Liebster..."The Sequel"

Mondays usually mean it is time for Stasha’s Monday Listicles. This week the topic was “10 Things in Your Closet”. Well since I have already revealed in a previous Listicles “Clutter Sweet Clutter” what a pack rat I can be I am not sure anything in my closest would come as a surprise/shock to you so instead there is going to be "Something Different" today.

A fellow autism mommy blogger friend over at “Autism & Oughtisms” has passed along the Liebster Award to little ol’ me. It is a VERY famous award and is full of information that takes an entire weekend to make up…I…I…I mean…research and document. My faithful readers may remember I was nominated once before for the Liebster…thank you. If you are so inclined you can reread my riveting post here. I am once again going to tweak the rules of the Liebster by capping any lists at 10 since that is what I am used to doing on a Monday. 

First the rules. If you are interested you can find these at the bottom of this post. So sit back and make sure you have an hour or three...cuz this is gonna be a long one. 

Next up is a list of “10 Things About Me”. The last time I only came up with 6 Random Facts About Me. I admit it. Back then I was just not that interesting. Six months later I am still not that interesting but will give it the old high school try. So here are 10 Fun Facts About Me:

1.      I like martinis.

2.      I still like wine.

3.      I ummmmm basically like all types of alcohol.

4.      I now play Words with Friends on R’s iPad every night before I go to bed. I find it is more social than playing alone on my DS.

5.      I bought a Mini Cooper for my late life crisis.

6.      I love to cook for my family. Call me Martha Stewart and well OK…it gives me an excuse to drink wine.

7.      I live to eat. People who eat to live are liars.

8.      I am not a fan of muffin top and back fat. I am, however, less of a fan of diet and exercise.

9.      I am much younger than I look. I will let you think about that for another minute.

10.   I have run out of patience and have basically given up.

Next are the questions I was given to answer.

1.      Why did you start blogging?

My sister made me do it. She’s a bully.

2.      What’s your favourite piece of art?

This family portrait (over on the right) drawn by J2 when he was in Grade 1. I am thinking it is a good thing he decided to pursue music as opposed to art.

3.      What’s your favourite scent?

Fresh baked anything.

4.      Who inspires you?

I am sure most people would expect my answer to be Riley and/or J2. Would it surprise you if I said it was G???  Me too!  Baahaahaa. Just kidding G.  

5.      Name one major event that shaped who you are today.

This is a tough one. I am actually thinking serious here. I am going to go with one challenging year we had. It started on July 16, 2005 and ended just over a year later. My dad had suffered a heart attack and after a week in the hospital passed away. For the first time in my life I understood the meaning of a broken heart. I was devastated. About 3 months later, my mom was diagnosed with colon cancer. She had surgery followed by chemotherapy and remains cancer free to this day. During that time I had discovered a lump in my left breast. After a multitude of tests I learned I had breast cancer in early December. Less than 2 weeks later (on December 23rd) I had surgery (full mastectomy) followed by 6 rounds of chemotherapy and radiation. As a Mother’s Day present to my mom and me, my sister and G surprised us with an Alaskan Cruise. We set sail at the end of July 2006 and although it has not always been smooth sailing…still…this song pretty much sums it up. 

6.      What one super-power would you choose and why?

My very first Monday Listicles topic was “My 10 Superpowers”. Nothing has changed since then but if I had to narrow it down to just one, I think I would have to say number 4.

7.      What pets do you have?

Do dust bunnies count???  No…then no pets.

8.      What’s your favourite plant?

Artificial. The only time my thumb has ever been green was when I hit it with a hammer. Over the past 5 years or so I have even started investing in artificial bedding plants. I kid you not.

9.      What event in nature takes your breath away?

Changing poopy diapers.

10.  What was your favourite subject at school?

Ancient history…noooo…not the subject…I meant school is ancient history to me.

11.  What countries have you visited?

Pre-kids I used to like to think of myself as a traveller although I was never the back-packing, hostel kinda gal. Cruising or planned tours were more my cup of tea thank you very much. I cruised the Caribbean, practiced Spanish in Mexico (dos cerveza por favor), spent one Christmas in the Orient with my sister and honeymooned in Europe. Post-kids we have stuck to the North American continent.

Since I am still buying green bananas…you too can wait just a little longer before I reveal my victims nominees. Much the same as the last time, I am going to make my questions deep and insightful. Do not be afraid my dear nominees. I have faith in all of you. Here we go:

1.      Coke or Sprite?

2.      In school did you prefer Language Arts or Math/Sciences?

3.      Star Wars, Star Trek or Starbucks?

4.      Least desirable mode of transportation:  Sea, Land or Air?

5.      New Country, Classical, or Rock & Roll music?

6.      Drama, Comedy or Reality TV Shows? What show?

7.      Cable TV or Satellite?

8.      Carnivore, Vegetarian or Vegan?

9.      Old fashioned books or e-reader?

10.   What do you think is your best quality?

Last and certainly most important are my nominees. I was freaking out somewhat relieved to see that this latest version of rules suggested nominating 3-5 blogs as opposed to 11. (Check out the rules below if you don’t believe me.) Included in my list are bloggers that are new to me, new to blogging and hopefully new to you.

1.      Bipolar, Asperger’s and Margaritas – Any blog title with alcohol in it is at the top of my list. Lisa is new to the blogging and autism world. I related a lot to her story, her sense of humour and her outlook on life had me subscribing to her blog…something I suggest you do too.

2.      Anybody Want a Peanut? Life with a side of Autism – If you are not following/reading Jenni’s (we’re tight) blog then we just can’t be friends. I will leave it at that. Off you go.

3.      Teenage Whisperer – I recently came across a post “Why I’m A Daydream Believer” on this blog that reminded me of all the positives that can happen when you dare to dream. This blog is “aimed at anyone who has an interest in helping challenging young people in their day to day lives…”  I encourage you to pop over, read this post and if it does not pull at your heart strings…you are the newly appointed “Ice Woman/Man”. 

4.      Gretchen Leary – I first connected with Gretchen’s blog through Twitter. She writes poetry, short stories and blogs about her experiences with Asperger’s. Twitter and I have not been as tight lately so I have missed out on a lot of Gretchen’s latest poems. One of my favourites was Bella Ballerina – A Poem.  Listen to the music Gretchen writes to as you read the poem…it really sets the tone. One of her most recent posts (at the time of writing) was “Can I Hug You?” So helpful for me living in Riley World.

5.      Break It, Make It, or Bake It – My Monday list would not be complete without a blogger from my Monday link-up. Audrey is a regular over at Monday Listicles. We have a lot in common…she has 2 little boys; I have 2 ummm boys…well…they used to be little once upon a time. She blogs; I blog and finally she has a great sense of humour; YES…I have a sense of humour too! Go check out her blog and see for yourself.

  

Aaaaaaaaaaaaand......we are DONE!  Thanks for reading and I hope you go check out my nominees. You won't be sorry. If you still feel like some light, fun reading...head over to Stasha's to see what everybody has hiding in their closets.  Have a great week!  

Version 1.2.7.4.9.5.8.3.2a of the Liebster Award Rules:

1.      You must thank the person who gave you this award

2.      You must display the Liebster heart on your blog

3.      You should nominate 3 to 5 up-and-coming blogs (some rule variations say 11) with less than 200 subscribers

4.      Each person must post 11 things about themselves

5.      Answer the questions given to you by the blogger who nominated you

6.      Create 11 questions for those you nominate to answer

7.      Notify your nominees and provide a link back to your post

8.      And no tag backs (the point is to try and highlight new bloggers so let’s spread the support )