The Liebster Award: A Look Inside

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I want to start by thanking Carly for nominating for the Liebster Award, please make sure to stop by and check out her wonderful heartfelt and witty blog!

Here are the RULES :

1. Acknowledge the blogger that gave it to you and display the award.

2. Answer 11 questions that blogger gives you.

3. Give 11 random thoughts about yourself.

4. Nominate 11 blogs and notify them of their nomination.

5. Give these blogs 11 questions to answer.

Questions asked by Carly:

What are you most passionate about?

I can’t express enough how much I love to write and draw. I started drawing characters and making stories up about them as young as 4 (my mom would tell you even younger), but that is how far back I remember. I would say I was immensely blessed to have my mommy who is also a gifted artist and my adopted dad before he passed away that was a talented artist and writer. My family is filled with creative souls that I was surrounded by growing up so art, reading, writing, and overall creativity have always been a part of who I am.

Allowing myself to get inspired and be creative is an element of pure joy, yes sometimes I feel frustrated when I forget to just have fun and allow myself to play. Though this rarely happens nowadays, as I try hard to just let my inner voice and heart speak and let it flow from within it’s all about experimentation and rolling up my sleeves and getting messy.

What is one thing you would like people to know about you that is not so obvious?

I can be shy at times and I’m constantly looking for new ways to work past those fears and anxieties that stir within me to help me grow and face my fears.

What are three of your favorite pastimes?

My husband and I frequently take evening walks together and sometimes we go pokeoming together playing pokemon go. Some might say this is not quality time, but it really is it’s a fun game where doing together while enjoying the beautiful evening air. It’s true I’m a proud nerdy geek (jiggly puff is my favorite…and my artsy side loves her passion for singing and her silly revenge of drawing on faces when her song causes others to fall asleep)!

Reading…my reading these days are more like recipes, and all of your wonderful blog posts as time is limited…that said your blogs are totally worth my time and I enjoy reading them!

And who can forget watching movies! Movies are another wonderful way to go on adventures and be a part of the story!

Who is your favorite author?

Too many to choose so I’ll go with one of my all-time favorites, J.K. Rowling

What is your favorite reading genre?

Too many to choose just one…it depends on my mood. Though my go-to is usually historical romance novels…though recently I’ve been really into books about self-discovery.

Why is it your favorite?

A classic that I can read over and over (and have) is Pride and Prejudice…I mean come on, what’s not to love?!

What advice would you give to new bloggers?

Don’t be afraid to experiment. The most important thing is just to be yourself and share the things that excite you and light you up. If you’re truly excited about what you share your light will shine through and will be simply contagious!

What two items on your bucket list might you do next year?

Ideally, I’d love to finish writing my novel by the end of 2019. The other is to have a fulfilling year. I’ve decided that my special word that brings meaning to me for the year is fulfillment. For me, this means enjoying each day as it comes and not stressing over a to-list or worrying or trying to pile weighty goals on myself and feeling frustrated when they aren’t done. That doesn’t mean I’m not working towards things that are important to me, I’m just taking baby steps without the added pressure of “goals.”

What is something you have always wanted to say to a loved one who has passed?

“How could you leave me?” The wording of this has always shifted a little, but nonetheless, it’s still a question I find a wee little voice inside of me asking time and time again after losing my dad the way I did. I have voiced many logical answers to help soothe the loss and pain ….but the heartache never completely goes away and I find my vulnerable inner child crying out unable to understand and fully grasp his loss.

Who do you admire that is historically famous and why?

Mary Shelley, Jane Austen, Madam Curie…and many other super strong female pioneers that helped pave the way for future females of their field.

I have a lot of respect for Emma Watson paving the path for new generations in striving for equality, especially gender equality.

When was the first time you really got scolded by your parents?

Maybe kindergarten, I was rarely the kid in trouble (and if I was my parents knew I was covering for one of my siblings). I had the tendency to learn from watching others mistakes (and making my own mistakes quietly and not repeating them). Now that’s not to pretend like I never I got in trouble for something I’d done of my own accord, however, those were truly far and few.

All artwork and quotes provided today are little gems that I have found on Pinterest and come back to time and time again for encouragement that I wanted to share with my readers!

Please forgive my rebel heart and free spirit for breaking the rules, but I hereby open this award to any of you wonderful rays of sunshine that would like to take part (these were good questions, I choose to keep them)!

P.S. I’d love to read your responses!

-Love and Sunshine from my heart to yours