Liebster Blog Award – From Christmas to New Year Present
What was your favourite Christmas present this year? Can you beat mine: Muriel of French Yummy Mummy offered me this lovely present just in time for Christmas:
Thank you so much, Muriel, it has been more than a pleasure getting to know you in real life in London last May and I look forward to the time we will share this virtual home on the hilltop in Bali! In the meantime I can enjoy your lovely, inspiring, funny and witty posts spanning more than two cultures!
You can think what you want about awards (I certainly do) but it is like the extra bonus you receive on top of your salary at the end of the year for an extra effort in making your employer company more prominent, wealthier or heavier in shareholder value – of course, I am not talking about Swiss banks here.
The Liebster Blog Award comes with the following rules:
1. When you receive the award nomination, post 11 random facts about yourself and answer the 11 questions asked by the person who nominated you.
2. Pass the award onto 11 other blogs (while making sure you notify the blogger that they have been nominated!)
3. Write up 11 NEW questions directed towards YOUR nominees.
4. Of course, do not nominate the blog of the one who nominated your blog!
5. Paste the award picture onto your blog. (You can Google the image; there are plenty of them!)
Here we go – here are 11 random facts about me:
1. I love early mornings, the slow awakening of a new day, a new page in my life that I can fill in as I please. And this coming from me who used to hate mornings in my previous life.
2. I stole this from Muriel: I love marron glacés and contrary to her I have not had too many of them as they arrived in a luxurious case containing 6 (six) perfectly candied chestnuts.
3. I meant to do so much during that peaceful time between Christmas and New Year and now I am left with a list of far too many unfinished tasks.
4. Why do I pay a lot of money to aweber and hootsuite and do not make use of them?
5. I look upon cleaning as a Sisyphus task.
6. I love to shop – everything from food to cloths.
7. I always buy far too much food and when cooking dinner for family and friends I could nourish an army.
8. I spend too much time online.
9. Why does my day only have 24 hours, my appetite is far bigger than my stomach.
10. I need to exercise more (this is from Muriel as well – thanks).
11. I am looking for a new job (preferably paid to cover my bills).
Muriel’s questions and my answers:
1. Why did you start blogging?
A special friend told me that I wrote well and why did I not take it further. Further? Like what? Publish? No, why do you not start a blog! Splendid idea – that was more than two years ago.
2. What is your favourite book and why?
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. It touches my heart.
3. Where would you like to live?
In Thailand, I love the people, the climate and the food.
4. What are your new year’s resolutions for 2013?
None – thank you.
5. What is writing for you?
Soul cleaning and grounding.
6. How do you find time to write your blog?
Ahem, if only I knew.
7. What is your biggest regret?
Having taken everything for granted at 20 and not having studied hotel business and gastronomy. By now I’d run a hotel in Thailand and would not have to move there (see 3).
8. What are you most proud of?
My daughter.
9. How do you stay motivated?
Writing daily in my journal and meditation.
10. If you could be a character, who would you be? Why?
My own, there is hope for improvement.
11. What makes you happy?
Sunshine, my family and friends, travelling and fine food and wine (and I count a lovely piece of cheese, some crusty bread and a glass of simple red wine amongst them).
And here come my nominees, I might be straying from the rules a little bit by giving it to a group:
All my friends of PBAU (Personal Bloggers Are Us), lovely and gifted writers each one of them, staunch supporters and friends, online and in real life. This is your highly deserved award with my humble thanks for a fantastic year and my wish for many mores to follow.
Here are the questions that I would like the nominees to answer:
1. What was your first thought this morning?
2. What is your favourite movie and why?
3. Where would you like to live?
4. What is your favourite food and why?
5. Where did you spend your last holidays?
6. When did you start blogging? Did you know where the journey would take you?
7. Is there anything that you would like to change in your life?
8. What makes you smile? What makes you laugh out loud?
9. How do you stay motivated?
10. If you could be a character, who would you be? Why?
11. What makes you happy?
Enjoy the award and when you find time, please pass it on – remember the extra bonus and what it did for you!
In Switzerland we have a custom on New Year’s Eve, we offer sweets made of almond paste that will bring you good luck in the following year, please accept my virtual piglets:
Have a wonderful and happy 2013!
Comments 23
And a wonderful, magical, marvellous 2013 to you my friend:) Cheers! Kaarina
@KDillabough My dear friend Kaarina, reine du printemps, currently to be seen in her marvellous snowshoes: the magic number has come up for you, this will be your year and big thanks for your lovely wishes! Here’s to our projects!
Congratulations, Barbara, on another wonderful and well-deserved award! I loved reading this and learning more delightful things about you!
We have a lot in common. except for 2 and 4. But other than that we’re practically twins. 😉
Best wishes for a splendid 2013!
@wonderoftech Good morning to you, Carolyn, thank you so much and may this baby year bring you much happiness and be filled with wonder.
Now you have me curious on #2 and 4: your favourite book and your resolutions for 2013? Probably we are not identical twins but nevertheless ….
All the best for 2013!
@tandysinclair Hi, Tandy, thank you so much and have a great and happy year filled with your great recipes, lovely wine tastings and smooth sailing in tech waters!
Congratulations, Barbara! Always love visiting you and enjoyed reading your Q&A
Oh, but I love the piglets. 😀 I would feel so bad about eating them, though! Bear hugs and happy 2013!
@Vidya Sury Bear hugs, my dear Vidya! Trust you started the new year well and filled your happy pot with more moments of sheer joy and happiness!
I will not eat the piglet as tempting as it is standing next to the right of my laptop, I think it has enjoyed a refreshing mud bath before coming to my home, there is a slight hue of grey camouflaging its body but its snout shines a brilliant bright pink! Is there a similar custom in Bangalore when you offer good luck charms in disguise of sweet animal figurines?
@Late_Bloomers Barbara, I somehow assumed the piglets were made of the sweet almond paste. 😀 and therefore, edible! 😀 They are such darlings. I would love to look at a piglet sitting on my desk. I have a cute little one…I must find it and offer it a place of pride where I can see it often! I’ll send you a photo when I find it!
I don’t think we have any custom related to offering good luck charms in the form of animals. Hmm. But we do give away little figurines of Gods and Goddesses as gifts during festivals. I have a penchant for collecting miniature brass stuff. 😀
@Late_Bloomers Oh Barbara – i just remembered! How could I forget! Right around the corner, we have a festival called “Sankranthi” which is a harvest festival and quite huge in South India. In Tamil Nadu, it is celebrated for 5 days, which means, 5 days off for everyone. 🙂 And? Yes – in Bangalore, people exchange sugar shaped like animals and various other delightful objects. All in gaudy colors. 😀 Children simply love gorging on them. They are made from wooden moulds 🙂 i will get pictures this year and post them :-). Oh thanks for reminding of our own tradition 😀
@Vidya Sury LOL, my dear friend, how much I enjoyed reading your two last comments and laughed out loud! But this happens to me all the time: too close to the eye to be seen!
Sankranthi in Tamil Nadu: 5 days off for everyone – wow! Look forward to the pictures (which reminds me I still owe you the one of the knitted shawl).
I have a tray on my window sill with all my collected figurines from all over the world, for some reason elephants figure prominently there and also on my good luck charms chain which I wear all the time.
Thank you for the award. PBAU is a great group of people, like youself.
@StuStoryteller Happy New Year, Stuart, and may the new year bring you many smiles and laughs! I’ve just read your reply post and it moved me deeply. Thank you so much!
Virtual piglets – how adorable~
I too love to shop, eat, drink wine. Just starting to get into the cooking thing though 🙂 Oh, and you would be proud – yesterday I started journalling in an actual paper journal 🙂
Thanks for thinking of and awarding the PBAU group 🙂 Where do you think we can take it in 2013?
I’ll try and answer yours and Muriel’s posts in a combo kinda post soon-ish 🙂
Happy New Year my dear.
Mwah!
@JanineRipper Happy New Year, my friend! Do you remember the time when you invited me to PBAU, I felt so honoured and flattered, I still do. We are more than a group of bloggers who help each other to broadcast our blogs. Stuarts lovingly describes it in his post.
Indeed, where can we take PBAU in 2013? Let’s start a discussion in our FB group and see what the combined energy will bring, shall we?
No rush, we all do more than amazing things in both lives.
Big, big hugs!
Loved your answers and little know facts. Thailand: Now that would be an interesting place to live. Thanks so much for passing the award along. I’m so grateful to the group and for having met you there! All the best for the new year!
@sweepyjean Thank you so much, Adrienne, have another piglet for good luck!
nice piglets……Happy New Year my friend! I wish you a wonderful 2013! Cheers!
@rdopping Hi, Ralph, a very Happy New Year to you and yours! Oh my, where has time gone to, I so wanted to spend some over at yours over the Christmas holidays and relax with you! Thank you so much for coming by and please, have another piglet. The one on its back is mine, I have to warn you, it is just about to take a mud bath and get heavenly dirty!
What a great way to get to know you, Barbara! =) This Liebstar award is one of the first I’ve seen that allows us to truly get to know the blogger — I loved the interview-style questions and passing those on. Thanks so much for including me in your award nominations, by the way! =) It totally made my day!!
And your tidbits? I was so nodding my head at the first and third random tidbits you shared about yourself. Early mornings are my favorite and I should start putting them back into my life. =) I also had a long list for the holiday season, and barely got to any of my overplanned schedule. =P
Happy new year, Barbara!! Thanks for being a part of my blogging world!! =)
@Samantha Bangayan Hi, Sam, a very good day to you and I am happy to have made your day! Getting to know you and being part of PBAU have been my highlights in the last years!
Probably we all have a common trait of or tendency towards overachievement, eh? Making use of early mornings and be creative, now this would be a great thing instead of starting to read mails and get lost in cyberspace, this could be my only New Year resolution.
A very happy and prosperous new year to you, Sam, and I keep my fingers crossed for a benevolent reading of and a stamp of approval on all your projects! 🙂
Barbara, congratulations again for the award. I really liked your responses because they were very similar to mine. I really do need to find a house in bali now!
I spend too much time online too and also need to exercise more. Loved your answers Barbara. They made me feel ‘jolly’ (compared to mine which tended to be, ummm….’dark’, at least that’s what I thought, lol!). Anyway, Happy New Year. *HUGS*