A Liebster Award That Made My Day!
Yippee! Hooray! Besides the heart-shaped donut awaiting me at work, I found another wonderful surprise that the lovely Lydia from Cluttered Genius honored me with a Liebster Award this morning. How cool is that? Well, I’ll tell ya…it’s my first blog award and it’s always nice to know someone is thinking of you. It’s also a chance to share a little bit more about myself and share with you some of my favorite bloggers to whom I pass the award. So here are the rules, plain and simple….
Someone chooses you.
You tell 11 things about yourself.
You answer 11 questions.
You choose 11 bloggers and ask 11 questions that they’ll answer.
Got it? Great! Here we goooo…(in my best Peter Pan voice)
11 Things about Me
1. I’ve discussed this with Kiran at Masala Chica but I never know how to answer the question “Where are you from?” My ancestry, where I grew up or where I live now? I’m mistaken for Hispanic quite often. My family is from India and my husband’s family is from Mexico. We are lucky to be from cultures with vibrant colors, delicious food, strong values and warm people. A world apart geographically but amazing similarities. My Midwestern upbringing explains why I still root for Cleveland teams and my slight drawl and love for sweet tea is from living in the South for more than half my life now.
2. I am the child of avid readers but disliked reading as a kid. My dream job right now would be to get paid to read.
3. Former dream jobs have included doctor, vet, broadcast journalist, pianist and starting a non-profit.
4. I couldn’t wait for when my babies could walk and talk. Now, I just want them to sit still (at least for a little bit) and be (fairly) quiet.
5. The box labeled “Tanya’s Unfinished Projects” in our garage from our move is still unopened. I wonder what’s in there? I haven’t needed it in 10 years yet I won’t part with its contents before peeking inside.
6. I am seriously addicted to collecting recipes and taking pictures of food for my blog and family. Then Laura at Super Sweet Life recommended taking pictures of clipped recipes to reference them easily. Genius! Reference #4, I can’t just throw away the recipes I’ve clipped but haven’t used. I might need it…someday.
7. I love to plan, it’s following through with my crazy plans that’s the problem. Case in point…my kids’ birthday parties, that pumpkin bowling idea was better in my head than when a bunch of 5 year olds are hurtling pumpkins across the floor…”Roll it please…” became “ROLL it or we won’t get that security deposit back!”
8. I’ve only ever asked out one boy in my life. I stuttered asking him to my college semi-formal and was too overcome with emotion to respond when he asked me to marry him three years later. He won’t let me live either of those down.
9. As the mom of 3 boys and my love for food, I can eat no matter the topic of dinner conversation or the accompanying “music.”
10. Being diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis has both been a blessing and a curse. A blessing because it forces me to focus on the positive things in my life and a curse, well, because it hurts.
11. Of all the projects I’ve started and haven’t finished, I’m proud to say I’m still blogging after a year. I love connecting with other bloggers and sharing my experiences and hobbies with others who share a common interest. It makes the overwhelmingly large world just a little smaller every time you stop by and comment. So my sincere thanks to you for visiting, reading and commenting!
My Answers to Lydia’s 11 Questions
1. Who do you look up to most? Why?
It may be cliche to say my parents but yes, my parents. They are Indian immigrants, came to America with nothing. educated themselves and worked hard to provide every advantage to me as a kid. I am forever grateful. They raised me with their family and support half a world away. I can’t imagine living that far from them. Luckily, I don’t have to.
2. Do you watch reality shows? If you do, which is your favorite? If you don’t, why?
The only reality shows I used to watch were So You Think You Can Dance and American Idol. I don’t like watching reality drama. I have enough drama to want to watch other people’s drama. Lately though, I have been enjoying reading so much I hardly watch TV.
3. What is your favorite book of all time?
Seriously? I can’t pick just one. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, Persuasion and Midwife’s Confession are my top 3 at the moment.
4. Favorite band of all time?
Hmmm….thats a tough one too. U2, Depeche Mode, INXS, Daughtry, Lifehouse, Five for Fighting have all been favorites. And yes, I used to like the Backstreet Boys, but I wasn’t such a fan that I could tell you their names.
5. If you had to pick a song that best described you, what would it be?
100 Years by Five for Fighting
6. What is your biggest fear?
Losing my kids. Too many parents have kids that are gravely ill or have passed away. Devastating.
7. Night owl or early bird?
Night owl. Unfortunately, the kids are early birds. Not a great combination in the mornings.
8. If you’re willing to share, what’s your most embarrassing moment?
I have a weak cervix and needed a cerclage (stitch) to close my cervix in order to carry each of my 3 kids to term. Each surgery required me to have my legs suspended from stirrups in the air with all my womanly glory exposed to the room of doctors and nurses. Oh yea, did I mention I work at the hospital where my OB delivers? Lovely running into your OB in the cafeteria.
9. Cats or dogs?
Dogs. Sweet dogs. We just lost our last doggie and house just isn’t the same without the friendly, loving presence of our dogs.
10. When you have nothing else to do, what do you find yourself doing?
Blogging…or reading…or planning to blog…or planning what to read…
11. What’s a talent you wish you had?
Singing. I love to sing just wish I had stage presence and self-confidence and yea, a good voice would help.
My 11 Questions for Awarded Bloggers
1. If you could travel to anywhere in the world, where would you go?
2. What is your favorite book?
3. If you could be a cartoon character, who would you want to be?
4. Would you pick Monica, Phoebe or Rachel for your best Friend? Why?
5. What is your favorite meal? Feel free to share a link 🙂
6. What is the strangest or funnest thing you’ve done on a date? Keep it clean, people!
7. Share a funny joke or favorite inspirational quote.
8. What do you like to do when you have “me” time? Or what would you do with a free couple of hours?
9. Which blog(s) do you love to stalk?
10. If you were a superhero, what superpower would you have?
And the Award Goes To...
Thankful for the support and comraderie of these bloggers.
Lisa at The Dose of Reality
Andrea at Good Girl Gone Redneck
Allison at The Book Wheel
Rebecca at Love at First Book
Kim at Little by Little Blog
Kiran at Masala Chica
Kara at The Joys of Boys
Ramona at Create With Joy
Michelle at The True Book Addict
Kristen at The Preppy Girl in Pink
Shell at Things I Can’t Say
Please take a minute to visit these fabulous blogs and give them some extra love for Valentine’s Day. Thanks again to Lydia at Cluttered Genius for bestowing this award on me! It’s been fun and strangely difficult figuring out what to tell you more about me.
Okay, here are my answers…finally!
1. If you could travel to anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Wow, that’s a tough one. I guess if forced to choose, it would be Europe…probably the United Kingdom because I feel that my roots are in the Celtic countries of Scotland and Ireland.
2. What is your favorite book?
Queen of the Damned by Anne Rice…I have many favorites, but Anne Rice is my all time favorite author and this one I have read four times!
3. If you could be a cartoon character, who would you want to be?
Well, I’m a big time cat lover, but in this case I have to go with my favorite, Scooby Doo. He’s so awesome and he gets to have such fun being scared and solving mysteries.
4. Would you pick Monica, Phoebe or Rachel for your best Friend? Why?
Even though Monica doesn’t seem the obvious choice because she seems high maintenance and bossy, I would choose her because 1) she was overweight in high school 2) I love people who strive for perfection and 3) I think she’s a genuinely good person inside.
5. What is your favorite meal? Feel free to share a link
I really like a good steak, but I also love seafood and Mexican food a lot.
6. What is the strangest or funnest thing you’ve done on a date? Keep it clean, people!
I really can’t think of anything. Well, in the first years my ex-husband and I were together, before we got married, we went to a haunted house and I got hurt. Long story…
7. Share a funny joke or favorite inspirational quote.
This is a new one that I came across as I’ve been going through some major changes in my life in the past few months:
“Every story has an end, but in life, every end is just a new beginning.”
8. What do you like to do when you have “me” time? Or what would you do with a free couple of hours?
I love to be able to read without distraction, of course. If I really had a free couple of hours every day, I would like to work on my book.
9. Which blog(s) do you love to stalk?
Well, recently, yours…it seems. 🙂 Also…
Lit and Life
Truth, Beauty, Freedom and Books
Must Read Faster
Between the Covers
There are more…too many to list!
10. If you were a superhero, what superpower would you have?
Super speed…you know, for speed reading. 😉
Great questions! Hope I wasn’t too long winded.
Congratulations! And thank you, too! Thats so funny that you hated reading as a kid. My, how things change!
You’re welcome Allison! My interests are always changing. I was very active as a kid, always playing outside and playing sports, played piano. All things I can’t do now. I do enjoy it though, learning things about different cultures and time periods I would never have known about is especially fun and interesting.
Hi Tanya! Just hopped over to your blog and am a new follower. A) I’m kinda jealous that you have 3 boys. I would love my future children to all be boys as my 2 year old boy is simply perfect. I LOVE being a momma of a boy! And B) I see that you root for Cleveland…. do you still love there? We live in The Cleve! Anyway, hope you have a great VDay today and stop by to follow back!
http://www.sarahandderek.blogspot.com
Thanks so much Sarah! No we left Cleveland (lived in Mentor, northeast of Cleveland) nearly 20 years ago. I was an Indians, Browns and Cavs fan back before they had new stadiums, and the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame hadn’t been built yet! I still root for them but now that we live in an area dominated by college sports and close to our alma mater, it’s all about college sports now. Oh, boys are darling, fiesty, fun and a bit stinky! Did you see my post on Sharing Moments of Motherhood? Something to look forward to as a boy mom. But they love their mommas and are sooo loving and sweet. I am glad to hear your 2 year old is perfect, not a lot of moms can use 2 year old and perfect in the same sentence. 🙂
I appreciate so much your following my blog and hope to hear from you again soon!! Have a great valentine’s day with your boys!
Oh, Tanya! You are so sweet! I am so flattered by you nomination! I am blushing! 🙂
I love that you only ever asked one boy out…because it sure worked out for you!! 🙂 Awesome!!
I am so, so, so glad to hear that your parents are avid readers, but that you weren’t when you were little (but obviously are now). I love reading. My oldest child is just like me. He adores reading. We trade books and book suggestions back and forth. It’s so fun to share this with him. My daughter, on the other hand, is a great reader level-wise, but she doesn’t gravitate toward it like my son always did. She wouldn’t say she likes to do it for fun like my son and I do. This gives me hope that she could still grow up to love reading! 🙂
Happy Valentine’s Day!! –Lisa
You’re welcome Lisa. I thought it was a fun award to get. Thank goodness he said yes, I don’t think I could ask out another boy again!
For me, I had to find that one book I couldn’t put down and which so moved me to tears. I missed the characters so much that I yearned to find other books like it. Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda was the book that got me hooked a year ago and then I found Diane Chamberlain’s books soon after and the rest is history. Maybe your daughter has to find that one special book that she loves instead of those books the teacher tells her to read.
My two older kids love to read. The oldest is the fastest little bookworm, we both take the Goodreads challenge and he creams me in the number of books he reads. I’ve read some on his recommendation like The Alchemyst and Hunger Games and we have similar taste in YA books. 🙂 I agree love for books is something special that just he and I share. It’s tough competing with his cooler, funnier, video-game playing dad. Luckily my middle son loves to be read to and is quickly learning to read on his own. Of course, he was looking at my Kindle when I was reading Here I Go Again, which word was he able to read off the whole page? A 3 letter bad word that rhymes with bass. Ah the joys of being a mom to little boys who are too clever for their own good!
I look forward to what you post for your award responses! Have a great day with your loved ones!
I love it. OMG, your embarrassing story is just that! Embarrassing. Imagine my face when I was lying there waiting to birth baby #2 and a student from my first year of teaching walked in. I just took a deep breath and said, “Hey Mary!” Turned out really awesome to have someone who liked me and knew me on my side! 🙂
So glad you played along, and glad we connected!
Hi Lydia, I’m glad my embarassment amuses you :). All self-consciousness is lost when you’ve got to give birth! I still run into those docs and the lactation consultant who remembered me from my visit with my second child who is in elementary school! I must have made some kind of impression given the number of moms these professionals see.
That is funny about your student. I’m glad she was a help to you, you need all the help you can get when bringing a human into the world! Thanks for the award and I loved playing along! You’ve got a loyal follower in me, you always make me laugh.
Yay!!! Thank you!!! I love these awards because it helps me to get know people better which is why I started blogging in the first place. Ha! I laughed so hard at #10! I’m the same way.
I will definitely spread the love next week. In the meantime, I’m celebrating the Valentine’s Love with my family. 😉
You’re welcome Kristen, I love getting to know people better too that I would never have met otherwise! Wishing you and your family a loving and peaceful Valentine’s Day!
Congratulations on your first blog award, Tanya, and thank you so much for sharing your happiness with me! I enjoyed getting to know you a little better! 🙂
You’re welcome Ramona! Have a lovely Valentine’s Day!