Liebster Blog Awards

Woo hoo!  Thanks Erin for nominating my blog!  I have been reading Erin's blog for......well, forever!  I think since she started posting originally.  I love her approach to parenting and she is an amazing artist.  Her boys are very close in age to mine so it's nice to compare notes and tips.  I used her cloth diapering posts as a basis when I started purchasing my stash.  Plus, she hails from New England, which is where I am from!

When you’re nominated for a Liebster, here’s what you do:
1.    Thank the Liebster Blog presenter who nominated you and link back to their blog.
2.    Nominate 11 blogs who you feel deserve to be noticed and leave a comment on their blog letting them know they have been chosen.
3.    Answer the 11 questions you were asked and create 11 questions for your nominees.
4.    Display the Liebster Award logo.
5.    No tag backs, meaning you can’t just re-nominate the person who nominated you.

Here are the questions that Erin asked:

1. What is your earliest memory?  I had to be about 3 years old.  My mom's best friend took me to the New England Aquarium for the day to give my mom a break while she stayed home with my baby brother.  I was standing at the center tank when someone said "Come on Rachel".  So I went.  It took the family about 10 minutes to realize this strange little girl was following them around and didn't belong to them.  I did finally make it back to my rightful owner obviously.  My mom's friend was so worried!  

2. What is your most embarrassing memory? – You can be vague if it’s TOO embarrassing!  There is a reason my nickname is Grace.  I am incredibly clumsy.  I have so many embarrassing moments that it can be hard to list just one.  Let's see, there was the time I fell off the back of the band risers in middle school.  Or the time I broke my nose and split my head open in front of about 25 teenagers.  Or having to go to school wearing headgear.  God, I was such an unfortunately geeky child.

3. What was or were your favorite childhood book(s)?  Definitely the Little House on the Prairie series.  I can still read this series as an adult.  I even have my copies from when I was a kid.

4. What is your favorite book to read to your kid(s) right now?  My two favorites are Goodnight Gorilla and Good Dog Carl.  Probably because it requires me to fill in the pictures with dialog.  There are very few words in either book so I get to create my own stories.  Plus the boys like all the voices that I do.

5. Is there a movie you love and couldn’t or can’t wait to watch with your kid(s)?  I (sadly) hadn't seen a lot of the Disney movies before I had kids but what I am most excited for them to see is Wizard of Oz.  I adore this movie and the kids are still too little to experience it yet.  When they are bigger and the flying monkeys won't freak them out, I hope they love it as much as I do.

6. If you had to choose a “uniform” to wear for the rest of your life a la Marge Simpson, what outfit would you choose?  Comfy jeans, a long tank top and a short sleeved cardigan.  Heh, that is pretty much what I wear every day now.

7. If a war broke out between the Smurfs and the Gummi Bears, who would win and why? If you are too young to answer this question insert your own beloved cartoon characters.  There was a Gummi Bears cartoon?  I must have had a deprived childhood because I had no idea.  Let's just replace Gummi Bears with Care Bears shall we?  Dude, Care Bears would win every time.  I loved that cartoon.  We were pretty poor growing up and the Care Bears were so popular.  I am pretty sure I begged my mom for one because that year at Christmas, she had handmade us Care Bears.  Mine had a rainbow on its belly.

8. What is the first record/cassette/CD you remember purchasing by yourself?  You probably will never believe this, but Fleetwood Mac's Tango in the Night.  For real.  To this day, I am a huge Fleetwood Mac fan.

9. Do you have a role model or unofficial mentor? Who is it and why?  I have several actually. My mother-in-law is my role model when it comes to being a good person, a Christian and a mother.  She is amazing, caring, kind and I look to her for advice and wisdom.  I have never seen her angry and she always looks for the good in people.  I want to be more like her as I grow as a person.  She probably doesn't know this, but my aunt is my professional role model.  She has created herself a very good career from working her way up, much like I did.  She doesn't have a college education but it doesn't matter - she is a hard worker, and everyone in her place of business respects her.  

10. Would you rather be wealthy and idle, or famous for a career you enjoy but financially struggling?  Well, I am sort of doing the second, although I wouldn't consider myself famous.  Grass is always greener right?  I would rather be wealthy and idle.  I could make a career out of being lazy.

11. Who is your favorite Baldwin (question submitted by my husband)?  Alec!  He is funny and seems to persevere even through some scandals.

And now for the good stuff!  Here are the bloggers I am nominating, in no particular order:

1.  When Two Became Four - The Adventures of Twin Girls
2.  B&R Plus 1....More
3.  Elsewhere
4.  Every Day with Hazel Mae
5.  Mama at Home
6.  Our Little House in the Country
7.  He Recruited My Heart
8.  My Ramblings
9.  Sweet Tea and Tacos
10.  Stumbled Onto the Blogwagon
11.  The Wino That I Know

I might be biased but I know every single one of the ladies that post on the blogs above.  I am related to one, am Facebook friends with all, live in the same town as another, and am good friends with many.  When traveling for business, I met one of the bloggers in person after being Facebook and blog friends for a long time.  All of these ladies are amazing and each brings something different to the blog world.  Cooking, style, weight loss, DIY projects, parenting, pregnancy, the list goes on.

Here are the questions for my nominees:

1.  If given the choice, and money were no option, what would you choose to do for your career?
2.  Name a food or a meal that you could eat every day.
3.  Do you have a regret about something?  Feel free to unload!
4.  What is your guilty pleasure tv show?
5.  Kids or pets not included.  What would you grab in the event of a house fire?
6.  What is one thing you consider yourself really good at?
7.  What does your dream home look like?
8.  Are you an introvert or an extrovert?  Why?
9.  In your Favorites menu on your internet page, list the first three that come up.
10.  Where is your favorite place in the world?
11.  Name an actor, author, political figure, alive or deceased that you would love to spend a day with.