Liebster award time (blogging news).

I must apologize for being so quiet on the blog this past week. For some reason I have felt rather uninspired to write. I have a few posts in drafts, but I haven't been able to muster the motivation to finish them. We've been rather busy in real life, with a trip to LA, and then having family stay with us for a few days. Additionally, I've been having exhausting dreams about going on epic adventures, and I wake up feeling like I've been running around all night (although, in a way, I enjoy them, as they are like watching exciting adventure movies). The next few weeks will also be quite busy, but I will try to stay more up-to-date on blogging (although I'm not making any promises).

Last week I was nominated for a Liebster award by the lovely Shandy from Aprons 'n Pearls! Liebster is German for sweetheart, darling, and beloved (and boyfriend, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say that that's not what the award means). This is a fun way to get to know new bloggers, and to share a little bit about yourself. Here are the rules (I copied these verbatim from Shandy):

The Fun Rules:
* The nominee must link back to the blogger who nominated them.
* The nominee must state 11 facts about themselves, and then answer the 11 questions provided for them by the person who nominated them.
* The nominee must then nominate bloggers with less than 200 followers, who they think deserve the recognition, and pose 11 new questions for them to answer.
* They must then tell the bloggers who they have nominated about the award.

Random Facts About Me
1. I grew up 3 hours away from Niagara Falls and the Canadian border, but I've never been to either (well, technically, I was in Canada once on a layover).

2. Now I live less than an hour away from the Mexican border, but I've never been to Mexico either.

3. I have however, been to Ireland several times, and to London once.

4. I was the first grandchild on both sides of my family until I was almost 10 years old (Christmas was awesome). Now our child will be the first grandchild on both sides of his family; he'll even be the first great-grandchild on my side!

5. I have a really hard time going down escalators when they aren't moving. I have to avoid looking down at the steps because all of the little lines make me dizzy. For some reason this doesn't happen when the escalator is moving.

6. The only food that I really dislike is bell peppers (green, red, yellow, it doesn't matter, they all taste like poison to me). I used to be so sensitive to the flavor that I wouldn't even eat food that had touched bell peppers. My mom once accidentally put peppers into a salad she was making, and quickly took them out without me seeing. I took one bite of the salad, and refused to eat any more because I could taste the flavor on it.

7. I've always loved hot peppers though (and all spicy food). When I was a toddler, my mom tried to get me to stop sucking my thumb by putting cayenne pepper on it. I sucked the spice off, then went back and asked for more.

8. I am a coffee addict, and my day doesn't start until I've had my cup of coffee. I started drinking coffee when I was 15, and I could probably count on my fingers the days that I haven't had coffee since then.

9. I love being barefoot, and I would never wear shoes if the laws, customs, and weather permitted it. It boggles my mind that Matt wears shoes even when he's inside.

10. I never enjoyed napping until I got pregnant. Now I long for naps every single day.

11. I really want a harlequin Great Dane. Growing up I always had a dog, and I miss it. I love big dogs, and Great Danes are such sweet, gentle, giants.

Did I mention they're huge?! Image source

Shandy's Questions
1. What is your go-to store for home decor?
I don't really have a go-to store, mainly because we already have too much stuff for our tiny apartment. However, when I do want new decor, I usually start at Michaels because I like to make my own decorations when possible.

2. What is your favorite color?
 I love blue; I love it in all shades and forms and tones. It's been my favorite color since I was young.

3. What would you do if you had to unplug {100%} from internet/tv/cell phones for a week?
Honestly, unplugging entirely for a week would be hard. I've actually gone a week without my cellphone before (I forgot to pack the charger when we went away), and it was a nice break. I think the hardest thing for me would be not being able to check my email. I get antsy if I can't check it at least once a day, so a week would be difficult. A week without TV would probably lead to me reading a lot more though. 

4. What do you like your home to smell like?
Ideally our home would always smell like fresh spring air and warm vanilla cookies. 

5. What is one domestic task you're not good at?
I'm not very good at doing laundry. I know how to (it's not like it's that hard of a task), but I always procrastinate as long as possible. Luckily for me, Matt often ends up doing laundry. 

6. What is one domestic task you are awesome at?
I must say I can cook some pretty awesome food. I've always felt comfortable in the kitchen, and I love cooking up new dishes. 

7. If you could remodel any ONE room in your home, which room would you choose?
I would have to chose the bathroom to remodel. It's actually fairly large for the size of our apartment, but the space is not well laid out. I'd put in a double sink, a much larger mirror, more cabinet space, and a much better ventilation system. I'd also be happy to change all of the tiling out; the shower/tub is the same horrible tile as the kitchen counters, and the floor is boring, cheap, linoleum tile.

8. What is the best thing about living in your town/city/neck of the woods?
One of the best things about being in San Diego  is definitely the weather. We're so spoiled here by sunshine and warmth; when it rains, most people don't even venture outside.

9. What is your favorite item in your home?
 This is a hard question because it's so broad. One of my favorite sets of items is the photo wall that I created last year for our anniversary. We've since re-arranged our bedroom, and now the photo wall is above the head of our bed, which creates a fabulous headboard sort of display.

10. Which are you more drawn to... cool colors or warm colors?
 I love cool colors, blues, greens, aquas, teals, etc. They are so calming and peaceful to me.

11. What is your favorite song?
One of my all time favorite songs is Spanish Harlem Incident by Bob Dylan. I love Bob Dylan, and when Matt and I were first dating, he told me that this song always made him think of me. 

My Nominees
Just a Little Tart
Winelady Cooks
Manila Spoon
Retro Colours
My Cooking Journey
One Crazy Girl's Kitchen


My Questions for the Nominees
1. What is your favorite meal to cook and eat?
2. If you could take a one week trip to anywhere in the world, where would you go?
3. What is one thing you couldn't go a single day without?
4. What's the last book that you read?
5. Do you prefer movies that make you laugh, cry, or scream in terror?
6. Do you prefer the city or the country?
7. What do you want to learn how to do this year?
8. Do you have any pets? If yes, what are they?
9. What's your favorite type of cuisine?
10. Would you go skydiving?
11. Why did you start blogging?



  I link up to these parties.