https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy en-us 2018-09-05 20:44:23 UTC 2023-04-25 19:48:19 UTC hello@padlet.com whittakerm4 https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278204418 My family is quite literally my world. My dad passed away when I was five years old, so I've been raised by a single mom most my life. My younger brother, Pete, has Down syndrome and is the reason I want to be a teacher. My family is my heaviest influence everyday and are the reason I am who I am.]]> 2018-09-05 21:19:02 UTC https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278204418 whittakerm4 https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278205470 My mom read the book "Guess How Much I Love You" by Sam McBratney to me every night when I was a child. This became one of my favorite books growing up and the phrase "I love you to the moon and back" was spoken a lot in my home. When I moved into my dorm room freshman year my mom gave me a wood sign that had the phrase painted on it. ]]> 2018-09-05 21:23:47 UTC https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278205470 whittakerm4 https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278207353 Since the summer of 2006, my mom, sister, brother, aunt, and uncle have been traveling to Gulf Shores, Alabama every year for a week. We take two days and load up my uncle's car and leave around four o'clock in the morning and make the seventeen-hour long drive, stopping in Meridian, Mississippi the first day. Some of my best memories took place in Gulf Shores and we look forward to that vacation together every summer.  ]]> 2018-09-05 21:34:16 UTC https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278207353 whittakerm4 https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278210953 My dad was a chef and owned a restaurant so we often had fully cooked meals every night. He loved to bake and I loved to help. Whenever someone was in the kitchen cooking or baking, I was right next to them on a step stool waiting to help. As I got older, the only way my mom let me help was if I helped her read the directions. My favorite thing to bake was pumpkin bread, all year round.]]> 2018-09-05 21:53:37 UTC https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278210953 whittakerm4 https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278212505 I am so lucky to have a great group of friends who are supportive. My friends from high school are always there for me when I need them and I can always count on them to make me laugh. Between the six of us, we all ended up at different schools and they are all pretty far away from each other, so we really only see each other over breaks and occasionally random weekends. However, we still communicate through text every day. ]]> 2018-09-05 22:04:48 UTC https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278212505 whittakerm4 https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278214985 The summer before my sophomore year of high school we were assigned to read the book "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini. At that point in my life I wasn't big on reading and usually avoided it, especially if it was for school. However, this book was the turning point for me and school readings. I absolutely loved this book and I could not put it down. ]]> 2018-09-05 22:21:47 UTC https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278214985 whittakerm4 https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278215478 Whether I am doing homework, walking to class, driving, or really anything else you can think of, I am usually listening to music. I listen to pretty much all types of music but my favorite artist of all time is Billy Joel and my favorite song is Piano Man. The harmonica opening is one of the best things I've ever heard. ]]> 2018-09-05 22:25:48 UTC https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278215478 whittakerm4 https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278217039 The last book I read was "A Man Called Ove" by Fredrik Backman. I read cover to cover in less than a week, which means a lot for someone who usually doesn't read. I would get home from class or work, get all my homework done and sit in my room and read this book for hours. It was phenomenal and has made me want to read more often. When I finished the book, I actually sat in my bed and just cried because it was so good and I was so sad that it was over. ]]> 2018-09-05 22:37:11 UTC https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278217039 whittakerm4 https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278218285 I hate how much I enjoy social media, but most of the reading I do now is from Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or Snapchat. I do love to see what all the people I know are up to. If I'm really bored (or procrastinating) I will read the news articles on Snapchat. ]]> 2018-09-05 22:47:31 UTC https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278218285 whittakerm4 https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278219744 My brother, Pete, is the goofiest, happiest, and most loving person I know. He is such an inspiration to me daily and he has taught me so much more than I would have ever imagined. ]]> 2018-09-05 22:57:37 UTC https://padlet.com/whittakerm4/xg7ahef7jqmy/wish/278219744