The Liebster Award: ARG! I Forgot Something!

Sigh.

Those eleven questions for those I nominated.  Yup.  Forgot those.

Here is my way of following that part of the directions.

Choose eleven words of your choice from the following list. Using words, images or sound, define as if to someone who does not know the perspective you have ... if you feel like it, ya' know:

Peace

Stereotype

Fear

Truth

Intense/Intensity

Healing

Force

Education

Hunger

Joy

Intimidation

Wisdom

Responsibility

Wrong

Discriminate

Hope

Lie

Home

Ok.  There you go. This might be harder than it was ever intended to be but, as words are the tools that writers (and bloggers) use, I thought it would be a good exercise.

The Liebster Award: Part Three

So, NOW is where it gets hard here with the directions for this here Liebster Award....

Normally, I don't follow directions very well.  As in "not hardly ever".

But, because my pal, Laurie, is such a cool and resourceful kinda gal, I figured I should give it a go in my own way.


Here are the rest of the directions:

3- Nominate 7 bloggers who have less than 200 followers and ask those bloggers 11 questions (Don't forget to tell those you have nominated...).

4- FOLLOW those 7 bloggers you nominate.

5- If you are nominated and choose to play along, please let your nominating blogger (that's me) know in comments so that I can see your answers and get to know you.

Right.

Remember how I'm not so good at following directions?  You haven't seen it much yet if you only know me by my posts here, but trust me on this.  I'm not good at following directions.

So, with that in mind, here are my totally loose-leaf nominations!

Conversations with a Pastor's Wife  
Not your average Preacher's Gal, LKS is a great resource for life fun, challenge and a peek at the wacky things that make her family a great team to play on.  She's given me some really great ideas, too!  I got to host this delightful woman in my house and she even took some fun pictures of my favorite part of the country.  

Sassy Family 
Jill is adopted, Irish, sassy, smarter than is probably safe, and made it so my son, the Dood, makes all our salad dressings himself.  She's easy for this Minnesota Kid to talk to because we speak the same idioms, don'cha know.  You bet.

If Not You, Then Who? If Not Now, Then When? 
Which of these things is not like the other? Jimmi is a man I've known for just about 20 years.  He & The Man have been friends since high school.  He's taught my kids Irish pub songs, helped them learn guitar strumming, and spilled on my walls, furniture & carpet.  The things he has to say are not the same as you will find on the other blogs I'll mention.

Wouldn't You Like To Know?  
HealthyBratt has a HUGE, HUGE wealth of knowledge.  She's smart on henna, Korean foods, and that's just a tiny peek into her know-how. I've known HB for more than 5 years and have had the privilege to hug her neck, too.  She's got the smarts & the heart.

Larson Log  
The young pup who writes this blog is more than a diamond in the rough.  (Diamonds aren't my thing so call me biased. I'm cool with that cuz I am - but that's another post.) This gal is opal.  She's made of common stuff and she knows it, but the light inside her is brilliant.  I've never met Rebekah & I may never get the chance to squeeze on her and that will truly be a shame.  You'll only get a peek here and here but that's just a glimpse.  There are many posts and there will be time invested to read them all.  I encourage you to read it like a novel, a story that you read to see how the characters work it out.  Follow her thoughts and see her stretch out those wings.  I can't find words to say how excited I am for the future that is unfolding for those in her life.  I am certain there will be amazement, work and great, great reward.  I dare you to take this one on.

Courage Road 
I've never met this woman in person, but I have found her in my heart on days I would not have expected.  I'm not sure why, and it's likely I never will.  But that doesn't change her presence there.  It's another blog developed over time. Though you may be able to pick some bits & pieces of things from the individual posts, it's an unfolding story best read from start to finish.  She's in my age demographic and from a similar part of the United States.  It's a difficult story on the courage road.  Don't let that deter you from the journey.

There! I did it! Sort of.

And, because I really didn't follow the directions and never intended to completely, here are some more blogs that receive Honorable Mention:

bertsie collins 
Written by a friend dear to my heart, this little blog is cheery and may even be that way with a sad time, if it's chosen.  She's an unreasonably optimistic citizen, the oft surprised life-complement to Jimmi from If Not You..., and my favorite vegetarian.

The Blue House Blog 
The adventures of Melissa, Katie & Annie are chronicled in this record.  Here you'll find wacky kids, fun learning, and dangerously tastey  really healthy, yummy pancakes.  And a teeny bit of sarcasm. I've never met this family either but I'm luring them to the Source of the Mighty Mississippi and then I'll get to see them for real.

Ok.  Now I really am through the directions.   If you are on this list, don't feel like you have to follow the Liebster Award directions either.

I just like you.

The Liebster Award: Part Two

The second step of The Liebster Award directions is to: Tell 9 things about yourself.

Oh brother.

OK.  Because Laurie is just plain fun and smart, I'll throw out a few things about myself because she asked.  

#1
I love language.   

Not just words but the origin and definition of a word.  

And then the way the definition of that word can actually be different than it's meaning.  Combine some words and all their definitions together do not match the meaning of that word series.  

Use that same series of words in a context of different words and the meaning changes again.  

Good grammar is the correct use of the tool but the best use of language is to communicate thought to thought and concept to concept to another through - and in spite of - the filters we all have as we use language.

#2
Soft ginger cookies are my love language.
It's like number 9 or 10 on the Five Love Languages thing I think.  Pretty sure it is.  Should be anyway.

#3
When we got married, The Man & I thought we might have a lot of kids.  Like five even!  Crazy lots of kids.  We would almost certainly have to get a minivan.  And they could be kinda close in age.  Like all five under ten years old.  We would probably shock people we knew but we were pretty sure we could handle it.

#4

My favorite sound is actually the call of a red winged blackbird.  It's the sound of spring to my ears.

#5

If it were not for my husband, I might not have shoes. I dislike shoe shopping that much.  But he has a thing for shoes and buys them for me. They are all very weird and very minimalist except a pair of Yellow Box flip flops that I got from a fabulous gal from Alabama.

#6

I am 5'2" and weighed over 200# after my first pregnancy.  I lost about 40 pounds before the next pregnancy but was incredibly weak for my age for many years.  I left that behind when Stick was born.  I now weigh a few pounds less than my wedding weight.  I was a size 10 then and am now a size 4-5.  I intend to live well for a while yet.

#7
Some people don't fully appreciate my gifts.  Like the time I gave rhythm eggs to all the toddlers at a multi-family picnic and a kazoo to each of the older kids.

#8
I haven't been on a plane since I was an infant.  It might be a while, too.  We've been kinda busy.

#9

I don't think of myself as very interesting.  This list, for example.  It was WORK to come up with things that might be worth noting about me.  I really do believe I'm just a very ordinary person.  I'm just living an extraordinary life.

Next up: My nominations for the Liebster Award! Kinda.  Really.  I'm not very good at this "follow the directions" gig.

The Liebster Award: Part One

My pal, Laurie writes Laurie's Everyday Notions and is an amazing garage saler. (Why, yes! That is a wonderful skill on so many levels!)

She has given me The Liebster Award!

What, you ask, is a Liebster Award?

Well.

I actually have no idea what it really is or where it came from.  BUT I do know it's given by bloggers to other bloggers in a way to spread information about small blogs here and there.  And that sounds mighty nice to me!

With it comes a list of questions to answer, things to do, and folks to share it with. ... Which makes it seem an awful lot like directions.

Here is that list:

1- Answer 11 questions from the nominating blog.

2- Tell 9 things about yourself.

3- Nominate 7 bloggers who have less than 200 followers and ask those bloggers 11 questions (Don't forget to tell those you have nominated...).

4- FOLLOW those 7 bloggers you nominate.

5- If you are nominated and choose to play along, please let your nominating blogger (that's me) know in comments so that I can see your answers and get to know you. 

THERE THEY ARE!  Just five little steps.  

Directions.

I'm not so very good with directions.  Sigh.

So I will follow these directions just like I do with a recipe.  I'll let this list sit within reach while I go about doing something kinda similar with whatever I have around that I like.

I'm going to break these steps into a few posts because I just don't have the time to post it all at once.  (Anyone who has been following to this point knows I'm woefully behind my planned posting schedule.  Oy!)

FIRST - I'll answer Laurie's 11 questions.  She's a good egg and a swell pal for answering weird questions out of the blue when I have her cell phone number handy.

1- What brings you joy?

Joy is a mighty big, powerful word.  It's more than taste or sound.  More than sentiment.  It's a longing of the soul fulfilled with a hope that's more solid than any promise given by human voice.

What brings me joy?  Laurie knows me personally and she knows my answer.  If you don't know what my answer would be - or just want to hear me say it - email me at my blogger contact email (or call me!) and stick this question to me.  I love to answer this sort of question but I do try to keep it face to face to avoid confusion.

2- What drives you nuts (pet peeves)?

Today, implied questions irk me.  

Cob (holding book with destroyed cover): Mom.

Me: That's me.

Cob (continuing to hold book and cover)

Me: Hi, Cob!

Cob (wags book and cover in the air)

Me (waves hand): Hello!  Nice to greet you.

Cob (holding book and cover farther apart... as if I can't see they are totally disconnected?)

Drives. Me. Bonkers!

3- If you had one day with no kids/spouse/responsibilities and could do anything you wished, how would you spend your day?

Wow.

I have no fast answer for this. It would depend on the season of the year but I would probably choose to be out in the woods.
I think.
Maybe?  I just don't know.  It's so far out there, ya know?

4- Favorite book?

I don't get to read much.  I have a huge, huge list of things I would like to read about but my time just isn't getting them done.

But my favorite fiction book that I keep returning to one decade after another is Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis.  There are a lot of reasons for it - several of which few would ever guess - but I've enjoyed the thoughts evoked by the story for a long time.

5- Since I'm moved by music so, I want to know your favorite song.

My favorites change a lot.  

"Every Morning" by Keb' Mo' is my current favorite with his Shave Yo' Legs coming in close second.

6- What is one word that others would use to describe you?

Different.

That is the word that was used to describe me to my blind date by his friend.  It was my last first date.

7- What are you good at?

I have yet to meet someone who can pile stuff in a closet as well and varied as I can.  Granted, it's not something that most folks go around bragging about but - hey, you asked!

8- What do you wish you knew how to do?

I wish I knew how to shoot really good portraits.  I would like to be able to share this skill with others.  I'm working on photography lessons so maybe I can get this skill yet!

9- Favorite dessert (because I'm all about food) ?

I really like New York style cheesecake.  I make a turtle cheesecake that is supposed to be quite good, too.  I rarely ever get any of that one.  But a nicely done cheesecake is just smooth and nummy all it's own.  No extras needed.

10- Who is your hero?

I've been pondering this one and I am not coming up with anything.  As I think about it, i don't know if I've ever had heros.  I'm not sure why that is but I suspect it has something to do with my understanding of people, their abilities and what we all have in common.

11- What is your favorite household chore? (I'm chuckling a little here. I'm going to bet that no one says, "toilets"!)

Can I count planning?  I like planning.  What will be needed?  Who should prepare?  What is best delegated to whom?  All that.  I love a good list!