Ashton Tilton Uncovered. I really wish I could use the crying-laughing emoji in the title of this post (like I've mentioned in previous posts, I am SO on the emoji train...why haven't they come out with more yet??). I was trying to come up with something clever for this post, but I basically kept thinking of all the trashy magazines I read that have titles like, "How It All Fell Apart" or "My Life As An Addict" or "Inside So-and-So's Breakdown" or "So-and-so's Nightmare" or "Is She Pregnant" (I read an embarrassingly large quantity of gossip mags). Don't worry none of those titles have anything to do with my life or what I'm going to share in the post haha, but that's what went through my head as I tried to brainstorm a title. "About Me" seemed too boring and "Ashton's Secret Life" (the People Magazine version of this post) seemed too scandalous. Hahaha.
So I thought I'd go with the next best People Magazine title...."Ashton Tilton Uncovered". (I'm dying inside because I can't put a crying-laughing emoji after that...I mean, HOW do people express their emotions on blogs these days?).
Even though I have an "About Me" section (boring) for this blog (if you haven't checked it out, it's at the top of the blog, under my title or click here), but I thought it might be fun to share some more things about myself that y'all might not know. Feeling spontaneous and oddly in a revealing mood, so I hope you enjoy! Filters are down!
1. For most of high school and every summer in Tennessee throughout college before I got married, I scooped dog poo for work. Okay, okay...there was a little bit more to it than that, but I was a "kennel technician". Looked fancy on a youngin's resume, but basically I played with, fed, medicated, and "pottied" dogs. And here's a shocker: I loved it. 5% of the time I really hated it, but the other 95% I couldn't have been happier about it.
2. I took a lot of art classes (mostly photography) in high school. I wanted to go to school for photography. I didn't have a lot of experience and still needed to learn a lot, but I applied anyway at BYU. I didn't get in. Tough at first, but I figured I didn't need a degree to do what I loved, so I started looking elsewhere for what I wanted to study.
3. Then I found teaching. Don't ask me how I decided that or where it stemmed from, but I wanted to be an Elementary School teacher. I wanted to work with little nuggets and teach them their ABCs. Once I got through all the hellish GEs that colleges make you suffer through, I got into my major classes and finally got to TEACH. And I knew. I knew I picked the perfect fit for me. I love teaching. One day I will be back in a classroom.
4. I hate cooking. The only reason I do it, is because I take a lot of joy in sitting down together as a family (even though it's just Todd, Reese, and I) for a meal. If I didn't find joy in that, then my family would be screwed. Cooking is a little too tedious and messy for me. Too much clean-up. OH THE CLEAN-UP. Except for I've finally trained Todd (insert crying-laughing emoji) to do the dishes after every meal. Trained is a strong word, but a strong effort was made, so "trained" will be used.
5. I am a hopeless romantic.
6. I am an artist at heart. I kind of hate saying that because I feel like there's a stereotype associated with being artsy, but I'm sick of that, so here I am declaring that I am indeed an artist. Or as Todd would say, I'm "artsy-fartsy". I love to create beautiful things. Don't get me wrong, not like VanGogh or anything. I'm not about to draw you a self-portrait because you'd come out of the experience having very low self-esteem, BUT I do love to make things pretty. It makes me happy.
7. I am Christian, and I am a Mormon. I have faith in God and Jesus Christ. I believe in goodness. I have faith in the future and joy in my present because I know that I am a daughter of God. Don't even get me started on being a child of God. I believe that if everyone knew their divinity and what it means to be a child of God, a domino effect would ensue, and the world would change for the better.
8. On the subject of being a daughter of God, I'm a little bit of a feminist. Just like being an "artist" has a stereotype, being a "feminist" definitely has a stereotype and often negative connotation. I'm here to discount that. I believe that women are beautiful, wonderful, and amazing. I think the world loves to tell women that they are not enough. That they fall short. Not pretty enough. Not smart enough. Not successful enough. Not a good mother. Not a good wife. You name it, the world tells us we fall short. And I hate it. I know how crappy it is when I feel burdened by expectations, but it really breaks my heart when I hear other women talk about how they feel less than enough.
9. Even though I definitely don't do it everyday, I love to lift weights. Really love to lift weights. I don't know what it is, but it makes me feel empowered haha.
10. I have two part time jobs. I am a housing manager and work online for Google. Both allow me to be an at home mom, which was important to me personally when I found out we were pregnant with Roni. I got offered a teaching position to teach 6th grade, but after a lot of prayer turned it down to stay at home with Reese. Sometimes financially it's hard, but everything has truly worked out for the best.
11. Not about me, but it might as well be: My husband is going to BYU to get his undergrad in Public Health, and then he applies for Physical Therapy school next summer. The next handful of years are going to have a lot of change in store for our little family!
12. The stress of having to plan out every second of every day to make sure I get all of my responsibilities done is sometimes so incredibly overwhelming. Every once in a while a day comes around where I let it debilitate me. I get down on myself for not doing it all. Sound familiar ladies? I'm really trying to learn to let go and realize that I can't do it all! But some days are hard.
13. I love Christmas and think about it throughout the whole year. Traditions. Christmas lights. Snuggling up for a movie while it's snowing outside. Candy canes. Remembering Christ's birth. Christmas tree. Festive outfits. Hot chocolate. Santa Claus. Carols. Elf. Elf on a Shelf. Family. Baked goods. Etc, etc, etc... I love making that time of year magical for our family. Because it's a magical time. It really is.
14. I have a hard time saying no to anyone. Major flaw folks. I often find myself saying yes, yes, yes and then later saying sorry, sorry, sorry. Because most of the time I overdo myself and can't keep my obligations because I've said yes to so many things! Sorry if you know me personally and that's happened before. I really am trying to get better. I hate it.
15. My dream backyard is the one in Parenthood. I dream about community, family, and friends all sharing a wonderful time with each other in a homey, warm, loving atmosphere. The people in my life mean the world to me, and it's hard that right now my life is so busy that I don't get to spend as much time with them as I would like. Friends and family have always been my anchor. I love them all so freakin' much. Wish I had all the time in the world to spend with each of them personally, so they knew how much they mean to me.
16. I better stop here because you're getting bored haha. But I also really love nail polish. Obsessed. OCD. The end.
In the comment section (even if you've never left a comment before in your entire life!) share with me 3 things about you that I don't know, and if you're a reader who just follows along, introduce yourself! I would love to get to know my readers!
Love y'all. Thanks for your support and kindness.
Happy Thursday! One more day till Friday! Hollaaaaa.
XO, Ashton Tilton
