and kids to get outside and enjoy all that nature has to offer.

I am engaged to a pretty awesome guy. We met working at a summer camp and plan on having our wedding there next summer. We like to joke that when our future kids ask us where we met, we can honestly tell them that we met in the middle of the forest. :)

I have one little brother (I guess he really isn't little. He's a foot and a half taller than me. He's just younger). He is one of the most important people in my life. When he was born, he was very sick. It took two years for the doctors to figure out what was wrong with him. They said he probably wouldn't live to see his fifth birthday. He beat the odds and grew to be a very healthy teenager. After high school, he joined the Army. A month before his 20th birthday, he stepped on an IED while on tour in Afghanistan. He survived and is now (Finally!) back home. Although we didn't have much of a relationship as kids, we are getting to know each other a lot better now and I am grateful for this second/third chance that we have.

When I have free time, I enjoy crafting. I especially like scrapbooking, knitting, sewing, painting, and photography. I always take my camera with me when I go out, just in case I might see something neat.

I like to collect old things. My big favorites right now are blue/green glass insulators, old lanterns, mason jars, teal printed pyrex dishes and 1950's and 1970's kitchen things. I have a 'small" collection of coffee mugs from thrift stores that I couldn't help but purchase.

I love books! I love to read them and collect them. I've been reading a lot of young adult fiction lately. I just finished the Muirwood Trilogy by Jeff Wheeler. They were pretty close to the best books I've read in quite a while.

I like to collect old aviation themed books. Especially if they have planes on the cover. I also like books with interesting colors or patterns on the covers. They are just pretty to look at.

I like to craft. I do a lot of scrapbooking, although I usually don't think the finished pages are all that great. I am trying to scrapbook all the adventures my fiancé and I have had since we met :)

I love to take pictures and I take my camera everywhere with me. I really like to take pictures of things most people would over look, like peeling paint or lichen on tree bark.

I've recently learned how to sew (well) by hand. I have been making stuffed owls for my soon-to-be niece and nephew and some of my friends. I also got a sewing machine for Christmas and am learning how to use it. So far I've "broken" it twice only to find out that I was just getting the thread tangled.

I knit occasionally. I make a lot of beanies for my fiancé and soon-to-be brother-in-law. They both lose things a lot or shrink wool things in the dryer.

I paint every now and then, but not as often as I'd like.

My favorite thing to do is to take random bits and pieces and make them into things. I was stuck on lamps for a while and made four or five. I also was making a lot of trees for a bit too.

Favorite Colors- greens (pretty much any green except for the dark/dirty olive like colors), blues (any blues, but especially teals and bright blues), silver, chocolate brown, and orange every now and then.

Favorite Smells- vanilla, chocolate, warm bread, warm cookies, fresh fruit (except for raspberry and cranberry because those give me hives), dry leaves, CAMPFIRE!!!, rain, forest/woods, coffee.

Favorite Animals- dogs (but not small ones-except corgis. I love corgis), otters, owls, hippos, porcupines, sloths and wombats. If I could have any animal as a pet I would choose a wombat and name him Watson Wombat :)

I don't watch much tv, but I love the show Switched at Birth on ABC Family. My fiancé is deaf and we enjoying watching a show that includes ASL regularly and in a realistic way.

I also enjoy Food Network (minus Bobby Flay-he bugs me for some reason). I really like Good Eats and Diners, Drive-In's and Dives.

I like the interior design shows and yard fix-up ones too. Anything like that is great for crafting inspiration. Especially the garage sale shows :)

LIKES ~cute owls ~John Muir ~quotes ~pens with smooth, flow-y ink ~new Crayola crayons (the best kind!) ~pretty scrapbook paper/stickers ~old metal things ~smallish wooden boxes ~Emily Dickinson ~colorful knee socks ~old/ugly neck ties (I collect them) ~embroidery ~Rachel Carson ~old, pretty, handkerchiefs ~ROCKS! (I love rocks especially if they are unique colors/patterns/or shapes) ~pretty glass small bottles/canisters ~unique shape/style spoons ~Neil Armstrong ~glass insulators (especially colored ones) ~nature inspired things -small/medium sized notebooks (with or without lines) ~National Park things ~chocolate ~hot air balloons ~Vintage or new ASL (American Sign Language) items ~wombats ~camping ~pyrex bowls/serving wares ~vintage/handmade coffee mugs ~spoon rings (size 5.5-6) ~chocolate and candy from other countries ~washi tape ~corgis

DISLIKES

~I have allergies to nuts ("may contain traces of..." is fine), coconut, melon, raspberries, cranberries, bell peppers and most flowers. Please do not send me things with these flavors or scents as I cannot make use of them. Thank you.

~pink/purple or super girlie things. ~glitter ~cats ~clowns ~dip mixes (I tend to be allergic to their ingredients) ~bath items (lotions, soaps, bath fizzies)