Love & Links for May

On the last day of each month I like to just stop and take a moment to thank you all for everything you’ve done to support, encourage, and spread the word about my little blog. I also like to link to as many of my blog friends as possible and return the love.

One day, when my son was about four years old, I asked, “Where did the time go?” Without missing a beat, he said, as if it was obvious, “Into the past!”

Where did May go? Into the past. That must’ve been the whooshing sound I heard.

If you’re one of my regulars, read on to see who I’m thankful for this month and some other blog notes, including a solved mystery, some sad goodbyes, and a picture of me as a little boy.

BIG THANKS to all the blogs that added Hooked on Houses to their blogrolls this month. Be sure to check some of them out, make some new friends, and show them a little love (if you add me to yours, please let me know so I can mention your site, too):

Housepeepers

Under Consideration

Hostetlers

The Little Moments

The Summer Kitchen Journal

Our Life According to Kim

Back Porch Musings

The Painted House

The Houses

The Clarkin Family

Rock Paper Scissors

Book Addiction

The Happy Haven

The Laundry is Never Finished

Christine Annette

Daisy Pink Cupcake

The Bunkhouse

Please Sir

(I snapped this sweet house while driving around the Columbia Tusculum area.)

Thanks to the blogs that mentioned Hooked on Houses this month, including:

Meredith at From Here to Maine wrote a great post about some amazing treehouses that you just have to see. She said she was inspired by my post about the backyard treehouse. Check it out!

Notes from a Stay-at-Home Mom wrote that she was afraid this blog was going to be a problem for her because she’d be wasting too much time in front of the computer reading my posts about celebrity houses. I’m glad to know my evil plan is working. All I want is for you to neglect your children, ditch your housework, and devote all your spare time to my blog instead.

Hostetlers wrote about their love of Sears catalog houses and linked to this site as a place to read more about them.

The Trendy Mommy wrote a very nice review of Hooked on Houses, saying they found this site and fell in love. The Trendy Mommy is a fun blog that keeps you apprised of fabulous giveaways, so check it out!

Retro-Food graciously steered their readers over to check out my post about Retro Living Rooms.

Courtney at Nesting Instincts has a wonderful e-zine that she sends out every month (if you haven’t subscribed to it yet, click here so you don’t miss the next one!). In the May issue, she chose Hooked on Houses as the “Website of the Month.” Thanks, Courtney!

The Rambling Renovators presented Hooked on Houses with the Arte Y Pico Award this month (shown above). The Arte Y Pico Award is given to “blogs that deserve an award for creativity, design, interesting material, and also contribute to the blogging community.” Thanks, guys! I’m so honored!

I’ve Been Tagged:

Robin, who writes the lovely blog A Bird in the Hand, tagged me this month with 5 questions I’m supposed to answer about myself.

-

The rules of the game get posted at the beginning. Each player answers the questions about themselves. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5-6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

-

1) What was I doing 10 years ago? Organizing and teaching workshops for The Circle of Arts on topics like writing, creativity, and decorating. That was fun. Maybe I should host some of those again, now that I think about it. Would you guys come?

2) What are 5 things on my to-do list for today? You mean, besides getting this written and published? I have to work. I’m working all weekend on various writing projects that need my attention. Everything else will have to wait. I enjoy working from home, but I rarely get a real weekend off.

-

3) Snacks I enjoy: Hmm. The question is, what snacks don’t I enjoy? Dark chocolate would have to be at the top of my long list. I would snack all day and not bother with meals at all if I could!

-

4) Things I would do if I were a billionaire: That’s easy. I’d spend all my time buying and decorating houses all over the world and taking turns living in them (I’d at least have one on a beach and one in the mountains). And this blog could be my full-time job!

-

5) Places I have lived: I was born in Southern Illinois (anyone ever heard of Carbondale?). My family moved to Ohio when I was 6 months old and we lived in the Sawyer Hall dorm at the University of Cincinnati because my dad was the Resident Director. Later we lived a few blocks away from campus to the 1923 bungalow I showed you here. I went to Indiana for college and then lived in Indy for about 7 years. Now I’m back home in Cincinnati again.

I wish I had a better life story than that to tell. I’m totally boring, I know. I can see you all yawning.

I love old photos. I’ll use any excuse to post one. Here’s a picture from my days at Sawyer Hall, sitting next to my dad. My hair was so short that I often heard, “What a cute little boy!” To this day, when people see photos of me from then, they’ll ask, “Was that your brother?”

Who I’m Tagging: Anyone I mentioned in the “Blogrollers” list above who wants to participate in this game, consider yourself tagged!

-

Mystery Solved on the Yellow Victorian in Columbia Tuscululm: Remember that house I showed you that had the mystery door in the kitchen sitting up off the ground (click here to see it)? In case you missed it, the former owner wrote in and solved the mystery! It was originally a dumbwaiter, but had been turned into a pantry by the time she moved in. Thank you, Alison! She also mentioned that the back was blue when she moved into it, too, and she wasn’t sure why.

-

Bye, Bye, Blogs: This month we said goodbye to two great blogs. Manuela at The Feathered Nest and Emily at Design Smack both shuttered their sites. They’ll be missed! I was sad to have to take them off my blogroll.

-

And Last, But Not Least: See that colorful house at the top of the post? My blog friend Maya drove around Harriman, Tennessee, taking photos of some amazing old houses recently, including that one. Hop on over to her blog Springtree Road to see the rest. There’s one white house surrounded by porches that really got my heart pounding. I dare you to look at those houses and not get all hot and bothered.

-

Thanks for another great month, everybody! You guys are great. I love reading your comments every day. I’ve got lots more fun stuff coming up in June, so y’all come back now, y’hear?

-