i am boisterous. i am outgoing. i am loving. i am a connector. i laugh constantly. i am a traveler, or a nomad, if you will. i am full of energy. i am vibrant.

and i am rigid.

i've always known this about myself and it's not a trait i've consciously embraced. i am my mother's daughter, after all. and while i do have my father's sense of wander and do things a little unconventionally (hint: peace corps), i also inherited a few of my mothers' traits that made my life 'challenging' as a teenage girl. you know, the rules, the expectations, the loving 'threats.' i was raised to follow the rules, to not disappoint, to question very little. there are certain ways to do things and that's that.

i recently took that quiz about 'parenting styles.' i got 'hardcore strict' parent. as much as i wanted to be 'cool, hipster, laid-back, fun, do-whatever-the-hell-you-want' kind of parent, i knew there was a very high chance i'd get something like that.

so, after some serious 'consulting' with my mister (and by consulting, i mean raised voices and opinion-sharing,) i started to realize how something that is seemingly inherent in who i am can have consequences and limit the life that i truly want to live, so i made a promise to him: i will say 'yes' more. i will try something new (even when i don't want to do said thing) to have the experience. i will get out of my comfort zone (because i'm really great at supporting others to do the same.)

i will be an adventurer.

{read: thank you, husband. a few others, too.}