We Thought You’d Never Ask: Volume 7

Always rainbows and sunshine? Sure! Except for when it’s not. We assure you there are plenty of thunderstorms.

If you haven’t ever read a reader’s questions post, check out volume 1, volume 2, volume 3, volume 4, volume 5 and volume 6. You can really get to know us in this blog series, our struggles, our triumphs, our stories.

Some of the questions we received this week have already been answered in previous We Thought You’d Never Ask posts, so take a peek at those too!

1. Do you guys ever get in fights? Get sick of each other? Feel like you’ve had too much of one another?

JM: We never fight. We answered this question on stories a few weeks ago and there was only one time in the many, many years that we’ve been friends where we had an argument. It was waaaay back in college. Nick and I were broken up (I was dating someone else) but Paige sat on his lap at a party and I was like NO MA’AM. She remembers me sending her an AOL message (because that’s what we did in 2000) that read “this is a good way to loose a friend”. Ouch. We very promptly made up when a teary Paige came up to me at chapter and swore she would never hurt me on purpose. First and hopefully last argument of our friendship.

PW: Yeah that was a weird night. College drinking and naively not realizing Jeni was still in love with Nick. I sat on his lap, we hung out all night and then he came to my dorm room. He was talking to my roommate and I telling us funny stories, specifically one that had me rolling about his brother’s experience in the LA penitentiary. But I hear that familiar little doodleydoot sound coming from my turquoise triangular prism shaped original iMac computer. It was AOL instant messenger. It was Jeni Taylor. She was pissed. It went a little something like this:

jeni07: um is nick with you?

paiger35: yes, he is here.

jeni07: that’s a good way to ruin a friendship

paiger35: oh my gosh I’m sooooooo sorry!!! I thought you were happy with Craig!

At that moment, things got really awkward, I turned from fun laughing joking Paige into anxiety attack Paige. The fun was sucked out of the room and I’m sure Nick left and I’m sure Allison and I talked the rest of the night about what I was going to do with pissed Jeni.

I cried at Kappa Delta chapter that next Monday, told her I was sorry and never meant to start shit. She knows my soul and that I truly meant it, so we made up and moved on 2 minutes later.

Other than that, no fights, no problems, no getting sick of each other.

2. Do you guys get approached when you are out at malls, restaurants, etc

JM: I have never been approached… boo.  Paige is the famous one of this duo.  But really, it makes me laugh a little to even think of someone approaching me because we are such small potatoes.  I really do appreciate all the people who follow along though and if you see me out and about come say hi, it would make my freaking day.  

PW: Not really. Once at a gym and once at preschool drop off, oh yeah and once at a restaurant, I think that’s it. I was thrilled to be able to meet some people that follow along in real life! Thanks for thinking anyone could even possibly recognize one of us!

3. Advice for new first time mom? How did you guys get through alllll the sleepless nights in the beginning?

JM: Being a new mom is hard.  Period. After I had Jackson I had no idea what I was in store for.  I had dreamt of being a mom for most of my life and here I was NOT living the dream.  He was a very colicky baby, never slept and screamed for hours and hours on end. Add in a marriage that was struggling and full blown postpartum depression and I felt like a total failure.  I was so overtired and scared to sleep because I was convinced he would die from SIDS.  Not my finest moments y’all.  My advice would be to find a strong support system.  Someone who will listen when you are in new baby heaven and want to talk about every little precious thing your child did that day or someone who will call a doctor and make an appointment for you so you can get the biggest bottle of anti-depressants they prescribe when you are losing your freaking mind. Hang in there..for me going from 0-1 kid was ROUGH. Adding in a second and a third was a breeze and I was in new mom BLISS

PW: I would not go back to that era of my life for anything. I was a freaked out, post partum anxiety, sleep deprived, puffy disaster in a wiggly skin suit. I found a lot of comfort in books that would outline the general stages of infancy and what I might be able to expect. I remember crying because I was so tired and perched on my legs was a wide eyed, alert as can be Baby Blake. Googling can you die from sleep depravation could be found on my browsing history. A reoccurring thought was, how in the world have women for millions of years done this and how have we survived as a species? This is no joke. I also remember wanting to put the baby back in my belly where she was quiet, happy and content. The world was too much for her for about a solid 8 years and that was a harsh welcome to the new mom club. One thing that worked well for Zach and I was taking shifts. I would go to sleep at like 8pm, Zach would try and let me sleep as long as he could, then we would switch. He had to be at work so he had to get a good stretch of sleep. I would pump some so he could feed a bottle. I would usually take over around midnight or 1 and get whatever half ass sleep I could. If you are in these early trenches with your first baby, God bless you. It gets a million times better and this too shall pass. And no Janet, that does not mean I didn’t love having a newborn.

4: Do your husbands get along as well as both of you guys do?

JM: Our husbands get along so well!  We married very similar guys.  Salt of the earth, good dudes. They put their families first and are the best dads.  If you are single and reading this marry a guy like Nick or Zach. 

PW: Yes! They are two of the most genuine amazing men. Zach Walker makes friends with everyone including Craig’s List buyers who come to pick up furniture. He adores Nick and they have a blast together!

5. If you guys could move anywhere in the world, would you guys move together somewhere? Or would you always stay in Texas?

JM: I am a Texas girl through and through. I love it here and this is where my family and friends are. IF I could pick up and move anywhere I am pretty sure I could be very happy in Southern California.

PW: We live about an hour apart right now which doesn’t make working together on this very convenient. I would love to live on the same street, but that just isn’t a possibility right now. If I could move anywhere, I would stay in Fort Worth because my friends and family are here and that beats any beautiful scenery any day!

6. Do you guys ever judge one another?

JM: I judge her when its November and she is working 21 hour days and she can’t see straight. She is a workaholic with more energy than I could ever have. Thats as far as my judgey thoughts go with Paige Walker though…I am her biggest fan.

PW: Nope! Well she might judge me lol, but I don’t even think about stuff like that. Not that I don’t ever judge anyone, that would be a lie. I just don’t have much time for shit talking fests or even care or know what to say. Unless it’s like some enormous scandal or shocking news, I just do my thing and stay as far out of any drama as I can. Drama gives me the bubble guts.

7. Did both of you breastfeed?

JM: I breastfed all 3 kids.  With Jackson and his grouchy, colicky ways he wouldn’t take the boob so I pumped for a solid year then gave him bottles of breastmilk.  When I got pregnant with Presley I swore I would never do double duty again.  She would either take the boob or get formula.  She nursed so easily from day 1 and I ended up breastfeeding her for almost a year.  Hayes was the same way.  Since I was a stay at home mom it was an easier option for me to just whip a boob out then prepare bottles and clean them.  Plus I really enjoyed this time with them and cried when it was all over.  That only lasted a bit then I was so happy to have my body back to myself.

PW: I exclusively breastfed Blake for 13 months, Kylie for 15, Aven for 13 and Griffin for 12. I’m very proud of my labor of love, it wasn’t easy, it wasn’t convenient and there were times milk shot across the room. But I did it! I set a goal and I did it!

8. What are typical dinners like for your family? Do you meal plan or wing it?

JM: I really wish I was the meal planner type but I am just not. We wing it most nights and dinner is never anything very exciting or gourmet. Spaghetti and Tacos on the regular over here. We usually eat out a couple times a week and we also use Home Chef and love it!

PW: One of the best decisions I have made is using Home Chef . It is so delicious and so easy and brings up my quality of life. We used to pick up food most night and I was kind of chubby. My kids rarely eat it, but Zach and I can’t say enough great things about it! I pick 3 meals a week and I get giddy selecting them on the app. We wrote a whole blog about it here.

9. Paige do you have any regrets over your mommy makeover? How long were you “under” for? Was your husband supportive?

PW: Another one of the best decisions I have made was the mommy makeover. Putting my body back together was important for my vain self. I wasn’t ok with the 4 pregnancy aftermath and I felt so self conscious about my bulgy belly.

I was under for 8 or so hours which sounded so scary to me. I texted my PS wife, who is also a friend and had her talk me off the ledge when I was starting to freak out.

My husband thinks I shouldn’t do anything to my body and just be my awesome hot self. What he doesn’t realize is my awesome hot self is a result of years and years of maintenance, healthy choices and giving a damn. Easy to say to someone who does the upkeep. But even if I didn’t, he would love every single thing about me because that is the man he is. He tells me he doesn’t deserve me, that I’m too good for him and that my hotness intimidates him. ha! I find that hilarious and ridiculous, but I will take it! He is one hell of a catch.

10. Whats the best romantic destination for couples you have been to?

JM: Turks. We stayed at Grace Bay and it was probably the most beautiful beach I have ever seen. We also really enjoyed the food and the culture there.

PW: Probably Paris. It was for our 10 year anniversary and it was so fun to take away all the kids and the life stress and realize that we still have such a great time together. It’s hard once you have so many other distractions to remember why you even fell in love in the first place. But when it’s just us, it’s still fun!

11. What is your favorite perfume? Candle? Soap? Shampoo/Conditioner?

JM: As far as soap goes, I buy whatever is on sale at Kroger usually dove or dial. The other favorites are below.

PW: Perfume-Black Opium, Candle-Volcano, Soap-no favorite soap, maybe soap on a rope, that’s a fun concept ;), shampoo-kerastase

How do you store/back up your personal photos/videos?

JM: I’ve lost sleep at night thinking about how devastated I would be if I somehow lost all of my kids baby pictures. I don’t feel like I have a perfect set up. We use google photos and also have external hard drives. I’d like for it to be more organized but just haven’t had the time to take on such a big project.

PW: iCloud and an external hard drive.

12. Favorite Date night restaurant in Fort Worth?

PW: I kind of like the cliche quintessential Fort Worth spots- reata, Joe t’s, we always love Del Frisco’s, I could go on and on. Fort Worth absolutely rules.

13. How did you create your following so quickly?

JM: I am not the most patient and it doesn’t feel very quick to me. We really try to not focus on the numbers and just do us.

PW: Goodness gracious we feel like it has been a super slow build. Bit by bit. Being open and ourselves I think helps people to connect with us more than the “swipe up for this tank, swipe up for this bracelet” style of influencer. Connecting with other bloggers and influencers in our area has helped. We support each other, engage on instagram and have met a few in person. Hashtags help some. I don’t know, I’m no social media expert, but I’m happy that there seems to be a steady incline! One thing we think is nuts is buying followers. As much as we want to hit that 10k mark so we can utilize the swipe up feature, fake or purchased followers just seems so cheesy. We aren’t in this for the numbers, we are in this to truly connect and have fun with actual humans that actually choose to follow.

14. What are other kids names you considered?

JM: I’ve always been obsessed with the name Ruby but could never get anyone else on board. Ellie was our girl name for Hayes.

PW: Hudson for Blake, Lincoln for Kylie, Lennox for Aven (I see lots of girls named Lennox now so I’m kind of glad we didn’t go that route) and Griffin we found out so early and just decided quickly and went with it.

15. Do you have any siblings?

JM: Only child. Well actually I do have a half brother but I rarely see him. Growing up he would spend a few weeks with us around Christmas and in the summers and I always looked forward to that time. I used to beg my mom for a sibling but she had to have a hysterectomy after I was born. So spoiled only child I became.

PW: I have one amazing brother. He’s 3 years younger, rips on the guitar, is covered in tattoos, is a general contractor in Santa Barbara, loves him some cats, is constantly joking (like we are probably embarrassing in public together) has been sober for around 20 years and is just an overall gem.

16. Top 3 trips you have taken?

JM: Punta Mita (Where we got married), Turks, Exuma

PW: Exuma, Paris, Punta Mita (all adult only trips)

17. How many hours per week do you spend on Style Duplicated?

JM: It’s a lot. I cannot imagine doing it all on my own and in reality I need Paige to hold me accountable or I probably wouldn’t. It’s 11:30 pm right now as I am typing this. There is no way I’d be up this late on my own but since she is depending on me to get it done, get it done I will. I would say it is probably about the same amount of time as a part time job. I’m just trying to squeeze those hours into places that don’t overlap with my mom duties so that can be challenging but I am loving it.

PW: A lot. We work on it everyday unless we are on vacation. Since I am the on staff photographer (hehe) that takes up quite a bit of time. Sometimes I wait until the morning of a post to edit a photo and post it on instagram. We try to write 3 blogs a week and each blog takes many hours. The research, the linking, the actual writing. We work so well together though and have loved building this. Jeni is far more organized than I am and runs the calendar of what we need to do. When you add in meet ups for photo shoots and things we need to do together it is basically a full time job. There are so many behind the scenes business type tasks that we would love to hire someone to do someday soon.

18. How often do you wash your hair?

JM: Twice a week on average. Maybe more if I have somewhere to be or less if I’m just going to the pool.

PW: Once a week. Partially due to laziness dating back across my entire hair washing history and partially due to not being very oily. I’ve just always gone as long as I can between washes and I feel for people who have to wash their hair frequently. It’s a frickin’ event to have to wash and dry this mop.

19. The influencer sub-culture is facisnating to me. Do you feel like you fit in with it?

JM: I honestly don’t even know what that means. HAHA. I think for us we just try to be true to who we really are and show the good, bad and sometimes ugly.

PW: Eh, not really. Fitting in has never been my thing. I think if we got together with a bunch of other bloggers in their 30s we would have a grand old time. We try and just do our own thing and hope that it works. If you read our blog and follow on instagram and feel like you want to go get a drink with us or be our friend, then I feel like we are doing what we set out to do.