Incredible Woman #29 - Rebecca Bird. Friday's Question.

Well, here we are - the last day of another Incredible Woman interview! I'm glad you decided to come back and read the last few questions of the interview with Rebecca.

KARA: "You’ve traveled quite a bit. Tell us about the different areas of the world that you’ve traveled to. Pick one thing that you loved the most in each of the countries you’ve traveled to. What is the one place you haven’t visited that you’d like to go to? What is the favorite souvenir you’ve brought back from your travels?"

BECCA: "I love to travel. Through my husband’s work at the college, we’ve been given several opportunities to travel. We’ve been to Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, England, and France. Next month we’ll go to Italy and Greece. We’ve taken the kids on a few trips in the U.S.—Washington DC; Pennsylvania; Chicago, Illinois. My oldest loves Chicago because we spent 2 1/2 weeks there in the summer of 2000. We rode the buses, went to museums, played on the beach of Lake Michigan, and traveled to Indiana to see some friends.

I think my favorite trip was the first. We spent 3 1/2 weeks traveling, but my favorite cities were St. Petersburg and Istanbul. The churches and art in both cities were astonishingly beautiful and each city had a distinct personality.

My favorite souvenir has to be the rug from Turkey. We saw how they were made, then saw nearly a hundred rugs and chose one we could afford.

Wow! Maybe someday I can persuade Becca to take me with her to a different country!

KARA: "Tell us your beauty secrets. How do you stay healthy? If you had one day all to yourself, what would you do?"

BECCA: "Beauty secrets? I just believe in exercising, drinking lots of water and eating right. I then try to refine nature with makeup. I believe in trying to look my best."

Thanks for stopping by this week for this interview with Rebecca. I have two sisters-in-law, and Becca is one of them. I've always loved her and I'm so pleased that I've had the chance to share her with you. I've told you before that I'm surrounded by incredible women - are you starting to believe me yet? :-) My thanks to Becca for hanging out with me last week - I had a great time, and it was a chance to get to know her even better. Thanks for the interview!

This interview will on the blog in it's entirety all day Saturday and Sunday. Sunday night we'll close and be UNDER CONSTRUCTION to prep for our next interview. Thanks to those of you who have nominated women for the blog - I'm working on getting every one of them on the schedule. Of course, we are still taking nominations all the time. Think about someone you'd like to honor.

Incredible Woman #29 - Rebecca Bird. Thursday's Question.

KARA: "I’ve always been impressed with how organized you are as a mom of 5 kids. It seems like you’ve always got something going on. Give us some ideas and advice in juggling our responsibilities with our children. I’ve also heard that you have helped at your childrens' schools throughout the years. Talk about that – what is your favorite thing to do at the schools?"

BECCA: "I’m not an organized mom of 5 kids. There’s something about my brain that balks at strict schedules and organization. We fulfill our commitments and don’t take those lightly, but our schedule at home is more relaxed. I need a more relaxed approach to home life or I become harsh and tense. I get headaches from the stress, I’m less pleasant to be around, and I don’t like myself, so we stay organized only to a point, then we relax.

I do help at the kids’ schools sometimes. About 10 years ago, I was PTO president at our elementary school. I was pregnant and then had a new baby at the time, so it was strenuous, but I enjoyed most of it. I like to help at the class parties mostly. When others need someone, they know they can ask and I’ll try to help them out. This year I was persuaded to be an Art Mom. This is the second time I’ve done it, but it’s a challenge for me because I’ve never felt like I could draw or do art. I’ve learned a lot and find the projects fun."


KARA: "What inspires you?"

BECCA: "What inspires me? Seeing those around me rise to challenges."

Please return tomorrow to join us for the last day of Rebecca's interview. We'll find out about her travels, and what her beauty secrets are!

Incredible Woman #29 - Rebecca Bird. Wednesday's Question.

KARA: "You told me that you started a book club about 15 years ago. That’s an amazing amount of time to keep something like that going. Talk about your book club – what kinds of books do you read, how often do you meet, etc. What makes a successful bookclub?"

BECCA: "Other than my family, I’m most proud of my literary club. I started it in October, 1994. Our group fluctuates in size, but we have anywhere from 8 to 20 at the monthly meetings. We discuss a book we’ve all read. It’s fun. Because of the nature of literature, we discuss all types of ideas. I enjoy it both when we agree and disagree."


KARA: "Everyone has trials – I believe it’s how we grow and develop into amazing people. So, talk about trials. What do you do to get through trials?"

BECCA: "I believe everyone has trials in their lives. I believe some people are given more than others and some bring on their own by their decisions. I also believe that trials help to refine us into more Christlike individuals. Yet, I’ve felt that my trials so far have been very minor. I don’t live in fear of the future, but know there will most likely be a time I’ll be tried more than I have so far; I just hope I’ll find the strength I need when that time comes. I believe that if I’m living according to Christ’s teachings, I can turn to Him when I face a challenge and I will be given the strength to bear up. The key is that I need to bear it by turning to Christ, only then I can take any challenge that comes."

Join us again tomorrow as we continue our interview with Rebecca. We'll talk about being an organized mom, and what inspires Rebecca.

Incredible Woman #29 - Rebecca Bird. Tuesday's Questions

KARA: "You’ve got a degree in communications, and teach some college classes. Tell us about that. What is your favorite thing about being a teacher? Talk about the importance of education in your family."

BECCA: "I teach one night class of college writing every semester. I’ve done it for about 14 years. I love helping students and interacting with them. Each class has its own personality and I enjoy getting them to think and write more critically.

Education is important in our family. I grew up knowing that a college degree was expected. My children are growing up knowing the same thing. I only have a bachelor’s degree and haven’t decided yet whether I’ll pursue a master’s. I’ve raised the family while my husband has worked and earned his master’s and doctoral degrees. I feel it’s very important to nurture the children we bring into this world. Now that my children are all in school, I’m considering the options for career and education and haven’t decided which is best for me and my family."


KARA: You are LDS, and you are the President of the children’s organization at your church. Describe that – talk about the challenges and the blessings. In what other ways have you helped out at your church?"

BECCA: "I’m president of our LDS ward’s Primary. It’s a children’s organization that teaches the gospel. I love working with the children. Our ward has just over 50 children who are divided into classes by age group. My job as president is to organize their classes; suggest teachers to our priesthood leaders; and coordinate activities, presentations, classes, music leaders, teachers, etc. It can be very busy at times, but I love it and know how important it is for the children to learn the gospel young. The children are each different and amazing. I’ve done this for almost 3 years now.

One thing about our church is that everyone is given many opportunities to serve. Once I’m finished with this calling (job), I could be asked to teach one of the children’s classes, work with the teenagers in a youth organization, teach adults, or simply visit a few women in the ward once a month. There’s much work to be done and people do whatever they’re asked. It may not be something I’m comfortable with, but I’ve grown with each calling I’ve ever had.

My biggest challenge was teaching adult Sunday School. I loved it. I worked to find new ways of thinking about the things we hear again and again, so that it was a growing experience for everyone. I’m not certain I succeeded for everyone, but my knowledge and faith grew. Now my faith grows as I see children understand concepts I teach. It’s something different but equally fulfilling."

Join us tomorrow as Rebecca answers my questions about her book club, and about her thoughts on trials. I'll also have a slideshow up on the blog with pictures of Becca and her family.

Incredible Woman #29 - Rebecca Bird. Monday's Questions

This week I'm please to feature someone I've know for a very long time - Rebecca Bird. I'm sure you'll love her as much as I do...

KARA: "Describe yourself. What makes you an incredible woman?"


BECCA: "I’m a happily married, mother of five beautiful children. As with most women, I don’t find myself that incredible. I have the luxury of staying home with my children during the day, but choose to work part time in the evenings. I am an adjunct college English teacher. I’ve always claimed that I have the best of both worlds. I teach so that the daily chores and stresses of child rearing and running a household don’t become tedious. I get bored easily with a daily routine, so this helps me to break it up and keep my mind active in a different way. I can appreciate the time with my family, and know that they aren’t the only aspect of my life.

I enjoy reading, exercising, crocheting and watching my kids play soccer and dance. I love to travel and have had several opportunities to do so. I started a literary club 16 years ago (October 1994), and am proud that it is still thriving. Membership waxes and wanes, but many of us are incredibly committed to it and the friendships we’ve formed. I love serving in my church and accepting any challenges offered by the different ways I’m asked to serve."


KARA: "Tell us about your family. What have you learned from each one?"


BECCA: "I’ve been married for almost 21 years to a man I love deeply. I respect his commitment to education, his love and respect for all human beings. He treats me with love and respect, and encourages me to be the person I want to be. He has willingly taken over childcare in the evenings that I teach and has done that even with my tiny babies. He operates on the view that he is not “babysitting,” but parenting. I’ve learned much from and with him. One of the most surprising things was not to be shy or timid about pursuing dreams. He’s not flashy or showy, but if he wants to do something, he just does it.

Jacqueline, my oldest daughter, has always amazed me. She’s nineteen and living 300 miles away at college. She’s always been a good friend and been the bridge between many groups. She accepts flaws in her friends without judging them and is mature about forgiveness. Her adventurous spirit is growing, and she’s branching out with a study abroad in England this summer.

Greg, my oldest son, got his father’s work ethic. He’s focused and completes tasks quickly and well. We could never keep him busy enough with homework, so we’ve encouraged him to take part-time jobs. He loves to spend money, so we helped him set limits on his spending. He now has a nice savings account that will help him serve a mission for our church and go to college. I’ve learned from him that people are willing to meet clear and reasonable expectations.

Corinne is my middle child. We’ve often joked about her being the forgotten child in the middle, but I didn’t realize how much it affected her until her older sister went away to school. Corinne has matured immensely in this last school year. She stepped up and played the role of older sister. She helps happily, treats the younger children with more respect, and is very responsible. It seems she was just waiting for the chance to shine. I’m sad to think she may have felt forgotten, but I’m very grateful for the opportunity to see her shine. She is a great idea person. She often comes up with ideas of how to work things better. I’ve used several of them, and am less and less surprised when they work. She thinks things through well. She has a joyous soul. We could have lost her before she was born, and I’m incredibly grateful she’s part of my life.

All of my children are bright. They work hard at school and are very responsible, so they have been successful. Claire seems to have a natural ability to learn things easily. She is, however, more burdened by the pressure to perform than my other children. She worries and stresses. I’m trying to learn from her how to help her excel without pressuring her too much.

Mark is my baby. He’s bright and funny. He takes everything in stride and enjoys life. From him I’m learning more about the need to be consistent."

As always, I'll be posting 2 questions/answers each day this week. Please return and learn more about this Incredible Woman. Tomorrow we'll discuss Becca's college job and her church job. See you then."