Liebster Award... Part 3

So I am a terrible blogger and although Emily from Southern Expectations nominated me for a Liebster back in oh, the end of June, I never actually got around to answering her questions.  So I am sooooo sorry Emily, I promise to make it up to you with the BEST answers to your questions EVER.  (Ok, maybe that is putting a lot of pressure on myself, but I am going to try my best with them anyway!)

I was first nominated for a Liebster by Lindsey at Bliss and Blunders of an Everyday Wife  and then I was nominated again back in early June by Adrianna at Adri's Thoughts and had such a fun time answering her questions, I decided that I would most definitely answer them again this time around.

Basically the Liebster Award is an award given by one blogger to another blogger in order for the blogging world to get to know you better.  There are all sorts of variations of the award, but the rules all include giving a list of questions for the blogger you nominated to answer.  The questions are always very interesting and I have definitely found some fun new blogs through these nominations.  This time around I will not be nominating any new blogs as the last time it did not turn out so well.  BUT don't you worry, when I find new and amazing blogs from now on I will just tell you about them instead of nominating them for this!

Now... without further ado... my answers to Emily's Questions....

1. What is your favorite part of blogging?  This is a tough one.  Although I really think that my favorite part of blogging is meeting new bloggers and making connections with them.  Take Emily, the lovely lady who nominated me... at least once a week while reading her blog I become convinced that we are the same person because we like so many of the same things.  Or Elizabeth from Elizabeth Loves who would probably be one of my bffs if we didn't live so far away from each other.  Or Erin from Love, Fun & Football who reached out to me to help me rebrand my blog when I was trying to figure out what to do with it.  I have "met" a ton of amazing people through blogging and I wouldn't change that for the world!

2. If you could move to any country in the world, where would it be?  Ha... this is an easy one.  Without a doubt, I would hands down move to Spain if I could go anywhere.  It is no secret that I loved that country and would move back there in a heartbeat.

The husband and I in Barcelona on our Honeymoon!

3. Favorite "adult" beverage.  Again... this is an easy one.  Craft beers.  In case you missed it, I did a post last week about 5 Breweries I Want to Visit and about how the husband and I both love craft beers so much.

4. Favorite hobby. Reading.... most definitely reading.  I love nothing more than to sit down with a good book and get lost in it.  Especially if I am getting lost in a good book and there is also a glass of wine involved!

5. If you could have a super power, what would it be and why? The ability to go invisible so that I can hide when my husband is harassing me.  Just kidding hubby!  No, but being able to go invisible would be pretty cool... I could sneak up on people and well let's just say that it would be fun.

6. What does your last text message say? Who was it from? "Just wanted to say how excited I am to see you again this weekend!!! I'm so honored and glad your coming." and it is from my friend JoAnne... and it is her bachelorette this weekend... can I tell you how excited I am to be heading back to NYC to spend a weekend celebrating her before her upcoming October wedding!

7. What is your idea of a perfect date night?  Pretty much any time I spend with my husband is a great date night (we don't see each other all that often due to our crazy, opposite work schedules).  But some of the best date nights are when we stay home... grill something together... and then sit outside on our patio enjoying each others' company while just talking about whatever.  Yup... those nights are definitely the best!

Grilling some beer can chicken and veggies for a date night at home with my husband!

8. Favorite food.  Hummus... and for the record I would just like to say that I loved hummus before it was super popular... I used to eat it in college... with Pita chips.  Hummus and pita chips were totally my comfort food and my friends would make fun of me for it all the time.

9. You have just one million dollars, you have 24 hours to spend it, what do you do with the money?  Pay off all my student loans, buy a house, donate some to charity and then invest the rest somehow to save for my future kids' college educations.

10. Best 4th of July Memory.  Most of my 4th of July memories are the same... spending time at the Jersey shore with my family since my Gram's birthday is on July 4th.  It is always so nice to spend time with my family since we don't always get to see each other that often and I look forward to the 4th of July every year!

Cousins at the Jersey Shore for Gram's Bday

Pop and Gram on her birthday!

11.  Coffee or Tea?  Coffee.  I LOVE my coffee.  I am pretty much a grump in the morning when I don't have my coffee... just ask my hubby.

Do you have any favorite blogs you think we should all check out?

Liebster Award!!!!!!

Some of you who have been around here for a while may remember that I was nominated for a Liebster Award a while back by Lindsey at Bliss and Blunders of a Newlywed and I was absolutely floored because well I didn't really think that anyone really read my blog, and I certainly had no idea Lindsey did.  Fast forward to now, Adrianna over at Adri's Thoughts has once again nominated me and again I feel absolutely blessed that someone out there who I only know through blogging enjoys reading my blog enough to want to a) nominate me for this awesome award and to b) want to share my blog with others.

In case you missed the last time I was nominated for the award, let me share a little bit about it with you.  This award is given to bloggers by other bloggers... usually bloggers with a smaller amount of followers.  Depending on where you get your information from it is for bloggers who have usually less than 300 followers and it is a way for the blogging community to get to know you better through the smaller blogs.  The nominator then comes up with a bunch of questions for the nominee and then the nominee after answering the questions gets to come up with another set of questions and nominates his/her favorite smaller blogs.

Now without further ado... here are my answers to Adri's questions:

one: Why do you blog?
This is an easy one... I blog for me!  Sure it is great to know that people out there are reading my blog, but the number one reason I blog is for myself.  Sometimes a girl just need a place to write down her thoughts and I have found that I am pretty terrible at keeping a written journal, but that I am way better about writing things down on the computer.  Plus blogging has the added bonus of letting me put pictures into my posts so not only do I have my own written thoughts, I can add the pictures to it as well.  Don't get me wrong, I do write some posts (recipes, book reviews, etc.) with the purpose of having other people read them... but I mean why not share a delicious recipe or a fantastic book with friends?

two: What is your favorite thing to do in your down time?
Down time... what is that?? Unfortunately I don't seem to have much down time these days, but when I do I love to spend time with my wonderful hubby or read.  Unfortunately the hubby and I are pretty much still working opposite schedules which means our downtime doesn't co-inside, so I spend a lot of my down time reading.  I FINALLY finished reading Winter's Tale this past week and can get started on a new book! Look for a book review on the blog next week!

three: What are you looking forward to for the second half of the year?
The 2nd half of the year is filled with weddings and other adventures for us.  In a week and a half we are heading out for a weekend away to celebrate M's birthday.  During this time one of my best friends/bridesmaids should be giving birth to her very first child...a  little girl... and I can't wait to meet her!!  Then a few weeks later we head off for a mini vaca to attend my little's wedding out in Pittsburgh. After that it will be 4th of July at the Jersey shore for my grandma's birthday.  Then August will bring another weekend with friends at Lake Wallenpaupak plus a bachelorette party.  Then we have our FIRST wedding anniversary in October followed by the wedding of another one of our friends.  The November/December will be spent celebrating my birthday (I turn the big 3-0 this year) and spending the holidays with family.  We definitely have a jam packed end of the year, but I wouldn't want it any other way!

four: What is my greatest fear?
My greatest fear is probably not living up to my potential and disappointing the ones that I love.  As many of you know, I graduated from law school back in 2010 and still have not been able to find a job in the legal field.  Despite sending out countless resumes and cover letters, going on interviews, etc. I just have not been able to land a job.  In the past few months I have started applying for things that have nothing to do with the law, but would at least get me out of the restaurant business and have been having just as hard a time getting interviews.  I am so proud of my law degree... finishing law school and passing the bar exam was no easy feat, but I am so fearful that I will be stuck working in a restaurant forever...wasting away my education that I worked so hard to get.  I know my family and friends are my biggest supporters and will love me no matter what I do with my life, but I can't help like feeling that I am disappointing them all at this point in my life and I am so scared that I will never figure out what it is that I am supposed to do with my life.

five: What makes you happiest the most?
As cliche as this may sound, what makes me the most happy is knowing that I married my absolute best friend.  Although there were many times I was convinced that I was going to marry a boyfriend there was always something different about  my relationship with M.  Maybe it was because he knew me through other boyfriends, knew me during my crazy single time in college, knew me through the good and bad and after all that still wanted to be with me.  He is my rock and I thank God every day that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me because I truly can't imagine my life without him.

six: What was your dream job as a child? How has that changed compared to now?
Well when I was a kid... until I was in high school I was pretty convinced that I was going to be a teacher.  Most of the women in my family had been teachers and my friends and I used to "play school" with our younger siblings ALL THE TIME.  My grandma had given me all sorts of old teaching resources and my bff AW and I literally used to force our younger siblings to be our students where we would teach them reading, writing, math, etc.  When I got to high school I started to have an interest in law and even did a senior project where I interned at Sony Electronics in their corporate law department.  That was when I decided that one day I was going to be this fabulous single woman living in Manhattan working as a partner in a major NYC law firm.  Now I have no idea what my dream job was.  Getting married was not always in the picture, but here I am a married woman who hasn't even started her career yet.  Sure I would still love to be a lawyer, but now I am not 100% sure that is what I was meant to do in life.  So as for my dream job... yeah not really sure what it is these days....

seven: Favorite memory of all time.
Probably the night that M proposed to me.  I didn't see it coming and it totally took me by surprise... to the point M will tell you that I looked in his words "dumbfounded" with regards to what was going on.  If you are interested in reading the full story about it, you can check it out here.

eight: If you could travel to one place, where would it be?
This one is easy... Granada, Spain.  Anyone who knows me knows that I absolutely LOVE Spain.  I lived in Granada for almost 6 months while I was in college doing a study abroad there and there really isn't a day that goes by where I don't wish that I could be back there!

One of my FAVORITE views of La Alhambra

nine: What is your go-to outfit?
Well I am definitely not what you call a "style blogger" and have not been known to be one who is very trendy at all.  If I am lounging around at time my go-to would definitely be yoga pants and a t-shirt.  For going out nowadays it is usually a skirt and top or some sort of dress.  I love the warmer weather where I can wear dresses and skirts ALL THE TIME!

ten: What are some things on your bucket list?
I am ashamed to say that I don't really have a bucket list, although if I did most things would probably be related to travel.  Ever since coming back from Europe I have had a travel bug and there are just so many places I would like to see... Ireland, Scotland, Puerto Rico, Greece... just to name a few.  And I want to go to so many cities in the U.S. as well... Charleston, Savannah, New Orleans, San Diego, San Francisco, Denver, Boston... and many more.

eleven: What is your guilty pleasure?
Probably Lifetime movies or Hallmark Channel movies.  For whatever reason I just can't get enough of them!  Just ask my hubby... especially at Christmas time those are pretty much the only two channels on our TV!

Thanks Adri for these wonderful questions!  I had a blast answering them and hope you all have enjoyed reading my answers!!

And now for my nominations:

Lisa at Sorority Life to Army Wife
Jordan at Queen of LA
Sarah at Midwest Pillow Talk
Amber at Airing My Dirty Laundry
Lauren at Lot 48

My questions for these lovely bloggers are as follows:

1. How did you first get started blogging?
2. Tell us the story behind your blog name.
3. What are three things you can't live without?
4. What is your favorite holiday?
5. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
6. If a celebrity were to portray you in a movie, who would that celebrity be?
7. If you were to be an Olympic athlete, what sport would you be competing in?
8.  Share with us your favorite quote.
9. What is your favorite food?
10. What is your favorite movie?
11.  If you could go back and relive one moment in your life, what would it be?

Looking forward to reading my nominees answers to these questions and to seeing who they nominate for this fantastic award!  I know I have found some of my favorite new bloggers through this award and am looking forward to seeing who these bloggers think we all need to get to know!

Thank you so much again Adri for the nomination!! Hope you all enjoyed getting to know me just a little bit better!!

Liebster Award!!

Hello friends!! Today I am super excited to be writing this post because Lindsey from Bliss and Blunders of a Newlywed has nominated little ole me for the Liebster Award!! This award is given to a blogger by another blogger in order for us all to get to know each other better.  I am thrilled that Lindsey has nominated me and I am also excited to be able to nominate a few of my favorite bloggers for this award as well.  This is the award that keeps on giving... from one blogger to another. As a nominee I get to answer a series of questions that Lindsey has for me and then I get to come up with a list of questions for my nominees to answer.  It is definitely a win-win for all parties involved. So here goes...

My Questions from Lindsey

1. What inspired you to start blogging?  I honestly don't really remember what inspired me to start blogging.  I started my blog back in 2010 I think really as a place for me to write down my thoughts.  I used to keep a journal but was not always consistent about writing in it and I think I thought that having a blog would help make me a bit more consistent in my writing.  Of course that didn't happen and I didn't really make a commitment to making something of my blog until 2014.

2. Describe your "perfect day". A perfect day is pretty much any day that I get to spend with my husband.  We pretty much work opposite schedules and when we are both off I seem to be doing some much volunteer work in what little free time that I have that M and I barely see each other.  I think we saw each other for a total of 1 hour on Wednesday and we won't see each other until grocery shopping on Sunday morning.  Such is life... but I definitely miss spending time with my hubby. 

3. What are some goals that you have for your blog? I would like to make more of a commitment to blogging and to making something of my blog.  Prior to this year my blog had just been an afterthought... something that I didn't pay much attention to.  I would like to fix that.  I would like to keep writing posts... book reviews... sharing recipes... etc. in hopes that my blog becomes a place that people like to stop by and read posts or even try some of my recipes, read some new books, etc.  I want it to be a place that accurately shows me and my life.

4. What is your biggest fear?  Not turning out to be the wife and mother that I know I am capable of one day becoming.  Prior to meeting M I was convinced that I was never going to get married and that I was never going to have children.  I was going to be a partner in a huge NYC law firm by the time I was 35.  Those were my goals and dreams.  Then I started dating M and when things got serious my goals and dreams changed some.  Sure I still want to be a successful practicing lawyer, but I also want to be a good wife and some day I would like to have children with M and I want to be a good mother.  Because being a wife and mother were not in my original life place I am afraid that I don't always know what it takes to be one and that I will fail in this department.  I know it is a silly fear, but it is definitely something that I worry about from time to time. 

5. What is one of your favorite memories? The day I got accepted to Bucknell was probably one of the best days of my life. I was at Barnes & Noble with friends studying for my Physics midterm when I got a call from my parents.  They told me that I had gotten a big envelope from Bucknell and wanted to know if they should open it or not.  Of course I told them to go ahead and when they read me my acceptance letter it was one of the best moments of my life.  Of course I had to finish studying for my midterm, but when I got home my family had decorated our front door with congratulations signs and had gotten orange and blue balloons and I am pretty sure everyone cried because I was going to be going to the school that so many in my family had gone to before me. 

6. What is one thing you have always wanted to do?  The hubby will laugh when he reads the answer to this one and then he will probably yell at me, but I am going to write it down anyway.  I have always wanted to learn to drive a manual car.  The hubby has a manual and keeps volunteering to teach me how to drive it and I keep telling him no.  It isn't that I have no desire to learn it is just that I am so afraid that I will be so terrible at it that he will laugh at me and that I won't be able to learn.  I am so afraid that I am too uncoordinated to learn (I trip over my own feet sometimes), so I am just afraid that I won't be able to use two pedals at once and that I will end up ruining his car.  Who knows though, maybe one day I will learn.  

7. What is your favorite thing to do in your free time? In what little free time I have I enjoy getting to spend time with my hubby.  No matter what we do together I just enjoy getting to be in his company.  Whether it is out touring a brewery, running errands, or just sitting at home snuggling on the couch together I just can't get enough of being by his side.  I know he might say that I sometimes get agitated with him when we are spending time together, but sometimes I don't need to talk or anything, I just want to be by his side and enjoy being close to him.

8. If you could travel anywhere in the world where would it be? Spain. I will always love Spain and will never stop wanting to go back to visit.  I was in my glory when we were able to go there for part of our honeymoon and there is definitely a part of my heart that will always be in Spain.  

9. What is one thing that you would like to accomplish in your life?  I would like to put my law degree to use.  I graduated law school almost 4 years ago and have still yet to find a job in the legal field.  As much as I say that I will take a job doing anything, I really would like to get the opportunity to use my law degree.

10. What is your favorite Bible verse or inspirational quote? Why? My favorite Bible verse is probably a toss up between Luke 18:27 or Philippians 4:13... although they are both along the same vein. 

Luke 18:27: "Jesus replied, 'What is impossible with man is possible with God.'"

Philippians 4:13: "I can do all this through Him who gives me strength."

Through God and Christ all things are possible and this is something that I definitely try to remember when  I feel like life is getting me down.  God will not give me more than He thinks I can handle and so long as I believe in Him I can do anything that I put my mind to.

11. What is your favorite thing about blogging?  I love that I have a place to write down my thoughts for other people to see or for no one to see.  I love that no matter what I write I am writing it for me, although I do love reading comments from people and seeing who has the same thoughts as I do or who has different feelings.  I love the dialogue that I have with people through blogging.  I love that I have made friends that I know will last a lifetime.

And now, my nominations for the Liebster Award are:

Ashley at Our Mitchell Moments

Ashley at A Nelson's Nest
Bre at Average But Inspired

Courtney at Business Suits & Riding Boots

Maddie at The Whimsy One

Jane at My Squeaky Sneakers

And here are my questions for these lovely ladies:

1. What made you decide to start a blog?

2. Where do you see your blog in the future?

3. What is your favorite book? Why?

4. What is your favorite season?

5. What is your favorite thing to do in your spare time?

6. Describe a moment in time that you will never forget.

7. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years?

8. Where is your favorite place that you have ever visited?

9. If you could have a meal with one person from history who would it be and what would you eat?

10. Who is your celebrity crush?

11. What is your favorite thing about having a blog?

Ladies, looking forward to reading your answers to these questions and to seeing who you all nominate for the Liebster Award because yes it is now your turn to nominate 6 people who have 200 or less followers (on GFC, bloglovin' or wherever) for their blog and ask them some questions so that we can all get to know them better!

Today I am thankful for the friends that I am met through the blogging community.  I am thankful that Lindsey nominated me for this award so that I can meet some other amazing bloggers out there and so that I can have the opportunity to nominate some of my other favorite bloggers to give them some recognition!