Email me at kmac@littletechgirl.com to request my media kit!
Hi there! Thanks for checking out my About Me page! If you are here you are probably wondering who the heck I am. 🙂 Read below to find out just that!
Who Am I?
I’m Kris McDonald. Born and raised in Chicago, I’m a mom raising 2 sets of twins (yes, really). I caught the technology bug early on, and I’ve been dabbling in what I love ever since. After working a 9-5 IT job for several years at a popular university, and blogging part-time for some of those years, when given the opportunity I decided to try my hand at being a full-time entrepreneur. I loved working from home! It was sometimes a struggle, but I made it 4 years before I decided to go back to work in 2016. I took an awesome IT position at the same company that I worked at for over 15 years. I have to do what I love… and what I know! I am loving having the steady paycheck back. And I still have time for blogging, although getting back into the swing of things was exhausting!
Let’s see… after having a relaxer since I was I think 12 years old I went natural in 2015. I didn’t do it because it’s the in thing to do right now. I did it because my hair was thinning out, and I want to hold on to my hair as long as I can! And I must say… I am loving it. I had not touched my own hair texture in so long that I was afraid of what going natural would bring. I had thought about switching a couple of times before, but every time those little curls started to show I chickened out. LOL! However, in the summer of 2015 after my wedding I did a slow chop. I am very happy that I did! My hair is soft, growing, and feels healthy again. And I love the look!
I’m Addicted To:
- Cherry Pepsi – I don’t have many vices! This is one bad thing that I refuse to give up! Everything in moderation.
- Converse All-Stars – I currently own over 30 pairs of Chuck Taylors. I got my first pair when I was in high school. I remember drawing peace signs on them in permanent marker! Now, these are my go-to shoe. Although I do make exceptions for dressing up and summer weather. 🙂
- Streaming TV – Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, etc… I am always binge watching something while I work. We gave up cable a couple of years ago and I do not miss it at all.
- True Crime TV – I don’t know what it is about delving into the mind of the psycho people on channels like Investigation Discovery, but it fascinates me! I usually have the ID Channel on for background noise when mulling around the house or working since I can listen to it like a podcast.
- Gardening – Being home for most of 2020 had me finding ways to keep busy. I learned that I have a love of all things gardening. I now own several AeroGardens, do other hydroponics, and have a beautiful, thriving outdoor garden. You can check me out on YouTube for tours and tips. Or, follow me on Instagram for pretty garden photos.
- Cooking – I LOVE to cook! This is especially useful when having a large family. LOL! I also recently taught myself to can, so I enjoy coming up with new ways to use up my harvest and store food.
- My husband – That’s the way it should be, right? I’ve known him for almost 30 years and I’m still crazy about him. 🙂
- French fries – Ok… so there are 2 bad things that I refuse to give up. 🙂
Black Forest Swirly Gummy Bears (NOT THE ORGANIC ONES)Â – These are the BEST gummy bears! I discovered them a couple of years ago. And I thought that they had been discontinued at some point. I even tweeted to find out what was going on. But before I knew it they were back! YAYYY!!Albanese Gummy Bears have replaced these. They are so good! I do still like the Black Forest, but they are so hard to find. I live pretty close to Indiana, so I can go and get the Albanese ones at the factory. Yum!- Gadgets, gadgets, and more gadgets – No explanation needed (pfsst…. send me lots of gadgets!)
What I Do
- Photographer – This is something that I greatly enjoy! I do not do it as much as I used to (life), but I’ve been doing it for a few years. Â I used to photograph weddings, portraits, family reunions, headshots, and events.
- Blogger – I think this is obvious. 🙂
- Freelance Writer – Want to hire me to write something for your site? You can!
- TV Segments/Vlogger – I don’t do this much, but I am trying to change that. You can check out my YouTube Channel. I have done a few TV segments about technology, but I am always looking to do more.
- Public Speaker – I have spoken at many conferences including BlogHer, Blogalicious, Type-A Parent, and more. Hire me to speak about photography, social media, blogging, or technology.
- Ambassador Programs – I have been blessed to work with many great companies over the years on ambassador programs. I love developing long-term relationships with brands. These are the best working relationships. I am very interested in working with brands that understand the value of a blogger. Of course, tech is good, but there are others that fit me as well! Some of the companies that I have worked with include Best Buy, AMD, Master Lock, Netflix, Microsoft Office, Cree, Lenovo, and more. Want me to be your brand’s ambassador? Just say the word!
 
What I Blog About
Well duhh, I blog about tech stuff! Ok, not only tech stuff… but mostly tech stuff! As I grow and my interests expand, so has my content. I now include gardening, home design, and other relevant subjects. If reading my blog you will see tech & gadget reviews, blogging tips, photography tips & info, social media tips, smartphone tips and tricks, stories about my entrepreneurial struggles, small business related content, home and gardening content, and occasional posts about my kids. Of course, from time to time I may throw in other things that interest me. I am lucky in that I get to test a lot of gadgets, so there are a fair share of reviews. Although I admit that sometimes I get behind! I also do a fair amount of sponsored posts. The bills must be paid!
Since moving into a new house in Feb 2017 I have been blogging a lot about home decorating and DIY. This goes along with my HGTV obsession!
When My Tech Obsession Started
I figured out very early age that I had an obsession with technology. My mother helped kick it off. I believe I was 9 years old when she enrolled me in a BASIC computer class at the Museum of Science and Industry. Soon after she bought me my first computer, a Commodore 64, complete with tape drive and dot matrix printer. Yes, I am showing my age!
I was also lucky enough to snag a huge IBM PS/2 Model 80 computer which had a whopping 80mb hard drive. It had no operating system installed so I had no choice but to learn how to install one. I knew that I was obsessed.
I continued to foster that obsession by constantly teaching myself about computer building (which I actually did as a business for a while), operating systems, HTML, social networks, and everything else that I thought I wanted to learn. Once I was of working age, I landed myself a job in IT. I knew that was where I wanted to be. I’ve held positions as a help desk technician, desktop support tech, and network administrator. I have experience building and troubleshooting computers both personally and professionally. I believe this is why I live in jeans. That is what you wear when you have to carry dirty computers all day and crawl under desks to plug in cables! I’m a true geek. I don’t just play one on TV the Internet.
My Crew
The Hubby
The hubby is Terrance aka T Mac. Although we’ve known each other for over 27 years we just got married in June 2015. Yes, one of those typical “find the high school love of your life that got away” stories. 🙂 He’s done a fairly good job of folding himself into my crazy, hectic life. He had no choice but to realize that if he is with me, he is going to be on social media! It was a fight at first, but he has come to terms with it. 🙂
And he caught my travel bug. I have dragged him to blogging and tech conferences, getaways, and media junkets, and now we love planning vacations. Traveling is definitely in our blood! We try to get away every year if we can. Want to send us somewhere??? Contact me!
When he’s not busting his butt at his full-time job in the mortgage business, he’s a pretty awesome DJ and music producer. He’s been doing that since we were in high school. Actually, he’s been DJ’ing since he was 12. He had his first album published when he was only a teen! He’s definitely my favorite DJ. 🙂 He sometimes helps me review music related equipment.
The wedding was supposed to be small, but it grew. So many friends and family wanted to be involved that our “intimate” list grew to twice what we wanted it to be. We expanded the number of chairs, the amount of food, etc. But guess what??? Half of the people that RSVP’d yes did not show up!! As you can see I am still peeved about this fact. We could have saved quite a bit of money. But… in the end, we are married and happy. A bit of advice: Do NOT throw a wedding *for the people*. Do what YOU want to do. However, #KrisandTMacWedding was a successful party as we wanted, so that is all that matters now. 🙂
The Kids
As mentioned I’m a mother to 2 sets of twins. This usually freaks people out, but I’m used to it. Yes, it’s unusual, but apparently after having one set of twins the odds of having another set goes up quite a bit. Yes, they are “natural”. You would be surprised how many people ask that question! I have always hated that term. There are not unnatural babies. 🙂 When my boys were born my girls were only 3. There was a time when we could not go anywhere without drawing attention. 2 twin strollers?? Yeah… it was sometimes horrifying. The attention that we got in shopping malls could prove to be annoying after a while! Only other twin moms truly understand. Now that they are older I can sleep, and we can walk through a store without getting stopped every 2 minutes! LOL. I’m very lucky. They are all brilliant, brilliant kids!
The girls are now 18 and are freshman in college. They are brilliant and are both attending awesome colleges with great scholarships. They are both taller than me now, and they have bigger feet! Hmph.
Then…
Now…
The boys are 15. They love to read, play with their gadgets, ride their bikes, run errands with me, play video games, and eat! And Jayden loves to play Monopoly.
All of the kids took extracurricular STEM classes for a few years. I absolutely love that they seem to enjoy learning. I hope that they keep it up for years to come. And because of their brilliance and STEM classes, the girls got featured on our local CBS news!
Stalk Me… I mean Find Me Online!
As you can imagine I spend a fair amount of time each day on social media. I mean it’s my job! And it’s in my blood. Social media can be quite a distraction! But feel free to find and follow me anyway. 🙂
