The blog has grown exponentially in the past 2 months – 2020 is turning out to be a great year for blog traffic. That also means that I have new followers that may not know me!
I’m Kalissa. I’m 24. I live in rural northeast Iowa. I’m a mom of two boys Carver (3) and Gannon (1). I’m married to Craig, a farmer and agricultural mechanic. We’ve been married for 4.5 years now.
I’m a nurse. I was a CNA at 16, EMT at 18, LPN at 19, RN at 20 and got my BSN at 22. My experience is primarily in critical access hospitals as an emergency department nurse. I also teach nurses for the local community college where I went nursing school and where I met my husband who was studying to be a John Deere technician at the time.
I’m the youngest of five children. We grew up on the farm where my husband now works and my father worked for 25+ years.
My oldest sister Kelli is a nurse at the same hospital I work at. She is married to Jason who is a farmer and they have my niece Georgia Grace who is the same age as my son Gannon – one! They were born 1 week apart and make plenty of appearances on the blog.
My sister Kayla is 7 years older than me. She lives farther away with her husband Spencer who is an electrician. She’s an FCS teacher and they recently welcomed my nephew Jasper in early 2020.
My brother Buck also lives farther away with his girlfriend Lora, my nephew Scotty, my niece Lucy and they have baby #3 arriving in April! (that makes a total of 7 grandchildren under 4 years old!) Buck works construction and Lora is the manager of a Best Buy store.
My brother Karl lives just across town and I see him almost every day. My boys just adore uncle Karl who works as a Spanish translator for a local agricultural organization and also as an HR partner. Karl lived in Texas for awhile but we are so thankful to have him home and close to us. He is a good friend to us.
My mom is my very best friend. You may know her from her blog Jo’s Country Junction or her early childhood printable website Making Learning Fun. She also lives just across town and we see each other every day. She is “Grandma Joey” and runs her own in home childcare. She is the strongest woman I know and I love her dearly.
My Dad comes up a lot on the blog. My dad was a farmer, fireman and first responder. He’s the reason I’m a nurse today. He loved beer and farming and chocolate cake. He loved being a grandpa. He was gruff on the outside but soft on the inside. My parents were our best friends. We would play cards and spend many nights at their house. My dad worked harder than anyone I know until he was diagnosed with lung cancer last January. He passed away on June 2nd 129 days after his diagnosis. I talk a lot about life as a fatherless daughter and our journey with grief.
I started this blog in September of 2019 with the intention of morphing it into a blog about nursing but really it is just a blog about my life. I would love to focus more attention on my blog, maybe pick up vlogging, maybe start my own social media agency, maybe not even be a nurse when I grow up. The older I get, the less I know what I want out of my life. I’d love for you to follow along on this journey with me and see if I ever figure it out!
Here are some random answers to random questions to help you get to know me:
1. If You Had The World’s Attention For 30 Seconds, What Would You Say?
Don’t buy a Chevy Equinox – nothing but trouble. I love my Toyota Highlander. Read more on that here:
http://www.thepinkshoelaces.com/we-got-a-new-to-us-car-read-about-our-toyota-highlander/
2. If You Were Home On A Rainy Sunday Afternoon, What Movie Would You Most Want To See On Television?
Wolf of Wall Street! MY FAVORITE MOVIE! Totally inappropriate but still my favorite movie. I love anything based on a true story.
3. What Is The Stupidest Thing You’ve Done Because Someone Dared You To?
Stuck my tongue to a pole in 2nd grade to get into a “club.” Then we had chilli for lunch – OW! Allie Njus – if you’re reading this…that was dumb.
4. What’s Something You’ve Tried, That You’ll Never, Ever Try Again?
Multilevel marketing. UGH. I used to sell LuLaRoe and I’m so ashamed to admit that.
5. If Your Food Is Bad At A Restaurant, Would You Say Something?
THIS IS A GOOD STORY! I was like 8 months pregnant and craving Mexican food like no other. We went out and I ALWAYS order combination fajitas – usually with chicken, shrimp, steak, and chorizo. This was a new restaurant so I just found the first fajita on the menu that had all of that meat in it and ordered it. When my food came out, I took a bite and I literally had to spit it out. I couldn’t eat it at all. The fajita I ordered was called the infierno fajita. Infierno means hell. It was hotter than hell. I was NOT going to say anything but Craig did. I insisted on paying for BOTH fajitas and got the fajita I intended.
6. If You Had All The Money In The World, What Would Be The First Thing You’d Buy?
I would pay off my debt! We are on a debt free journey loosely follow Dave Ramsey’s plan.
7. If You Could Create Your Own Job Title, What Would It Be?
Social media content curator. It would be a pretty flexible position consisting of photography, interviewing, copy writing, basic graphic design, interacting with people on social media, and bringing life to local businesses’s Facebook page.
8. What Time Do You Normally Go To Bed?
When I’m living my best life? 8 pm. When am I normally in bed? 9:15.
9. What Is The Best And Worst Part Of Your Personality?
Best: I’m determined and driven and stubborn.
Worst: I’m determined and driven and stubborn.
10. What super power do you wish you had?
The ability to fill anything.
- Don’t want to talk to someone? Fill their bladder.
- Want a million dollars? Refill your bank account.
- Want more food? Refill your plate.
Either that or read minds.
That’s all I have folks! I’d love to have you follow along! I post every morning at 0530! Thanks for stopping! Leave a comment below answering one of my 10 questions – I want to get to know YOU!
The movie I would watch “Galaxy Quest” I am a lover of the Star stuff- Star Trek, Star Wars, Stargate, etc. Besides it make me laugh out loud! Mary ANn
The movie I would pick is Pollyanna or mar poppies !!
I love reading your blog, it is always interesting You remind me of a couple of my granddaughters, funny, serious, and work hard to get what they want in life. I also read your Mom’s blog and she and I could be good friends if we didn’t live about 4 states away from each other.
If I had 30 seconds I would tell the world: Be kind to one another and agree to disagree. You can still get along with someone even if his/her beliefs are different from yours.
I thought your answers to the Random questions were thoughtful, sincere, and I laughed hard at your desired super power, the ability to fill something. I love it, and it was so much more fun than the usual Want to fly, Want to have money, and Want to have more talents, etc.
I like your Super Power because it’s practical, sensible and fun as it an be..
I’m proud of you forgetting your debt paid off, you are indeed a sensible woman. I look forward to your blogposts and I am thrilled for your blog’s success. I also read your moms blog, I have been a quilter for over10 years. I was a daddy’s girl and I know how hard it is to lose your parents. Both of mine are gone and it’s especially hard on holidays. Just know I am one of your cheerleaders and wish you and your family much happiness.
I’ll answer #6. My husband & I are farmers and always say if we won the lottery we’d farm til it’s gone! We love our life but I’m sure you know the farm economy isn’t the greatest. I read your mom’s blog and enjoy yours too. I can relate to quite a few things in your lives as I live in western WI.
Wow, all those degrees and certifications by the time you were 22 years old. You must not have gotten much sleep back then just like nowadays with 2 little boys, a husband, and multiple jobs!