Goodness, I'm not as technically savvy as I thought.....

So, okay......I hate to admit It took me forever to figure out how to sign back onto my blog to post something else....all I have to say about that is- LOL. I've been healing from a severe sprained ankle now for about 8 weeks and I'm just now walking again. Only bummer is I think I may have developed some sort of arthritis in my ankle now. The doctor said that that might happen. I'm going to have to Google arthritis now because the only thing I really know about it is that older people get it. I'm 29! How can this be??? Learning about the human body has always intrigued me anyway so I love Google for that. So much you can learn. I was never interested in science until I became an adult. I love it now:) I bass fish with my hubby a lot, and at first it was the science behind it all that saved me from boredom. Now I really do like fishing and the science behind it is just icing on the cake! Anyway....short post ya'll. Nighty nite!

Stepping into the blogsphere....here we go!

Hello all. My name is Jennifer Van Der Woodsen and this is my very first blog! I am a happy wife of just about 5 years (July 16th) to my wonderful hubby, Jason Van Der Woodsen. Yes...it's a long name, and it wasn't his actual last name, but last September we had decided to change it. We were Drewry's and now we are Van Der Woodsen's. We are excited because this change of name has brought about freedom for my husband. Long story and personal...but all ya need to know is that we LOVE our new last name. Especially me because I'm an artist and this new last name, although long, is super artsy :)

We've had a great past 5 years of being married. We've had our ups and downs, but through it we have come to know one another better and learned how to navigate life as a team. Jason and I met through a friend of mine who he actually dated for a short time. She saw we had more of a connection than the two of them and she gave us her blessing. Although, at the time I didn't like Jason like that. He didn't seem at all my type and I thought my friend was nuts. As time went by I started looking into Jason's personality as we hung out as friends and realized that I really did like him. He was smart, funny, athletic and an adventurer. He intrigued me to say the least!

Our very first kiss was in a hidden side maze in Colonial Williamsburg on the fourth of July, 2004. 6 months later he proposed to me at that very same spot on New Years Day. It was so funny because this hidden maze isn't lit at all, so he pretty much proposed in the dark! Maybe he felt less nervous that way, who knows! I said yes through tears and we ran off trying to find a lamp on one of the side streets so I could actually see my engagement ring! It was a night to remember :)

We have pretty much remained in Williamsburg, except a year in Newport News that we would rather not talk about because it was awful. We're not city folk. At least not for living in. Visiting yes. I think living in NN gave us a fresh perspective on Williamsburg and how much of a gem it is.

Jason and I own a home improvement business called Benchmark Painting and Home repair. Jason has been doing this kind of work for about 12 years. He learned all he knows from his dad and his uncles. He is very gifted with his hands and prides himself on quality work. I jumped on as business owner in January 2009 and I'm now a stay at home wife, taking care of bills, accounting and working on my own business; Photography and Art.

In late January of this year I fell down our garage steps and sprained my ankle pretty bad. The upside is it gave me a lot of time to delve into something I've been dreaming of doing for a LONG time. Writing a Children's book. I've always dabbled in poetry and song writing and also illustrating....but I never gave myself enough credit. I lacked the belief in myself to actually do it. So....that's one of the many projects I am working on right now.

I also started my own Photography business this past September (2009). Jason has been the driving force behind me going after my dreams. He is amazingly encouraging. He believes in me more than I do. I'm working on that one :)

He helps me believe in myself and helps me see how talented I can be.

It's getting late and I've got to figure out how to navigate the rest of this blog site...so....g'nite!