About

Hi! I'm Bethany.

I have been blogging off and on for the past few years. My blog started out being named Bethany the ngnrdgrl. What does that mean? Yeah… hence the blog name change in late March of 2015.

My husband and I have been having an exciting couple of years. We bought a house in March 2014, married in July 2014 and got pregnant in October 2014. Now the husband is graduating from college in March 2015 and our first baby is due in July 2015.

With all of the excitement focused around building our family and setting up our home, I decided I needed to shift my blogging focus. Before it was just about my personal hobbies. Now I want to blog about Life, Family and all the things between. My new last name is Steadman, so the new blog name is a play on my last name.

Grab your favorite hot beverage, take a gander at the blog, and let’s have a conversation!

Want to know even more about me? Here are 5 additional things about me:

1. My husband and I were married by a pirate.

My husband and I are both atheists. We decided very early on that our wedding would be secular (read about how I wrote our wedding script). Our officiant is a close friend of ours. We picked him because he is very extroverted and has a hobby of hosting podcasts, so we knew he would feel comfortable getting in front of our friends and family. The pirate costume was a joke that he ran with. I love that it is something about our wedding that no one will ever forget. 'Cause let's face it, weddings are pretty forgettable in general.

2. I have the coolest stepson EVAH!

He once sent my husband this text message: "What if Indiana Jones is a dream of Han Solo's while he was frozen in carbonite?" OMGosh! Nerdgasm!

He really is a cool kid. The two of us have had existential conversations and he has an infectious laugh. His whole face just lights up!

Here are some of my favorite pictures of him:

My Stepson is the coolest! - Camping 2012, Bite of
Seattle 2012, Hiking 2011 (left to right, top to bottom)

{Ooops! These pictures are getting quite dated. I'll have to find some newer pictures of him. He's a giant teenager now!}

You can read more posts involving my Family here.

3. I work 40+ hours per week as a Civil Engineer.

I am a Civil Engineer and I love my job! I am a part of a team that designs schools, libraries, parks, fire stations, community colleges, universities and other civic buildings. I love that I feel like I am giving back to the community.

My mom is a teacher. I build schools. It just feels right.

Enginerd in a Pipe - One of my projects in construction is a new high school that requires roughly 1 mile of 8-foot diameter pipe for stormwater detention. I actually went inside one that was half buried 20-feet below the ground! It was freaky!

My main interest in engineering is sustainable design. In the pacific northwest, our streams are in danger due to urban runoff. This is detrimental for our Salmon population, which is on the endangered species list. Stormwater management is critical for the preservation of these species.

This year (December 2012) I earned my Professional Engineering License, which is a big deal. It took two 8 hour-long tests, four years apart (required), to receive my license. I spent 3 months studying for the second exam. Nailed it!

Not really though. It is a really hard test! Only 60% of testers passed, which is pretty good. My coworker was taking his third level structural exam. Only 19% of people passed that one. Yikes!

4. I grew up sailing around the San Juan Islands and have three sailboats in the family.

My younger brother has a 28-foot Skookum. My oldest brother has a 35-foot Spencer. My parents have a 35-foot Baba. I actually grew up sailing on the 28-foot sailboat, as it was originally my parents, sold to my oldest brother, then passed down to my younger brother. Yeah, we keep it in the family!

Family of Sailboats - From left to right, S/V Grasshopper (28-foot Skookum), S/V Bansidhe (25-foot Spencer), S/V Time (34-foot Baba) (S/V = Sailing Vessel)

To make things even more interesting, my third brother built his own, round house on Waldron Island, which is in the San Juan Islands. This island has no ferry access, no water, no sewer, no electricity and barely any cell reception. Here is a picture of his house while still in construction:

My brother's round house. It is styled after a yurt (a Mongolian tepee). (Summer 2011)

5. I am owned by a quaker parrot named Peri.

Ok, ready for some cuteness?

My parrot loves taking baths:

My parrot is trick trained (she actually knows more tricks now, I just haven't filmed them or uploaded them yet):

My parrot is learning to fly. 

She flew from my lap onto my husbands head!

My parrot loves to snuggle. 

All snuggled up with my hand and sleeping.

She starts petting herself if she doesn't get snuggled/petted.