The Remarkable Blogger Tag.

Hey, readers!

I’m soooo excited to be doing this tag!

Why?

‘Cause this is the first tag I’ve ever been nominated for!🎉🎊✨

The Remarkable Blogger Tag was started by Selina of Selina’s Garden of Thoughts. I was nominated for this tag by both the creator and Maggie sometime last week but I wasn’t able to do it sooner because of the mid-term test in my school.

But I’m done with the test now, so over to the tag:

Rules

• Add the featured image.🖼
• Tag your post with #the remarkable blogger tag.
• Pingback to original post.😌
• Mention the creator.👋
• Share something unique about you.🥰
• Answer the nine questions the person who nominated you has asked.🤔
• Ask nine questions for your nominees.😁
• Nominate 10-15 people.😆
• Have fun!🤩

Something Unique About Me. 👧🏾

I have a cheerful aura. Wherever I go, people always remember me for how cheerful and happy I am, or just for my smile. 😁

Questions Selina Asked: 😘

If you could turn back time, what would you change?

I would change all my actions that hurt the people that mean most to me.

Where’s your go-to happy place?

Ummmm. That would have to be anywhere, really. Anywhere outside that’s quiet, where I can think things out; anywhere I can sit and feel the cool breeze brush against my skin.

Are you an introvert, extrovert or ambivert?

The definitions of ‘ambivert’ I find on the Internet are vague, but I have the feeling it means a combo of introvert and extrovert, and that’s definitely who I am!

What are three things you look for in a good friend?

I look out for someone I can trust with anything.

I look out for someone who can be my adviser and shoulder to cry on.

I look out for someone who is tolerant and forgiving, ‘cause I know I’m far from perfect.

What are some of your hobbies?

My hobbies are: reading, writing, listening to music, aaaaaand napping. 😴

Why did you start blogging?

I originally wanted Ọlaedo to be a kind of network where Nigerian teens could connect and share their stories and advice. But I saw that coding a social network or forum would be a hassle my coding skills were not yet matched for, so I resulted to blogging. And I hope my blog will really be able to ‘Inspire, Inform and Motivate’ teens to be better than they are. 🌷

How has the COVID-19 pandemic impacted you and your family?

In Nigeria, people only took the pandemic seriously in 2020, when the news of COVID-19 cases and deaths were all over the place. But now, life is back to normal in Naija.

But to say of the impact it’s had on my family, I would say it has made us to realise that just because we may seem comfortable and safe, there are still people in other parts of the world going through hardships and pains, and we should learn to think of and pray for them too.

It’s also taught us not to take things for granted.

What trait did you wish you had?

I wish I had the trait of trust. That is, I wish I could trust people more and easily.

Many of the reasons why I have hurt people that mean much to me stem from the fact that I don’t trust them fully, although they trust me much. And so, I always find myself trying to protect myself from hurt, but in the end hurt them by my actions.

What’s your favorite quote?

Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world and all there ever will be to know and understand.

-Albert Einstein.

My Nominees’ Questionnaire.

• Why did you start blogging?
• What do you wish to have achieved with your blog by its next anniversary?
• When you have a huge number of problems to solve, do you:
  • Sit down and make a list of them, from the most to the least important?
  • Do the one that seems most pressing there and then?
  • Grumble and do the easiest, hoping that the rest will become less stressful by the time you reeeaaallly have to do them?🙈
  • Do some other thing not mentioned here? (Please mention).
• What was/is your worst subject while in secondary/high school?
• If you could have three wishes, what would you wish for?
• Who is/are that/those persons in your life you wish you could get rid of but just have to deal with. 😂
• What is the sum-total vision for your life?
• Do you:
  • Study every day in preparation for exams from day-one of the term?
  • Begin studying whenever you did really bad in a surprise test?
  • Study whenever you feel like it?
  • Have a study state-of-emergency the night before exams?
• What trait or bodily feature do you still have from when you were a child?

And My Nominees Are…

• Zainab
• Evin
• Nehal
• Selina
• Suhani
• Anoushkha
• Maggie
• IB
• Silver Stone
• OriginalTeenMuslimah

And that’s it, peeps! It was really mid-racking answering all those questions, but even more challenging making questions of my own.

This tag is so fun! Thanks to Selina for creating the tag; and thanks to her and Maggie for tagging me! 🤗🤗🤗 I’m really pleased as a peach. 🍑 (Or is it plum?)

And please, if weren’t mentioned but still want to take part in this tag, you’re more than welcome to do so; it’s really an adventure!!!

I’ll be sure to do a tag of my own someday.

Till next time.👋🏾

Ciao, 💋

The Blogger Recommendations Tag.

Hey, readers!

Maggie of Maggie’s Doodles recently took part in The Blogger Recommendations Tag. The tag was started by Nehal of Quirky Pages and is really fun, actually.

Maggie is a blogger I follow, and when I saw her post in the Reader, I knew I had to be a part of the tag. I know some really cool blogs, and I’ll be sure to give honour to whom honour is due in today’s post. But first:

About the Tag

The Blogger Recommendations Tag is essentially a way for bloggers to share some of their favorite bloggers with their readers. It helps the readers discover more blogs and also brings appreciation to the bloggers mentioned.

Description courtesy of Nehal, the tag creator.

Rules of the Tag

• Thank and link back to the person who tagged you.
• Mention the creator of the tag: Nehal @ Quirky Pages.
• List the rules.
• Share one or more bloggers you think fits into each criterion.
• The people you mention will be considered tagged.
• Apart from the ones you shared, you can tag other bloggers and notify them.
• Just have fun!!

List of Prompts

• A fascinating blog theme.
• A lovely homepage.
• Great book reviews.
• Amazing humour.
• Mind-blowing poems and stories.
• The friendliest.
• The most consistent.
• The best at sharing tips.
• The talented artist.
• Cool site name.
• The underrated.

A fascinating blog theme.

• Evin @ A Curly Sue’s Ramblings – Evin has to be tops on this list. Hers was the first WP blog I ever came across, and her blog theme is uh-mazing! (Especially as she’s changed her theme back to the last one she used!)
• Maggie @ Maggie’s Doodles – I just came across her blog recently and I was awe-struck. Pink is the most predominant colour in her blog’s theme, and it really just makes sense.
• Selina @ A Garden of Thoughts – I actually just found her blog this week from Maggie’s Blogger Recommendations Tag post. Her blog is so pretty that it’s earned a space on ma list!

A lovely homepage.

• Evin @ A Curly Sue’s Ramblings – Yup. Evin’s on here again. Her homepage is byu-tee-ful.
• Suhani @ Random Reader’s Rambles – Her blog button looks like something out of a fairy tale. And her graphics are very nice. It’s sooo pretty.
•  

Great book reviews.

Y’know I read book reviews and recommendations, but I never really do actually read the books. Why? No time, aaaand no resources of my own!😂

• Rayna @ Ray is Writing – She’s a bookish 12-year-old. I like her writing, but I especially love her feature images.
• Mallory @ Starlight Reading – Just like Mallory, I really love books, myself. And I really like the lively way she writes her book reviews. If you’re a bookie,📚 you should really check her blog out.

Amazing humour.

• Silver Stone @ The Bored Side of the Phone – Found her blog from Maggie’s post. Her posts are really jovial and lively. Sure to leave you smiling. (Like me 😁)
• Maggie @ Maggie’s Doodles – Maggie’s Doodles has earned another spot! Her posts are super animated and lively. But adjectives are not enough to describe such an animatedly-lively writing style.
• Nehal @ Quirky Pages – Nehal’s had sooo many mentions throughout my post! And guess she’s getting a lot more mentions in the posts of all those doing the tag.

*jealous🙄*

Maybe I should start a tag of my own 🤔…

Mind-blowing poems and stories.

I don’t really read stories or poems on WordPress. So, to keep things honest, I have no bloggers to mention here.

The friendliest.

• Zainab @ Zainab Chats – Y’know, it’s really humbling when a person already established in the blogosphere stoops down to look at bloggers like me who’re yet to find their footing. In my first days of blogging, Zainab was always there to like my posts and respond to my comments in such a kind way. So, she deserves her spot. 💯
• IB @ It’s IB! – IB is also one of those humble, friendly bloggers. She’s always sure to flood her readers with amazing posts.
• Anoushkha @ Dipped in Ink– The comment she made on my about page is so touching. 😥 And it is the first official comment I’ve ever received on my blog. Other bloggers have commented before (when I first began blogging), but it was majorly because I enjoined them to do so. And when I checked out her blog, Dipped in Ink, I was sooo glad I did!
• Safa @ One Indian Girl – Although I just met Safa some months ago, I’ve found that she’s a really amazing and relatable person. There’s nothing more moving than seeing a heart-felt reply to your comment on someone’s blog. I get that warm feeling from Safa’s replies.

The most consistent.

Okay, for the record, all – sorry – all, except for those who’ve gone inactive, the bloggers I know of are consistent and active. But I have to give this spot to:

• Zainab @ Zainab Chats – There’s never a time I come to the Reader that I don’t see Zaianb’s post/s. I don’t just like her consistency, but I also like the fact that she posts multiple posts most of the time. (Now, that’s commitment.)

The best at sharing tips.

• Evin @ A Curly Sue’s Ramblings – This is Evin’s third mention!🥇🥇🥇 (That’s sayin’ someth’n’, peepl). Evin’s blogging tips are frequent and substantial. I never read her ‘tips’ posts without leaving with added info. You can read her most recent ‘tips’ post here.
• Zainab @ Zainab Chats – Zainab is an aspiring journalist aiming to spread positivity, and she’s really spreading positivity as she dishes out tips for information and well-being. I love her sometimes short but quality ‘tips’ posts. You can check out one my favourites here.

The talented artist.

• Evin @ A Curly Sue’s Ramblings – The fact that I’ve mentioned some people multiple times doesn’t mean that I don’t know much bloggers…

… well, maybe it does.

It just means that these guys are the best at what they do, and Evin’s pics and graphics are second to none.

• Selina @ A Garden of Thoughts – Her pictures are sooo pretty! 😍
• Maggie @ Maggie’s Doodles Well, Maggie’s doodles are… doodles. But I love the way she uses them in her posts. It makes them cheery, lively and unique.😊😊
• Rayna @ Ray is Writing – You’ve gotta love her feature images.

Cool site name.

• Silver Stone @ The Bored Side of the Phone – When I first heard this name I was like whaa??? The name is so simple that it’s catchy.
• Evin @ A Curly Sue’s Ramblings – I guess a Curly Sue means a person with really curly hair. I’ve never seen Evin before, but I wonder how an Indian can have curly hair. In movies, Indians always have long, straight hair. But that’s by the way. Her site’s name is really great. ♥

The underrated.

 I’m not trying to proclaim that anyone mentioned here is underrated, I just feel that more people should get to know about their blogs.

• Anita @ Blog Femme & Infos – Anita’s blog is one that focuses on female well-being and information sharing. The entire blog is in French, but there’s a translator function for non-French speakers.
• Mae @ OriginalTeenMuslimah – She’s Birtish teen Muslim. She basically writes like a dreamer: slow and deliberate (if that makes any sense, sha). And the most predominant colour in her blog is purple.🍇
• Hidenzzz @ Hiddenzz – To write truthfully, I just think Hidenzz is a great blog that deserves a boost for more attention.👍🏾

So, without further ado, I raise my fingers from the keyboard. ✋🏾✋🏾 It was really mind-racking, finding all the bloggers to mention. I really hope you’ll take a look at these blogs here. I assure you, you won’t regret it. 👍🏾

Shout out to all the uh-mazing bloggers I mentioned here, and also to the ones that slipped my mind.😢 You’re all inspirations to me, and one of the strongest forces that keep me going. ❤❤❤

And if you want to take part in The Blogger Recommendations Tag, please do. Remember to follow the rules, have fun with it, and, please, don’t forget to mention me.

Till next time, y’all. 👋🏾

Ciao. 💋

Something Christmasey – A Christmas Blog Tag.

I just had to name this post with the first thing that popped into my head. In IB’s Christmas Blog Tag Post, day 2, she answered questions relating to Christmas: what she loves about it, her favorite Christmas-themed movies and things like that. And in that post, I commented that I’ll do ‘something Christmasey’ on my blog too. So here it is…

My Christmasey blog post:

EN-joyeee!

What’s your favorite Christmas movie?

I think my favorite Christmas movie should be: Good Luck, Charlie, It’s Christmas! I saw the movie back when I was much, much younger, but I have to make it my best Christmas movie.

… I know I wasn’t asked, but next to that is Kung Fu Panda Holiday – which is also an old movie.

Have you ever had a white Christmas?

No. I live in Nigeria, and in Nigeria it NEVER snows. ☃ But we do have our own variation of the snowy weather, though. It’s called Harmattan. During Harmattan, everywhere gets cold and dry; it’s freezing cold in the morning and at night, and blazing hot in the afternoon with a dry wind.

Where do you usually spend your holiday?

I usually spend my holiday in my village (either my maternal or paternal village). In Nigeria, it’s a norm that every Christmas, relatives from all over the country (and even the world) come to the village for Christmas. It’s always very fun when all my cousins, aunties and uncles come back and we all stay together under one roof; I get a lot of money in these periods, 😁😁😁 which I save for the new year; I also get a lot of gifts and go for a good number of outings.

But in recent years, that norm is fading. The cost of traveling from state to state is rising, and only a few relatives come back each year. 😥

What is your favorite Christmas song?

I’m not sure I can pick just one! But since I am to pick, it would have to be the Catholic Hymn We Three Kings of Orient. I’ve loved this hymn for as long as I can remember, and it’s still my best today.🎶🎵🎶

Can you name all of Santa’s reindeer?

No. Sadly, I cannot. Although, I can name Rudolph. I hear his name often in Christmas movies.

What Christmas traditions are you looking forward to this year?

To be honest, in Nigeria this year, it doesn’t really feel like Christmas. By this time of the year (December 3^rd – the day this post was written), Harmattan must have fully set in and you just feel that festive vibe in everybody. But things are so different this year, I wonder if Christmas will even feel like Christmas this year.

Okay, so the tradition I’m looking forward to this year is staying up on 31^st night. It’s most fun in my paternal village, where all of my cousins and I stay up till 1^st January. And when 1^st January does come, my grandma rings a small bell and shouts “Happy new year!” amidst prayers for the new year. From there, she lets us all stay outside in the dark till we start feeling sleepy (which we never do till much, much later ‘cause we’ll be too busy playing with fire crackers (or banger as we prefer in Nigeria) 🧨🧨🧨 and talking).

What is the best Christmas present you ever received?

The best Christmas present I ever received was the joy of Christmas. I got this gift from God Himself in the Christmas period of 2019. That was the year I began to really follow God, and He blessed me with the joy of actively expecting His Son’s coming into the world. My family didn’t even celebrate Christmas that year with much, but the Christmas hymns, decorations and the all-round festive spirit made me more than joyful each Christmas day of that year. 😇😃😊

Most memorable Christmas memory?

It would have to be Christmas, 2015, when I received my first Holy Communion. I got a real surprise that day, because my aunties came all the way from Ibadan and Cameroon down to Lagos to be there with me. I can remember how we were all dressed on white that chilly night holding candles. A girl’s wig caught fire from the candle she was holding. (TMI? 🤨)

But the part of this memory I love the most is the time after we just received Holy Communion, after the short prayer you say when you get to your seat, my friend sitting beside me looked around and, smiling, told me, “It’s Christmas eve!” I can never forget that.

After the mass, we all went outside to receive the congratulations of our families and friends. Fireworks were lighting up the sky, and little nine-year-old me could do nothing but smile and love every minute of it all.

What made you realise the truth about Santa?

I read about it in a church brochure article or so. I wasn’t surprised, though. Before then, I only ever saw Santa as a symbol Christmas-time, and not as a person who really exists.

What makes holidays special for you?

Um, let’s see.

• Food. Lots and lots of food.
• Being with family and friends under the same roof.
• Going to church, spending time with God and singing Christmas hymns.
• Going for outings with family and friends.
• Staying up late on 31^st night.
• Writing out my scriptural pillars for the new year.
• That Christmas-Harmattan smell in the air, and the general festive vibe.
• Watching people shoot banger (‘cause I’m too scared to do so myself… maybe this year will be different).

What don’t you like about Christmas?

There’s not much to dislike about this time of the year. The only thing I can say here is that I don’t like the hot-dry weather and the cracked, dry lips I get from the Harmattan season.

So, that’s a wrap, peeps! I hope this post was enlightening as it was interesting, and I hope people in other countries have learnt a little more about Christmas on my side of the world.

I’d love to hear about your thoughts on my answers to these questions in the comments section below. 👇🏾 If you’re a blogger who’s just finding out about the Christmas Blog Tag and wish to make a post on it, don’t forget to link my post in yours (like I did in this one).

I hope to do another Something Christmasey post next year… by God’s grace.😇

Photo by Gary Spears on Pexels.com

Merry Blogmas! 😘🎄🎶💕