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About me I love reading other peoples blogs and often find that I want to know more about the authors who write them! I decided to make a little "about me" page for those who are curious like me! My name is Chelsea, I live in Saginaw, Michigan. Saginaw is known for two things: poverty and crime. Despite this, I was born and raised here and it is my home. I live in a nice, safe neighborhood outside of the city. The picture above is of me and my husband, Bob. We were married twice. The first, legally at the Saginaw Courthouse on March 10, 2011. The second, formally in front of our friends and family on June 2, 2012. We have two children (his children, my step-children): Chelsea who is 15 and Bryson who is 6. 1. Why did you start this blog? I love blogs. I find myself scrolling through other people's blogs for hours. After Bob and I found ourselves going through a hard time in life, I decided to start my own so that I can share our stories and inspire people at the same time. I find myself on a journey to become better. A better person, a better nurse, a better wife...just better. I plan to share my life experiences for the next year, writing an entry each day. I would like to build the blog up to share recipes, crafts, and basic household tips such as budgeting and organizing. I hope my journey to a "better me", inspires others as well. My first entry can be viewed here. 2. Why is your blog named "big, beautiful & broke"? I struggle with two main problems in life: being overweight and never having any money. The title I felt fit my life, as these struggles will likely last me...for a long, long time. Big: refers to my morbid obesity. I am 5'5" and I weight 282lbs. I have lost weight, gained it back and I will probably ALWAYS struggle with this. I'm sure you will witness my inner turmoil while reading. Beautiful: For this I will quote another great blog, Curvy Girl Revolution: "i'm not beautiful like you, i'm beautiful like me." Despite the fact that I am obese, I still find that I am beautiful and I am constantly trying to find ways to stay beautiful in mind, body & soul. Broke: I am a nurse, I make decent money, but I am also a shopaholic who is married to a shopaholic. We are chronic "eat-outers", meaning we prefer to go out rather than to cook. This blog was started as a coping reaction to a major financial stressor. 3. What is your occupation? I am a registered nurse in an emergency room. I graduated from Ferris State University in 2006 with an associates degree in nursing. Currently, I am back in school and will graduate will a bachelor's degree in December. Hopefully, I will enroll in a master's degree program this winter. 4. What types of crafts do you do? I love all kinds of crafts and thanks to Pinterest, I find more and more that I want to pursue! I love making jewelry and have an Etsy store where I sell some of my jewelry. I also crochet, cross-stitch and scrapbook. 5. What does Bob do? Bob is a paramedic and is currently going to school to become a registered nurse. 6. Why are you in school if you are a RN? I received my associates degree in nursing in 2006. I decided to go back to school last fall to obtain a bachelor's degree in nursing. These days if you want to move up the ladder, a BSN is required. I love educating and teaching, and having a bachelors degree will open up more doors in that area for me. I will graduate this fall and plan on continuing to get a Master's degree in nursing education. That is simply a personal goal for me. Hopefully this will give you some insight into who I am. I will add more Q&A as I get more from readers. Any questions? E-Mail Me: cmanzullo@gmail.com