Liebster Lovin'

I got a lovely e-mail from Whiteny from A Blessed Southern Tarheel,  informing me that she nominated me for the Liebster award! When I started blogging almost 2 years ago (WOW!), I never imagined I gain 'readers' and honestly, I didn't care. I started this blog for myself as an outlet---to tell the truth, I can articulate my feelings in writing much better than I can vocalize them. Sometimes, I wonder if I I'm too honest, but then I think 'hey, this is my blog and I'm allowed to!'

Anyways, on to the award that I was nominated for! "The Liebster Blog Award is given to bloggers by bloggers. It is a way to acknowledge each other and say “you’re doing a great job”. It is for blogs with 200 followers or less, so it’s also a great way to spread the word about smaller blogs and get them more readers and followers!"

The Rules:

When you receive the award, you post 11 random facts about yourself and answer 11 questions from the person who nominated you. You pass the award onto 11 other blogs (make sure you tell them you nominated them!) and ask them 11 questions. You’re not allowed to nominate the blog who nominated you. (To get the button, right click the picture on my page and save the picture to your computer. You can then upload to your blog.)

  First, y'all need to go check out her blog. She is recently engaged and loves to eat and run, which is why I started following her. :) Thanks again Whitney for this nomination!

 Now onto the fun part...

Introducing 11 Random Facts About Me:
1. I'm not sure why, but I'm mildly obsessed with severe weather like hurricans, tornadoes and bad storms. Now, I don't like the devastation they bring, but I guess I'm just fascinated by how mother nature can do so much damage. Today during school I had the weather channel on my computer all day. You can call me weather women Kristen :)

2. I cannot and will not sleep with socks on. It doesn't matter if its 100 degrees or 0 degrees. End of story.

3. I am a terrible speller. Yes, I'm a teacher, so sue me.

4. My biggest pet peeve is people reading or watching over my shoulder.

5. I'm always 15 minutes early or EXACTLY on time.

6. If I wasn't a teacher, I would be a real estate agent or party planner. I dream of the day I can have my own Friday night cocktail party at my house or dare I say even Sunday football game days with The Boys and his friends.

7. I have more mild health conditions that a person my age should. You can read about my stomach condition here and my skin condition here. Those are just some! 

8. If I don't have some sort of list going, I feel lost! I need my lists!!

9. I sleep with 3 pillows---ALWAYS!

10. I over-analyze everything. I need to stop.

11. The Boy and I went to the same high school, but didn't know who each other were. That's probably a good thing though. Look at us now, 2 1/2 years and counting.... :)

*If you want to know some more weird facts about me, you can read that here.

Now onto the 11 questions Whitney has for me:

1. What was your childhood nickname? What is your current nickname?

My nickname growing up was given to me in 1st grade by my best friend (and 17 years late-still great friends!) and it was Krickin -pronounced Cr-ee-k-in. Don't ask- I'm not sure how I got it, but it stuck until Jr. High. Now,  I just got by my name or Kris for short.

2. Do you have any strange phobias?

I have a fear of driving in the dark. I don't know if that's strange, but I don't like it. I'm also terrified of strangers. I just never know what they'll do. Oh, and I'm also scared that my shoes laces will get caught in an escalator. I saw that happen one time when I was little and it terrified me...to this day! 

3. What do you do for fun in your spare time?

Well, if I were still living in Chicago, I would go out for a quick lunch with a girlfriend or I would go run. Since I moved down here, I'm unfamiliar with this area and don't trust the people yet to just go out running in a neighborhood (see questions #2). So here, I bake, cook and blog!! :)

4. What would you do if you had a million dollars?

First, I would pay off my student loans. I would then go back to school to get my masters. I would also open up a dog rescue. I love dogs so much and if I had the space, I would totally try to save every single dog!

5. Do you save old greeting cards and letters or do you throw them away?

It depends who they're from. I've saved notes from high school from my girlfriends and cards from The Boy, but other than that, no not really.

6. What are the top three qualities that draw you to someone new?

1- Easy to talk to, 2- Sense of humor,  3- Friendly to people new

7. What is one guilty pleasure you enjoy too much to give up?

Does blogging count? :) I would say Teen Mom and bad reality TV. I can't put it down. Money wise, I love my starbucks drinks in the morning...even if I only allow myself one a week.

8. If you could eliminate one weakness or limitation in your life, what would it be?

Wow! Great questions Whitney. It would be my fear of failure. It's my worst fear. I don't want to fail at my career, in my relationships, life, etc. I would also like to eliminate money. It would make everything much better! :)

9. Do you believe in love at first sight?

Yes. Because I can still remember where I was and what I was wearing when I met The Boy! :)

10. Are you dressing up for Halloween? If so, as what? If not, what is your favorite Halloween costume from the past?

No. We can't dress up or celebrate for Halloween. :( But my favorite halloween costume was probably 4th grade I was a 50's diner chick. In college my favorite was a beer can made of duck tape---don't judge me! 

11. What is your favorite part about blogging?

Meeting new people. I love the friendships I have on here and the people that give me advice when I need it. It's so uplifting and positive. I also love that it's all documented. I keep thinking how much I will love this once I start a family or take the next big step in my life.

Now, my 11 4 blog friends I'm nominating for this award:

Anna at A Day in the Life...

Anna at A Pair of Kings

Sarah at A Dash of Sarah

Kyndal at Bralys in the Burgh

The questions I have for you are:

1. If you could meet one person from the past who would it be (famous or not famous)? 

2. What is the earliest memory you have of your childhood?

3. Are you a (diet) Coke or (diet) Pepsi gal? 

4. If you could change one thing about your life currently (small or big) what would it be?

5. What is your dream job?

6. If you could travel anywhere for 100 days, where would it be?

7. Are you a more passive or assertive type of person?

8. Who or what is the most important thing to you right now in your life?

9. Where did you go to college and are you working in a job (career) where your degree is being put to good use? (These days, I feel like it's more important to just land a job-so I'm interested!)

10. What is your favorite dessert? 

11. Why did you start blogging?

Have fun y'all!! :) And don't forget to nominate your favorite new bloggers as well! :)