For the love of books

Happy Saturday!

Today I want to thank two wonderful bloggers for the awards they've given me recently: Jaime at Awakenings and Reflections presented me with the Liebster Blog Award, the Kreativ Blogger Award, and the Versatile Blogger Award, and Krista at The Jelly Beans of Writing handed me The Booker Award. Thank you both so much!

This is the first time I've received The Booker Award, so I thought I'd focus on that one today. Here are the rules:

1. This award is for book bloggers only. To receive this award, the blog must be at least fifty percent about books. (Reading or writing.)

2. You must share your top five favorite books.

3. You must give this award to five to ten other book blogs you adore.


Like most of you, I read a lot. I have a master's in English literature and am rarely without a book in my hands, yet I find it very difficult to list my five favorite books. I like so many, and my favorites change depending on my state of mind and stage in life. Since it's impossible for me to list my top books, I decided to give you a list of several books I love instead, presented in no particular order:

1. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
2. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
3. Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier
4. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
5. A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
6. The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende
7. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
8. East of Eden by John Steinbeck
9. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
10. Delights & Shadows by Ted Kooser

There are so many more, but these are the books on my mind at this moment. If you ask me tomorrow—or even in an hour—the list might be very different.

Now it's my turn to present these awards, and since I've seen them circling the blogosphere pretty frequently lately and no longer know who has already received them, I'd like to give them to all of you! Take all four or pick and choose (just grab them from my sidebar).

Finally, speaking of books, I found this wonderful YouTube video showing what happens in a bookstore after hours. Enjoy!



Have a great weekend!

Just fabulous!

Happy Saturday!

This morning I want to extend a huge thank-you to the three wonderful people who've presented me with awards in the past week or two:

♥ L.G. Keltner at Writing Off the Edge honored me with a Fabulous Blog Ribbon and a Stylish Blogger Award;

♥ Nikki at Inspire Nordic presented me with the One Lovely Blog Award and a Stylish Blogger Award;

♥ and Funny in My Mind at In My Mind It's Always Funny handed me the Liebster Blog Award.

Thanks so much to all of them--and be sure to visit their amazing blogs!

This is the first time I've ever received a Fabulous Blog Ribbon, so I've decided to post about that award today. Here are the rules:

1. Post the rules on your blog.
2. Name five of your most fabulous moments, either in real life or in the blogosphere.
3. Name five things you love.
4. Name five things you hate.
5. Pass the ribbon on to five other bloggers. (Leave them a comment to notify them of their win.)

Okay, here we go:

Five Fabulous Moments:

1. the call that came the day I finished my Master's thesis and informed me that I was hired for my first real job: teaching English and journalism at a college in Nebraska

2. my wedding on a riverboat

3. the moments I found out I was pregnant with my children

4. the births of my children

5. meeting so many kind, talented, and amazing people in the blogosphere


Five Things I Love:

1. chocolate (I'm craving chocolate-covered potato chips right now!)
2. writing
3. reading, especially if it's raining outside
4. cute shoes
5. Mexican food


Five Things I Hate Dislike:

1. drivers who think they are entitled to cut in front of traffic
2. cleaning
3. hair in my food, especially if I'm at a restaurant
4. handling raw chicken
5. being outside in really hot weather, which for me is anything above 75 degrees


I'd like to pass this Fabulous Blog Ribbon, as well as the rest of the awards, to five (I'm choosing six!) very deserving bloggers. Take all the awards or chose the ones you want (just grab them from my sidebar)!

1. Funny In My Mind at In My Mind It's Always Funny
2. Nikki at Inspire Nordic
3. L.G. Keltner at Writing Off the Edge
4. Fran at Broken Cookies Don't Count
5. Mel at The Positive Pessimist
6. Danielle at Sweet Tea Reads


Have a wonderful Saturday!

So lovely!

Many thanks to my friend Angie Richmond at Write Me Happy, who recently presented me with the One Lovely Blog Award. I'm honored that she thought of me! Make sure to check out her blog, where she tells us all how we can live a creative life.

Like all blog awards, this one comes with some rules, including:

1. thanking and linking back to the person who presented the award,
2. sharing seven things about yourself, and
3. nominating and contacting other bloggers you admire.

Since this is the One Lovely Blog Award, instead of sharing seven facts, I've decided to show you some of my Pinterest pins and tell you about seven things that I think are lovely. Here they are, in no particular order:

1. Butterflies: If you're one of the readers who found my blog during the Blogging from A to Z Challenge, it's probably no secret to you that I love butterflies of all types because they represent so much: strength, hope, resilience, new life... However, I do have a soft spot in my heart for the Monarchs.

Source: alittlebiteoflife.net via Dana on Pinterest

2. Shoes: I blame Carrie Bradshaw for my shoe obsession, which coincidentally seemed to begin right about the time I started watching Sex and the City. I'm not a fashionista by any means, but I do love a good shoe, especially stilettos like these by designer Christian Louboutin. Will I ever own a pair? Probably not, but a girl can dream!

Source: tumblr.com via Dana on Pinterest

3. Vintage dresses: I love anything retro, especially dresses from the 1950s. Lucky for me, my mom was a teenager then and saved a lot of her clothing, which I had so much fun trying on as a kid! (See my R is for Retro post for more on that.) My mom didn't own this particular dress, but I think it's absolutely gorgeous!

Source: historicalfashion.tumblr.com via Dana on Pinterest

4. Abandoned buildings: I might be in the minority on this one, but I think abandoned buildings are lovely; they're tragic and sad, yet I see hope in them as well. As a writer, I can always find many stories ideas whenever I think about the people who once called the four walls home.

Source: society6.com via Dana on Pinterest

5. Art: I'm inspired by art and artists. I've always had an affinity for Monet and have marveled for hours at the beauty of his paintings. This particular painting catches my eye because something about it reminds me of my childhood home along the shoreline of Lake Superior:

Source: google.com via Dana on Pinterest

6. Rings: I adore rings! Back in the days before I was changing diapers, I used to wear one on every finger. Now I wear only my engagement and wedding rings, but someday I'll bring out the rest of them again. I found this one recently and thought it was gorgeous:

Source: ringoblog.com via Dana on Pinterest

7. Tulips: My little boy is the reason I'm in love with these flowers. I wrote the story in my T is for Tulips post, but the gist of it is that tulips were the first flowers my son "bought" for me, and he was so proud of himself when he handed them to me and, with a huge grin on his tiny face, said, "These are for you, Mommy!" Thinking of that memory still melts my heart, and I will forever associate tulips with my little boy.

Source: foreverwanderluust.tumblr.com via Dana on Pinterest

There you have them: seven things I find lovely, courtesy of my Pinterest page. My boards are still pretty sparse since I'm just starting to pin again after a long hiatus, but if anyone wants to follow me, you're more than welcome. And, although I'm not going to nominate specific bloggers, if you'd like to snag this award, please do so. I think all of you (and your blogs) are lovely!


So tell me, what do you find lovely?

"One wild and precious life"*



Photo by Petr Kratochvil, courtesy of Public Domain Pictures

Happy Saturday, everyone!

I was honored to receive several Kreativ Blogger awards recently, and today I'd like to thank those who passed them along to me: Danielle at Sweet Tea Reads, Ermie at Just Ermie, and Jaycee at Jaycee DeLorenzo's Blog. Click on the links to learn about them and their great blogs!

Since I've already answered the questions associated with this award and have subjected you all to many random facts, today I'm going to do something different and share some items from my bucket list.

This August I will celebrate one of the "big" birthdays, and I've really started to realize as I've gotten older that no one knows how much time he or she has on this earth. I've kept a bucket list for years--all those things I want to do before I die--but I haven't done many of the things on it. My young self felt like there would always be time; my older self, however, knows better, and lately I've been more earnest in my pursuit of the things I want to accomplish.

I'm inspired by the last two lines in "The Summer Day," a poem by Mary Oliver:

"Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?"

In response, here are just twenty-five of the things I plan to do with my "one wild and precious life":

Image courtesy of Justyna Furmanczyk,
rgbstock.com

1. send a message in a bottle

2. sponsor a child

3. write a children's book

4. see the fall foliage in New England

5. write a letter to each of my children, telling them what I want them to know about my life and the lessons I've learned

6. read the entire Bible

7. sing karaoke

8. own (or at least try on) a pair of Christian Louboutin shoes

9. have my own writing space, perhaps even rent a studio

10. see the midnight sun in Norway

11. finish my family history memoir

12. inspire someone to follow his or her dreams

13. visit the Louvre

14. write an inspiring note and leave it somewhere for a stranger to find

15. go to Alaska and Hawaii

16. take a 365-day challenge

17. go back to New York City, a place where I feel alive

18. attend a Billy Graham Crusade

19. recite my poems at a poetry reading

20. publish a book

21. eat at one of Tom Colicchio's restaurants

22. learn how to paint

23. grow a bonsai tree

24. see the Avenue of the Giants

25. study art history

I've got a lot of work to do!

In one of my travels around the Internet, I came across a site where people publish their bucket lists. I plan to start an account and publish my entire list there soon.

And finally, although I haven't seen it myself, I've heard many good things about The Bucket List, a movie starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman. A user on YouTube, NixSeraph, created a montage of scenes from the movie and set them to singer Tim McGraw's "Live Like You Were Dying." I found the video to be very inspiring. I hope you do as well.




So tell me, friends, what will you do "with your one wild and precious life?" What's on your bucket list?


*Quotes from Mary Oliver's "The Summer Day"

The one where I do things FRIENDS style



"I have a question..."
Image courtesy of Vikki Taylor,
rgbstock.com

Happy Saturday!

Recently, two wonderful blogging friends, Eliza at Ellie's Blank Book and Tara at Tara Tyler Talks, were kind enough to honor me with some awards. They both presented me with the Kreativ Blogger award, Eliza gave me the One Lovely Blog award, and Tara handed me the Versatile Blogger award. Thank you both for thinking of me! Be sure to check out their amazing blogs, and take a look at my sidebar to see the fresh look Tara gave her awards.

I'm going to change things up a bit with these awards. Instead of giving ten random facts about myself, I'm going to focus only on the questions Eliza presented me, answering them with clips from one of my all-time favorite television shows: FRIENDS.

Here we go!

1. What is your favorite song? The answer could only be Phoebe's "Smelly Cat":



2. What is your favorite dessert? It's definitely not Rachel's trifle:

3. When you are upset, what do you do? I think Ross says it best:



4. What is your favorite pet? It's not this one:



5. Do you prefer to wear black or white? I like white, but not this white:



6. What is your biggest fear? I don't know if I'd call this my biggest fear, but I certainly understand where Rachel is coming from:



7. What is your attitude, mostly? Well, a lot of the time, it's kind of like this:



8. What is perfection to you? I wouldn't mind sharing Monica's idea of perfection--with just a little less OCD:



9. What is your guilty pleasure? I like sandwiches, but not as much as Joey does:




So there you go: my answers, FRIENDS style! Please feel free to grab the awards if you'd like them. Let me know if you do; I'm looking forward to reading your responses!

I bet you didn't know that!

Happy Saturday!

Today I'd like to give a shout-out to the wonderful Maryann Miller at It's Not All Gravy, who recently presented me with the Kreativ Blogger Award. Be sure to check out her blog, "a commentary about life, writing and the absurdities of the human condition." You'll always find something great there!

As per the rules associated with the award, here are ten little-known facts about me. To make things a bit more interesting, I've included one "fact" that isn't true. Can you guess the impostor? I'll tell you the answer at the end of the post.

1. I met my husband in a chat room and married him on a riverboat.

2. Dirty Dancing is my all-time favorite movie.

3. I love capers and sometimes eat them straight out of the jar.

4. I never leave the house without putting a little makeup on.

5. I crave chocolate-covered potato chips.

6. I don't care for most country music, but I do love Johnny Cash.

7. I could eat avocados every single day.

8. When we were kids, my sister and I used to "kill" our Barbies and then hold funerals for them.

9. During the summer, I like to spend as much time outdoors as I can.

10. I think Mom's Rhapsody is one of the funniest parodies out there:





Before I reveal the impostor, I'd like to pass this award along to six of the many great friends I met during the Blogging from A to Z Challenge. Be sure to visit their blogs:

1. Cheryl at Writing Remnants
2. Sherry at Mama Diaries
3. Nikki at Inspire Nordic
4. Jen at Crafting Magic
5. M. J. at Writing Tips for Success
6. Liz at The English Bad Ass

Congrats! It was difficult to choose only six.

And now for the impostor fact: During the summer, I like to spend as much time outdoors as I can.

I love summertime, but I get physically sick when I'm out in the heat too long. I can take temperatures up to the mid-seventies or maybe a little higher, but after that, I need to stay indoors and out of the sun.

Did you get it right?


Now it's your turn. I'd love to get to know all of my followers better. Why not post a random or little-known fact about yourself in the comments?

Looking for blog recommendations? Look no further!

Before I post my A to Z entry today, I'd like to take a moment to thank all of the wonderful, kind people who have presented me with blog awards during the past few months. I've fallen way behind in fulfilling the requirements of these awards, but I still want to give a shout-out to these bloggers and encourage you to visit their amazing blogs:

Caitlin at All About Growing Up and Becoming a Writer
Tara at Tara Tyler Talks
Martin at From Sand to Glass
Angie at Write Me Happy

Thanks again, everyone!

Blog awards!

Many thanks to the wonderful Caitlin at All About Growing Up and Becoming a Famous Author, who recently passed on some blog awards to me: The Versatile Blogger and The Irresistibly Sweet Blogger. Make sure you check out her blog; she's incredibly funny and encouraging!

So now it's time for me to pass on these awards to others and share seven random facts about myself. Here we go:

1. I'm a binge cleaner. I do the necessary daily chores like dishes and laundry, but I don't do the real cleaning until I know I'm going to have company. Guess what? My friend is visiting this week...

2.  I used to be a college instructor, but my dream job for when both of my kids are in school is to work at a library or bookstore. I just love the idea of being surrounded by books all day!

3. I love taking a big spoon of peanut butter and dipping it into a dish of chocolate chips. (My mom started me on this when I was a kid. Thanks, Mom!)

4. Don't ask me to choose! I have a horrible time making decisions, even simple ones.

5. I love to make soup. It's freezing here today, so tonight I'm trying a recipe for butternut squash soup.

6. One of my favorite TV shows of all time is Felicity. I once saw Scott Speedman (he played Ben) sitting on a stoop in NYC. To this day, I'm kicking myself for not talking to him.

7. I've been watching Gossip Girl on Netflix for months. It's my guilty pleasure. I love the drama!

And now I'm passing on these awards to two of the many blogs I really enjoy:

1. April at A Writer's Ramblings
2. Shannon at Books Devoured

Have fun!

Simply irresistible! ;)

Earlier this week, Kimberly Krey at The Write View graciously awarded me with this Irresistibly Sweet Blog Award. Thanks so much, Kimberly!

Kimberly has an awesome blog, and I encourage all of you to check it out for yourselves!

As with most awards, this one comes with some rules:

1. Copy and paste the award to your blog.
2. Thank and link to the person(s) who nominated you.
3. Share seven random facts about yourself.
4. Pass the award along!

Now, without further ado, here are seven completely random facts about me:

1. I bite my fingernails. I know I shouldn't, but I do. When I was a little kid, my older brother tried to get me to stop by putting Tabasco sauce on my nails. To his dismay, he found that the Tabasco didn't deter me in the slightest--I liked it!

2. That brings me to my second fact: I like my food spicy--super spicy. Unfortunately (at least in regard to cooking), I'm married to a man who likes his food bland--super bland. I cook for him, then use a ton of spices and hot sauce on my own food.

3. When I was a kid, I used to read beneath my bed. I must have liked the idea of being in my own reading cave. The problem was that my "cave" had exposed springs, and I had long hair. You can see where this is going, right? I remember getting my hair caught more than once and screaming bloody murder until my dad came to rescue me. The whole experience was all the more traumatic because I'm also claustrophobic, so the fact that I couldn't move and get myself out of that once blissful but suddenly frightening space had me near tears. Ah, the memories!

4. I'm claustrophobic. ;)

5. I've only had a few really good friends in my life. I have a lot of acquaintances and a lot of people I call friends, but throughout my thirty-eight years, there are only a handful I would bestow with the title of "best friend"--friends I trust with all my secrets, good and bad.

6. I've never ridden a roller coaster--and I don't intend to.

7. I love butterflies.

Finally, I'd like to pass this award along to...all of you! I'm grateful to each of you who reads my random thoughts each day. Please, if you're so inclined, feel free to snag this award. You deserve it!

I'd like to thank the Academy...

Two of my blog readers were kind enough to present me with awards recently. I want to think Carolyn Arnold and Scott Niven for giving me this "The Irresistibly Sweet Blog" award:

And I also want to thank Scott Niven again for awarding me this "Stylish Blogger" award:

Most of these awards come with rules, and here are the ones I received from Carolyn:

1. Thank and link to the person who nominated you.
2. Share 7 random things about yourself.
3. Pass the award along to 15 deserving blog buddies.
4. Contact them to let them know.

Seven Random Things About Me:

1. I've become addicted to unsweetened chocolate--the kind used for baking, no sugar added. I thought it was bitter at first, but now I love it!

2. I won a library poster contest when I was in the second grade. The prize was any book I wanted. I chose one about dogs.

3. I read while I brush my teeth. It makes the time go faster!

4. When we were kids, my sister and I used to kill our Barbies on a regular basis.

5. I'm Norwegian, German, Scotch, Dutch, and French (mostly French).

6. I have a master's degree in English, but when I started college, I wanted to be a broadcast journalist and told everyone that Barbara Walters and Diane Sawyer had better watch out!

7. I once saw actor Scott Speedman leaning against a building in New York City. He was alone, and to this day, I wish I would have talked to him.

Now for the awards! I'd like to present both of these awards to the following awesome and deserving bloggers:

1. Tersia Roach
2. L.J.
3. Caitlin
4. Deb
5. mgudlewski

Congratulations to all!