Name: Carmen Schlamp
Family: Married to Matt Schlamp, with sons Kohen, Dallen and angel baby, Declan
Profession: Stay at home mom, and owner of Lashes By Carm
Years living in Grenfell: 6
Age: 27
What is your favorite time of the year?
I would have to say summertime, for camping, and just spending time with family.
What was your childhood like?
My childhood was very memorable. I had lots of fun with my family. My mom and dad, every summer, would take two weeks off and we'd go camping, and we'd do swimming lessons. We'd always go to GoodSpirit. So fun. I couldn't have asked for a better set of parents. I have a sister, and she was like my best friend. We fought, but we were really close. She's only 13 months younger than me. We were like enemies, but also best friends.
What is something you do to show kindness?
I always, always try to have a smile on my face. Even when someone is looking grouchy, I give the a smile, a wave. Sometimes I give compliments, because I know everyone has a story, and I just think that everyone should always be happy, no matter what.
If you could have a different career, what would it be?
So, before I had my first child I was accepted into school for aboriginal police studies, and then I found out I was pregnant, so I couldn't go. So technically, what I wanted to do, was be a police officer, or something involved with the law. So I wanted to be a police officer, or a correctional officer. Maybe I'll do something like that some day. But now I'm kind of scared, because I have kids, so I don't know if I want to be in that force....but I kind of do!
If you could travel via plane, train or boat, which would you choose?
I get really bad motion sickness. I've been on a couple of cruises, and they're really fun, but no. And I've never been on a train, but I expect I'd be really sick. The side window would be not my thing. So a plane.. I'd do a plane. I'm still afraid of travelling. The landing is when I can finally breath, but the take off, I don't like. It's not my favorite.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Well, I don't really know, but for sure, I'll be being a hockey mom, a baseball mom.. driving my boys all around in my van! Maybe in the law type position... I don't know. Maybe I'll go into police, or correction. I'm not sure. That would be ideal, but then again my kids are still young, and I kind of revolve my life around them. It's hard to say. The last five years have gone by so fast!
What scar do you have that tells the best story?
I wasn't really a child that got hurt. That was my sister. She was always in the hospital with a broken bone. I do have a scar from having a c-section with both of my living children, so that's my best scar story. I have them with me, and I just love them so much.
Who was your favorite teacher in school?
My grade 2 teacher was Velinda Neuls and she was the sweetest teacher. I remember every day she would pick a kid to phone the weather station. Then you'd have to check the weather and come back and write it on the chalkboard and tell everybody. She would give us bubble gum. A really funny story, there was a kid in my class who had those adidas pants that buttoned all the way up, and they came apart in gym class and fell down. She felt so embarrassed for him that she gave him all this bubble gum to make him feel better. I just remember her being the sweetest. Still to this day, when I see her in town, it's like "Oh, you were my favorite teacher!" Every teacher should be like her.
What is one of your favorite memories?
I guess going back to my childhood, just being with my family. And now every Sunday we go to my Grandma's and we have supper with her. She cooks, and we bring stuff, and it's making new memories. Just being with family is a general favorite memory. So now, being with my grandma on these sundays, she feels so blessed that her whole family can come be together. She gets to see us growing up, and her great grandkids growing up. I just love being out there, out at the farm. And she always looks out the window as we're leaving. I love having that memory about her. When I was younger, I would always go out there with my uncles, and work with the cattle - learning to vaccinate, and chasing them home. Those are some good memories! It's hard to narrow down to one memory. We camped a lot when we were little. It not remembering just one specific thing, but we had this big motorhome and we would take it, and go camping. It was the squishiest thing, but it was so fun.
Who do you look up to?
I look up to both my mom and my grandma, and also my auntie. They're all very strong. All three of them lost their husbands at a very young age. They all had children to raise. My grandma had 6 children to raise. My mom had us two girls that hadn't graduated yet, and she had to send us to university. My auntie had three young kids at home too. I just look up to them for their strength and ability to really be a good parent, trying to be mom and dad at the same time. My mom is a very strong person. I look up to her so much. And my grandma too. She never remarried, she always did everything on her own, and she still stayed on the farm. And she doesn't show anything except love and kindness. I guess that's where I get my smiles from!