Blogger to Blogger

This week I had the lucky chance to exchange some probing questions with the one and only Marta of martawrites. If there was superpower I could steal from any blogger, I might just take her own personal handwriting font.

Becuase it's just that cool.

And my handwriting.....chicken scratch doesn't even begin to describe it.

On with the questions!

Marta asked: What is your favorite thing about living in Colorado? Any must-see spots for tourists?

Katie answered: Living in Colorado is just as amazing as everyone says it is. The air is clean, the people are healthy, and now Design Mom lives here. What more can you ask for?

The things you MUST see if you come to Colorado: Downtown Boulder is a place unlike anywhere else. The people, the politics, the vibe is all ultimately entertaining. Everyone should ski Vail at some point. The sheer size of the resort is pretty astounding. Take a summer trip up to Steamboat springs. Head up to Estes park in October to hear the Elk bugling and swarming the city. Go down to Crested Butte for 4th of July and take part in the city-wide water fight between strangers. If you don't ever see Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs you can't die fufilled. And if you never take in a concert at Red Rocks you can't ever really say you've seen a concert.

Marta asked: What is your favorite meal to cook for the 'ear doctor'? (I'd love your recipe..)

Katie answered: My favorite things to cook for the ear doctor are the things he's loved since he was a little 10 year old boy. The meals his mom made him. The transformative power of these meals are pretty amazing and if I could give him anything in life it would be the innocent, joyful, filled to the brim happiness he had as a kid.

One of these dishes is called "sweet and sour chicken". You basically take a package of chicken legs and thighs, cover them with 1000 island dressing, liptons onion soup mix and Apricot Pineapple preserves. Bake at 350 until the chicken is cooked through. Then boil wide egg noodles, place the cooked chicken pieces over the noodles and pour the cooking juices all over the noodles.

Marta asked: The truth on blogging, what are your thoughts on the subject? What do you look for in a blog to make you read daily? What kinds of thing annoys you (Music; yay or nay, etc.)?

Katie answered: I really like blogging. A lot. I love that my mom can call me up and just launch into a converstaion about somethign she read there. It's kind of hard for me to have converstaions about myself, so its a really easy springboard to get the ball rolling. I love that I can see cute photos of my niece and know how my sister is feeling 40 weeks pregnant.

Things I look for in a daily read blog:

-updates almost daily

-writes funny stuff or posts unique products

-posts shorter than 300 words

-the author's personality shines through their writing

Things that annoy me:

-not much. usually if something turns me off I leave before I get annoyed

Marta asked: (Bonus) I know you are an avid reader, what are your favorite books?

Katie answered: I used to think I was an avid reader. That was until I met my college roomate Anth and read about the awesome blogger Jannsen. But, I do like to read. My favorite book of all time is Tale of Two Cities. I love it.

But there are other books that are all runners-up (or is it runner-ups?) for second place. The Lord of the Rings series are close to my heart. Power of One is a classic. Anything by Madeline L'Engle reminds me of being little. And, of course, I love Harry Potter with every fiber of my being.

Of books I've read lately I really liked The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman and Light at the Edge of the World: A Journey Through the Realm of Vanishing Cultures by Wade Davis.

and then....

Katie asked: What 3 material things are MUST-HAVES in your daily life?

Marta answered: i am going to bump it up to five. i hope that's okay, i just love things.

number one, and this is a big fat number one is my computer. i love my apple computer. it's the window to my life; my designs, my business, my photos, my recipes, my writings, my communicado to the outside world. my past, present and future all rolled into one. have i gotten carried away?

okay number two. my rocking chair. sounds strange i know, but now that i'm a mom this is the best seat in the house. we purchased a BEST brand glider and i had no idea how much i'd love it. so cozy. it's not too mammoth or too puffy. it's not hard or creaky either. it's perfect. i sit in it with or without my bear cub on my lap. i am short, so the fact that i can reach the floor is a pretty big deal. this is a rocker that doesn't swallow small people. i highly recommend them.

number three. my mini shuffle ipod. i wear it to clean the house, work out, to watch cable at the gym, to do the dishes, ride the bus, to tune out and tune into myself. it's perfect because i can get away and not even leave the house.

number four. my chaco flipflops. i wear these 6 months out of the year. they are by far the best sandals / flipflops i've ever owned. well worth their crazy price tag. break them in and you'll love them forever. dan introduced them to me. so i better give him credit. he does say i have hobbit feet though, yes my feet are flat and wide. not so audrey hepburnish. but still chacos will amaze.

number five. i have to throw in clinique superbalm gloss in raspberry. love it. i want to marry it.

Katie asked: Were you nervous about how your relationship with Dan would change when Benji came on the scene?

Marta answered: Yes, of course. Among other things, while I was pregnant (and before that too) I worried about what having a third wheel come into the picture would do to our merry matrimony. But to tell you the truth, Benji has changed our relationship for the better. It is so much fun. After seven years of marriage, the best li'l joy of bundled happiness entered our world. In large part, it has been bliss all because Dan is so awesome, so selfless and amazing. He was ready to be a father long before he became one simply because he has such a heart of gold.

Of course there are adjustments to be made. We rarely go out, but we make sure we still have date nights. We give Benj a bath, put him to bed, make a yummy dinner and eat an awesome dessert while watching a Red Box dvd. I try to make sure Dan gets some time with Benj, they do errands together while I exercise, have girls night or clean the house. I love picking Dan up for lunch and heading for a fast food joint or taking a picnic to the park. Yes, there are definite changes, but mainly all for the good. I think of it as the couple / newlywed stage is over now, family stage here we go.

Having a child and becoming a mama has been gigantically happier, sweeter, more fantastic than anyone can describe. I think I over-worried and expected a lot of hardships; you can't help but hear about the downfalls of parenthood all over the media. So now that he's here, I see how much better it is. Our life is more rich and full and happy. (All the cliches are true.) We are a little trio now and he makes us more united. I call Dan at work and say, 'Bear cub just rolled over!' or 'He totally loves squash.' or 'Benj is laughing is head off, you have to hear this...' and it's so rad because Dan will be completely into it and loves hearing what our babe is into. Kids are a happy thing. I feel so lucky to have him and the bonus of getting to raise him with my best friend.

Katie asked: Over the past 2.5 years your little spot on the Internet has grown quite a bit. Do you have any regrets associated with growing your blog so big? Are there down sides to being so wonderfully popular?

Marta answered: Well thank you for saying that. I don't know about 'popular' but I take it as a compliment. I am thrilled that anyone reads my blog because that is what every writer wants; an audience. I go back and forth about how real life my blog should be and what I should put out there versus what I should keep private. It's like walking on a tightrope. (I have found way more pros than cons in the blogworld.) I don't have any regrets, I try to stay true to myself, be genuine. This is one reason I don't take any money or sponsors for my blog. I don't charge for the giveaways I feature and I don't put up ads. I would worry that my writing would be stifled if I had to own up to anyone. I like that it's just my own little space to play around, write a lot, design up and down and throw anything I please into it. It's an online diary to express how I feel and what inspires me. I like blogging because it is a way of sharing a piece of yourself. I find that hugely rewarding in my life. It makes you stretch and come out of your shell and show who you are.