MBTI Weirdos, Family Interactions: Introduction

As you may have noticed by my last several posts, I've been on a personality types kick lately. There is a specific reason I have been more interested than usual lately, but as a true INFJ, I don't want to tell you the real reason, ha! Who knows? Maybe some of you intuitive types will figure it out anyway. 

But, not only have I been researching to try to solve an internal issue for myself, I've also been having fun with learning about my family and diving down into how we interact with each other. And because I think it's kind of funny and interesting, I thought other people might as well, and perhaps if you have similar personality types in your family, you might see yourselves reflected here. 

Today I am going to introduce you to my little family of 5 and I am going to use our typologies in place of our names in order to protect my kids' privacy. I don't have any issue with you knowing my name. If you're new to my blog, welcome! I'm Brandi. But in these typology interaction stories, I am going to refer to myself as INFJ Mom, my husband as ISTJ Dad, and my kids by their type letters, a number indicating their age, and an S or D indicating they are a son or daughter (eg ISTP 6 D). Ok, so hopefully that makes sense. Let's get started with some introductions and have some fun!

INFJ Mom: That's me. ... and I'm sitting here drawing a blank trying to even decide what to tell you about me that would even be relevant. Well maybe that's a good place to start. I have a lot more going on inside my head than what I reveal to people on the outside. I enjoy writing stories. In fact, I don't always even write them down, sometimes I just sit and imagine entire stories in my head from start to finish and no one else in the universe will ever experience them but me. Part of the reason for that is because when I sit down to actually try to write it, I just stare at the blank page and just have no idea how to even begin putting all of that information down and I just get sort of stuck. Yeah... anyways. I love being a mom. I feel like it really is my true calling. All five of us together are my world and I just feel like we are this perfect unit, a perfect treasure. And I will fight anyone who tries to destroy us. **Momma bear, activated**

ISTJ Dad: Works hard to bring home the bacon. "Speaking of bacon... it's been hours since I've last had bacon," he'd probably say. The man likes meat. He has become king of the bbq pit and has this whole system with these crazy excel spreadsheets and charts and stuff about smoking meat. If that's not classic ISTJ, I don't know what is. He can tell you the exact method for getting just the right temperature for a perfect pink edging and flaky bark around the outside. If you ever get invited over to partake in Dad's smoked meat, be sure to praise him for it, then watch him stand three inches taller. He's very proud of his method.

Dad has a government job (FAA), sitting at a desk in a cubicle all day, and it suits him well. He enjoys it. He's a loving father and husband and a big goofball. He knows way more dad jokes than you ever will, I'm dead serious. One major difference between us is that where I am very much aware of my social awkwardness and try to hide it, he seems either unaware or unbothered by putting it on full display. Ha ha! I love this man!

 

 

 

INTP 16 S: (Actually he turns 16 this week.)We brought him into our home two years ago when he was 14 and finalized his adoption last year. So our dynamic with the INTP is perhaps more interesting than it might be otherwise. I as his INFJ Mom have to use a LOT of intuition with him because he doesn't always say what he means. For instance, he often says he hates me, but his eyes and actions state otherwise. He always seems to have some awesome jokes or something silly up his sleeve to help draw me out of a dark mood. He seeks us out for attention and deep conversation (which I appreciate also). He loves to talk about difficult issues the world is facing today such as CRT, LGTB rights, abortion, and so on. 

He's super nerdy, into comic books, anime, video games, and electronics of all kinds. Procrastination is his super power, which drives me CRAZY because I like to have plans and checklists and get things done in an orderly fashion. He's also actually quite cute in appearance, I'm not sure he realizes it. The young ladies like to gaze at him and he both loves and hates the female attention at the same time.

ESFP 12 D: (She's 11, but turning 12 in a few days when this is posted.) Have you ever heard that song "Pink Fluffy Unicorns Dancing on Rainbows" ? Well that's her. She's sunshine all the time. Granted, she's a preteen and some of those female hormones are coming into play these days causing a little drama now and then. But ESFP is our golden girl. She's super outgoing, makes friends instantly, and has all kinds of spunk and charm. How did two very introverted parents end up creating a girl like her? I have no idea. But I'm super glad. I won't say she's never unhappy, though. When she's aggravated by her sibs, her anger can be intense and explosive, but I will says she gets over it pretty quick.

ISFP 8 D: Funky, wacky, artsy, a little dark, sort of emo. From a very young age, we've always figured ISFP would be most likely to wear black as a teenager. Ha! Thankfully, she is getting better at handling her emotions as she gets older, but she's pretty turbulent, easily frustrated, and like... cries... over... everything. BUT, she is very into art and color and has oddly found an interest in coding with those games and programs that allow you to build blocks of "if-then" type scenarios. But it isn't the coding she is interested in, it's the design. She can see patterns and design and details in art much faster than I can. 

My little ISFP has really come out of her shell more this year and started talking to people. And I am glad that others are beginning to see the same amazing kid I've always known was in there. 

And that's it, that's our five. We're in the middle of Summer break right now, but school is coming up in the fall and I'll be homeschooling all three kids this year. *Oi vey* (pray for me) But I think being able to tell you about our interactions through the lens of our MBTI types just adds an extra fun element. And if you don't know much about the types, you can google them. Just type the letters into google and you can get an overview of what each one is like. And then be sure and go find you a free test somewhere and figure out what you are. I hear those free tests may not be entirely accurate, but I think they are absolutely a great place to start and then you can go from there to see if something else might be a better fit than the result you were given. It's your journey. You get to choose your own path. Isn't that wonderful?

Also I think it's a good idea to note that it is very difficult to type kids. My kids each took the free test at 16Personalities.com to get their results. And I think their results are pretty close to at least who they are right now, but I am also keeping an open mind that they are still developing into who they were meant to be (especially the 8 year old). They may type as something different in the future. So if you are typing your kids, you might want to think of those types as rough guesses also.