A Little About Cyd

Looking back on 2012 and thinking about 2013 stretching before us, one of the things I’ve really missed in recent months is sharing a little bit more about the girl behind this here blog. (Uh, that’d be me.) I founded The Sweetest Occasion back in 2008 and since then, life has changed so much. For one, running the blog has now been my full-time gig for over 18 months. Sometimes it honestly still makes me shake my head in amazement. As your blog begins to grow and take on a life of it’s own, trust me when I say there are squeals of delight and cartwheels (yes, actual cartwheels) on a regular basis. But there is also a blurring of lines between your professional life and your personal one, something that can be interesting to navigate. As I was going through my divorce last year, I felt a need to protect what little bit of sanity I had left. Without even consciously realizing it, I kind of fell behind the curtain. I believe at the time it really was necessary, but I don’t like feeling that I’ve lost a bit of a connection with all of you, the friends (and I really do think of you as friends) who are here, reading every day, and making this dream of mine possible. So today I thought I would take a few moments to share a little bit about myself. A few quirky, random tidbits that you likely don’t know. Ready? Let’s do this!

{My favorite things: Minted rose lip balm | owl mug | Pilot G2-05 pens (always black) | Michael Kors sunglasses | gold heart necklace | Linnea’s Lights candles.}

• I hate socks. As in, really really hate them. I don’t know why, but I do. I would rather be barefoot all the time if I could. Even in winter, as soon as I get home I take off my boots and run around the house barefoot or in flip flops. It’s just a thing of mine. An odd one, admittedly.
• I’m a vegetarian. In an effort for full disclosure, I should note that when eating out I often eat shellfish, which many people might say makes me a pescetarian, but on a day to day basis I am a vegetarian and have been for over three years. I haven’t eaten red meat in more than seven. I’m not preachy about it, it’s just the way I choose to live my life.
• My favorite food is ice cream! Or preferably gelato, the legit kind you get in Florence. I visited Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams in Dublin, Ohio this past summer and it was an absolutely amazing experience. The flavors are so delicious and the employees are just awesome.
• I grew up in Watertown, New York which is nestled alongside Lake Ontario, just about 30 miles south of Canada. My summers were and still are spent at the family lakehouse or on the boat. And to this day I know no greater joy than summer at home on the lake.
• I love love love coffee. A generous dose of cream, light on the sugar. The darker the better.
• My black lab, Nina (often referred to as Ninerdog) has been with me since my senior year of college. She just turned 8 and has a ton of gray hair now, but she’s still my number one girl.
• I went to college for architecture. A few weeks before beginning graduate school to pursue a Master of Architecture degree I realized that it was a career path that was going to prove a bit too conservative for me. (Architecture is by and large still a very old school industry.) So, I ran off and got a Master of Business Administration instead. That said, I am still crazy about architecture, which has fueled my love for travel since my first trip to Europe at the age of 15.
• I have used the same pens, the black Pilot G-2 .05, for years. About 10 years to be precise. They are the only kind I buy and I hoard them, using each one until the ink runs out before grabbing another one from the desk. I just love the way they write!
• I am incredibly lucky to have the largest, craziest family on earth. Including step siblings, I am one of six. I have seven nieces and nephews. I have nearly 30 cousins on my dad’s side alone and we were all raised next door to each other on what was once the old family farm. We are, at times, wild, but it’s the kind of wild that comes from a deeply rooted love of family that really defines who we are.
• I am a book geek. I have stacks of books that I lug around with me every time I move. I grew up writing and reading like it was my job. I started writing my first (and long since defunct) blog back in the early 2000s before they were even called blogs. I still read every night before bed.

So, there you go! A bunch of randomness about me. I’d love if you’d leave a comment telling me something random about yourself! And if you have a blog, be sure to leave me a link so I can pop over and check it out and say hi. Thank you all for being here and for reading. You’re seriously the bee’s knees. xoxo