So, in preparing to write up my Liebster Award post (so kindly awarded to me by Stefani of Caught Read Handed!),  I tried to look up exactly what the heck a Liebster Award is. This, surprisingly, was no easy task—I ran into quite a few blog posts about people doing the very same, to little avail!

In summary, it seems to me the purpose of the Liebster Award is for people to discover new blogs that may not have made it "mainstream" yet. When you're awarded one, you post about it, answer questions posed by the blogger who nominated you, and then you nominate another blogger (or several) and give THEM questions to answer! That sentence was much more complicated than I'd intended.

Anyway, without further ado, here are the questions Stefani posed. I'm also lazy, so I think I'll just pass these questions forward to the bloggers I nominate! They're pretty good ones. And since I'm not exactly sure who follows me (how do you people even know these things?), I think I'll do the same as Stefani and nominate whomever is reading this! Again, laziness.

1. I began blogging [number of] months/years ago because...

I began blogging last month! I'd reiterate here, but if you don't mind clicking the link, my intro post explains exactly why I'm doing this.

2. My favorite holiday tradition is...

I come from a half-Catholic, half-Jewish family. Neither of my parents is particularly religious, and the grandparents I'm closest to (paternal) are only into Judaism culturally (and like to guilt me over the fact that I'm not, go figure). Anyway! All this is to say that we do both Christmas-y and Hannukah-y things when we all get together. My favorite tradition is our Christmas morning breakfast—we always have bagels, cream cheese, and lots and lots of lox. Can't get much more Chrism-ukkah than that!

3. Favorite landscape: woods, beach, mountains, desert, others ... ?

As a born-and-bred Florida girl, I have a soft spot for the beach, but I'd be lying if I didn't say my favorite spots are woodsy and hilly. My boyfriend's childhood home is the perfect blend of both, a beautiful, windowed house on a cedar-lined farm in the middle of Oregon. I frequently (half-)joke that I'm going to move in one of these days.

4. When I was growing up, I wanted to be _____. This has/hasn't changed because...

Ooh, this is tough, because right now I have no idea what I want to be! When I was a kid, I spent the requisite amount of time wanting to be a veterinarian before I abandoned that for dreams of being a writer. I carried this goal through high school, where I discovered journalism (because I thought it was a way you could get paid to write! ... ha) and eventually went to college for it. I about-faced pretty abruptly after freshman year, changing my major to psychology, and I'm now celebrating 1.5 years as a lab manager in a child psychology lab in New England. Again, no clue what comes next, which is pretty stressful for me at times. I'm the type of person who likes to have goals and plans, and this whole free-floating adulthood thing is weird. I'll figure it out sometime!

5. Describe your dream home.

My boyfriend's childhood home; see above. If that doesn't work out, I just want someplace comfortable that will fit me, my boyfriend, our cat, maybe a few other cats (and dogs), and my books. A really nice kitchen wouldn't hurt, either.

6. Are you currently doing any series of blog posts or challenges? Which ones?

Yes! Right now I'm participating in an Ivanhoe read-along with Rachelle of The Reading Wench, which requires a Sunday recap post each week. I've joined the 2015 TBR Pile Challenge, and I'm also a member of The Classics Club. I look forward to adding even more challenges as they come up! They're one of the reasons I started blogging.

7. Favorite TV series?

Ack. I'm bad at TV, you guys. I will say that my favorite series of all time is Six Feet Under, and if you haven't watched it, make it a priority. It's so, so poignant and funny. Other than that, I really dig Bob's Burgers and Chopped, because I'm a nerd for food and cheesy reality shows about it.

8. Dream vacation? Who would you take with you?

Oh gosh. Someplace... quiet. And relaxing. And with some killer libraries and/or bookstores. I'd take my boyfriend and perhaps some of my other bookish friends. I have a few that like to "socially read," aka ignoring each other while we read side-by-side. I could really use a vacation like that.

Otherwise, I'd really love to go to France or Italy, because fooooooood.

9. Favorite superhero? Or favorite superpower?

Telekinesis is super, super cool. I could get a book, or a glass of wine, or a cup of tea, without having to stand up! I'd be livin' the dream.

As for superhero, I'm ashamed to say I don't feel knowledgeable enough about any of them to pick. This is something I hope to remedy, since I think comic books could be up my alley.

10. This cartoon character summarizes my childhood:


I've gotta go with Doug Funnie. He's an anxious, thoughtful writer with his head in the clouds and an ever-present fear of failure. That about summed me up as a kid (and isn't an inaccurate description of adult me, either, though I'm thankfully much less anxious now!). Unfortunately, I can't hold a candle to his banjo skills.

11. One tip I would offer to all new bloggers is...

I don't feel qualified to answer this one, since I'm a baby blogger myself! From reading Stefani's answer, though, I'd say her tip to not stress too much is a good one. We're doing this because it's fun, right? The last thing any of us needs is another source of stress in our lives!

I'm looking forward to your answers! Link them to me in the comments. :)