I have been nominated for a Liebster Award by  EarthZenMama!  I am so honoured to have received this award as I consider myself to be so new to the blogging world…but I suppose that’s what this award is all about!

To receive this award, I am required to answer questions posed by my nominator, so below I will answer the questions sent to me by EarthZenMama:

1. What literary character would you be and why?

I would be Mr. Tumnus from “The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.”  I chose this character because he is struggling with doing what he knows to be right.  At first, he is doing what he’s told to do by the queen, then he realizes that the has been persuaded to think thoughts he doesn’t agree with.  Once he realizes his mistake, he changes course and becomes a helpful ally instead.  I wish to hope that the course of my life might end up similarly.

2. What one item would you take with you to a deserted island?

I think I’d cheat and say I’d bring them even though I’d be bringing my husband and three children…family is one thing, right?

3. What are three characteristics that best describe you?

Inquisitive, receptive, and creative

4. What motto do you live by?

“Be the change you want to see in the world,” Gandhi.

5. If a song played every time you entered a room, what would it be?

“Hungarian Dance No.5” by Brahms.  Perhaps I’m only saying this because it’s stuck in my head at the moment.

6. If you had to choose one thing to eat, and only that one thing, for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Gluten-Free Pizza.  I suppose in choosing this I’m assuming that I could change the toppings based on time of day, season, and availability!

7. Who do you look up to the most? Why?

Gandhi.  He was so wise and practiced such integrity.  His non-violent approach was so effective in the face of violence from others that is has created meaningful and lasting change.

8. What do you do now that you never thought you would do?

I never thought I would homeschool my children.  I really never thought I’d be an unschooler (no curriculum)!

9. What’s your favourite part of your day?

Seeing my children in the morning.  They wake up so fresh and full of smiles.  I love being reminded to meet my day as wholeheartedly as they do; with such joy and anticipation!

10. How do you find your Zen?

Mindfulness.  I use ‘attention to breath’ whenever I’m feeling bound within my own head (or gut as the case may be).  When I notice I’m tightening, I just return my attention to my breath.  I also practice Kundalini Yoga, which has taught me a lot about myself, the role of my ego, and active forms of meditation.

11. What are three things you want to achieve in the next three years?

I would love to minimize the stuff in our home to just the things we use regularly.  I would love to go off the grid (to be fully self-powered would require us moving).  I would love to raise livestock (this would also require us moving)…yet moving is not on the list…perhaps this is more of a wish list of things that likely won’t come true within 3 years.

Also, here are 11 random facts about me:

1. I play the trumpet (though quite poorly now due to lack of practice)

2. I used to sell hand crafted wedding jewelry, headpieces and tiaras on Etsy.

3. I always hated cats and country music, but now that I have children who love both, I’m coming to appreciate both.

4. I have a curious attraction to “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” by Roald Dahl, and the accompanying 70’s film (the modern Johnny Depp one I consider too creepy).

5. My hair was very blonde as a child, but is growing darker as I age…until the grey takes over anyway!

6. I love highland cattle

7. I would love to be a yoga instructor some day

8. My favourite sculptural pursuit is stone carving

9. I birthed all three of my babies at home

10. I currently have braces on my teeth to correct a jaw problem

11. I had never written for pleasure until I started this blog

Another part of the nomination includes nominating a few of my favourite blogs!  Here are my nominations, I encourage you to check out what inspiring things they’re up to!

Information for the blogs I nominated:

What to do if you want to participate:

1. thank the person who nominated you and link to their blog.

2. display the award on your blog — by including it in your post and/or displaying it using a “widget” or a “gadget”. (Note that the best way to do this is to save the image to your own computer and then upload it to your blog post.)

3. answer 11 questions about yourself, which will be provided to you by the person who nominated you.

4. provide 11 random facts about yourself.

5. nominate 5 – 11 blogs that you feel deserve the award, who have a less than 1000 followers. (Note that you can always ask the blog owner this since not all blogs display a widget that lets the readers know this information!)

6. create a new list of questions for the blogger to answer.

7. list these rules in your post (You can copy and paste from here.) Once you have written and published it, you then have to:

8. Inform the people/blogs that you nominated that they have been nominated for the Liebster award and provide a link for them to your post so that they can learn about it (they might not have ever heard of it!)

Happy blogging and keep up the excellent work!

 

Some questions for you to answer:

1. Why did you start blogging?

2. What is your favourite blog to read?

3. What is your favourite book?

4. How did you select the name of your blog?

5. What single quality do you admire most in people?

6. What movie have you watched the most times?

7. What is your favourite quote?

8. Who is your favourite musician/band?

9. What do you admire most about yourself?

10. What’s your favourite way to procrastinate?

11. What post that you’ve written is your favourite? (please include a link!)