What An Honor

More than a week ago, Emily from Simple Cheap Mom nominated me for the Liebster Award. Cool! Thank you, Emily. 

The Liebster Award is known in the blogging community, but I’d never heard of it because I tend to be ignorant of such things. 

I did a quick search online, and basically what it seems to be is an award that is created by bloggers and intended for bloggers. It’s passed from person to person through a nomination/chain letter type of process in order to encourage connections and discover not only new blogs but new and interesting people to relate to. In other words, it’s a great way to get to know the person behind the blog. 

From what I understand, you share a few random facts about yourself, answer a few questions from the person who nominated you, and then nominate a few other bloggers you enjoy (and ask a few questions of them). 

Here goes:

11 Random Things About Me

1.  I’m left-handed, married to a lefty, a daughter and sister of lefties, but have only one left-handed child.

2.  My friend and I were once stuck in an elevator that fell about 2 feet below the bottom floor. The doors wouldn’t open, so we used the emergency telephone. After waiting for a good long while with an annoying alarm sounding, I called back only to be told that they had checked and “nobody was in that elevator.” The operator believed us only when we asked her to get a message to our band director so that he would not be worried about where we were.

3.  My favorite books of all time are Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House series. I’ve worn out a set completely and have no idea how many times I’ve read each. If I read the last two pages of Little House in the Big Woods, I’ll cry--guaranteed.

4.  I have lots of pregnancy food aversions and cravings. This time around I’m sick thinking of sweets. I’m craving a Thai Spicy Roll from my favorite sushi place. And red wine. I want red wine.

5.  I love, love, love yard sales. My husband loves auctions. Me, too.

6.  I have a small quilt that I started making with my Oma when I was 8. It’s still unfinished, and I look forward to the day that I have time to make it a priority.

7.  While I was born in California, I only remember living in West Virginia. That is the state I call home. I can see her hills from my front porch. I can see Pennsylvania from my back porch.

8.  I went to college in one of the most historic places in our country--Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. I did not take even one history course while there. I regret that.

9.  I met my husband online, and I knew in my heart I would marry him before I ever set eyes on him in “real life.”

10.  I love my favorite pair of maternity jeans (which were handed down to me about 5 years ago) so much that I actually called the Levi’s company and asked if they’d start making them again. 

11.  I love the game of Yahtzee. My grandmother used to play with me. More than 7 years ago, my husband bought me a hand-held electronic Yahtzee game. It’s been lost for months at a time, needed new batteries a couple of times, and been dropped in the toilet twice (not by me!), but it’s still going strong.

My Answers to Questions by Simple Cheap Mom:

1. How many hours of sleep do you need each night? How many do you get? 

 I have no idea how many hours of sleep I need each night, but I normally get between 5-7. However, it all really depends on what’s going on in my life. If I’m pregnant, I’m up in the middle of the night a lot. If I have a newborn, sometimes I’m happy to get a couple of hours. 

2. If you could visit anywhere in the world, where would it be? 

I would take my family on a cross-country trek with many stops along the way, but the destination would be Olalla, Washington where my grandparents lived and I spent many vacations. I know it wouldn’t be the same for them, but it was magical for me, and I want them to experience even just a little bit of it.

3. What was your best Christmas gift as a child?

I honestly can’t remember one that stands out. I always enjoyed the Christmas ornaments my grandmother and aunts made. 

4. Do you have any pets? 

We have a golden retriever, Calvin, who loves baby carrots. We have three outside cats, black as coal and deadly to bunnies, mice, birds, snakes, etc. We call them the three ninjas. We also have a tankful of fish, but really don’t know what kind or how many. And we have guinea fowl, but I don’t know if I’d call them pets. For the record, I’m not an animal person.

5. How many credit cards do you have? 

We have one that we pay off each month on time. We’ve earned lots of bonus points that have paid for helpful gift cards.

6. What's the best thing you've ever done for your finances? 

I suppose the best thing I’ve done is to stop working. When I worked before I was married, I wasted so much money. Then after we were married and began a family, I stayed home, and there was no extra money to waste. Having a limited budget has forced us to employ all sorts of frugal strategies. 

My Nominees

I nominate these three blogs I enjoy for the Liebster Award:

The Merry Mennonite by Laura because she’s so honest. I wish all mommy bloggers were this open and honest.

Day by Day, at home, away by Ewe because I like reading what she does with her boys because I just so happen to have 3 boys about the same age.

Lucy's Quilts by my aunt, whose name actually isn't Lucy, but Alicia. I nominate her blog because I like reading about her way over on the west coast and because I think it's fun to look at the things she makes and does. She's super-talented. And I might be trying to prod her into another blog post. 

So, nominees, I just copied what Simple Cheap Mom did. Announce, 11 Random Things, answer questions, nominate, ask questions. Gee, it kind of sounds like a school assignment. But I promise, if you don't do this, nothing bad will befall you (from me, at least). 

Here are my questions for the nominees:

 What do you like/dislike about your blog?

 With whom do you want to spend more time?

 What award (real or made-up) would you most like to win?

 What is your favorite children’s book?

 What unhealthy food is your favorite?