Who Is Amanda Walton?
Hello everyone....here I am, Amanda Walton.
Now you are probably asking yourself, "Who is Amanda Walton?" or "What do I care what Amanda Walton has to say?"
The answer is, you might not care about what I have to say and that is completely okay, there are other blogs out there that might cater to your wants and needs a little bit better. Go find them if that is the case, but if you want to keep reading, I will share with you a little bit about myself and what I wil lbe doing here in my own little corner of the world.
I am...
A Wife,
I am married to the love of my life. From the moment that I first saw him standing in a church at my cousin's wedding 17 years ago, I was drawn to him in a way that I had never been drawn to anyone before. I knew in the first few moments of speaking to him (we were paried to walk down the isle togehter) that he was different than anyone I had ever met before and if I had it to do all over again, nothing could ever make me choose anyone but him. I would always choose Shane.
A Mom,
I have four amazing children.
Ande is 21 and finishing up his senior year of college, studying to be a chemistry teacher. He has so much energy and enthusiasm and has always been my hype man. I feel renewed and energized when we spend time together. He enjoys playing guitar and I enjoy listening to him play. One of my favorite things is when he is home and I can hear him playing at night while the rest of the house is quiet.
Althea is 16 and so talented. She is one of the hardest working humans I have ever met. She has such control and poise after years of pre-professional level ballet training and has a somewhat newfound love of theater. She loves working with and helping people, especially those who she sees as the underdog. Her passion for social justice is something that I have always aspired to but I have allowed fear in many cases dictate who I am. My girl is fearless.
Huxley is 14 (soon-to-be 15) and my athlete. He tends to be lucky and good at most things that he tries. He loves football and has been pursuing his passion through hard work, seeing a personal trainer in his off-seasons and really pursuing his love of the game. He enjoys hanging with his friends, fishing, and being active. He always makes me feel like a kid again and I am always willing to try something new with him, even when sometimes I end up feeling pain for days.
Adeline is my angel. We lost her when he was 9 in a house fire. I miss her more than I could ever describe. She was the most kind and caring little girl who was able to make everyone feel like they were friend. She had an energy about her that was bigger than life. One amazing thing about my child who was born an old soul is that she accomplished her dreams in her short life. She was in a TV show pilot, perofrmed with a professional ballet, and really lived every day to its fullest. She would be coming up on her 13th birthday this year.
I am also blessed and have an incredible fur baby who has been so healing for me and our entire family after the loss of Adeline. Lovebug is my buddy and we enjoy doing so many things together. He loves going with me to pick up Huxley from school or football each day.
A Music Lover,
I love going to see my favorite band, Phish, or other live music especially getting to explore small local bands with Shane and/or the kids. Expect to see a photo from each live show that I attend pop up on my Insta feed as that is one of my favorite things.
A Lover of Food,
So, I am not sure that this is a good thing or a curse. I love food and learning about how food can heal you, but I tend to be the type of person who binges all of the foods that poison you when I am stressed, so I am trying to gain control about that and hope that having accountability here will be the thing that helps me best of all. I am trying really hard to focus on healthy living and taking care of myself while healing through food.
A Yoga Practicer,
I love yoga. One of the first things that I do when I am struggling with grief is stop doing the things that make me better. Yoga helps to heal not just my body but my soul, so the first thing that I let go of when I am struggling mentally is my practice. I am determined to change that. Again, I will be posting here regularly to make sure that I am
A Person Struggling Through Grief,
Grief is tough. One of the things that I continually struggle with is how to navigate this life. If you are struggling with grief and are interested in my grief journey, you can check out My Sweet Adeline where I share what it is like to have to go through life without my littlest love. I have taken breaks from this blog on and off over the past 4 years but I know for me to be successful and to have the life I want, I am going to have to keep up on this. It helps me to write about the impacts that grief has on my life and to share some stories about the joy that was being Adeline's mom.
Sometimes Funny,
I like things that make me laugh. Sometimes my humor is not for everyone, but I love to laugh. I do think that at times I can be funny, so you might read something and laugh from time to time. I hate when things are too serious and often times am the type of friend that you can't sit next to during the msot serious events.
A Person Trying to Get into Better Shape,
The focus used to be weight loss, but now it is getting into better shape. I hope that you will enjoy going on this journey with me. I am dedicating myself to more time spenet working towards my physical health in hopes that it will help with mental wellness.
Someone Who Needs Routines,
I have to create routines for myself. Whereas other people can just do the things they need to on thier own, naturally, every single thing that is supposed to become nature requires a routine for me. My brain is just wired a bit different.
On the Spectrum,
I knew that I was different my entire life. I was smart enough to realize that some of my behaviors and the way that I felt was probably not normal. I was the weird kid in school, the young child not interested in cartoons or toys but rather interested in reading about Abraham Lincoln and learning everything I could about him. I had questioned for years if I was on the spectrum and was told by doctors and other professionals that I was too high functioning. Imagine my shock (but also validation) when a psychologist looked at me and said "you're on the spectrum, right?" after only being in a room with me on a few occassions after losing Adeline.
A Wanderluster,
Travel is one of my favorite things in life. I have to always be on the go and discovering and enjoying new spaces. I love to go to places where there are lots of trees and enjoy activities like hiking and taking walks in nature. I plan on working towards more hiking and local activities to try and feed this desire becuase if life were up to me, I would spend any time not working, living like a nomad. I just love new experiences and such.
A Lover of Trees,
Trees are one of the most beautiful and magical creations on Earth. I feel so much peace and so grounded when I am in the presence of trees. It is not uncommon for me to see a tree and feel a very strong pull to give that tree a hug. It puts a new meaning to the phrase "tree hugger".
A Daughter,
My parents have become my rock in recent years. I was not the type of person who was ever really close with others. In a way it was Adeline who taught me how to be close to other humans and with her being gone, having my parents close by has been one of the greatest blessings in life. I even bought a house 5 doors down from theirs.
A Granddaughter,
I feel incredibly blessed and fortuante to have two living grandparents. I try to talk to and spend as much time as possible with them both, but I know that this is an area where I need a lot of improvement.
A Sister,
I have one brother who I enjoy spending time with. One of my favorite ways to spend time with him is going to baseball games.
A Historian,
As a historian, I am always reading and discovering new/different angles to the ihstory that I thought that I knew. History is like the world's biggest puzzle that is neverending. I will be blogging my way through some history books in the near future. I am so ready to share what I am reading with all of you!
Obsessed with the Mid-20th Century,
Obsessed might not be the right word becuase it feels so much more than that. I feel so blessed to own a small little mid-century brick ranch that I am constantly working to create a mid-century experience within. When you enter my home, I want you to be filled with whimsy and nostalgia.
A Lover of Political Science,
While I have 18 sh of graduate level course work in political science, I know that I am not a political scientist. I love political sicence though, and enjoy sharing what I learn about the world of American politics with others. So, you can be sure that I will write about and share with you what I am discovering.
A Learner,
One of the first things that I establish with students each semester is that I look at every course as an opportunity to learn from and alongside my students. I enjoy learning and hope to never stop learning, no matter how long I live.
Spiritual,
I believe that there is more to life than what we see and I believe in being able to connect to the spititual aspects of life. I firmly believe that spiritual practices are rooted in your core belief system and that if you are a believer that your spirituality can grow without being evil or something that is not of God. I believe that as humans that so much good could be done by looking to our similarities rather than our differences.
A Family Member,
Family is something that will always be important to me, but also something that I believe firmly you have to learn to protect yourself from. Not all family members are good and you have to learn to cut those who are toxic from your life.
A Friend,
I tend to keep my circle pretty small. I have a tight group of confidants and friends whom I trust deeply. As an introvert and someone on the spectrum, making new friends can be so hard. I love hard, am fiercly loyal, but sometimes share what I think when I probably should keep my mouth shut. I'm learning to ask frieinds first if they want my honest opinion or for me to just be supportive and keep my opinon to myself. This has been a really intense process but one that has paid off with the best friendships I have ever had my entire life.
A Trauma Survivor,
So many traumas have happened in my lifetime and I used to hate that I was the person who always. seemed to have something else to deal with on the horizon, but I realize that it is through overcoming these traumas that I have gained my strength.
A Fan of the Heat,
Summers are my favorite season. I don't mind spirng and fall for the most part, but winter is always going to be a struggle. I HATE being cold!
A Believer,
God has been with me through my darkest days. There were times when I felt disconnected from my walk in faith but learning to move past religion and religious practices towards the spiritual has brought me closer to God than I would have thought was possible. There are many days when I am able to clearly hear God's voice in what I should do. I do not always listen because many things are hard and let's face it, life is already hard enough but I know that I should and I am working on that.
Someone Who Seeks to Improve,
Improvement and self-improvement can be incredibly challenging. I am always striving to be a better version of myself. I want to improve in so many ways and hope that you will enjoy going on this journey of self improvement with me.
and A Writer.
I LOVE to write! I know when many people have the challenge of writing something that they panic. However, I do know that this is my time to shine and so I write. I hope that you will enjoy reaidng what I have to write and that this journey will be one that we can embark on togehter.
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