I’ve been blogging for so long, doing my thing day in day out, week in week out, that I only recently realised that many of you probably don’t know me that well.
I also realised that my About me page was way out of date. WAY out of date. WAAAY out of… you get the idea.
So I’ve updated it. And I thought I’d share the updated version here so you can get to know me too. An idea I had all by myself, and which is not at all a complete rip-off of inspired by Kelly Exeter recently doing the same thing.
Not at all. Ahem. So without further ado, here it is!
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Hi! I’m Emily. It’s lovely to meet you.
So who am I? Inhale… I’m a stay-at-home mum, wife, daughter, reluctant housewife, writer, editor, blogger, serial winner of 25-words-or-less competitions, former marketeer, recovering chocoholic, wordsmith, pianist and geek.
Exhale. Inhale. There you have it. That’s the short version.
I’m a neat freak who hates cleaning. A descriptive linguist who hates apostrophe abuse. A career woman who never dreamed she’d still be at home with her children six months two years four years after first giving birth. Who never dreamed she’d want to be.
A riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.
I married my high school sweetheart, and have a preschooler daughter and a toddler son.
I’m fun, funny (although you’ll be laughing at me, not with me) and prone to injuring myself. I never leave the house without my glasses, a notepad, a pen and a pair of crutches. Just in case.
Welcome to my home. As good as, anyway. emhawkerblog is the bloggy home where I tuck my thoughts in to bed.
This blog started life as You learn something new every day (YLSNED), and that’s exactly what it was about. Every day, I selected a lesson I’d learnt, wrote a post, and hit publish.
But as I discovered the world of blogging, and started to find my own voice after years of copywriting for corporates, I wanted to branch out. Sticking only to ‘lessons learnt’ suggested there had to be an answer at the end of each of my posts.
Sometimes, I just want to pose a question. Or, worse still, ramble incoherently.
When YLSNED reached two years of existence in August 2013, I changed my approach to it. I no longer wrote solely about the lessons I’ve learnt. I wrote about anything and everything that tickled my fancy. Mostly about family, wordy news, and the surprises that life throws your way.
And, occasionally, the lessons I was still learning every day.
Why the subsequent move to emhawkerblog? Because YLSNED kept evolving. It had evolved so much that the person I was when I started YLSNED wouldn’t have recognised it as mine.
I guess that means that I’ve evolved, too.
At emhawkerblog, you’ll find some regular features. You’ll find a children’s book review up every Friday. You’ll find a book review of the grown-up variety at the beginning of each month. You’ll also regularly find topical news rants in the form of song rewrites, ideas for entertaining preschoolers, family anecdotes and snippets of the more interesting writing work I do.
Anything else? Probably. Most definitely. emhawkerblog is about whatever’s on my mind. Please join me and share what’s on yours, too!
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Not enough? Want to know more about me? What would you like to know? Take your pick!
You can read all about my personal goals and my focus for 2015. You can read about the judgement I’ve faced for ‘abandoning’ my career, and why any judgement is unnecessary when I’m my worst critic.
You can read about why I write, and how I go about combatting writer’s block.
You can even read (a little bit) about my health issues, (and why I support causes like DonateLife Week, National Stroke Week and Kidney Health Australia).
And if you’re after something a big lighter, you can read about how accident-prone I am, why I quit chocolate (again), and why I participate in #everydaystyle even though I’m clearly #notafashionblogger (or indeed a fashion anything!).
Or you can read one of my top three all-time favourite posts:
– We didn’t start the mummy wars
– Magic
– The plural of octopus is… (my second ever post!)
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Thanks for reading right through to the end! Enough about me. What about you? Describe yourself in five words.
Mother. Stepmother. Fashionista. Stylist. Dreamer.
Nice to meet you Em. I am Vicki. A mother
Stepmother. Fashionista. Stylist. Dreamer. V x
Thanks Vicki! And sorry you went to spam first time. Great five words!
Such a great idea of Kellys – I know a lot about you but not all of the above. 5 things. Sensitive, Thoughtful, Over thinker, Clumsy and Fun. Geez that was hard!
It is hard, isn’t it? You did well with it – all things I’d pick from your blog.
Hi Emily, I’ve enjoyed learning more about you. 5 words to describe myself is too tough a question for this time of night! I’m a mum of three who works part time and loves blogging. A little random fact about me is that I used to enjoy entering 25 wol competitions also and have won a couple of great prizes in this way but I definitely wouldn’t call myself a serial winner! Nowadays I’m too busy blogging to enter competitions unless they are on my blog reading list. Cheers, Ingrid.
Thanks for the info! I love those comps – I don’t seek them out, but if a blogger I know is running a comp, watch out!
Love it Em.
Describe myself in five words? Well, firstly they would vary from day to day, mood to mood, but today I’d say I’m an over-thinking, introverted, opinionated, hopeful, dreamer.
Mine would vary every day, too. I just had to submit an author bio for something and am already regretting the word choice!
Summer must be the time to rewrite “about me”pages. I rewrote my page last week too. 5 words seems to short 🙂 City Wife, Country Life sums up my life at the moment.
I am popping over to read your new about page!
Loved getting to know you a little better! I don’t think I could describe myself however even in 1000 pages (or blog posts) let alone 5 words, LOL!
Maybe that says more about you than the five words could?! (OOOOOH, so deep.)
I think I’ve had another child since my about page was written! I followed you since YLSNED blog. You had me at your chocolate addiction- I’m still battling mine. I missed the organ donation story though- great attitude. My sister had a kidney removed last year, and I’ve already committed to donating mine should it be necessary/possible. x
Seriously high levels of respect flowing to you right now. Living donation is such a huge decision to make. You are wonderful. x
Nice job on the About me page, Em! Seriously aced it! I hate apostrophe abuse too. I love your FB posts asking what’s wrong with this picture? 🙂 Hmmm five words to describe me … just off the top of my head without thinking – silly, sensitive, compassionate, stubborn, smiley 🙂
Thanks Renee. Now I understand where Smiley gets it from 😉
I saw that post of Kelly’s and it’s an awesome idea. It is lovely to read about you and get to know you a bit more! Five things about me: sensitive, recovering perfectionist, emotional, loyal, dependable! OMG – I could go on and on! LOL
Thanks Min. And thanks for sharing your five (six?) words! I’m enjoying getting to know everyone better, too.
Brilliant about me page and I love the new look for the blog. It has been wonderful watching you evolve as a blogger. As for five words for me – dreamer, sharer, fairy lover, hopeful.
Leaving some fairy wishes and butterfly kisses from #teamIBOT
Thanks Rhianna. Glad you got the word ‘fairy’ in there! Such lovely words x
This is a brilliant About Me – snappy, funny, quirky and a bit weird (a neat freak who hates cleaning? LOL). Five words to describe me. Crap. Wait, that wasn’t one of my adjectives. It was an expression of perplexity… Me…Mmmm. Sarcastic, under-achiever, laid-back, kick-ass writer. Last one delved into wish-fulfilment territory, but that’s OK.
Thanks Hugzilla! Quirky and a bit weird – I might get you to write the next About me. You’ve nailed it!
This is a great idea Em. I only ever read the ‘about me’ page when I discover a new blog but of course things change over time.
I also love a little round up of the really useful ‘get to know me’ posts over time. I loved your post on everyday style. I was at a party one night and someone’s little girl was dancing around in a Disney dress and admiring her reflection in the glass door. One of my friends remarked that “You are never too old to feel special in a pretty dress” and it really stuck with me.
Thanks Nicole. It was weird to think about which posts I like the best! And to narrow it down to three. Which sounds arrogant, but it’s hard to weed out the ones that are faves because of what you were going through at the time instead of because of the post itself.
I love that quote. I am going to wear a dress tomorrow. Because why not? x
I really enjoyed reading this and getting to you know. I also went on to read one of your linked posts on ‘abandoning’ your career and I really resonated with that … since leaving work to focus on my family I sometimes stumble when people ask me what I do for work. Like you, I can sometimes feel the judgement of others when they hear my answer. I really need to stop worrying about that as I know what I am doing is right for me and my family.
Thanks Erika, although I wish no-one resonated with the ‘My career’ post because it’s not a fun thing to experience!
Me in five words? I don’t think I can do it. I hat describing myself at all!
Great idea Em (and Kelly.) I need to redo my about me page but I’m putting it off. I hate describing myself.
You can do it!! And Kelly? No, this was all me! My idea! Mine! Ahem.
“…tuck my thoughts into bed”. I love your way with words Em. Great post and as a new liker as of last year, a good way to know a bit more about you. Some scary similarities (been with Handy Hubby since I was 18, have a pre-schooler and toddler, neat freak who hates cleaning, former marketer who has stayed home longer than expected). I do have issues with overusing apostrophes but it’s an illness that I am working on!!! Dammit….. Me in 5 words: opinionated, kind, daggy, sporty, wino (well at least for this week).
Thanks Tash, and thanks for visiting so many of my posts since you first found me! Your comments always leave a smile on my dial.
Love this post. Me in 5 words? Writer. Family-centric. Over-thinker. Daydreamer. Storyteller. Does hyphenating everything count as cheating?:)
Hyphenating is totally allowed. Once I was asked to describe myself in five nouns. I interpreted ‘noun’ as ‘noun phrase’ and used lots of adjectives. x
Hey!
I guess I am a:
Mother – Talker – Writer – Worrier – Smartarse!
Great idea!
LOVE these words – thanks for playing along!
I love your about page! Me in five words? Holistic work in progress, much. Okay, that’s five words in a statement. But that’s me at the moment. Looking forward to getting to know you more. 🙂 Xx
Thanks Sandra! I love the five words. Statement, adjectives, nouns – I didn’t specify!
Lovely to meet you. Great About Page and gosh trying to keep up with that is hard. Me- yes reluctant housewife, lover of life and a drop of wine, adore my kids and family….might have to work on it but its a start. You have inspired me now 🙂
Thanks Caroline! I think it’s a great start. Looking forward to reading the whole thing soon.
Are you winning all the competitions? Curse you!! 😉
Oh I thought something similar. And wonders – how do you do it??? (Is there a blog post about that, or do you not divulge the secret!)
I have been thinking of doing a post about it – you’ve both confirmed that it’s a good idea! One how-to post, coming right up. Next month, maybe. x
I loved the challenge of Five Words – I’m going to share on Facebook in fact!
I am:
Happy, Authentic, Spiritual, Wife, Mother
Thanks for sharing! Saw it (as you saw – hyphens SO make things one word!).
Love getting to know Em a little more 🙂 ummm 5 words… shit that is hard. overthinker, worrier, clumsy, neurotic, carer. OK that wasnt THAT hard xx
Excellent five words. And totally fit with what I know of you from your blog! x
Em, this is such a cool post – I loved getting to know you a little better! Me in 5 words? OK, let’s see how I go… Silly. Genuine. Kind. Communicator. Wino. x
Thanks Sonia! And thanks for playing along. Love me the silly x
A neat freak that hates cleaning – that is totally me too!
I think it’s a lot of people! Can’t stand mess. But cleaning it? Meh.