Christine Archibald

Hi, I am probably the last one to introduce myself! I am Christine Archibald am married to Kent and we have an adorable 22 mo old named Ian. We used to live in chilly Minnesota but moved about 6 months ago to Charlottesville Virginia after Kent graduated from the University of Minnesota Dental School.

We have really enjoyed Virginia so far but there are many things and people that we miss in Minnesota. I think Kent is having Hockey withdrawals!

I grew up in San Jose, CA, got an Industrial Design degree from BYU, served a Spanish speaking mission in New York City and eventually found myself working in Minnesota where I met Kent in the singles ward. We were married in the Salt Lake Temple and settled in Minnesota. I worked at Target Corporate Headquarters for 3 years designing products for the Target stores. It was a blast to work for them! I mostly worked on their kids bedding and furniture aisles along with bath furniture and accessories. After having Ian I decided to quit and become a freelance designer from home. Thanks to you girls who watched Ian for me while I worked! Freelancing has been great and was easy to move. I haven't done too many projects since we have moved because I have become consumed with my house.

We bought a house here in Charlottesville that needed a lot of work. Here is how the house looks now after some exterior love. We have officially painted every inch of this house: ceilings, doors, trim, walls, everything. I think before the seller put the house on the market they came in with cheap yellow paint and sprayed the entire interior yellow. I like yellow but with beige trim and doors and cream ceilings it looked hot, dirty, and outdated! It is amazing how you can improve a room with fresh paint. We have also laid some tile, replaced light fixtures, and updated some things in the kitchen and baths. We are done for awhile, thank goodness! I felt like I couldn't really move in fully with the house torn up.

Ian is the best little boy ever! He is really shy sometimes and quiet. He is starting to say words but sometimes they are hard to understand. He loved Thomas the train and has a train table that we bought from our neighbor. His latest thing is wanting to help with everything, painting, sweeping, unloading the dishwasher, etc. He is very sweet natured, I am a lucky girl.
I love being a mom too but I definitely struggle at times. I appreciate all of your posts and enthusiasm! At this point the thought of having a second is overwhelming, not that I am announcing anything! I look forward to posting more things and learning from all of you experienced moms!