Warning...really long post ahead!

Hi! Remember me? I'm Southern Wife, and I'm a blogger. Ok, really, I'm just Linz. Once upon a time this blog was going to be anonymous, but then I had a baby, and all thoughts of anonymity flew out the window because when you have a baby to update about, folks like to know who you are. And, well, you're proud and stuff. And about that blogger thing...not doing so well at that lately, am I?

Although it may seem so, I have not disappeared forever from the blogging world. Life has been calling, and I've been answering, and I have many lovely updates from our holiday season to report, although I probably will not report them and will just upload pictures from Halloween forward to my Facebook account. Maybe. Before next Halloween. Maybe. I also have a very overdue tag to respond to (thank you for your words of encouragement, Bethany! Here I am!). I did not realize that it was all the way back in November that Bethany tagged me to post a list of five things that I love. Of course I have to answer this tag - it's the theme of my blog!!!

I have really wanted to get this post done. Some little things this weekend threatened to stop me, like having no water for 12 hours (well pump broken, then fixed), having our dryer quit (which Brian fixed - brilliant!), and having a Liam vomiting on me and everything else (bed, couch, floor, daddy, high chair tray, younameithethrewuponit) all day today! An aside - Allison, aren't you glad you didn't come to visit this weekend?? Nevertheless, I have persisted, and I'm determined to finish this post tonight!

I've been asked to tell you five things I love. Since the name of my blog is, after all, "What do you love?" I thought it would be rather appropriate for me to answer this tag. So here goes! (I'm starting with the not-as-obvious and working my way to the most important things).

1. I love design. Interior design (although you can't tell it by looking at my house, but one day..one day...), graphic design, letterpress design, fashion design, etc. I'm not creative enough to actually BE a designer, but I love to look at the beautiful things other people have done. I used to wonder why I like magazines so much, but then I finally figured out that I love to look at all the images - the design of the ads, rooms, clothes, layout, and so many other elements. Instead of a picture for this one I'm adding a couple of awesome design links:

Design*Sponge
Design Mom
Apartment Therapy
Domino Magazine

Aren't those just so much fun!!!

2. I love the South. Yes, that's with a capital S. I'm deeply rooted in the Deep South - I grew up in Georgia, and part of my family comes from Louisiana and Mississippi. I love the culture (not always the history, but the culture nevertheless), the people, and the food!! I'm proud of our music, our traditions, our manners, our literature. I think the southern US is a place of great confusion, and sometimes I think it is populated with crazy people. I also think that's what made writers like William Faulker and Flannery O'Connor write what they did - I think we're all trying to make sense of this strange, beautiful place!

3. I love ghost stories. My very favorite TV show EVER is Ghost Hunters. I love to hear and watch all these creepy things, but I know that in real life if confronted with anything "supernatural" that I would just fall apart. I'm not talking horror - I hate horror movies with a passion. I'm talking about good old fashioned "grandma's house was haunted" kinds of stories. But...not if you're telling them late at night around a camp fire or something. Yikes!!

4. I love tea. I think you all probably know this one already. I do not drink coffee. I even order tea at Starbucks. I like black tea, green tea, herbal tea, white tea, red tea (did you all know there were this many kinds of tea??) Iced or hot. Actually, preferably hot. In the morning with cream and honey, at night before bed, when I'm sick, when I'm working. There is always a perfect cup of tea for any occasion! My preferred teas:

Plain old black tea for breakfast or anytime: PG Tips
For trying new kinds of tea: Teavana
For tea and accessories: STASH tea
For gorgeous packaging (see #1 above): Harney & Sons
And for night time, an old favorite: Sleepytime

There are so many more that I could link but I'm getting carried away and I need to move on now.

5. I love Family. I love being surrounded by my relatives, even though most of them are nuts and drive me nuts! I grew up having family gatherings at my Nana and Papa's. All of our extended relatives would come over, and my papa and my dad and my uncles would gather around the fireplace and play bluegrass music. My papa played banjo, my uncles played guitar, and my dad and Nana would sing harmony. Sometimes the neighbor, Nana's uncle, would come over with his fiddle and play. We'd play and sing and laugh and eat, and as a child I loved the feeling of being surrounded by all that love. Brian's family is the same, maybe without as much music. We gather and visit and eat and have fun. I'm thrilled that even though my family is more spread out than it used to be, Liam is still growing up surrounded by people who love him so much.

Part of my love of family, of course, is Brian and Liam. I love having my own little family of three, as well. We're creating our own traditions and trying to create that same atmosphere of loving warmth right here, as well as with all the relatives around. The picture below reminded me of Brian, and I just had to add it:

(image via A Cup of Jo)
I love my husband! And, I love this little boy...

Hasn't he grown??? This is his happy face on his first Christmas morning. What a wonderful sight!!

Ok...I guess after all that I need to be done for now. However, something is missing from my post above. Can you think of what it might be? My next will explain at length what was left out of this list and why!

Oh, and seriously, I have not one ounce of energy left to tag anyone right now. Maybe next time. Phew.