Liebster Award

Last fall Donna B. McNicol at Our Prime Years nominated me for the Liebster Award.

It's been a while since my last Blogger Awards:

Sunshine Award January 2014
Liebster Award March 2014
Mystery Blogger Award June 2017

So this one gives me the opportunity to pay it forward to long-term and new blogger friends.

If you are like "Whaaaat? What is she talking about? What is the Liebster Award?"


"Liebster" is a German word meaning beloved or dearest. It is an online recognition in form of virtual award which started in 2011 passed on by bloggers to fellow bloggers for enjoying and valuing their work. The idea is to recognize the effort and give credit.

The Liebster Award is interesting in that anyone nominated for it receives it by writing an acceptance post. The rules for accepting the award are straightforward:

• Thank the person who nominated you.
• Answer the 11 questions you were asked.
• Nominate 11 people and ask them 11 questions.
• Notify each of the nominees on their blog.

Through the years, the logo has changed as well as the suggested requirements to participate. Here is the link to my old acceptance, with its requirements and here is the new logo...

Those were the questions Donna asked me and my fellow nominees: 

1. What prompted you to begin blogging? I was an insomniac, overwhelmed part-time working mom who didn't have time to meet with her real life friends, so instead I connected with my online friends whom I mainly met via "Sorority Sister" - a Facebook App. One was Beth, my super supportive sister I never had. She got me. Sometimes we would exchange lengthy conversations on Facebook, but what I had to tell her on June 29, 2012 went beyond the scope of a FB post. I've seen acquaintances use Blogger to tell their family and friends about their babies' progress or their weekend outings, so I thought why not? I always liked to write, I was good at putting together essays, so here I went. The rest is history. Read more about my Blogging Journey here.
2. Which language would you like to learn? I speak Swiss German, High German, English, French, some Italian and a little Spanish, that's pretty decent. With my Mom being born and my brother living in Israel, a little more than Good Morning, how are you and Ice Cream in Hebrew would be nice, though. I'm glad my niece and nephews are old enough to learn English at school, so we can actually communicate.
3. What was your favorite experience in the past six months? Since our last Canada trip goes back longer than half a year, I'd say St. Patrick's Day. It's one of my favorite holidays because I'll go all the way decorating, setting up a scavenger hunt for the kids, cooking and celebrating! Also my birthday weekend was very nice.
4. What one location in the world you would like to visit? Why? Oh, my travel bucket list is loooooong! So many destinations, so little time and money. One of the top things I'd love to do one day is to explore Alaska / Northern Canada with experienced guides. I'd like to always be warm and safe while meeting polar bears, seals and huskies. Too much to ask?
5. Do you have pets? If yes, please introduce them. Nope. I grew up next to a main road, so my Mom always said the cat that I wanted would not be safe, and she was probably right, we saw many that were run over by cars. My grandparents had two parakeets that talked, they were fun. Now that I'm a Mom myself I don't feel I have it in me to take care of and clean up after yet another creature, so we just enjoy our neighbors cats and dogs.
6. What is the strangest food you have ever eaten? Define strange. I'm a somewhat picky eater so my open mind stops at squid or haggis. Within the last 18 months I have experiemented to make my favorite dishes more figure-friendly, though, so I made cauliflower pizza crust, avocado brownies and chickpea cookies!
7. What is your biggest struggle while writing? Quiet time, more than 20 minutes here and there to really sit down and let my creativity run free. Also a plan and structure to write other things than posts for writing challenges. Distraction (social media, e-mail, phones calls) are also an issue at times.That's where the Forest App comes in. It blocks your phone for 25 minutes allowing you to focus on what you really want to do.
8. Who would you like to receive a week of training/mentorship from? Howard Schultz comes to mind, my boss at Starbucks. Well, not my direct superior, haha, but at least I met him a handful of times, and I certainly soaked up the culture and values like to embrace diversity. Evan Katz would be awesome, too. He produced 24, and he did a great job keeping us on our toes throughout eight seasons!
9. What is the first thing you drink in the morning? Duh, did you just read question #8? Starbucks coffee of course. I freshly brew my dark roast blend, typically Verona. If I can get my hands on Anniversary Blend (sold in September), Christmas Blend  or Pike Place Special Reserve (only sold in two stores in Seattle) I'll enjoy those special treats.
10. How many books do you read per month? Sadly only about 0.16 ;-) Yes, it's true. As I mentioned, I am having a hard time carving out some quiet me-time, and if I do I'd rather use it to write. Here's a list of my favorite reads. I wasn't always that way. As a teenager I went to the library twice a week to return with a bag full of books, and so does my son these days.
11. What was your favorite time of year when you were growing up? Hard to say. Probably spring and summer because we were able to play outside. My childhood friend and I loved to go out and about with our disco roller skates. These days it's the golden fall days.

My turn now to nominate eleven bloggers! Here goes:

1. Dawn at Cognitive Script - we go way back. We became (blogger) friends when her main blog was called Spatulas on Parade and she's also celebrating her 6 years blogversary, so I gave her a heads-up on her nomination, and she is posting her acceptance piece at the same time. Congratulations!
2. Minette at Southern Belle Charm a fellow Mustang driver and kick-butt life-liver!
3. Morgan at Once Upon A Time is passionate about roller derbies. She currently travels in Alaska and I hope she will share her adventures on her blog!
4. Rena at The Blogging 911 is providing valuable resources for any blogger
5. Elizabeth Arundel at Laws of Gravity blogs about her days as a substitute teacher.
6. AJ Blythe at Aussie Cozy wrote about serial killers for her A-Z theme. Who knew there were enough of them to cover the entire alphabet, even the hard letters? I was especially appalled by the female offenders that were portrayed.
7. Tanya runs a blog called Moms Tots Zurich, and it's full of tried and tested outings in Switzerland: things to do, places to go.
8. During the A-Z challenge, Iain Kelly at Iain Kelly Writing did a brilliant job writing authentic fictional stories taking place at cities within the European Community. There are currently 27 member countries, but that's where Brexit came in ;-)
9. Hana is a fellow hockey mom who blogs at Adina Justina. Being from the Czech Republic and living in Switzerland, her blog comes in Czech, English and German, respect!!
10. Karen O'Connor at Weekends in Maine is a wonderful ambassador for the region she lives at.
11. Shirley Corder at Rise and Soar blogs about aspects to take care of yourself and points out habits that help to improve your life by improving your mind.

Thank you for bearing with me. We're almost there...

Nominees, should you choose to accept your award, here are your questions:

1. How did you decide to start your blog? 
2. If you were to start over, what would you do differently?
3. If you were a fruit or a vegetable, which would you be and why?
4. What are some things that sound like compliments, but are actually insults?
5. Show me your favourite purse / bag / backpack!
6. What is the worst purchase you’ve ever made?
7. Chicken or Beef? (Bonus points for your answer on why the chicken crossed the road)
8. What are three of your best traits? 
9. Have you ever impersonated someone else?
10. What was something recent that you messed up and got away with?
11. After you survive the apocalypse, what will your job be?

I hope you're having fun with this!