Seven things

Yesterday I was reading through my favourite blogs and drinking my morning cup of tea. Imagine my delight when I discovered, while reading Fill Your Well, that I'd been tagged with the Kreativ Blogger award by super-cool San Francisco girl Kimbirdy! I love her blog and have been admiring the items in her Etsy shop for a while now (check out the cute felt cup cozies... you'll want one, I promise!) Kim wants to know more about me, and so without further ado here are 7 random things you may or may not have known already:

1. I love to read. At any given time I have a stack of books on the go. My favourites are children's books. I read them over and over again, and never get tired of them. I have read all 7 Harry Potter books three or four times (who wouldn't want to spend that much time at Hogwarts?!) and the Betsy-Tacy series more times than I can count. And Anne of Green Gables? I still get upset when Anne turns Gilbert down, cheer when she finally realizes how much she loves him, and I always cry when Matthew dies (even though I know it's coming). Oh, and Sawyer's middle name is Digory, after the hero in The Magician's Nephew. Like I said, I seriously adore children's books. So working in a school library is pretty much the perfect job for me.

{Sawyer at 3 weeks, after making the midnight purchase of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows!}

2. I love the spring. With each new bud and blossom, I can feel myself come alive a little bit more. I get so excited when the crocuses peek out from the soil, when the daffodils start to reach for the sky. And when they open? Look out! I am in my garden taking pictures every 20 minutes! And I am all about daylight savings time! The long, light evenings make me so happy. I can't wait to go for evening walks (and runs) before sunset. And did I mention my birthday is in the spring? I get pretty excited about that too.

{Tulips in our garden last spring}

3. Housekeeping is not my forte. Which is unfortunate, because a messy house makes me crazy. I strive to keep things neat and tidy and clean, but some days it is such hard work. One of my projects this year will be to downsize on the clutter and get a cleaning schedule in place. Because clear kitchen counters and a freshly mopped floor make me happy. When the house is clean, I can relax and enjoy myself. When it's a mess, I simply cannot ignore it. If I ever win the lottery, I would love to get a maid. A maid would be fantastic.

{Love it, wish my papers were neatly organized in pretty folders like this}

4. I am a tea drinker. Whenever a friend comes over, the first thing I do is put the kettle on and get a pot of tea brewing. Cookies to go with it are nice, too. (or just plain old cookie dough, right,Kelly?)

{pretty tea cup via tea for joy}

5. I am a city girl. My favourite city (so far) is London. I really hope that when the boys are both in school, we'll be able to live there for a year. I want to do a teaching exchange. We can live in one of the lovely neighbourhoods and the boys can see where their dad came from (and spend time with their English grandparents). On the weekends we can take them to all our favourite places in the city (Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden, the V & A, St James' Park, Cafe-in-the-Crypt...) and discover some new ones. What an adventure it will be.

{Lovely, curvy London street complete with red double deckers, via here}

6. I am a fabulous correspondent. If I say I'll keep in touch, I really will. I love to send letters and postcards and packages, and always get a thrill when I discover something fun in the mail box.

{wee parcel from Cassie, on its way to me right now!}

7. I always wear lipstick. I feel naked without it. I don't need a mirror to put it on neatly. Ask Em, she'll tell you. Even when I'm wearing sweats and a t-shirt, a bit of lipstick is in order.

And there you have it. Seven random things about me. Were you surprised? Did you learn anything new? Were you bored to tears?

And now... I'm going to tag Em, Sarah, Katrina, Kelly, Cassie and Carissa. You're it, girls! Looking forward to learning more about all of you (the 8th thing about me is that I am incredibly indecisive, which is why I really couldn't choose just one person!)

Thanks again for the award, Kimbirdy! You made my morning. Oh, and just in case you were wondering... I typed this sitting on the bathroom floor while the boys soaked in a tub full of bubbles. They are beyond pruney at this point!

Erin xo

PS: Blogger is messing with my font sizes today. It is driving me mad!