Versatile Blogger Award

Wow! I was nominated for something! Which, I understand, also means I won! *flex*

A special thank you to 3 Hungry Monkeys for the nomination! I feel so honored! 😀 The only thing I’ve ever manged to win throughout my life has been carnival goldfish. You know, those ones you throw ping pong balls into tiny vases to win. Go on, admit it – you did it too as a kid. And your poor parents had to deal with the highly likely event that your new friend Bob would be floating belly up the next morning. It happened.

Though one time I did win a Bob that lived forever. I eventually gave him to my friend’s pond because he just kept getting bigger. He was kind of a jackass fish, now that I think about it. He’s probably still alive and leading a fish gang in that same pond all these years later..

But, yes, thank you 3 Hungry Monkeys for the nomination and the kind comment you posted on your blog about mine! 🙂 Definitely make sure to check her out, I frequently stalk her Mexican food page for delicious recipes..I look at the rest of the blog, of course, but the Mexican section is my favorite!

When nominated for the Versatile Blogger Award, one must contend with a list of things to do. So, as follows:

• Thank the person who gave you the award and provide a link to their page on your blog
• Nominate 15 blogs for the award and let them know by leaving them a comment
• Copy/Paste the award on your blog post
• Share 7 things about yourself

Alrighty, seven things about myself? Let’s see if I can think of some..

1) When I was a child, I used to dig in my front yard to try to find dinosaur bones/footprints (or, you know, an Egyptian pyramid). I also used to walk around pretending to be an archaeologist with my first schoolyard friend Jenny Thorn. We happily spent our recesses identifying wood mulch on the playground as T-rex, velociraptor, stegosaurus or brontosaurus bones. That is how I came to be an Anthropology major.

2) Final Fantasty 7 is my favorite video game of all time and I keep my Playstation 2 just so I can play that, Kingdom Hearts and DDR as many times as I want to.

3) When I was 15 years old I played piano at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. Despite that, I have only had 2 cumulative years of lessons.

4) There is nothing more soothing to me than hearing waves crashing on a shore. I grew up by the Chesapeake Bay, and would frequently travel to Ocean City as a child.

5) I have a bad habit of collecting books…so bad is my habit that I spend more money on books per year than clothing. Ironically, I have probably only read about 1/3 of the books that I own.

6) I am a total Joss Whedon fangirl. I own the entire series of both Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. I also own Firefly, Serenity, and Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along Blog (I have the soundtrack to Dr. Horrible and the BTVS Musical Episode too). I also use the word “Whedonverse.”

7) My first job out of high school was at the local jail as a mail clerk. Oh, the things I’ve seen.

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And now to nominate 15 blogs! These do not go in order of preference, just the order that I pulled them up off my favorites list in:
1) Fooding Rookie: I love her blog. Everything she makes inspires me to bake my heart out and get totally fat on goodies. If only I could buy a metabolism…

2) A Lot On Your Plate: She has probably won this award like 50 million times, but that’s okay! Every morning I wake up to a new email in my inbox about nifty, fun-filled and makes-life-easier tips and tricks that I thoroughly appreciate.

3) Sarah’s Musical Kitchen: Music and food? Duh! No brainer here. And everything she makes has a touch of class and elegance but is also not overly complicated that even the average Joe can’t make it.

4) Foolhardy & Reckless: This blog is so much fun. It is a series of letters exchanged between overseas “pen pals” about life, fashion, food, boys, fun..it’s a very wonderful read.

5) Learn, Create, Love: This blog is actually run by a friend of mine (and features pictures of her beautiful daughter!). It is perfect for Moms (and Dads!) who love to engage their kids with crafts, painting, and all things artsy and creative. I will be doing this stuff with my own kids someday.

6) Sierralei: She makes the prettiest cupcakes! And not only that, but she’s extremely artistic and witty! I wish I could be this awesome when it comes to baking.

7) Afternoon Popcorn Snack: Be still my heart, we have very similar tastes in what we like to cook and eat. I can pretty much say I’d like to make or eat almost everything on her recipe index list. 🙂 Yum!!

8) Lulu the Baker: I love this blog. I originally found it through Pinterest when I pinned a broccoli and cheese chowder recipe (because, seriously – who doesn’t love that kind of soup???) but everything she makes is just beautiful. And delicious looking. And beautiful.

9) The Ranting Chef: This guy was actually the first person EVER to like my blog. 😉 I can dig it, can you? On top of that, his sense of humor is awesome and he makes delicious (and easy) food! Bonus: he makes comfort food!

10) Just Baked By Me: Talk about a sweet tooth! So many beautiful, amazing dessert ideas. I know my sweet tooth definitely appreciates this blog!

11) Snixy Kitchen: I know I’ve said this about every blog, but seriously, there are so many talented foodies out there! Everything on this blog makes my mouth water. I found her recipe for chicken taquitos on Pinterest and am dying to try them sometime soon! Oh, the Ryan, why must ye be on a diet?

12) Curious Country Cook: Yet another set of awesome and delicious looking, not to mention lovely, recipes. Definitely check this out!

13) She Bakes Here: Another baker. Another amazing blog..she deserves some more traffic, her recipes are mouthwatering and her pictures are gorgeous!

14) Emily Cooks Vegan: She’s adorable. Her food is vegan and natural, and she’s just..ADORABLE!

15) at 350 degrees: More baking! I know it’s getting monotonous but every one of these bakers/cooks is just totally talented. I cannot get enough of the scrumptious things I see like chocolate covered strawberries, brownies and creamcake! Mmm!

**Update** I just found one of the links I was looking for! I stupidly told myself to nominate this person and then got distracted..and then came back like, “Wait, who was it again?” Jennirific is an AWESOME blogger with tons of admirable experience and she always has interesting and creative items featured on her blog. She also promotes all natural food and as much toxin/chemical free cooking as possible (like many bloggers I know) and that is a close to home concept with me! I know we’re only supposed to nominate 15, but she deserves it!! I hope the rules can bend to allow me to nominate a 16th wonderful person. I’d nominate everyone I knew if I could. 😉

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Every one of the above bloggers should be admired and commemorated for their work – they are amazing! Definitely check all of them out for some recipes you won’t regret learning!

Ta ta for now!