I may have some new readers because of Kristen’s guest post (along with my participation in NaBloPoMo!) and thought it might be helpful to provide a quick introduction.
Hi. I’m Elisabeth.
The first thing you should know: whenever I say a blog post will be short or concise…I’m lying. In fact, me suggesting this will be a “quick introduction” is laughable.
MY ROLES
- Christ-follower. The foundation for my life, my hope, and my purpose is the amazing grace of Jesus. I don’t talk in detail about my faith all that often on the blog, but I think (hope!) that long-term readers will agree that faith is clearly woven throughout my story.
- Wife. I’ve been married for 15 years. A lot has happened and through it all my husband, John, has been my #1 cheerleader. Marriage relationships are hard; it’s certainly not all butterflies and roses. But I know I am tremendously fortunate to be able to say we have fallen more deeply in love with each other as the years have gone by.
- Mother. I have two kiddos: a teenage daughter (“Belle”) and a 10-year-old son (“Indy”).
- Daughter/Sister. My parents have influenced my life in so many positive ways and I celebrate our time spent together. They live on a lake in New Brunswick, but relocate to Nova Scotia each winter to be closer to our family which is delightful.
- Friend. I am an introvert blessed to have a variety of rich friendships with people scattered around the globe. If you’re looking for small talk, keep moving; if you want deep conversation, I’m your girl.
- Employee. Work is the the least important thing about my identity. Last year I stepped down from a project management role at a university, but kept my two part-time jobs: a departmental coordinator at the same university and behind-the-scenes management of the business I co-own with my husband.
MY LIFE
Born to a Baptist pastor and his wife (my name is spelled with an “s” because that’s how it’s written in the King James Version of the Bible), I am the youngest of four siblings and was, in essence, an only child. When I was a teen, my father retired and my mother returned to full-time work as a nurse. They retrofitted a bare-bones, off-grid cabin in the woods to a year-round residence. Concurrently, I switched from homeschooling to a public school system for the first time in my life (skipping a grade in the process). It was a big adjustment and I struggled socially. Let’s just say I was never favoured to win Most Athletic or Most Humourous or Most Social from my graduating class. I was, however, voted Most Likely to Succeed which sounds better than Most Likely to Have Their Head in a Book or Most Likely To Make a Fool of Themselves in Gym Class. I was also class valedictorian which is not nearly as cool as being sporty.
Next, I pursued a Biology degree at university. Every summer was spent in research positions; the first year in Montreal at a biotechnology research institute and the rest at my alma mater doing intertidal research on the foraging habits of migrating shorebirds.
In the final year of my undergrad, I met my now-husband. Falling for each other was like something out of the movies, and I’m smiling this very minute as I think back to those heady days of young love. He makes up for my shortcomings, including being voted Most Likely To Appear on Saturday Night Live by his high school graduating class. He’s extremely funny and, thankfully, has made me funnier as a result…I think?
I was planning to accept a scholarship to get my PhD studying Black Stilts in New Zealand, but opted to stay in Canada for love – no regrets – and complete a Master’s Degree in Biology. More specifically, I researched the impact of in-hive pesticides on learning capabilities of honeybees.
One year into that program, I got married. Less then two years later, Baby #1 (Belle) arrived. A few after that Baby #2 (Indy) joined our family.
Not surprisingly, this “quick introduction” is rapidly becoming a tome. If you’re interested in the entrepreneurial side of things, I have a fairly in-depth summary of our experiences founding two small businesses here (Laura Vanderkam’s blog) and explaining how we made ends meet along the way here (The Frugal Girl’s blog).
My husband travels frequently for work, so I often solo-parent. There have also been some tremendously stressful – but largely “unsolvable” – personal challenges impacting our family over the last few years. Last fall I reached a breaking point of sorts, opting to step down from my biggest working role. In 2024 I have focused on resting and enjoying life in a process I have more formally declared to be my Year of Shmita.
I started blogging in 2021 and could never have imagined how much joy this community would bring to my life. My original blog was accidentally deleted last September, but within a few weeks I was back online ready for a fresh start. I write about motherhood and mental health and travelling and thrifting and share important tidbits like where I store almost every single item in our house and ask readers to debate the best/worst Christmas movies and songs…
(A FEW OF) MY LIKES
- Spending time with family; the kids are great, but my favourite is weekly at-home date nights with my husband.
- Walking with family or friends (special shout-out to Joy).
- Memoirs and biographies. These are my reading kryptonite.
- Watching documentaries with my husband.
- Watching F1 with my family.
- Walking through the woods; the smell of evergreen trees in particular.
- Sleep.
- Magic bags.
- Being warm. Hot showers, fluffy blankets, cozy sweaters.
- Taking pictures.
- Adventuring with family and friends. (Travel posts here.)
- Being in our house all by myself. Ahhh. Silence is blissful.
- Blogging.
- Thrifting.
- Listening to music.
- Singing. Also, talking to myself when no one is around.
- Tidying a space.
- Christmas.
- Writing cheques. Random, but true.
- Sushi.
- Peanut butter and banana on toast.
- Yogurt or cottage cheese with peanut butter, raisins, and pumpkin seeds.
- Cherry cheesecake.
- Coffee with cream and maple syrup.
- Waffles
- Food. I just like food.
(A FEW OF) MY DISLIKES
- Balloons being popped anywhere in my general vicinity.
- Laundry. From start to finish.
- Grating anything. I once grated part of my knuckle off when I was a kid and have disliked that kitchen task ever since.
- Parallel parking. It’s less about disliking it and more that I am simply incapable of doing it.
- Making small talk with strangers.
- Any large-group gathering. *Shudder*
- Swimming in cold water. Anything short of bathtub temperature is too cold for me.
- The smell of campfire smoke on my clothes.
- Spicy food.
- Rollercoasters.
- Heavy metal music.
- Water getting splashed on my face.
- Insects and anything that creeps or crawls.
- Early mornings.
- Late nights.
- Black coffee.
- Quiche.
- Crumbs in butter, peanut butter, jam, or any other spread. Gross.
- Putting away groceries.
- Scraping the remainder of food out of jars.
- Cleaning bathrooms.
- Taking out loose teeth (I hated it as a kid and I categorically refuse to help my children remove wiggly teeth).
- Mental math.
- The colour orange.
Your turn. If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, can you think of anything important I forgot to mention? If you already know me well, did any revelation in today’s post surprise you? What are some of your main likes and dislikes?
Discover more from The Optimistic Musings of a Pessimist
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
I’d clean your bathrooms for you if you’d go thrifting for me! You have such great finds in your thrift store, where I rarely find what I want.
You forgot to list lighthouses and the best tour guide/travel blogger for Nova Scotia. Your posts about the beauties of your province make me want to visit again!
I love thrifting, so that would be a deal!
Lighthouses! How could I forget lighthouses? I’m not sure about the best tour guide/travel blogger for NS, but I really do love this province and think it shows 🙂
I was goin g to say light houses too.
It wasn’t surprising but I didn’t know your father was a (is) a pastor.
I hate cold food. But love ice cream.
I can’t believe I didn’t think to mention lighthouses.
Do you dislike things that are meant to be eaten cold, I wonder? Or things that are meant to be consumed warm but have gone cold?
The latter. I hate having cooked and serving and then people start strolling to the bathroom and doing this and that while the food gets cold. So everything that’s supposed to be warm.
I eat cold food when its supposed to be cold.
I also don’t like cold food, but I struggle even more with overly hot food. Maybe I have a sensitive mouth? My perfect temp is a couple degrees above lukewarm. Ditto for my coffee!
I knew most of this, but I didn’t know you were high school valedictorian or voted “most likely to succeed.” Maybe not as cool as being a star athlete, but I’m impressed! I’m also laughing that you included “the color orange” in your list of dislikes- is it really that bad???
I LOVE the baby photos, and the photos of you and John <3
Can there possibly be too many gratuitous baby pictures? Gah. I cannot believe my babies used to be that small. It’s always a bit shocking to look back at how tiny they were now that they are literal giants. BELLE CAN WEAR SOME OF MY CLOTHES.
Orange really is that bad, Jenny. Blech. That said, a dear friend loves orange to an insane degree and we’re still friends, so I don’t judge others on their poor taste in colours. Just kidding. But still. Blech.
I love reintroduction posts! The fun fact that I did not know about you is why your name is spelled with an s instead of a z – now it feels weird when I see your name spelled with a z.
Short, concise posts are overrated! Yours are always the perfect word count.
Every time I type Elisabeth’s name, my finger hits the Z key and I have to go back and fix it! lol
I’m still embarrassed I spelled your name wrong. Multiple times. *Blush*
To add to the fun fact session, my mom had written out all my birth announcements out with a “z” – my dad came up and looked over her shoulder and was like: Oh, by the way, when I filed her birth certificate, I put Elisabeth with an “s” because of the spelling in the Bible. I have a copy of one of my hand-written birth announcements and the z is scratched out and replaced with an “s”. I secretly love it, though I get misspelled a lot, as one might imagine.
Birchie you always, always, always say something that makes me leave the comment section feeling happier or more optimistic or encouraged. <3
I loved this whole post so much. The more I learn, the more I love. I always think Elisabeth with an “s” is so much more elegant. 🙂
Of note, my mom’s name is Victoria and loathes when it is shortened. So she named all of us with 4 letter first names hoping they wouldn’t be shortened. I introduce myself/refer to myself 100% of the time as “Sara no h.” I nearly died the other day when B was at the store with me and someone needed my name and I said: Sara, and he quickly piped up, “no H!” 🙂 I didn’t know his 5 year old self had been paying attention for so long!
Aww. Thanks, Sara. Your comments always are so complimentary and sweet. I agree: I really prefer Elisabeth with an “s”…but maybe I’m biased? It feels a lot like Anne with an “e” (which I agree I prefer to Ann without an “e” but perhaps Lucy Maud Montgomery made me biased on that front as well!)
Victoria is such a regal and elegant name. I’ll admit Vicky is not my favourite…
That’s hilarious that B has been paying attention to that. I can see why you do it, though! I’m trying to think if I know any other Sara’s without the “h”? I struggle with Jon with not “h” as well, because I’m so used to spelling my husband’s name WITH the h. Aren’t names fascinating?
A lovely in-depth introduction that rings true about you, a blogger who’ve I followed for years. Fun to see the photos.
Thanks, Ally! You’ve been reading long enough to know I’m not great at being concise. I’ll be back tomorrow with shorter fare. Promise 🙂
Elisabeth!!! I just learned so many cool things about you!! I wish I had known you when you had your first blog. I’m just blown away by all the amazing things you’ve done and are doing. I really enjoyed the link so I could read about your work. I’m so glad you wrote this post so I could get to know you better!
Awww. Thanks, Michelle!
I think I knew most of this but it is always fun to hear it again! I thought it would be fun to list some of your dislikes that are my favorite things! And some of these things I could do for you in exchange for you…adventuring with me, or making me waffles!?
Laundry. From start to finish. –> don’t mind it, but don’t love folding/putting away
Parallel parking. –> I am a pro at this.
Swimming in cold water. –> I will swim in anything at any time of year (mostly)
Spicy food. –> the spicier the better
Rollercoasters. –> wheeeeee!
Heavy metal music. –> Does Metallica count? Love them.
Early mornings. –> the earlier the better
Quiche. –> quoi!? Por quoi pas?
Crumbs in butter, peanut butter, jam, or any other spread. –> doesn’t bug me
Putting away groceries. –> I will do this all day, any day, and love all grocery related things. They are so calming.
Cleaning bathrooms. –> Does anyone love this? However, I would rather do this than go to the dentist.
Thankfully I don’t need to parallel park very often. My vehicle supposedly has parallel parking assist, but I’ve never tried it. For some reason it feels like cheating, but it would be smart to get extra help!
You love early morning to an insane degree! I am very, very jealous.
Quiche is just…gross. I don’t like the pastry. I like eggs, but not cooked in solid form. Meh. It’s just gross to me.
I love shopping FOR groceries but hate putting them away. When John’s home he does it because he legitimately enjoys it (he’s very efficient at packing so he also puts things away a million times better than I would any way).
I don’t mind going to dentist, even for major work. I have zero anxiety with dentists (despite having a lot of teeth pulled when I was kid).
Another one I cannot imagine liking is ironing. How anyone could find that relaxing is beyond me, but I know of people who absolutely love ironing clothes. Again…WHY???!!!! How??!! It’s so tedious. Maybe the common thread here is that I’m too impatient for my own good?
I’ve discovered a few new things from this post, Elisabeth! Like your research topics (now I have to know- were honey bees learning abilities Interrupted by pesticides?!).
I also talk to my myself at home when no one’s around, and HATE balloons being popped near me. Do you also hate horror films? I can’t watch anything too intense- I think I must naturally be on edge haha.
Yes, they were. But even more interesting was the fact that the different methods used interchangeably in the literature for subduing bees before starting the proboscis extension reflex training (a variation on Pavlov’s dog) had an even bigger impact. Chilling on ice, in a fridge, or in a freezer until the bees were immobile is the protocol, but no one had studied how the different methods might impact results. Turns out…there’s a difference!!!
I HATE horror films, or really anything intense or too dark or too violent. Especially since having kids. I could handle it as a kid, but not now.
This was a great introduction! One thing I learned about you that shocked me what that you like to listen to loud music in the car and I think you like having the windows open (I could be misremembering that second part). I loathe loud music so so much, even if it’s a song I love!
I’m so glad that blogging brought you into my life!!
Some of my faves – coffee with SF vanilla creamer, the smell of a house on Thanksgiving morning (love the mire poix smell), all things Paris, reading, hooded sweatshirts, and tacos. Things I dislike – loud noises (which makes parenting real hard at times) including loud music, large crowds (which makes me not want to go to Disney), people who are late especially if it’s a pattern, honestly when people say they “have to go pee.” I’m a prude and would prefer “I need to use the bathroom/restroom.” But that goes out the window with little kids.
I LOVE listening to music at a high volume, especially in the car when I’m alone. I don’t like having windows open, though!
Loud noises. I spent years feeling perpetually overstimulated by all the noise and needs. Sheesh. It’s a hard phase for people with personalities like we have!
I enjoyed the interview yesterday very much (catching up on fellow NaBloPoMo:s) and this introduction as well, especially the photos of work/biology that you included, it made the intro really come to life. Great photography!
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Huh. You know what? I listen to heavy metal sometimes. Skid Row really is listenable. LOLOLOL. That’s all I could think about – I really need to convert Elisabeth into a Skid Row fan. (You don’t have to be a fan. But Slave to the Grind rocks.)
I’m not sure you’ll be successful, but I guess it’s worth a shot?
This is a great intro. I didn’t know a lot of this info and I’m so glad you shared it. Now I want to rewrite my intro post and share more. I was trying to be concise, but details are amazing. The baby photos – aww! So sweet. I don’t think I’ve seen a photo of you and your husband. You’re a good looking couple.
Memoirs are also my favorite genre. I don’t know what magic bags are – can you explain? I dislike spicy food, so much. I don’t mind doing laundry at all. Thank goodness. A few of my favorite things: When all my kids are home, and when we linger at the table and laugh and talk forever. I love hosting dinners or parties, because see above – lingering at the table. I love a clean house, but I don’t prioritize cleaning it (plus, my people trash the place in no time, so I sort of lose the energy). We do clean the house, of course, but it isn’t always sparkling. I love making lists. I hate losing things. I really need 8 hours or more of sleep, and I rarely get it. I love shopping the sale racks. I’ve done my fair share of thrifting, but I don’t really take the time for it/have a good thrift store near home to do it often. Does FB marketplace count? Because I love FB marketplace. When Tank studied in Limerick, Ireland, I bought him a crockpot on FB marketplace and the woman delivered it to his dorm.
Really enjoyed this post!
Neither my husband nor I love having our picture taken, but I make an effort to make sure we get some because…we lived these experiences! It’s so easy to put the kids in front of the camera, but it’s nice for them to be able to look back and see plenty of us.
Magic bags are rice/grain-filled sacks that can be microwaved. Magic Bag is the “brand” but I use it interchangeably for anything in that category.
With your family size, hating laundry would be pretty awful!
My house can become neat quite quickly but never, ever sparkling. It’s too old/we haven’t updated enough things.
As others have said, there is no mention of lighthouses, but there is one photo with a lighthouse. Something I didn’t know: you were valedictorian and most likely to succeed. Another surprising thing was that you dislike insects, but your research was on bees. Did the dislike come after? I’m going to say no to coffee with cream and maple syrup. I like my coffee as a straight unsweetened latte, machiato or expresso shot, so basically unadulterated.
I disliked insects before, oddly enough. At one point I applied for an award from the Canadian Entomological Society. As part of my application, I had to write an essay about why I chose entomology and I cheekily came clean that I hated bugs and was easily terrified by them. (I won the award.) I came into my Masters planning to do bird research, but pivoted to bees. And yes. I heard a few jokes about that 🙂
I hate sugar in my tea, but like a little sweetener in my coffee. Just a smidge. Too much ruins it!
I enjoyed this! I knew a lot of it, and didn’t know a lot of it as well. I like orange OK, but it was both of my parents favorite color, especially a brownish, burnt orange. Now when I see something orange, I think of them. Also going to disagree with you on quiche, especially if you find one that is warm and light and fluffy…heaven.
I’m with you on splashing water on my face and black coffee, though.
Awww. I love that a colour reminds you of your parents. I don’t know if I could come up with a colour for my parents (though my dad has a particular shirt AND coat he has worn for decades so we have lots of family jokes about that).
Splashing water on the face is the worst. Every time Nicole writes so nonchalantly about doing it, I die a bit inside.
This was a great read and I feel like I learned even more about you! I didn’t really know much about your time in college and what you studied, so that was cool!
It feels like so long ago, now! I’ve only ever used my degree tangentially, but I guess that’s pretty standard? I get all the feels each fall because I really loved my undergrad – once I got over the enormous adjustment!
Thank you for interviewing Kristen and then for your reintroduction today. I expect to really enjoy your blog!
Elisabeth, I thought you spelled your name with an “s” because it is a British thing, like “colour” instead of “color”. Interesting reason, and Elizabeth has been my all time favorite female name my entire life.
Memoir is my favorite genre and I’d love to hear some of your favorites. Biography tends to be too name-droppish, all those irrelevant celebrities, blech, but memoir makes fiction feel like cheap candy by contrast.
Thanks so much for your enthusiasm, Jana.
You’re very right that Elisabeth with an “s” is more common in Europe. It was because of a Bible translation, but I really do appreciate the subtle difference, even if I am forever having to correct it on forms, etc.
Favourite memoirs. So many but a few that come to mind immediately: When Breath Becomes Air, The Hiding Place, Endurance, I Feel Bad About My Neck, A Heart That Works, The Happiness Project, Glass Castle, Brain on Fire, Unbroken (not a memoir, but not a strict biography either), Educated, Notes on a Nervous Planet (not exactly a memoir, but adjacent), Keep Moving (ditto N on a NP), Crying in H-Mart, When Time Stopped, Home (Julie Andrews). I could go on! You’ve prompted me on a favourite subject 🙂
If you’re interested in more fodder, I wrote a post about non-fiction favs and the comment section is golden! https://optimisticmusings.com/my-top-five-non-fiction-books/
I love your dislikes and can totally relate!!! Mental math ugh, putting away groceries ughhhhh Parallel parking omg, and rollercoasters – forget about it.
Your wedding pictures and the pictures of your babies are just precious!!
We have a lot in common.
I don’t miss the baby stage, but I do miss being able to hold them so easily. I now have a child who wants to give hugs across the street from school because hugging your mom goodbye is “definitely not cool.” There are very distinct seasons to parenting!
Since I’m a newish reader, this was all much fun, and eye opening. You studied the Birds and the Bees. (giggle!) How fun is that? I’d love to spend an afternoon walking with you and hearing all about it.
We have a lot of the same dislikes, although I can enjoy a large gathering for at least a few hours.
I honestly didn’t know you’ve only been blogging since 2021; you’re such a natural.
Love all the photos; you have a beautiful family Elisabeth!
It is pretty funny; unplanned as I intended to stick with the birds…but I guess it was natural to add in the bees!
Well, if that wasn’t a lovely reintroduction, Elisabeth. I feel so fortunate to have crossed path with you online when you just started out as a blogger – so I feel like I already knew most of this. I am commenting late (as I am catching up on the last few days of NaBloPoMo) and I was also going to say… how could you forget to mention lighthouses? LOL it’s even in your blog logo! 😉