The Liebster Awards!

The Liebster Award is given by bloggers to up and  coming bloggers as a way to spread the word about smaller blogs who deserve a bigger audience.  This award is an honor, but once nominated you must earn it:

• You must list 11 things about yourself
• Answer 11 questions put to you by the person who nominated you
• Choose up to 11 bloggers with less than 200 followers to nominate and post 11 questions for them to answer
• Visit your nominee's pages to inform them of their award

 I've been nominated by both Laura fromThe Book of Lou Lou & Janna from Thoughts from a Mommy, Wife, and Friend.  I'll answer both of their sets of questions and then post 11 more things about me.



Laura's questions:

1. Why do  you blog?  I blog because it gives me a chance to reach out and connect with other women, moms especially.  Before I gave it a try I couldn't understand the appeal of blogging.  Who's going to want to read about the minutiae of someone else's life?  Well.. a lot of people, as it turns out!  The blogosphere is made up of so many wonderful supportive women, it's really a great community, and I'm proud to be a part of it.
2. How many blogs do you have?  I have just this one!  I've been thinking about starting a blog dedicated to my AVON business, but I don't think I'd update it often enough for the effort.
3. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?  In five years I hope to be back to school, earning my medical assisting certificate.  Lucas should be in second grade by then, so hopefully I'll have at least 2 years of schooling under my belt.
4. If you could have any job, what would it be?  I kind of think it would be fun to be an event planner.  Buying all of those decorations and having a chance to go really over the top without having to pay for it myself sounds like fun!
5. What is your favorite meal?  My mom's homemade spaghetti and meatballs!  Nothing has ever come close to her spaghetti sauce!
6. How many days a week do you usually read, blog, or write?  Every single day I'm doing at least one of those things!  I don't usually blog on the weekends, but I'll still read a few blogs after work.
7. Favorite vacation destination you want to visit.  As long as it's warm, sunny, and there's an ocean view, I'm happy!
8. Best personality trait you have.  I give everyone the benefit of the doubt the first time around.  I always look for the best of people, or try to remember that what I see in them (when it's not very nice) has a back story that I don't know about.
9. Favorite thing about blogging.  My favorite thing about blogging is the sense of community.  I may start out reading your blog because you posted something hilarious, or because I see you have two boys like me, or because your name keeps popping up and I couldn't resist checking it out, or even because it was a requirement in a giveaway I want to win!  The thing is though, some of these blogs draw me in so much, that I feel like these women are my friends!
10. Favorite band/singer.  I can't pick just one favorite, so I'll go with my FIRST favorite.  No Doubt!  The first CD I ever bought was Tragic Kingdom and I've loved them ever since!
11. In high school what social group did you consider yourself in?  I didn't really have a group.  I was smart yes, but not quite nerdy.  I definitely wasn't popular.  I wrote creatively, but not enough to go with the arty crowd.  I was a goody two shoes, but I had a lot of stoner friends.  I was a floater, I guess.

Whew, what an interrogation!  Here are my questions from Janna:

1.  What has been your biggest life lesson thus far?  Wow, first question and we're already getting pretty deep!  I guess I would have to say that life isn't always going to be what you expected, but that doesn't give you an excuse to quit.  Eric and I, for example, we've been together for 8 years.  We've had a ton of ups and downs.  It would have been easy for either one of us to walk away during any of those times.  Easier than most, you might say, because we're not married.  But regardless, we're committed to each other, and when everything seems to go to shit, we know that if we stick together, we'll make it to the other side.
2. Would you rather spend a week in Italy or Hawaii?  As much as I'd love to go to Hawaii, I'd choose Italy because of all the history, art, and romance of the country.
3. If you had to give up chicken or beef for the rest of your life, which would it be?  Right now, because I'm slightly sick of chicken, I'd be happy to give it up
4. When was the last time you pampered yourself and what did you do?  I don't remember the last time, but next weekend I'll be spending the night with my SIL and her bridesmaids and we'll be getting all nice and relaxed and dolled up for her wedding!  I am SO looking forward to it!
5. Is your hair color natural or not?  Definitely natural.  I sometimes thinking about dying or highlighting it, but I know that my roots would grow so quickly it'd hardly be worth the effort.  
6. Do you work out?  Not on purpose!  I walk a lot (not having a car will do that to you).
7. What is your biggest fear?  My biggest fear is something happening to one of my kiddos.  I don't know what I'd do without them.
8. What made you decide to start blogging?  I guess I was just jumping on the bandwagon.  I used to journal when I was younger, so I figured I'd start with that and figure it out from there.
9. What's the last book you read?  It was called Parts Unknown by S.P. Davidson and I downloaded it onto my Kindle for free.  It was about a woman who had a brief but intense relationship with someone while in college, but they went their separate ways.  She married someone safe and boring.  When her old flame comes to town, she had to decide what she wants from her life. 
10. What's the last thing you ate?  It's horrible that I can't remember this right off the top of my head!  Dinner last night, if you don't count coffee as food.  I made white chili chicken with rice.  Oh no, wait, I had a Tastykake after that, before bed, so that's the last thing I ate!
11. How many blogs would you say you visit on an average day?  I think there are about 40 blogs that I read on a regular basis, and more that I only visit occasionally, so how many of those I visit each day just depends on how much time I have and who's got new posts. 

11 more random facts about me:

1. I love flip flops.  I will wear them and wear them until there are holes (plural) in the bottoms.
2. My sons are *exactly* the same age apart as Eric and his sister.  Their birthdays are only 8 days apart, with 4 years (minus 8 days) between them.
3. I used to listen to Hanson.
4.  I get super excited when I get household items as Christmas gifts.
5. I refuse to let my children watch Barney or Thomas the Tank Engine.  I can't stand them!
6. I curse way too much.
7. If I had it my way, we'd live on the ocean.
8. I'm freakin' addicted to Pinterest!
9. I read voraciously, even if all I can get my hands on is free kindle books that have been completely un-proofread.  I read them until the bitter end.
10. I think I probably have an awesome sense of style (if you don't believe me, come see me on Pinterest) but I can't afford it.
11. I'm secretly envious that Eric has gone back to school and I have to wait until Lucas is in kindergarten.  I try not to let my green side show when he's holed up in the bedroom after work doing his homework and I'm trying to contain the monsters.

Finally, we come to my nominees for the Liebster Award!  Many of these blogs are new to me, but from what I've read so far, I'm lovin' them.  So here they are (in no particular order)!

1. Thoughts from a Mommy, Wife, and Friend  (Yes, I know she was one of the ones who nominated me, but before I knew that I had already nominated her in my head!)
2. Momaical
3. Way Too Much Aubrey
4. Tid Bits of Experience
5. BIG A little a
6. Jess and the Boys
7. Mommy Moments Getting Married 

There are lots more blogs I've discovered recently that were great, but these ones I can verify have less than 200 followers.  So, if you are on this list, and you choose to accept your award, here are your questions from me:

1. What do you do when you have time to yourself?
2. What's your favorite thing to do with your kids?
3. Does the toilet paper go over the roll, or under the roll?
4. When it comes to your blog, what is your ultimate goal?
5. Would you rather swim in a pool or an ocean?
6. What is your favorite holiday, and why?
7. What is the most embarrassing thing that's ever happened to  you?
8. What is your favorite book?
9. What are you currently most addicted to?
10. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go?
11. What is your favorite thing about blogging?