About Me: In General

Since this blog is also about the happening of the Hines' home, I thought my readers might like to know a little more about me and my family. I plan on making a few posts over the next few weeks telling you different things about me. This first post is just about me in general.

In Arizona we would houseboat and camp on Lake Powell

Where I grew up:  I was born in Arizona but moved to Arkansas when I was 9. We lived by the lake so I grew up water skiing, tubing, and fishing. I went to Springdale high school, home of the bulldogs, where I like to think I was friends with everybody or at least not part of one specific group.  I wasn't particularly popular but hung out with some popular kids and got invited to some cool parties. We had a big high school and I loved showing school spirit at football and basketball games. I took advanced classes so I had my share of smart friends. I went to church, so I had that group of friends as well. I also participated in Forensics and Theater, sharing my love of the speaking arts with other artsy friends. I guess this accounts for why I now have about 950 Facebook friends! My father still lives in Arkansas and mom and brother now live in Oregon. They are both massage therapists so I love when they visit as I can get spoiled with back rubs.

On to college: I was the first person who ever graduated early at my high school. I arranged to take summer college classes before senior year to count for my last English and math credits so I could finish high school early. I then went to college in the spring while the rest of my friends stayed in my hometown and went to our senior prom. I told you I was one of the smart ones, but truth is I did it for a boy I met at church camp who was already in college. He was a big part of my life but it didn't last. God knew what He was doing though because my husband was also at that college.

I went to Harding University, a relatively small private university that is associated with the church of Christ. (Protestant; if you've heard any generalization about my church it is that we don't use instruments, we sing a capella.) I majored in theater which took up ALL my free time although I did manage to work at Payless shoes for a little while and spend some of the summers lifeguarding or working at Sonic. It took me 5 years to finish school. I took a small break after the relationship ended with that boy I followed to college. However, I came back to school, got things together, met my now husband and graduated Magna Cum Laude with a degree in Theater.

Some interesting things about where I went to college: We had curfew with extended hours on weekends, and you got fined if you were late so many times. We had no co-ed dorms, guy and girl dorms were on opposite sides of the campus, and each one had official dorm parents. The opposite sex was only allowed in to the dorms on particular dates throughout the year and if your feet did not remain on the floor you'd get pregnant. (Yes, it's ridiculous, that is why it's funny.) Our attendance in daily chapel was required but we got to pick where we sat and who we sat by. It might sound boring to some, but there is nothing like the sound of 3,000+ voices singing a capella praise songs together. I miss it. We had "social clubs" instead of sororities and frats and every spring they put on a musical showcase competition that is one of the largest arts events in the country. Our school lawn had several white wooden swings and another fun saying around campus was "three swings and then a ring" which actually was true for many people including me and my husband. College was a great experience and I enjoyed going to school that felt like a family. Some people call it a bubble but we were not immune to outside influences or crimes in the community. My husband had at least $1,500 worth of property stolen over his years at Harding (hopefully not by students!).

How I met my husband: Jess and I met in stage combat class. He had recently gotten his second degree black belt in Hap Ki Do before college, so the first thing I noticed about him was his athletic build. Some of the other theatre kids had nicknames for him like "G.I. Jess" and "Greek God." Jess wasn't a theatre major like me but had some interest in the arts so we wound up working on a few plays together and started to interact. One of the very first times we talked was when I asked him to pick me up in staged choke hold for class. Pretty soon I was smitten and I've always been pretty forward so I let him know it. You could say I chased him, wrapped my rope around him, and never let him go. A few months into school we had our first kiss and after enjoying college life together for the next year and half he finally proposed and we married in 2007 with one semester left in school.


The past 4 years: After college, Jess and I decided we wanted to be near his parents and followed them to North Carolina. Jess also grew up out west in New Mexico but his folks relocated just before our wedding. Soon Jess found work in Raleigh in the information technology field but there wasn't much in the way of theater work for me. I had thought I wanted to teach but after spending 2 weeks in student teaching, I just didn't have the heart for it. God bless all the teachers out there, especially ones who teach high school, it is some of the hardest work there is! I worked part time in an office and then did some nanny work. We knew we wanted to start a family and just shortly after our third anniversary we had Logan. I am very blessed to be staying home with him and we plan to homeschool. Jess and his siblings were home schooled and it was very important to him that we do so with our kids. I like to joke that he made me sign a contract agreeing to that before he would marry me. Now in my free time (while Logan naps) I have started my blog and my Etsy store. We have a wonderful church family and supportive friends where we live and lots of other young families to play with. We bought our first home the year we had Logan and we are living in the suburbs, loving life and praising God.