1. A few months before starting this blog we had never painted brick, ripped up a carpet, upholstered a chair, made a headboard, caulked anything, changed out hardware or done pretty much any of the other tutorials we’ve since figured out and shared on our How To page (we’re true believers in learning as you go).
2. Our license plate says “Burgrr” (custom plates are only $10 here so we couldn’t resist).
3. John’s middle name is Freeman in honor of his grandfather (his first name honors his other grandfather named John).
4. My first name is actually not Sherry, it’s Sherry-Beth (my mom thinks it flows like Elizabeth, but it doesn’t- in fact it pretty much ruined my life growing up so I quickly adopted Sherry to avoid the Bobby-Joe-Becky-Sue country bumpkin comparison).
5. The irony of my good ol’ girl name is that my mom’s side of the family is extremely Italian (for example, her name is Diana Teresa DeCesare LaPadula and I have an Uncle Vito, a Grandpa Carmen, and a Cousin Dominick) so the odd country/southern reference in my name is totally out of left field (and my brothers and cousins got totally normal monikers: Daniel, David, Adam, Tim, Jennifer).
6. John kissed me first (anyone who knows us is blown away by this because he’s generally the shy one and I’m the loud crazy one).
7. John used to do improv comedy in college and in NYC after he graduated but opted out of that lifestyle after he realized he liked to sleep at night and be awake during the day (thank goodness or I never would have met him working in advertising). Many of his improv acquaintances have gone on to be super famous (he knew Kenneth from 30Rock and a girl named Jenny Slate who’s on SNL this season).
8. I had a tumor in my airway (between my nose and my throat) in middle school. Can you imagine how many times I had to hear “it’s not a tumor”? Thankfully it was benign and two surgeries later I was as good as new. I also had teeth that grew in near the back of my throat and had to be slowly pulled to the front of my mouth through a series of torturous wire tightening exercises (but in hindsight, having a normal smile is totally worth the effort). I always ask my mother what the heck she ate when I was in the womb but she has yet to tell me.
9. John doesn’t drink. Not a drop. He never has, which almost everyone at work quickly learned after a few happy hours with him (he was still the life of the party, just never the one we had to put in a cab at the end of the night). His unwavering willpower and amazing ability never to be “that drunk guy” made him incredibly intriguing and appealing to me… and still has me hooked to this day. Update: We’re not Mormons – which is actually a pretty popular “internet rumor” about us – haha! More on that here.
10. John and I tried out for the Amazing Race back when we were friends right on the cusp of dating (our hook was that the race would either ruin any shot at a relationship or bring us together). We didn’t even get a call back, which I now realize is a good thing as my terrible sense of direction and loud mouth would probably have made us a pretty lame team. I still think John could win the entire thing with a better partner though. He’s great at reading maps, having a strong sense of direction and running (three things I don’t do).
So that was a fun little Friday departure. What about you guys? Any strange facts that will blow us away about you, our lovely readers? Anything that we revealed above that totally surprises you? Number 1? Number 9? Number 10? Do tell.
Jennifer says
Not a fun fact about me, but of my best friend. She had 7 wisdom teeth. So, you weren’t the only weird tooth girl back in the day!!
Lisa in Seattle says
It sounds like John would be great at road rallying! What other hobbies do you guys have (or have time for!) besides home renovating? That second photo of Burger is now officially my favorite – so cute!
Reader fact: I’m on a 30-hour day, not a 24-hour day. If I could, I’d stay up for 20 hours in a row and then sleep 10. So far, though, Corporate America isn’t going for it.
Kasey at Thrifty Little Blog says
I can’t get over the fact that John knew Kenneth!
Kim C. says
I don’t know how you do home improvement without drinking. It doesn’t matter what time it is, if I’m painting something, I’m having a beer. And I’m not a girl that normally drinks beer. That’s willpower.
Beatrix H says
Love this post!
My husband and I tried out for the Amazing Race too! Our friends thought we were nuts but we’ve always been the ones to follow our own path!!
Thanks for sharing!
Tiffini S. says
You know the old trick “Can you stick out your tongue and touch your nose?” At which point you stick out your tongue, then touch your nose with your finger. I can actually stick out my tongue and touch my nose, no finger involved. Combination of a larger nose and a freakishly long tongue. I’m no Gene Simmons, but people are impressed by it’s size. I even won 20 pounds while in a London pub once for my trick.
Oonafey says
I was born without 5 of my teeth! One wisdom, my lateral incisors on top, and my central incisors on the bottom… I had braces, flippers, and retainers till I was 15 and I’ve had at least 6 surgeries to fix it all! Yikes… No fun when you’re a kid.
Alicia says
It is so funny that you two tried out for Amazing Race…I was just telling my husband the other day about your blog and that you guys would make a great team on Amazing Race!! LOL!! You two are such a good team/couple you should apply again!!
Christa says
Cute post. Great responses.
When I tell people this little known fact about me I am always greeted with an unorthodox amount of shock and awe:
i have never had my ears pierced.
When I was little my dad didn’t want me to, then I kind of forgot about it. Now I love earrings and am always lusting after them (you have great ones sherry) but figure I could save myself hundreds of dollars by keeping my ears not pierced!
Becca says
What a lovely little interlude in the midst of all the home improvement! I totally understand ya’ll have to keep your lives private but it’s so nice to learn a little bit at a time about you two since, well, I visit you every day on the internet!
Speaking of visiting every day, my husband & I just purchased our first home and we’re SO going to do that horizontal-stripe effect in our small powder room. Very exciiiiited!
EastEnd says
Well you might have Dominick and Carmen but I have Vinnie and Gaetano!
meaghan says
sherry i feel (felt) your tooth pain! i too had weirdo teeth growing out of the center of the roof of my mouth, and at 16 had to have 2 baby teeth pulled holes cut in the roof of my mouth and then a similar excruciating wire tightening torture regimen for about 2 years… that’s when i decided on my life mantra; “this too shall pass”. and you’re right, in hindsight it was worth it! glad to know i’m not the only one with mutant teeth!
Amy says
My hubby and I would, love, love, LOVE to do The Amazing Race! My significant other would also have to be in charge of the directions, though- I couldn’t find my way out of a brown paper bag! Fun post today, thanks for sharing!
Meg says
Sherry, I totally feel your pain about the name. My legal name is Megan-Beth which my mom also thought flowed like Elizabeth. Um, yeah it doesn’t. So after many painful elementary school years I finally dropped it for good and just stuck with Megan or Meg for the sake of simplicity! My mom refused to accept this however and to my family I will always be Megan-Beth. Where did our mothers come up with this!?
Paula says
Wow! The fact that you two had never previously done any of the DIY stuff prior to a few months before starting your blog makes your achievements all the MORE awe-inspiring to me than they already were! (Insert mental image of me throwing rose petals at your feet!)
You two are great! I wish I could say I was having the same successes with my DIY, but they seem to be somewhat trial and error. Still, it’s an interesting learning experience, and when the results ARE as intended, it’s such a “high.”
And I definitely have to agree with one of your mantras, about a coat (or two) of the right paint color making a HUGE difference. … And now that I’ve made some inroads with that, I’m having fun shopping for a mix of pricey new accessories and bargain-basement recycled stuff. (The hours I’ve spent online looking at or for some things, curtains, chandeliers, etc.! So many choices!)
Beth says
I was gonna ask if one of you (or both!) didn’t drink considering the drink cost at your wedding! That seems to be the bulk (I’m talking THOUSANDS of $$) of the budget at all of our friends’ weddings. It’s all making sense now :)
I am such a busy body that a glass of wine at night really slows me down and makes me relax…but I admire people that don’t need it!
Hmmmm….my fact is that I’m obsessed with cooking and making everything (even tortillas!) from scratch. OBSESSED. I do it every single night and it’s just my boyfriend and I! I think it’s because my Mom didn’t cook and we ate McDonalds 3 times a week for dinner when I was a kid…I even made soft pretzels from scatch for the Sunday Football last week. Weird, I know :)
Thanks for all the fun facts! Love them!
Natalie says
Too funny! I actually had a benign tumor in 9th grade and got quite tired of the Arnold impersonations! And I don’t drink either. You can have just as much fun sober as you can drunk – plus, you’ll actually remember the fun you had and get to make fun of all of the drunk people around you :p
Jasie VanGesen says
Too cute, you guys.
Loren says
LOVE that John used to do Improv. My boyfriend and I actually met because we were in the same Improv group in college. Three years later (once I’d quit and moved to the quieter life of multimedia programming) he asked me out. <3
Laura says
Sweet post. I actually like Sherry Beth…
My husband, Jon, and I met in highschool. We always say we should go on The Amazing Race. Jon was a Paratrooper that can find his way anywhere but we don’t know what we’d do with our 5 kids. We are knee deep in a batroom and kitchen remodel. We also just finished putting in hardwood floors. If there is a next time, we are hiring that out!
I have an extra cusps on my molars, making them bionic or something. A denstist told me that if I ever need to be identified by dental records, it would be easy because of my big chompers. Creepy, huh? I thought so and didn’t go back.
Love you guys and Burger! I had a Chihuahua named Darby, when I was little. He was awesome.
YoungHouseLove says
No way! So funny to hear about others with weird teeth, strange habits, similar Beth names, and everything else under the sun. We’re certainly a diverse (and semi-odd) bunch over here, huh? Present company included!
xo,
s
michelle says
This is my favorite post of all time! I LOVE it that John doesn’t drink. My hubby and I don’t drink either and we’ve always had just as much fun at parties.
ps. I like Sherry Beth. It is funny though, considering your Italian heritage. :)
Ashley says
This was a really good post! Pretty cool facts! My boyfriend and I are in our early 20s and don’t drink either!
LauraC says
Hey, it was nice reading all the fun, new facts about you guys, but just wanted to say that I was impressed with #9 too. Hubby and I don’t drink at all either. When he was in the army, there was a lot of drinking at events, of course, but everyone was always respectful and cool with our decision. We never felt any pressure.
Tara Farley says
I love the amazing race!!! I think you guys would have been fun to watch. I’m a bit of a loud mouth myself, so I can relate:~) I also know how the learn as you go thing works. We bought a house about 5 years ago and have since ripped it apart and are slowly putting it back together.
LizzieBeth says
This is such a great post!
Hmm.. here are my little odd connections to the outside world:
1. I auditioned for the role of Jessica in the movie Sleepless in Seattle- I even got a callback! However, I lost out to Gabby Hoffman.
2. My brother was scheduled to be on The Amazing Race with his friend, but they had to drop out last minute when she found out she was preggers.
3. I go by my middle name, Elizabeth (hardly anyone calls me by my first name) which has been converted over the years to “Lizziebeth”.
4. Both my nephew Owen Russell and my cousin Gideon Simon names’ derive from their grandfathers middle names.
LB
Dana Miller says
Def #4 had me! You are sooo NOT a “Sherry-Beth”… at least in my mind. About me?? Hmmmmm. My middle name was going to be Taca (tah-kuh) but my dad put a stop to that at the last minute. Thank goodness! I’m Dana Renee. Instead, Dad bought my mom a dog and she named it Taca. Please don’t name your firstborn John Burger-Beth Petersik Jr.
Sean's mom says
Hi Kids! (I call you that because I’m old enough to be your mom)
1. I too had extra teeth, but unfortunately didn’t have the good results you did. After two years of wired torture with braces, etc, the dentist gave up and left me with teeth that stick out and don’t line up.. Oh, well,…that was years ago and things are so much better now.
2. I met my husband on a ski trip.. in fact, I picked him up on a dare.. Best wild thing I ever did!!! We’ve been married for almost 29 years!
3. Our son is also named for his grandfathers. Sean,for grandpa John and Liam for grandpa William.
4. We gave up drinking many, many years ago, but the joke is always on us with every raffle we’ve ever entered, every giveaway we’ve ever signed up for… If there is a bottle of booze to be given away, we win it!!! LOL!
Lauren says
I’m a girl (lady, woman, female, what-have-you) and my middle name is Michal (exact same name as the boy’s Michael). Not Michelle or Mitchell. Some people kinda think it’s weird, but I actually like it. It’s a boy’s name with a different spelling. My first name is kinda boring and quite common (Lauren) so I’m really glad I have a middle name to offset it. In the 5th grade I went by Mikie (Mikey).
Rebecca Meier says
My husband and I LOVE the Amazing Race and are always saying that we should try out…but if you two couldn’t get on, perhaps we shouldn’t waste our breath.
Your blog is my FAVORITE home blog. Keep up the amazing work and great posts :) :) :)
RM
kelly b says
Wow Sherry – we have something in common. I was originally named Kellybeth – all one word. Never have been a fan of that so now I am just Kelly but you are the first person I know of in with a similar naming situation!
Cheers to making Beth the middle name! :)
Edna "Bobbiejune" says
My name middle name is put together to make one name. There was a fight in the hospital after I was born about what to name me. It was originally supposed to be Bobbie June. But my dad wanted me named after my grandmother. So they put it all together. I have a VERY southern name, but I’m from Alabama. Most people also think when they just see the first name, that I’m a little old lately. I’m actually 28. I love reading your posts everyday!!
OMG-YHL says
I’m loving the secrets you dished!
And it must show how completely and obnoxiously celebrity-obsessed I am, because I think it’s SO COOL that you know Jenny Slate and Jack McBrayer! Like seriously, John just got a +10 on my coolometer. And you both were pretty high up to begin with (Sherry, care to counter?).
YoungHouseLove says
Hmm, I love a challenge OMG-YHL. Let’s see, I have a picture of myself with my arm around Alicia Keys and another with my arm around Lenny Kravitz from the good ol’ days in advertising in NYC. I also met Meredith Viera (nice!) and Starr Jones (mean!) on a Got Milk shoot I was doing and ran into Kevin Bacon on the street (got a picture with him too). Living in NY you run into famous people a lot. John and I saw Anna Paquin filming a movie once and Barbara Walters eating brunch (but I guess he gets to share those cool points with me). Oh and Will Arnett (from Arrested Development, married to Amy Poehler) told me I was, and I quote, “the sh*t” when I was directing him during a voice over record (he used to be the voice of GMC trucks, isn’t that funny)? There. Do I get any cool points at all?
xo,
s
Sydney says
I’m a new reader, so I didn’t know much about y’all to begin with, but I loved reading these random facts! I especially love #9…I sometimes feel like I’m the only person in the world who doesn’t love to go out and get wasted, even more so because I’m at college, so it’s nice to hear I’m not the only one! :] I LOVE y’alls blog!! (Also, I’m completely jealous that you know Kenneth the Page.)
OMG-YHL says
Ok, for that Will Arnett quote alone you are tied. Well done!
YoungHouseLove says
Yesssssssssssss. Victory dance in progress.
xo,
s
Emily says
I love this post! These kind (about you guys personally) are always super fun for me to read through…
Laura says
Great topic! I can see you and John as doing well on the Amazing Race! You should try out again, now that you’re famous! :)
Jennifer S. says
I can’t believe your name is Sherry-Beth. That is real country, and you definitely aren’t country! That’s a good one!
I also found it surprising that John does home improvement without drinking. Sheesh…sometimes that’s all that gets me through a project. Late night painting = beer. Cutting the grass = beer. Replacing toilets = beer and more beer.
YoungHouseLove says
Jennifer S- John loves some trashy reality TV and a giant bowl of ice cream after a big project. It’s his version of unwinding with a beer I guess…
Oneida- I definitely have Italian traits from my mom (talking with my hands, loud mouth in general, stubborn as heck, can make homemade meat sauce and lasagne but can’t cook rice) and I’m the oldest, which in an Italian family means I was incredibly sheltered (especially since I was a girl) so of course my younger brother got to do all these fun things but I was always grounded and couldn’t drive the car, etc. I always say I broke mom in for him. Lucky boy.
xo,
s
oneida says
i love your list! my favorite is the one about amazing race. i used to love that show, my favorite was the season with chip and kim. i wanted them to go all the way even though it was a long shot, and they actually did it! i totally would love to be on it, too, but i also can’t run, have horrible sense of direction, etc. maybe burger should audition with john :) and i think it is super cute that john kissed you first. i also love hearing about your guys’ families. did the italian influence you at all? are you the oldest/youngest, etc.?
Jamie says
I’m surprised I only knew three of these – although there were a few others that I’ve probably heard about but didn’t necessarily remember 100%
Sonja says
I had a baby tooth that was trying to come to college with me(ok, well maybe to jr high), so my dentist sent me to the oral surgeon (who extracted the lil booger)and he sent me to the orthodontist who connected a miniture linkfence appliance (ok,strong bracket)to my shy adult tooth still chillin near my nasal cavity. I was scheduled for routine torture sessions(ok wire tightening…no I was right before-TORTURE)until that shy adult tooth made her proper debut alongside my other pearly whites!
FUN FACTS.
Laura says
This is fun!
1. My brother and I both had 3 sets of teeth. It made things fairly complicated when we needed braces and still had “baby” teeth at 14 and 17. We got all of the extra teeth pulled to expedite the orthodontia process. You know that corny toothless smile most first graders have? Yeah… try it in 8th and 11th grades.
2. My husband and I were on Fear Factor at Universal Studios. He proved the better competitor and made it to the lat rounds… I was out in 53 seconds. I’m not sorry. I just fell 60 feet. He got rotting squid thrown in his face. I think I won. ;-)
3. My husband and I met by a trash can outside of the track locker room on yearbook day. The words, “Will you sign my yearbook?” turned into “Will you marry me?” 6 years later. I think it’s cute that I have his first impression and signature fro the moment we first met.
4. My favorite job EVER was working as an elf in Santa’s Workshop at Dollywood.
Do either of you have any strange talents?
Rebecca says
Dude! I totally saw your car the other day and thought, ‘I hope that’s Sherry & John’s car, because it would be awful for someone else to have that plate!!’
threadbndr says
very cool list. I am surprised only by the Sherry-Beth – you are SO not my idea of a double first name country girl LOL.
Here’s another reader name fun fact – neither my late husband nor I were given middle names. We both got so much hassle because that fact that we did NOT continue the tradition. Our son has a proper first, middle, last thankyouverymuch.
Dan says
Very cool post. Made my Friday. I tried out once for the Jeopardy! Teen Tournament in Cleveland, drove six hours from Indiana both ways in one day with my parents. Only question I remember getting right was Faith Ford played Corky on Murphy Brown…didn’t advance past the timed test. I love TAR! You should give it another thought, any of you have a fear of something? I am deathly afraid of large bodies of water! Never learned to swim (pool was broke in high school.)…thank goodness.
YoungHouseLove says
Hmm, do we have any big fears…
Well I’m not crazy about heights and John oddly enough fears the sound of chalk scraping on a chalkboard. Weird, eh?
xo,
s
Shanelle says
impressed that John doesn’t drink! I have never drank and am in my mid 20s… who can stand the taste of the stuff?
my husband definately said “i love you” first, but i did kiss him first:) sshh…don’t tell him i admitted that;) our anniversary is December 31st(New Years Eve wedding!) and we will be celebrating 4 years!
i have an off the wall question, where did you get the pendant light in your Master Bedroom? I am looking for something similar…
Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Shanelle,
The capiz chandelier in our master bedroom is from West Elm but they no longer sell that exact version so you might want to try ebay. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Lisa says
Good to hear there are other non-drinkers out there. I wish people wouldn’t look at us like we’re freaks of nature – or obligated to be their designated drivers. I finally just started telling people I was allergic to alcohol so they’d stop hassling me.
I never got my ears pierced either. My mom told us we could if we also got our noses pierced – this being decades ago nose piercings were not in fashion, so we declined, and after a while just didn’t feel the need.
On a lighter celebrity note: can I get bonus points for having lunch with Sean Connery (even though we were at different tables)?
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Lisa,
Totally! I bestow 400 random bonus points upon you!
xo,
s
Pauli says
I have a friend who’s surname is Di Cesare…she actually now lives in Rome (we’re Aussies) and we got to visit her last week. Interesting!
beth says
I have also never touched a drop of alcohol. My best friend from high school went off to college, and when she came back home, she found out that I had never been drunk, and the first thing she says is “we’re gonna have to get you drunk sometime”. Um, I don’t think so. I have absolutely no interest in it. My husband used to drink before we got married. He hasn’t drank since, out of respect for me. His coworkers invite him over for drinks, and he turns them down. I think everyone thinks he hates them. :)
Our oldest daughter, who is 11, has very crooked teeth. They are so crooked, it looks like she has two rows of teeth! Her orthodontia is going to cost a fortune!
My husband said I love you first. I thought it was nice, but I wasn’t ready to say it yet. We’d only been dating for a couple of weeks! A week later, he told me he wanted to marry me! We were married just a few months after we started dating, and we’ve been married for 12 years and have 5 children! I love him to death, and he is my best friend. I am so glad I made the choice to marry him right out of high school, and start a family right away! I don’t think my life could get any better! :)
kyla hailstone says
Sherry I feel your pain. My first name is actually Kyla Rae. Horrible.
Jill says
Kudos to John for being a non-drinker! I think if I did as much home improvement as the two of you, I would need some serious wine afterwards :)