Liebster Award! *Updated*

The Liebster award is a blogger to blogger award given to new bloggers, or bloggers with less than 200 readers. There are no judges or special prizes, just someone saying, "We see You," and, "Keep up the good work." 

If you receive the award, you need to answer the 11 questions assigned to you and then you can create 11 questions of your own and nominate 11 other bloggers with less than 200 readers to receive the Liebster award. It's also great if you could follow the blogs that you nominate!

"Liebster" means dearest in German.

A big heartfelt thank you to Prev. Elani at Fields of Basil who nominated my blog!

Here are the questions I answered:

1. Do you prefer Mac or PC?
Definitely PC.

2. Cat, Dog or Fish? What's your favorite animal?
I have a leaning toward cats although I like dogs also. I always think I like fish until we get the aquarium set up and things start going awry... Growing up I always had all different kinds of pets - cats, dogs, parakeets, hamsters. I would even keep the classroom pets over the summer which included three turtles, a rabbit, and a guinea pig that we aptly dubbed "Pig Pig".

3. What three blogs have influenced you?
I think this one should be pretty easy! The blogs that most influenced me were From Wittenberg to Athens, Kyrie Eleison, and Orrologion. When I started writing my blog my husband was a Lutheran pastor. We were finding Lutheranism lacking in some areas that we held very dear and so we began looking for something to fill that void. That "something" we were searching for was none other than Christ Himself and we first glimpsed Him in the Orthodox Church. "“Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you." Matthew 7:7 So we asked, and sought, and knocked; and a lot of that knocking was done on the doors of these blogs. Like the little Christs we are called to be, they not only shared the Orthodox faith, clothed and fed us who were strangers, but personally befriended us.

4. Which of your posts surprised you the most with how it was received once posted?
Well, I don't remember the exact post anymore. It was back when this was still a Lutheran blog with Orthodox interests if you couldn't tell. I had written about something Lutheran but within an Orthodox mindset... I got a vehemently scathing and taunting anonymous comment (probably from who else but the Roving Lutheran Eye) suggesting that I just get on with it and go East. I was surprised at how venomous the comment was and deleted it right away. On the other hand when I shared that our family had become Orthodox catechumens there wasn't a single detractor but many congratulations and welcoming home's even from people I didn't know were reading my blog.

5. Favorite music you listened to 10 years ago, and now?
Whoa! Ten years ago I liked alternative rock music like the Smashing Pumpkins. Now I'm enjoying Contemporary/Experimental Folk, Classical, and Orthodox chant.

6. What is your favorite ice cream flavor?
I used to live on military bases as a child and I always remember when we got a Baskin Robins on base. I think I've personally tried all 31 flavors and have about 22 favorites... My habitual loves are chocolate peanut butter, mint chocolate chip, butter pecan, and cookies n' cream. However, if we're talking gelatto then it has to be lemon!

7. What was your favorite story when you were a kid?
My favorite fairytale was (and still is) The Frog Prince with The Princess and the Pea as a runner-up. I recently discovered Russian fairy tales of which I firmly think a copy of them really needs to sit on the shelf next to my Grimm's.

8. What song would you choose as your "theme song?"
The Orthodox Funeral service, if I could be so blessed. It is, bar none, the most beautiful thing sung on the earth.

9. If they made a movie of your life, who would you choose to play you?
Kenneth Branaugh, but he'd have to dress as a girl, and yet isn't that the old Shakespearean playhouse way?

10. What food could you eat every day without ever getting tired of it?
Bread. Somehow bread has an immunity to that, doesn't it! Every other more delicious food I can think of are ones that I could get tired of eating. I think there must be some spiritual revelation in that...

11. What is the best movie of all time?
Quite possibly, The Princess Bride. Or Willow.
Or Nacho Libre.


My Nominations are:

1. Orthodox Way of Life
2. Urban Simplicity
3. Way of the Desert
4. To Thee, O Lord
5. Apseed blog
6. Roosje {little rose}
7. Be As A Light
8. Abide and Endeavor
9. A Place of Verdure
10. Shine Within Our Hearts 
11. Kyrie Eleison

You, my nominees, get to answer these lovely questions!


1. Where did you grow up?
2. How do you spend your free time?
3. If you could meet a character from a book who would it be?
4. What was the last thing that you made/created/built/cooked?
5. What colors dominate your wardrobe?
6. What are your plans for the rest of the day?
7.  Vintage or Modern?
8. Your most beloved Orthodox saint is...?
9. Why did you start writing your blog?
10. Pick a number 1 - 10. Why that number?
11. Tell me about something you read that made an impression on you.