Awarded!!

Oh, goodness, I'm really honored to have been awarded the Liebster Award by Rochelle over at The Cannon Chronicles!  I'm always so horrible at following through on these things, but can never get enough of reading them on other peoples' blogs - we learn so much from people by reading what they write on a daily basis, but there are still so many things we have absolutely no clue about.  With the simple questions she asked me below, maybe you'll learn a bit more about me.  I can't promise you any of it will be even remotely interesting, but I'll sure try.  :-)  Thank you, Rochelle!


1.  Why did you start blogging?

I started blogging because I wanted to let family and friends know what we were up to.  Samantha was about a year old, and I began to realize that she was starting to do exciting things, her personality was shining, and I had a lot to say about that.  As time went on, the blog evolved and developed a bit more depth.

2.  What is your passion that you want your readers to get out of your blogging?

That I love my kid more than anything in the whole world.

3.  What are some of your favorite blogs to read?

Oh, dear - this is a tough one!  I've slacked on my blog reading a lot lately.  There are a lot that I love, though.  I guess the ones I like best these days are Garden of Egan (Leah blogs about her 4 children with Down syndrome, one biological, 3 adopted, and I am completely riveted by her descriptions of the processes of bringing each child home from Serbia and introducing them to family, structure, and love.  It's really amazing watching each personality unfold, each transformation they all undergo) and Our Little Chilli Tribe (Jenny has a gorgeous family, and her youngest child, Russell, has Ds.  She's not afraid to tell it like it is, and her journey over the last few years has been pretty remarkable, going from frustration and sadness to acceptance and joy.  Her writing is raw and heartfelt, and her photos of life on the ranch get me every time.)

4.  What is your favorite singer/band? why?

While I never had any sort of affinity for it in the past, I'm currently trying to listen to more pop music in the car, trying to introduce Samantha to popular culture so she can have a chance at understanding the things her peers are talking about.  My long-term favorite band is The Cramps.  If you're not familiar with them, I won't say more - you can investigate for yourself.  If you are familiar with them, I'll just say that Lux is missed.  :-(  My current pop-music favorite is, shockingly, Rihanna.  Oh, and Justin Timberlake (love his old-school style!  Takes me back to 1983...).  And I love that song, "Royals," by Lorde, but I don't know anything else by her (did you know she's only 17???). 

5.  If you could have dinner with anyone who would it be and why?

From the time I was about 14, I always said I wanted to have dinner with David Bowie.  And it's not like I listen to him regularly anymore - on the contrary - I have absolutely no idea what he's put out there in the last, uh, two decades, but I still think he'd be an awesome dinner companion - such a fascinating man who has got to have some pretty incredible stories to tell. 

6.  What is the best decision you ever made?

Moving to the town we live in now.  We could not possibly have picked a better place to raise Samantha.  We moved here when she was 3, and have never looked back.  It's safe, it's got amazing amenities and is close to so much great stuff for kids and adults!  The school system is fantastic, and there just happens to be a huge Down syndrome population here, too. 

7.  What is something you wish everyone knew about you?

I'm actually pretty shy.  Shocking.  I'm one of those people who can fake it pretty well, but then, in my nervousness, I'll say something completely stupid, and wonder, "why the hell did I just say that??"  And, of course, whoever heard it would be thinking, "what's up with her?"  Yep, I'm that person.

8.  If you won the lottery what would you do with the money?

Probably just pay off the bills, donate a bunch to several worthy causes, buy a fancy camera lens, buy a fancy house on a beach somewhere exotic, buy a fancy house in my own town, buy a fancy house in England, buy my parents fancy houses,  and hire someone to clean all of them.  And then invest the rest.  I'm not a very extravagant person, and have little interest in cars, jewelry, etc.  My husband may have something a little different about how the money is spent, though...I suspect his would involve cars, buying a soccer (sorry, football) team in England, and starting a fish and chips business somewhere here in the US, something that's sorely lacking in his opinion.

 9.  What are your hobbies?

Taking photos, editing photos, writing my blog.  That's about it.  However, if I won the lottery, I'm sure I'd take up a whole bunch of new hobbies!

 10. What drives you?

Let's just say who drives me.  LOL  My husband, who didn't get his driver's license until Samantha was born, was too afraid to drive so for 15 years I did all the driving.  While I love to drive, it was starting to get a bit old.  But the minute he got his license he got a huge amount of confidence and now insists on driving everywhere.  He's a great driver, too. 

What drives me?  Okay, Samantha does.  Knowing that everything I do is for her. 

So now I have to nominate a couple of others for the Liebster Award.  No doubt about it, I'm going with Jenny (Our Little Chilli Tribe) and Leah (Garden of Egan).  Here are some questions for the two of you!

1.  How would you describe your blog?
2.  What are your favorite TV shows?
3.  Describe yourself with 3 adjectives.
4.  What's in your fridge right now?
5.  Who has had the biggest influence on your life and why?
6.  You have a genie in a bottle ready to grant 3 personal wishes, just for you - what would they be?
7.  What would you change about yourself?
8.  Who's the celebrity you'd most like to meet?
9.  What accomplishment are you most proud of?
10.  What's your favorite easy recipe that doesn't require ingredients that wouldn't ordinarily live in your cabinets?