I Won the Liebster Award!

It’s award season and the Oscars are almost upon us, so it seems appropriate to share that this past fall, I was nominated for the Liebster Award, a blogger-to-blogger award that enables bloggers to recognize and support one another. I am honored to receive this recognition not only from a fellow blogger, but a fellow Hallmark fan, Sally Silverscreen, who authors the blog 18 Cinema Lane. To know that Hallmark In Real Life is resonating with a fellow Hallmarkie reassures me that I’m on the right path.

Amidst the busy holiday season, I was focused on getting new content onto the blog, especially in tandem with Hallmark’s Countdown to Christmas. Therefore, this wonderful news seemed better reserved to kick off 2020.

I want to thank Sally for nominating me for the Liebster Award, which is a way for bloggers to recognize each other, and encourage you to visit Sally’s blog here.

In accepting the Liebster Award, there are a few rules that I must follow.

1. Thank the nominator in my award post
2. Place the award logo somewhere on my blog
3. State 11 facts about myself
4. Complete the questions that my nominator provided
5. Nominate as many bloggers as I’d like for recognition (11 is the maximum)
6. Ask my nominees a series of questions (11 is the maximum)

Since I’ve tackled steps one and two, let’s move on to step three. Here are 11 facts about myself:

1. I love running and have run three marathons: the New York City Marathon (twice) and the Chicago Marathon. Although I love running, the chaos of Real Life causes me to fall away from it and come back to it over and over again. Currently I’ve fallen off the running wagon and am starting from zero again. Luckily it’s a new year, so I have extra motivation to get in gear and hit the pavement. (Although as any of you who run in the Northeast know, it’s a challenge to find motivation when the temperature dips below freezing….)
2. I am a diehard Red Sox fan and despite living in New York City can be seen sporting a Red Sox baseball cap often and proudly. In a city of Yankee fans, it’s a conversation starter for sure!
3. My brother and I share a birthday, but we are not twins. We were born two years apart to the day (March 18), and I love celebrating my/our birthday. Growing up we had double birthday parties, and as an adult I still love to do my birthday up big. This year I’ll ring in my birthday in Guatemala.
4. Although I am not a twin, I am an aunt to twins (a boy and a girl) who are six.
5. I am godmother to my best friend’s daughter who is also six years old.
6. I currently live in Manhattan, near Central Park.
7. However, I lived in and around Boston for almost 15 years, and whenever I return, I almost always visit my favorite neighborhood bookstore, Brookline Booksmith.
8. When not watching Hallmark Movies, you might find me binge-watching shows such as The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Sherlock, Bones, Schitt’s Creek, Outlander, The Morning Show, Stranger Things, or Heart of Dixie.
9. My favorite book is Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.
10. I keep gummy bears in my refrigerator. I think they taste best cold and a little tough.
11. Chinese food is my go-to comfort food.

Now we’re at step four, so it’s time to answer Sally’s questions…

1. If you could go back in time, what movie mistake would you fix? Is it terrible that I cannot think of one thing to write here?

2. What is your idea of brightening someone’s day? I hope that I brighten someone’s day by showing kindness.
3. What was the last book you read? The last book I read was Country Hearts by Cindi Madsen. (You can read my review here. But I love books and read an eclectic mix. I am currently going deep into reading books in the memoir genre and recently finished At Home in the World and The Best of Us by Joyce Maynard, Educated by Tara Westover, and Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling.
   In the non-memoir genre,  I loved reading Waiting for Tom Hanks by Kerry Winfrey and Would Like to Meet by Rachel Winters. I could easily picture them being made into movies—rom-coms, of course. I’d go see both on opening weekend.
   I also love all books written by my dear friend Robyn Neeley. You can check her website out here and even read about one of our Hallmark in Real Life adventures together here.

4. Which sequel do you think is better than the predecessor? Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
   

5. Are there any errors in the world of blogging that you have commonly seen?
   Honestly I am way too new to the world of blogging to notice others’ errors. Given that I launched my blog in July 2019, I am figuring this out as I go and making my own mistakes along the way.
6. Have you ever participated in a blogathon? If so, which one was your favorite?
   Does this response highlight what a newbie I am? I don’t even know what a blogathon is! I must google it now.
7. Who was the first blogger to follow your blog? Single Girl Table for One is one of my earliest followers, and she has been tremendously encouraging of me and my Hallmark adventures every step of the way. I look forward to meeting her one day…In Real Life.

8. What is your least favorite post you’ve ever written? Since I’m doing this for fun, I write about whatever I want. Thankfully I don’t have a least favorite post, but the longer I do this, I’m sure I will have one eventually.
9. Are there any pleasant surprises that you’ve encountered in 2019 so far? If so, what? I launched my blog in July 2019, and the entire experience has been a pleasant surprise. I have been completely overwhelmed with the positivity of the Hallmark community and am humbled to be embraced by it. From the Deck the Hallmark guys sharing my fan mail post through their social media, to people like costume designer Jaralin Detienne taking time for an interview, to the lovely ladies of the Bubbly Sesh happily hanging out with me In Real Life. Ruth Hill, queen of the Hallmark blog universe, has been beyond supportive to this new kid on the Hallmark block. Through her I had the pleasure of meeting the actor Paul Greene who could not have been lovelier In Real Life and was gracious enough to allow me to interview him. That was an awesome experience and you can read my interview with Paul here.
10. What advice would you give to make the blogging community better? Seems to me like it’s a pretty terrific community, so let’s all continue to strive to be kind and support each other.
11. What is your blog-related wish for 2020? In 2020, I wish to continue my commitment to post weekly. I hope to keep my content relevant to readers and, in doing so, grow my readership.

Since the Liebster Award is about recognizing other bloggers and lifting the blogging community up, I am pleased to complete step five and draw attention to the following bloggers in the Hallmark space that I enjoy reading. My nominees for the Liebster Award are:

1. Ruth from My Devotional Thoughts
2. Mercy from Moments with Mercy
3. Cally from Hallmarks the Spot
4. It’s A Wonderful Movie
5. Hallmarked Up
6. The Hallremark

And finally, step six: my questions for nominees! They are:

1. What made you decide to start your blog?
2. What is your favorite thing about blogging?
3. What has been your biggest challenge since you’ve launched your blog?
4. What is the post you are most proud of?
5. Are there any pleasant surprises that you have encountered since you started blogging? If so, what are they?
6. What is your favorite Hallmark movie? If you can’t pick just one, share your top 3 to 5 favorites within a theme area (e.g., Countdown to Christmas, Fall Harvest, Winterfest, etc.).
7. When you are not blogging and you are not watching the Hallmark Channel, what do you love to do…in your Real Life?
8. What is the last vacation you went on?
9. What are you currently reading?
10. What is your blog-related wish for 2020?