Tag

Over at Rambling Renovators, a fun blog I discovered a few weeks ago, there's one of those questionnaire thingys.  I thought I'd play along.  I'm supposed to tag other bloggers to answer them...but the only bloggers I know personally are my sisters. So, S and J, consider yourself tagged.  I'm supposed to come up with some new questions but I'm lazy that way.  You can re-use the old ones. Anyone else can play along and leave a link in the comments. 

1. What inspired you to blog? What is your favorite blog?


I started my blog as a way of keeping in touch with my family. We've moved a few hours away from them, and they don't get to see the kids as much as we would like, so putting up a ton of kid pictures keeps them in touch.  Also, I read a lot of design blogs, internet shop like a fiend, and do a lot of decor related home improvement (that my sisters help me shop for), so its also a way of documenting the progress.  I've redone practically every room in my mother in law's house, but it was before I started blogging, and I don't have "before" pictures.  Waah.

One thing I'm really happy about is that blogging has transformed me from a "oh crap, I forgot the camera again" into a "wait, let me style your lunch and take a picture of it" parent.  I'm taking thousands of pictures a month now.  Previously, I don't think I have a thousand pictures from the last five years.

My favorite blog...hmm....tough.  I have a bunch.  But the blog I like the best is probably Swistle.  I have a whole bunch more I can think of (both design and non-design), but I love her stuff.  She just writes about her life (with five kids, yeesh.) 

2. If there was a fire in your house, and you only had time to grab 4 things (excluding your family!), what would they be?

Nothing. I can't think of a single possession I can't replace. I would grab my kids and run.

Actually, a few weeks ago, I started smelling smoke in our apartment. I checked the stove, all appliances, electrical  outlets, etc, and couldn't figure out where the burning smell was coming from.  I'm kind of paranoid about fire since a few years the house 2 doors down burned down at 2 am.  There is nothing quite so frightening as waking up to the smell of burning wood in your nose and smoke in your bedroom.  So, I was trying to figure out where the smell was coming from when I saw smoke wafting from behind our sofa (the playroom is above my MIL's kitchen), and at the same time, the fire alarm went off. 

I turned off the tv, grabbed two kids and yelled at the third to get moving.  We ran downstairs, I tossed the kids on the front lawn, and ran back in for my mother in law, who lives in the apartment below us.  She came running out as I was going back in. She had forgotten about dinner on the stove while working on the computer.  Luckily, it was mostly smoke, but it was like a scene out of Backdraft--you couldn't see two feet in front of your face from the front door, and the kitchen was on the other side of the house.

I didn't even take my shoes.  There's nothing I can't replace in my house.

This incident, however, made me think that I want my pictures backed up on a web-based program, not an external drive.  So I did joined SugarSync a few weeks ago and backed up all our files and pictures. 


3. If you could live somewhere else in the world, where would it be?Why?

Heh....I'd move back to South Jersey in a heartbeat.  I miss my friends and my family.  If you're looking for a more exotic locale, I'd buy a vacation home in Positano, Italy. 

4. If money were no object, what would your dream house look like?

Hmm, a giant victorian, or a colonial....just more space.  I don't particularly want a very modern house, nor do I want a new construction McMansion, nor do I like the brick boxes all over the town I live in now....but other than that I suppose I wouldn't be terribly picky.  More than the current square footage I have, I'd like a washer/dryer near my bedroom, storage, and a yard for the kids to play in. 

5. Name something you wish you had more time for.

Reading. I miss reading.  With 3 kids the amount of time I have to myself to read is next to nothing.  My idea of heaven is a pile of romance novels, a tasty beverage and some baked goods, perhaps some chocolate, and a couple hours of peace and quiet.