The Liebster Award – Take Two

Hey y’all,

Here is the second installment of the “Happily Ever After Etc. received 3 Liebster Awards” series! Yes it is a series… a mini series! However since the last installment I was nominated for a FOURTH Liebster! That’s right I’m certifiably popular! (Ok this might be going to my head). If you missed the first installment or are wondering what the heck a Liebster award is DON’T PANIC… just click here read the first post! Don’t worry we’ll wait.

Back already? Sweet. Let’s move on shall we?

This time around I will introduce you to the lovely gal who nominated me for my very first Liebster Award (and answer her 11 questions), Introduce you to the gal who nominated me for my FOURTH Liebster (and answer her 11 questions, wheew), List 6 more random facts about yours truly, and nominate my final 6 fabulous bloggers for their very own Liebster Award. Are you ready? Let’s go!

Lindi blogs at Love, Create, Celebrate and is a complete doll. She’s a mama to the adorable lady pictured above and blogs about life, being a mama, DIY, crafts and creating new things.  My favorite post of hers (so far)are these adorable Chalkboard Wood Slice Gift tags!

Coco blogs over at Home School Palooza where she talks all about a day in the life of a home schooler. She has some seriously adorable posts including this little diddy about creating a time capsule.

6 More random facts about Moi:

I was bitten by the travel bug at a young age (maybe because we moved so much) I have already made it to London, Paris, Rome, Florence, Venice and several other (small) Italian cities. I have an entire bucket list of places I’d like to visit… the plan is to hit up Greece in 3 years when the hubby graduates with his RN!

We have two cats: Lily and Jasper. Lily was my very first cat… I begged my parents for her for YEARS! I even made a full on presentation at one point (there might have been a very convincing power point and accompanying poster board but I’ll never tell). Now she’s a refined lady of 9 years. Jasper was the first animal my hubby and I picked out together… although we were only friends at the time. The poor boy has no tail… the folks at the shelter told my hubby he was a manx kitty but it became abundantly clear when we got him home that he was not a manx kitty. Merely a kitty who had tragically lost his tail at some point along the way. (We can tell because manx kitties are born without tales and have balance JASPER HAS ABSOLUTELY NO BALANCE). Either way we love him and call him our little manx kitty anyways.

I was a cheerleader for four years of high school and four years of college! (Go Bulldogs!)

I have taken my 3 year old yorkie, Bitty, to see Santa every year since she was born. Yes I am one of “those” pet parents.

I started collecting furniture for my “future” house in high school, I was absolutely terrified that my first apartment would be full of hand-me-downs and plastic crates instead of end tables! *shutter* My first purchase was the secretary in my living room, I was 16!

In college my friends always joked that I had a type… mainly that all of my dates were very very tall! When I called my besties to tell them about my new guy (my husband 🙂 ) the first thing they asked was how tall he was! (FYI he’s 6’4… so I suppose my friends have a point).

Now on to the 11 questions from Lindi:

Write 3 words that describe your personality.

Obsessive, Shy, Spastic

How did you choose your blog name?

I have always believed in happy endings, the white horse, prince charming, pretty ballgowns and a big castle. While my life isn’t exactly like Cinderella’s I really am living my dream: married to my very own prince charming, (fixing up) my very own castle, and everything else that comes with life… that’s the Etc.!

What is your dream vacation?

My dream vacation is the one I’m currently planning! It involves a week of touring around Italy and Greece. Hitting all of the tourist sites: the Parthenon, Venice, Capri, Athens, the whole nine yards. I have been to Italy twice but my hubby and I are obsessed with Greek mythology so Greece is the top of our bucket list! While I have been to Europe twice my hubby has never made it outside the U.S. and since his over exuberance is my favorite part of his personality I can hardly wait to see the wonder in his eyes as he takes in all of the sites for the very first time. After our week of touring we are planning to spend a week relaxing in Athens! So we get the full vacation experience: crazy go like hell to see every site available and sit on the beach relaxing!

When do you find time to write?

I work during the day but my hubby works at night. So after I get home for the night I eat dinner and then camp out in front of my computer! It keeps me busy while my hubby is gone, plus it allows me to fully devote my attention to the blog without detracting from my “hubby” time. Remember how one of my three personality traits is “obsessive”? That’s because I have a one-track mind no matter what it is I’m working on! If it’s a project… that project is getting done, if it’s writing… I am going to write and if it’s spending time with my hubby… I am going to spend time with my hubby!

What did you want to be when you grew up?

A mom. A wife. Part of a family. I went to college for graphic design and I love to create but what people don’t know is that part of the reason I picked graphic design was not for it’s career potential. I picked it because I knew I could incorporate my creative career as a graphic designer into being a full time stay at home mommy. I want to provide for my family, indulge my creative side and contribute to my household but most of all I want to be there for my kiddos every second of every day. I firmly believe that children need both parents to be firmly present in their lives. I know kids will be kids and that sometimes they don’t want to hang out with their parents. But if my kids need someone to talk to at the end of a long day, I want them to know Mom’s right in the other room and she’s always there for them.

Do you prefer city or country living? Why??

I prefer to be right on the edge :). I don’t like living right in the city where the world is loud and busy. I also don’t like living so far out of the city that a trip to Hobby Lobby takes a whole day. If I get to choose I prefer to be about 30 minutes from the city. It’s quiet, we have space, you can actually get to know your neighbors… but if you need to run into town it doesn’t take three hours.

What’s your favorite quote and/or Bible verse and why?

I’m not good at remembering bible verses. They all blend together in my head. I am Catholic and during Mass my absolute favorite part is when the father says “Peace be With You”. Then everyone turns to shake hands and wish their neighbors peace. It always gives me such a feeling of community, I wish the world was always like that. Peaceful and willing to reach out a hand to a neighbor in peace.

What’s a goal you want to conquer in the next year? (It doesn’t have to be blogging related.)

My hubby and I won are still working on the details… but we are planning a short 2 night stay down to the beach sometime this summer. So in this crazy life where I work all day and my hubby works all night. My goal is to unplug and spend three days with my hubby… just us.

What is your favorite way to unwind and release stress?

Either a hot bath and a good book or a pile of blankets and a good book. Quiet time.

Do you have another talent besides writing that you love?

Design. Decorating. Organizing. Remembering everything my hubby ever said and being able to repeat it back to him at a moments notice. Shopping!

What are three things on your bucket list?

Greece, Russia, Baby 🙂

Luckily I’m really good at answering questions… Because we have 11 more questions from Coco!

If you were writing a book about your life what would it be named?

Hum, would it be cliche to say Happily Ever After Etc.? It really depends on what part of my life we’re talking about but for this part of my life I feel like I really am living Happily Ever After… Etc!

How long have you been blogging?

3 months, 26 days and 14 hours! If you want to be precise about it 🙂 But since I started on the 5th of September I like to round up and call it 4 months.

Are you good at Ping Pong?

NO! NO! NO! I have zero hand eye coordination… and less depth perception. Which makes ping pong just about my worst nightmare (when it comes to any kind of game or sporting activity).

What color is your hair?

I think it’s brown, I’ve heard others call it blonde… so I usually head straight in the middle and call it dirty blonde!

Do you like French food?

Hum, it really depends. I love french pastries, croissants, cheeses, all the light fare that goes along with their healthy lifestyle. However I am definitely a creature of habit and have a hard time eating some of their truly “french” food. When I was in Paris I spent 3 days eating every type of croissant available. Delicious.

What’s your favorite animal?

The snow leopard, I love the contrast of their beautiful white fur against their blue eyes. The black spots… they’re so beautiful.

If your house was on fire what 2 things would you grab? (Other than pets and family members)

My diaries, I’ve kept a diary since I was a little girl. I believe the first one was a present for my 6th or 7th birthday… they contain my entire life. I have two wooden boxes and a glass elephant on my bedside table. They are very small and clustered together so I would have to grab all three as my second item :). The first box was my great-grandmother’s and has an ivory inlay of elephants on the top. The second box was given to me when I was a little girl by my Daddy. I don’t remember where it’s from but he brought it back to me after one of his many trips overseas with the army. The glass elephant was also my great-grandmother’s, it is little and petite and used to play the prettiest songs. It always reminds me of my Nana.

What’s the most exotic place you’ve been?

I’ve been to Paris, London, Rome, Florance, Venice, Hawaii etc. I think the most exotic place was Venice. The entire lifestyle is amazing… life on the water is so different from my world here in Alabama.

What’s your favorite color?

In decorating… blue. I love calm peaceful colors in my home, they put me at ease and help me to feel safe. In my personal life, like my wardrobe, PINK. I love to be a girly girl and pink helps me to feel feminine.

What’s the hardest thing you have ever had to do?

Learn to make decisions  on my own.

Whats your favorite post? Link Please!!

My stats and readers have a mind of their own… and I am very grateful for that. However, my personal favorite post is all about the silver glitter deer in my wall mural. They look so cute… plus I just love the word “Taxidermy”.

Finally, since I split this up into 2 posts here 5 more fabulous bloggers that I follow… and you should too! Again if you would like to participate please follow the guidelines to accept your very own Liebster! If you don’t want to participate just know that I think you’re pretty cool. 😉

 Little Shack on the Hill Sue blogs all about her little home or “shack” in the woods! Recently she, her hubby and her youngest kiddo have taken to an RV and are spending time visiting family.

Save to Splurge is written by a lovely gal named Jen who blogs all about being smart with her pocketbook, saving for retirement and “splurging” on the fabulous things!

bpatty.com is full of tips for busy moms! A gal named Lauren runs the show with recipes, decor, organization, pricing and everything else that a busy mom needs!

Mom is the Only Girl is home to the only gal in a sea of boys: to be precise 2 little boys and a husband.

Being fRoogal is an amazing site filled with coupons, deals and savings! Run by the fabulous Roo, this gal really knows how to find amazing prices.

Finally, Here are my 11 questions for each of the bloggers above… happy Liebstering!

How much time do you spend blogging each week?

You just won a million-gazillion dollars, What do you use it for?

If you had time to grab one thing during a fire (not counting people, kids or pets… they’re all safe) What would it be?

How many siblings do you have?

You just won an all expense paid vacation to anywhere in the world, Where are you going?

What do you do each and every day FOR YOUR BLOG? Write posts? Hit up social media?

If you had a day off, all to your self… no chores, no work, no kids. What would you do?

What is your earliest memory?

What is your goal for 2015, for your Blog?

When do you Blog? In the morning? Late at night? When the kids are napping?

What’s the funniest joke you’ve heard this week?

Well folks, you made it to the end of our special 2 part installment! Thank you so much for sticking it out! Love ya!