I am a sucker for a little praise!!!

First of all I would like to say thank you to GreenMan at the Green Man Chronicles for giving me the Liebster Award. As a new blogger, the feedback from other bloggers can make the difference between posting or putting it off. Knowing that someone reads my words and enjoys my posts and pictures helps me visualize a few readers out there and that really inspires me to tell good stories.

For those bloggers and readers who are unfamiliar with this award, “The Liebster Award" is given to up and coming bloggers who have fewer than 200 followers. The word ” Liebster” comes from German and can mean the sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, most beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing, and welcome.”

Here are the Rules for this Award

Thank the person who nominated you.

When you receive the award, you post 11 random facts about yourself and answer the 11 questions asked by the person who nominated you.

Pass the award onto 6 other blogs (while making sure you notify the blogger that you nominated them!) You write up 11 NEW questions directed towards YOUR nominees. 

You are not allowed to nominate the blog who nominated your own blog!

You paste the award picture into your blog. (You can Google the image, there are plenty of them!)

11 Random Facts

1. I spiked the maraschino cherries with bourbon so the kids wouldn't eat them all and they did anyway.
2. I found the only swimming club in our area that had families of all races and joined because I didn't like the lack of diversity my children saw in their suburban public school every day.
3. I went to Texas to visit my sister and came back with a tiny rescued silky white Dachshund.
4. I am 6 feet 1 inch tall.
5. I am a colonial reenactor in the 6th PA Regiment. I was already accomplished in many historic textile skills like spinning and weaving when I began because I love textile history.
6. I have a green thumb which feeds the local deer and groundhogs nicely.
7. I am living with Bi-polar disease. It is well managed by medicine so for years my life has been just AWESOME. 
8. I call my sister Glenda and she calls me Elphaba.
9. Today I got to look up correspondences for a new baby boy's birth and tell his family congratulations. I love doing that.
10. One of my children died at age 19.  Heartbreaking, of course.
11. I really need to clean out the fridge.

Questions from GreenMan

1. What inspires you to blog? 

• Learning about and being a witch, a pagan, a mom, a good companion to my friends and partner are very different. I have found lots of information about pagan practice on the web, but few places where you can just see someone living the life. My goal with Walk the Circle's blog is to let others see what a pagan life looks like. Maybe to leave out some of the really dull stuff that actually is here, but maybe not.

2. What advice would you give to other bloggers? 

• Look at the blogs you like and see how those bloggers use the format. I don't mean the cute wallpaper background (which I am terrible at, as you can see from complete FAIL at matching the background color today). The ratio of photo to text on the page, what kind of photos. You will work on your blog if it appeals to you as an audience member too.

3. What is your favorite book?

• Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh as a child. Lolita by Victor Nabokov as an adult. 

4. If you won a million dollars what would you do with it?

• Invest in an income producing account. Give some each year to women's charities. Use it to buy a woodsy cabin or beachy cabin  for an annual gathering of far-flung family. Repair the roof. Reinvest the leftover each year.

5. If you could, would you go back to school and for what?

• I am so blessed to have already gone back to school for a Master's degree. I would study Neuroscience if I could go back again. And I would learn how to use a slide rule.

6. What did you want to grow up to be when you were a kid?

• A Biologist. Marine biology, neuroscience... I wanted to be a doctor of anything that is tiny and fascinating. In my present job I diagnose and make a plan to help children who are different learners. I read lots of neuroscience now.

7. Have you ever traveled outside of your country of origin?

• Yes. All over Europe. That leaves a lot of places still to see!

8. What is your favorite thing to make?

• A big mess! I love to sew, dye, knit, cook, garden. I have no use for computer games or gossip.

9. If you do magic, what kind do you use most often?

• Very practical things, like herb cures, amulets for protection, and many many kitchen and nature spells to make life better. A little romance spell at home now and then. Attraction spells work well for me but I try not to use magic when I should be using hard work. I give thanks a great deal.

10. If you garden, what is your favorite things about it?

• The veil of green than happens for one or two days in the very early part of spring. Just half a bud on each bush is peeping out and everything has that look of yellow-green fog shrouding it.

11. What is the ultimate answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything?

• Everyone thinks it is 42, but it's really: Get lots of sleep, stay in the shade and never wash your face with soap.  I look a good 10 years younger than my friends of my own age and my younger sister because of the sleep and no sun thing. I just hate being hot in the sun, I even garden at night.  My teen daughter asked both Glenda and I separately one time about our beauty regime and we each said the same thing: "never use soap on your face". We were as surprised as she was! We think it comes from our mom having psoriasis and using mainly warm water and washcloths to bathe us so her hands could take it.

My 11 QUESTIONS for the new winners:

1. How do you get your exercise? 
2. What is the most challenging thing about this blog for you?
3. What have you done that deserves a big High-Five?
4. Describe the person you should really kick out of your life.
5. Invent an entirely new kind of pet. Describe.
6. Would you have robot servants if you could?
7. Why do you think athletes continue to be role models?
8. Who is your role model and why?
9. Chocolate cake or White? Icing?
10. What makes you work really hard right now?
11. What was the last thing you did as spiritual practice?

My Nominations

Judy's Photos

I'm not Hannah

Mid-Stride MOXIE!

The Witch of Howling Creek

Confessions of a Modern Witch

Pagan Pages Blog Hop