Liebster Award Nomination

While I was on a girlfriends' trip this weekend with my very best friends, I got an exciting tweet from my nErDcampBC friend, Ryan Hanna, who blogs at Reading Rocks!, saying that he nominated me for the Liebster Award!  This award is given to "up and coming" bloggers who have less than 200 followers.  Nominations come from other bloggers, so I am so thankful that Ryan reads my blog and honored me with a nomination.  Thank you, Ryan!  I loved learning more about Ryan from his Liebster Award nomination post.  Be sure to read his answers to Gigi McAllister's questions. 

 

Rules for participating in this blog award are as follows:
1. Link back to the blog that nominated me. 
2. Nominate 5-11 blogs with fewer than 200 followers. 
3. Answer the questions posted for you by your nominator.
4. Share 11 random facts about yourself. 
5. Create 11 questions for your nominees. 
6. Contact your nominees by commenting on their blog or sending them an email to communicate the nomination.

Here are the 11 questions for Ryan's nominees:

1. What is one blog you never miss reading?
I read The Nerdy Book Club blog every day.  I love that it was founded by book lovers and teachers (Donalyn Miller, Colby Sharp, and Cindy Minnich) and that guest bloggers contribute.  The only qualification to be a Nerdy Book Club member is to love books.  What an amazing community it has developed!

2. What kind of music are you into?
Honestly, I listen to audio books now way more than I listen to music!  When I listen to music, though, or go to concerts, it's usually country.  I listen to plenty of my daughters' favorite music, however, so I'm not completely oblivious to new stuff. Ha.

3. What is a book you would recommend that may be new to many readers?
This is a difficult question to answer since I get so many of the books I read from recommendations on Goodreads, blogs, and Twitter, so I'm not sure they'd be new to my readers.  I'll recommend my favorite 2013 middle grade book so far, though, and it may be new to you:  Every Day After by Laura Golden.

4. What accomplishment are you most proud of?
My marriage and my daughters!  I love my family.  My husband and I have been happily married for 24 years, and he is my biggest fan and best friend.  My oldest daughter will be a junior at Miami University and is one of the kindest and smartest people I know.  My youngest daughter will be a senior in high school this year (I can't believe that!) and has a great sense of humor and attitude toward life.

5. What's the first thing you notice about others?
The first thing I notice about a person is his/her smile. I love a warm, genuine smile.  I always thought laugh lines around someone's eyes were attractive.  It means they've been smiling a lot!

6. If someone were to make a movie about your life, who would you envision playing you?

It would have to be someone tall with naturally curly hair!   Maybe Taylor Swift for my younger years and Faith Hill for my older ones?  A girl can dream...

7. What kinds of vacations do you like?
I like all kinds of vacations!  Sometimes I like to relax and sit in the sun reading a book, but I also loved going to Europe and touring the sites.

8. Favorite candy and why.
CHOCOLATE!  I love everything chocolate!  I'm not sure why - I've always loved it.  Maybe I inherited it from my mom.  She loves it, too, and I've passed that love on to my daughters!

9. When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone on paper?
Oh wow, I used to be so good about that.  I corresponded with friends and family a lot in college.  It's becoming a lost art, isn't it?!  I've written thank you notes lately, but I can't even remember the last time I wrote an actual letter on paper.  My oldest daughter still does.  She corresponds with several people on paper.  Maybe I need to start that again!

10. Where's a place you'd like to visit, but haven't yet?
My dream vacation is to go to Italy and stay for about 3 months!  My bucket list is full of places I'd like to go.

11. Do you believe in Zodiac signs/horoscopes?
No, I don't.  I'm a Capricorn, though!

Eleven Random Facts About Me:

1.  I'm an only child - just like Ryan!  I, too, enjoy(ed) it!
2.  I raised ducks and chickens and showed them through 4-H at the Warren County Fair and liked to hunt and fish when I was a young girl.
3.  I love to read aloud to anyone who will listen!
4.  I was a cheerleader in junior high and freshman year in high school.
5.  I teach a spiritual gifts class periodically at my church.
6.  I'm left-handed.
7.  I have naturally curly hair; so does my mom and daughters.
8.  I love our Cocker Spaniel, Ben, and have never been without a dog.
9.  My other dream job would be to own a children's book store.
10.  I had horses as a kid and took horseback riding lessons with my youngest daughter for a few years.
11.  My husband and I are "Miami Mergers."  Miami University is known for the percentage of students who marry each other - 14%!  We get a Valentine card from Miami every year.

 

I'm excited to nominate some bloggers I think are awesome!  Be sure to visit their blogs to learn more about them.  Megan is my writing partner and friend, Ricki and Kellee launched a wonderful new blog this summer, and the rest I met recently at nErDcampBC and the Choice Literacy Writing Retreat.  I'm not quite sure how many followers all of them have, but I love learning from them!

 

1.  Megan at Adventures in Learning

2.  Crystal at Reading Through Life
3.  Cathy at Reflect & Refine: Building a Learning Community
4.  Brian at Wyz Reads
5.  Jillian at Heise Reads
6.  Janet at Mrs. Frost Reads
7.  Karen at Literate Lives
8.  Gretchen at Learning With Joy
9.  Stella at My World/Mi Mundo
10. Ricki and Kellee at Unleashing Readers: Helping Students Navigate the World of Books
11.  Maria at Teaching in the 21st Century

Here are my questions for you:

1.  Katherine Sokolowski recently asked this question on her blog, and I loved it:  If you could invite any three authors or illustrators to dinner, who would they be?
2.  If you were stranded on a desert island, what luxury item would you want with you?
3.  What is one important thing you learned in the past year?
4.  What is the number one thing on your bucket list?
5.  What are some of your professional goals?
6.  Who or what makes you laugh?
7.  If you had to write a personal motto or mission statement, what would it be?
8.  If you were allowed to talk about only one book for the next month, what would it be?
9.  What is the one t.v. show you can't miss?
10.  Where do you want to be in 15 years?
11.  What was your proudest moment?

Thank you, again, Ryan, for honoring me with a nomination.  Happy blogging!