Today is my birthday! Every year on my birthday I reflect back on memorable moments, milestones and I plan head for what I’d like to accomplish in this new year of my life.

This year I want to share 13 fun facts about me that you might not know to celebrate my Friday the 13th birthday!

1. My favorite dish to eat on my birthday is noodles! I love all types of noodles including ramen, pho, chow mein, pad thai, etc. Noodles represent long life and longevity in the Chinese culture and are a common birthday food so I make sure to have noodles every year on my birthday!

2. I get asked all of the time if I play an instrument because of my name. YES, I play the harp. I started playing when I was 4 years old. While I didn’t pursue it professionally, I still have a harp at home and it’s something that I play occasionally for fun.

3. I was born in Dallas, Texas. This is surprising to many since I have spent almost my entire life in Southern California. Even though I was born in Dallas, I only lived there for a few months so I don’t have any memories of it as a child.

4. I am an only child. I always get the question “do you wish you had a sibling?” but since I have never had one, I honestly don’t know what it would be like so I feel like this is a question I can’t answer.

5. I love to cook but I don’t use recipes! I always make up my own recipes and even if I use one, I completely customize it. My favorite way to cook is by using anything I have on hand and creating a dish from it, (yes I love the show Chopped too). I am a huge proponent of zero food waste and this shows in my cooking.

6. I’m a yoga teacher! I got my yoga certification in 2012 because I love practicing yoga so much and didn’t intend to teach, but I started teaching a few classes a week just for fun and now I still teach 1 Power Yoga Class every single Thursday! I can’t believe it’s been 7 years.

7. I graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a Major in Communication and Minor in Sport Management. I originally wanted to work in Sports Marketing and had a little glimpse of what it was like with a part time promotions job at The Padres and a part time marketing job at Active.com.

8. My favorite junk food is Flammin’ Hot Cheetos. I don’t get them often, but when I do, it’s hard for me to avoid eating the entire bag.

9. I am a huge Taylor Swift fan! It’s her birthday today too so I’m honored to share a birthday with the Woman of the Decade in music!

10. I dislike mint flavored things unless it’s paired with chocolate. However, I love chocolate mint flavored sweets like mint chocolate chip ice cream and Thin Mints.

11. I had a Siamese Cat named Misty for 11 years when I as a kid, but now I’ll never have a cat again because I am highly allergic! I developed an immunity to Misty. I was allergic to all other cats I came in contact with, but not Misty.

12. I was a basketball player! In Junior High I played basketball at the YMCA. Then I played on the Freshman team at my high school and even after I graduated from college, I played on a few recreational leagues just for fun.

13. I am allergic to shellfish and peanuts. I have also have eczema (very dry, itchy skin) and eating these items make my eczema flare up.

Do any of these fun facts surprise you? I would love to hear a fun fact about you too, so feel free to share it in the comments. I always love getting to know unique facts about people in my community and I had a great time writing these for you.