Happy Monday, everyone! I hope you all had great weekends.
Mine was spent relaxing, sleeping (I'm trying to do as much of that as Evie will allow lately...), writing, and dreaming about the future of Simply Liv. I have LOTS of fun ideas in the works and can't wait to see them come to fruition.
Blogging has become such a passion to me. I never expected it, but I truly love the freedom, flexibility, potential and community I've found through it. I've been pushing myself a ton in the past few months to grow this little space into something more than just a journal of our day-to-day that my family reads, and while I'm not exactly where I want to be yet, I'm so happy with my progress and so excited to be connecting with some awesome women through this little blog.
So, you can imagine my surprise and excitement when Simply Liv was nominated for the Liebster Award by another blogger who I've never actually met. I had seen this kind of obscure award a few times in some of the groups I'm a part of, but I never really took the time to see what it was all about. But once I was nominated, I got down to business ;) The Liebster is basically a way to connect even more with new blogs and help them grow their audience. Once you're nominated, you introduce yourself and your blog and nominate a few other bloggers to join in. It kind of reminds me of those email chain letters that went around when I was in middle school...but more official and actually fun ;)
I was nominated by Nicole of Naturally Nicole. She blogs about her passion for natural, healthy living in every area of life. It's an honor to be nominated by her and I'm already loving her blog! She has some great advice, especially for young mamas.
So without further ado, I will tell you a little bit more about myself, and then introduce the bloggers I'm nominating for the award!
11 questions:
Honestly, I'm not entirely sure. I started blogging during my freshman year of college and called it "Life Out of Grey", after a song I recorded in high school, but somewhere along the line I decided I wanted to make my blog more "official". Simply Liv just kind of came to me, and eventually I (conveniently) realized that writing about simple and authentic living would be a good addition to what I was already doing.
2// What’s your favorite food to cook?
Oh man. Before I got married, I didn't even know how to cook. I loved to bake, but cooking was something I never really had to mess with. BUT, now I absolutely love experimenting in the kitchen. My favorite things to make are the simple meals that I can take my own liberties with and make healthier.
3// If you could be any animal, which animal would it be and why?
Because I have absolutely no idea how to answer this question, I'm going to say a squirrel because Evie does a happy dance every time she sees one and waves hi and I love it. I actually don't really like them that much, but I would be one for my daughter's sake.
4// What is something that really makes you laugh?
My husband, obviously. Sometimes I don't know whether to laugh or face palm, but he is hilarious and I love him.
5// What is your biggest pet peeve?
Sometimes I think I'm one of those annoying people with lots of pet peeves. Those people are my pet peeves. Also, when people fight or yell at their kids in public. I'm not sure if that really qualifies as a pet peeve, but it drives me crazy.
6// What is one item you just could NOT live without?
I'm going to lie a little bit and say it isn't an electronic device....because one of the super exciting ideas I'm working on is a technology challenge. So my answer is ice cream (especially cherry chocolate!). Which is actually true, ask AJ.
7// If you could spend the day with one celebrity, who would it be?
Definitely Jennifer Lawrence. I think we could be best friends if she wasn't a billionaire and super famous. I trip up the stairs all the time too.
8// What are you driving?
A Honda Accord.
9// If you could change your first name, what would you change it to and why?
I've always liked my name, but if I had to change it I would probably make it what we are naming our daughter in a few weeks, so you'll have to come back soon and see for yourself! ;)
10// If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be?
Besides all of the actually important things I would change, I would make it possible for people to travel where ever they want to for free. I hate that the main thing holding people back from seeing the amazing places in the world is money.
11// What’s the best piece of advice you were ever given?
Growing up, my dad always told me to "remember who I am". And once I got Mufasa's voice out of my head, I realized how wise that is. Life throws a lot of curve balls at you, but staying grounded and remembering who you are (your strengths, beliefs, passions, weaknesses...all of it) will help you in everything you do. So thanks for that Dad :)
11 Random Facts About Me:
1// I met my husband on a music mission trip to Latvia. It was incredible.
2// I hate hot weather. I spent most of my life in the mountains of Colorado, so summers were gorgeous and NOT humid. AJ says he wants to move to the South...and while it is definitely beautiful, I don't think I could ever leave the house.
3// I haven't snowboarded in two years, but it used to be my life. I went around 40 times a season.
4// I have a terrible habit of starting projects and not finishing them.
5// Music is one of my passions- I love singing and playing the guitar and piano- I'm just not sure how it should fit in my life right now.
6// I hate painting my toenails, but I do it out of respect for anyone who looks at my feet.
7// Did I mention I love ice cream?
8// I was an English major in college. I finished two years and plan on finishing the rest when life calms down a little bit.
9// I'm a chronic over-thinker.
10// I love reading and have a weird habit of choosing the hardest, longest books to read for fun. Like "Moby Dick" and "Crime and Punishment".
11// After I had Evie, my hair got boring and not curly. I'm hoping that after this baby comes, it will reverse the curse!...?
Now for my nominees! Be sure to check out their blogs, because I think they're pretty great.
1. Julie from A Hopeful Hood
2. Angel from Pages of Curiosity and Coffee Spills
3. Brittany from The Kardia Blog
4. Natasha from Natasha Byrd
5. Jasmine from A Gathering
My 11 questions for my nominees:
1// What is the story behind your blog?
2// If you could pick one place to live in for the rest of your life, where would it be and why?
3// Who is your inspiration?
4// What is your favorite "guilty pleasure" TV show to binge watch?
5// Sour or Sweet?
6// What is your "go-to" piece of clothing?
7// As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
8// What is your favorite room in your house and why?
9// What is one of your passions (besides blogging)?
10// Would you describe yourself as an introvert or and extravert?
11// What is one thing you want people to take away when they visit your blog?