Tagged: A post where I tell you more than you probably want to know about me

I hope everyone had a great weekend! I got started on the Great De-Clutter of 2012 - one of three major home goals I set for myself this year. I've still got A LOT of work to do, but getting started has totally motivated me to keep going (as does daydreaming about what my life will be like once my home is orderly and organized). It feels good.

In the spirit of finally getting around to things, two lovely ladies - Tanya from Dans le Townhouse and
Meg from Nutmeg & Company - tagged me in a fun little bloggy game that's going around. My apologies for the long post, but hopefully you enjoy reading my answers to their awesome questions (I've combined a few to keep it as short as possible)!

1. How much time do you devote to blogging each day? What is the best thing about blogging?

I probably spend an hour or two on each post I write and I try to write three posts a week. Since blogging is a hobby and not a career for me (as in, I have a totally unrelated 40+ hours-a-week day job), I try not to put too much pressure on myself to spend a certain amount of time blogging. Of course I can almost always find the time to read and comment on other blogs - that's the really fun part!

To me, the best thing about blogging has been discovering a whole community of people who are similarly obsessed with home decor, renos and DIY projects. My husband sometimes complains that I always have home improvement projects on the brain, so I can't imagine what I'd be like without you guys to share my obsession with!

2. What do you think is the best room in your house/home/apartment/lean-to? Which room in your house reflects your style the most?

These are tough questions! Even though I recently moved everything around and it's completely unfinished (picture tape on the floor to mark the site of a future rug, a half-dismantled gallery wall, and pieces of furniture waiting to be moved into and out of the room), the living room/dining room is definitely my favourite place to be. I don't have any pictures of what the room looks like now (well, you wouldn't want to see it now - give me a couple of weeks!), but I am so excited about this space's future. You'll have to stay tuned to see what I'm talking about!

3. What project are you working on in your home right now?

Do I have to pick just one?

4. What makes your house a home?

I think we're still in the process of turning our house into a home - it's really what this blog is all about - but to me, a home tells you something about the people who live there and a house is just a building.

5. What is your favorite colour? favourite season? favourite fabric? favourite band/musician?
Blue. Fall. Is there such thing as wrinkle-proof linen? Obviously my favourite band is my husband's - Glory Glory! I also love TV On The Radio and I've been known to blast a Rihanna tune or two in my car.

6. What is the best thing you cook?

My husband is really the cook in our family, but I make a pretty mean sweet potato ravioli.

7. Chocolate or vanilla?

Vanilla, provided I can add a mix-in of my choosing.

8. What skill would you love to learn?
I don't know if this really counts as a skill, but I have always wanted to speak French fluently. I'm an intermediate speaker, but I need to get my butt in gear and start taking classes again. I definitely plan to enroll my future child in a French immersion program, so that's some more motivation for me!

9. Are you sentimental about stuff, or can you de-clutter with ease?
I think I can de-clutter with too much ease! My husband will keep anything as long as it still works (and he has a pretty loose definition of "works"), so I like to think that we balance each other out. He stops me from tossing stuff we still need and I keep him from appearing on an episode of Hoarders (OK, he's not that bad).

10. What was your childhood nickname?

Growing up, everyone called me Amy. This was largely due to the popularity of the Amelia Bedelia books. They say everyone loves Amelia Bedelia. I disagree.

11. When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

A professional traveller? One of my favourite pasttimes was looking up places I wanted to visit in our set of encyclopedias (this was before Google people) and copying down key points like population, national bird and/or flower, and major exports. I also used to make my mom (a teacher) grade these 'reports'. I was obviously a pretty cool kid.

12. How do you organize your books? By colour? By theme?  Some personalized system?
I organize books by author, but I choose books by topic (e.g. I feel like reading a book about China, the Civil War, etc.). It seem like most people I ask choose books by author, so I'm wondering if anyone else out there is like me.

13. What accomplishment are you most proud of?

Growing up, my mom always stressed the importance of being able to stand on your own two feet, especially as a woman. Don't get me wrong, I love my husband and I can't imagine my life without him, but I'm proud of the work I've put into my education and career. My independence is my most-cherised accomplishment.

14. Do you buy yourself fresh-cut flowers?

I used to and I firmly believe they're worth every penny. Last year I was able to cut them from our garden, which was awesome, and I'd love to get back into the habit of having fresh flowers around the house.

15. Do you screen your phone calls?

Does not answering your phone, no matter who calls, count as screening? It drives my family crazy.

I'm not going to pass this one on, since I think a lot of bloggers have already participated. If you have, leave me a comment with a link to your answers - I'd love to check them out! And a huge thanks to Tanya and Meg for tagging me!