I, too, would like to thank Chad Lowe

I hope you got my Girls/Golden Globes reference there. My husband and I just watched the entire first season of Girls in the last week, and I LOVED both of Lena Dunham's Thank You speeches last night. I found them very humble, gracious, honest, self depricating, smart, and sharply witty - the qualities of her writing that I think explain my quick addiction to that show. I giggled pretty hard when she said she'd long ago promised herself that were she ever to give an acceptance speech, she'd have to thank Chad Lowe. So while my teenage self would probably have promised herself to thank Mark Wahlberg, I just had to tip my hat to Lena Dunham on that one.

But more importantly, thank you to Amy for the virtual high-five and boost of confidence she gave me this morning by nominating me for a Liebster Award!

So here I go... first, the details: A Liebster award is given to blogs with less than 300 followers as a way of making them more well-known. The rules for the acceptance are:

1) Visit and thank the blogger who nominated you
2) Acknowledge that blogger on your blog and link back
3) Answer the 10 questions posed by the blogger who nominated you
4) Select 3-5 bloggers for the award
5) Pose 10 new questions to the new nominees
6) Post the award on your blog

Here are Amy's questions with my responses:
1) Why did you start blogging? 
I started blogging with our home renovation blog, Home Sweet Schwab, to document our first home ownership/renovation adventure, and to include our far-away friends and family in the process, but also to give myself a creative outlet and stretch my writing muscles a bit.

2) What are your blogging goals?
My immediate blogging goals are to start blogging with regularity again. A combination of some family health issues and the arrival of our first baby in the last year stunted my posting, and I need to get back on track.

3) What is your favorite article of clothing?
Oh, this one hits a bit of a nerve right now, as I'm feeling very tired of my wardrobe lately! Still, there's always a favorite (or two), right? My "old" favorite is this great boat neck black-and-white striped shirt that I can dress down or up and I've probably worn for too long, but with which I refuse to part. My "new" favorite is this great pair of magenta jeans I got recently, one of a very small number of items I've bought for myn the last six months since Baby Girl took over my shopping agenda!

4) What is your favorite blog that you read?
Hard to choose. I love reading blogs. It's probably my best distraction lately. Do I have to pick one? Who am I kidding? There are no real rules here, this is MY blog! Okay... favorite blogS: Suri's Burn Book, Go Fug Yourself, Kendi Everyday, Obvious State (formerly Little Brown Pen)... and many more. I wouldn't read them if I didn't love them, and my Reader is STACKED.

5) Facebook or Twitter?
Good one, A! I definitely texted Amy during the Globes last night to say that Twitter was quickly overtaking Facebook for me. I shamefully admit that I basically just boarded the Twitter train recently (I won't say how recently), but I've been tiring of Facebook for a loooooong time, and Twitter does a lot of what I used to like about Facebook without all of the stuff I don't like about it now... especially in terms of allowing me viewing control for my content. So I say Twitter!

6) What is something that currently challenges you?
Time. There just is not enough of it. Simple as that.





7) Paper calendar or electronic?
This will be my second year in the electronic calendar world, and I have to say, I'm officially converted.

8) What is your favorite cosmetic?
Tinted lip gloss.


9) As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A writer.


10) What is one of your goals for 2013?
My main goal for 2013 is to truly make time for myself in some capacity every week. And more than just an hour to neaten up the house - something for ME.

Here are my nominations:
1) Living the Dream - N redefines honesty with this blog that evolves as she does. She is truly inspirational in how open and real she is in her writing... and I'm not just saying that.
2) Eating With Sporks - This is the blog of a long-lost friend from college... and it's awesome. One of my most-pinned-to boards on Pinterest is my food board, and I've pinned MANY a recipe from this creative, healthy, beautifully-photographed blog.
3) Home Harvests - Like me, she hasn't posted in a little while, BUT, this is a great blog. My girl knows her stuff, and shares her efforts towards a holistic, self-sufficient (as much is possible when you don't live on a farm or ranch!), green, clean, purposeful life. She shares her successes and her missteps, takes incredible photos of her beautiful garden and its bounty, offers recipes, and opens up her heart and her mind as she continues to channel her best self.

And here are my 10 questions:

1) Why blog?
2) Where do you live?
3) What's your guilty pleasure?
4) What's the best book you've read in the last year?
5) What is your blogging goal for the next year?
6) What is one of your non-blogging goals for the next year?
7) Google or Bing?
8) What's your favorite blog?
9) What's your "real" job?
10) Are you happy?