Blog Award x Three!!!!!

I think that there is something special about getting a pat on the back, especially from someone who does what you do.  Not that any of us really need validation, but it is nice to be recognized for what we do.  Let's face it, even though most of us love to blog it is a commitment and takes away from other things that we may consider important.....like SLEEP!  Last week my email was bursting with blog love.  Not one, but two fellow Texas Bloggers nominated me for this award:

Huge Texas Hugs going out to Sarah of City Girl Gone Country and Tif of Ramblings of a Southern Belle.   You ladies made my day!  By accepting the award I agree to do the following:

*  Thank the blogger who nominated me for the award
*  Include a link to their blog in your post, as well as the award image
*  Give 7 random facts about yourself
*  Nominate 15 other deserving bloggers for the award
*  Include links to the nominated bloggers' sites
*  Let the other bloggers know that they have been nominated for the award.

Here are my 7 (VERY) Random Facts:

1.  My favorite flavor of cupcake is red velvet and yes it kinda has to be Sprinkles.  I have tried other flavors, it just didn't work out for me.

2.  I have come to the realization that I am the most at peace when I am at the beach...that stinks since I am literally states away from a really great one.

3.  I love listening to Matthew McConaughey's Reliant Energy commercials.  If you have not had the pleasure you have my condolences...there is nothing like that southern drawl (except maybe his abs, or dimples, or hair - sorry, I digress).

4.  I am a vegetarian - except for shrimp.  I am fairly certain that it wouldn't be too difficult to be vegan if I could just manage to kick my cheese habit...oh, the torture of it all!

5.  I want a really good camera and I want to learn how to use it ....meaning I want to take it way off of AUTO.

6.  I don't have cable or regular TV...only Netflix and Hulu Plus streaming.  Honestly, it really isn't too bad.  I get so much more done!

7.  I have three tattoos....and if they weren't so expensive, I would have more.

Make sure you drop by and visit these ladies...they are deserving of some blog love - I mean it.  And for those of you who were just recently nominated, don't worry about doing it again, just link to the post where you accepted the award....we don't want to miss out on your 7 random facts!

*Katie @ Katie Stories
*Kelley @ The Grant Life
*Jennifer @ Finding My Way In Texas
*Amanda @ Princess of the Panhandle
*Taylor @ Goings On In Texas
*Crystal @ Mason's Mama
*Emily @ Insanity Rules
*Nicole @ Three 31
*Tiffany @ Monuments & Memories
*Shannon @ I Should Be Cleaning House
*Jana @ An Unstyled Life
*Valerie @ Make Mine A Cosmo
*Erica @ Mi Todo
*Jacy @ My Name is Jacy
*Cassey & Brittany @ Natural Nesters

Before I bring this fun post to a close, I also have to send out a huge thank you to Valerie!  She blogs over at Make Mine A Cosmo - don't you just love that name???  She nominated me for these awards:

Didn't I tell you about my email.....bursting with blog love?!?!  Anyway, although I am over the top excited I am going to try to combine all of this without stepping on any toes or not returning the love.  Because let's face it...soon this post will be approaching novel status and I feel like I have been working on it for days!!!  For those of you that have been nominated above, consider yourself included in these nominations as well...why?  Because I really do love each and every one of your blogs....so three times the love! 

For the One Lovely Blog Award you are asked to nominate 11 other bloggers - my 15 are listed above.  It also asks for 11 random facts.  I am going to add 4 more to my list above:

8.  I recently discovered that I am quite fond of Latino Rolls - my first attempt at sushi, unless you count that time that my coworker tricked me into trying ahi tuna.....seriously YUCK!

9.  When I pump gas it has to stop in an even dollar amount.  I am not even joking.

10.  When I was in junior high I won a radio contest and got to bowl with Journey (I only entered one time!)

11.  Until I started scrapbooking, I was horrible about finishing projects.

The Liebster Award asks me to create 11 questions for those nominated to answer....I am going to be satisfied with the 7  or 11 random facts - whichever you choose.  I am going to answer the questions that Valerie listed so here goes....

1. If you could live in any decade which would it be: Roaring 20's, The 30's, The 40's, The 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's, or 90's?  To be quite honest, I am happy to be just where I am.

2. Where do you get your news: TV, print, social media? Social media...definitely.

3. What was the most favorite Halloween costume you wore as a kid?  One year, I was a black cat and I really loved the fact that I had a long tail...I know, weird huh?

4. Worst Christmas present ever received? (Like, outright given; not something you ended up with from the office Dirty Santa game).  I much prefer to give gifts so if I received something terrible I probably didn't dwell on it too much...either that or I have never received anything THAT bad.  

5. Favorite Disney Princess? Why? Cinderella....don't we all want to be that girl with the glass slipper?  OK maybe not now, but we did when we were little girls didn't we?

6. New Kids on the Block or Backstreet Boys? Backstreet Boys

7. Team Jennifer or Team Angelina? Team Jennifer all the way

8. Do you own a pair of "Norts" (Nike Shorts)? Can't say that I do
 

9. Roller Coaster or Log Flume? Definitely roller coaster

10. Favorite Awards Show: Grammy's, Oscars, Tony's, Espy's, People's Choice, MTV Video Awards, Teen Choice Awards???? When I used to have regular TV (see first round of random facts), I liked to watch the Oscars

Whoops....there were only 10 to answer!  I apologize for altering the rules, but thought that was better than not giving thanks where it was due and didn't think I should dedicate another entire post to blog awards....you guys might not ever come back.  So, thank you, thank you a million times thank you to Sarah, Tif and Valerie.  You guys truly made this small time blogger mucho happy!  For any of you that were nominated above that would like to see the "rules" for the two awards that Valerie nominated me for you can find all the details here.  Claim your nominations in whatever manner is best for you in any combination of the above mentioned "rules".  If you are still here, bless you for sticking with me til the end!

Sunshine Award

How lucky am I?  Twice in a month I have been honored with a blog award.  I am not really sure where these originated, but the premise is a good one.  From everything that I can gather these awards benefit the recipients in a few of ways: for one it validates that people are out there reading what you are throwing down.  I have read blogs where people say that they blog for themselves and whether anyone is reading or not is of little consequence.  I will admit, a part of me blogs to have memories journaled for the future, but I am not going to lie…..I enjoy knowing that people are out there following.  Secondly, for those of us that are still struggling to get our blogs more widely noticed, it is bit of free advertising – and let’s face it peeps, that is never a bad thing.   The more people that visit, the greater chances that your blog will grow.  And finally, a recipient could have a plethora of followers, but I don't ever think it hurts to let someone know that you really enjoy their blog.

So….can I get a drum roll please?  Anna over at Oceannah granted me the Sunshine Award.
 

I recently found Anna’s blog and admire her choice of living – she has an organic homestead and blogs about the goings on around her land and life, not to mention she is a great writer and she loves the ocean (gotta love that).  Thank you so much, Anna for the Sunshine Award and for sharing A Beautiful Day with your readers!

As a recipient of the Sunshine Award, I am supposed to answer the following questions:

Q & A

Favorite Colors: blue, fuschia, purple

Favorite Animal: cat – but stay tuned because there may be a bit of puppy love in my future - but only from a distance

Hopefully....details to follow

Favorite Number: honestly, can’t say that I have one

Favorite Non-Alcoholic Beverage: if I am being honest, I have to say Diet Coke(I am forever battling to permanently delete the addiction)

Prefer Facebook or Twitter: hands down Facebook –I recently joined Twitter, but I am failing miserably

My Passion: scrapbooking and doing my best to make the best of every situation – sometimes I succeed and sometimes not so much

Favorite Pattern: this is a tough one, but lately I have been drawn to bold florals, especially where scrapbooking papers are concerned

Prefer Getting or Giving Presents: I think that everyone enjoys getting a great gift, but I love gifting a great one even more

Favorite Day of the Week: I love Fridays – especially the paycheck variety, but also any day of the week when I have my Z-man

He melts my heart....photo courtesy of Jesse Leos

Favorite Flower: Star Gazer Lilly

There are a few fun facts that you may or may not know about me.  And now to complete the circle of Paying It Forward here are 10 Blogs That I Love.  The Liebster Blog Award that I received was specifically to help out new bloggers that were trying to increase their following – so I had to list five blogs with under 200 followers.  Not that I don’t love those as well, but it was a bit difficult because the blogs I read are AWESOME, and it seems that a lot of people agree with me.  I don’t believe that this Sunshine Award has that stipulation so I am just going to list ten blogs that I read religiously (in no particular order).  Do most of them REALLY need a shout out from little old me?  Nope, but that is not going to prevent me from sending you their way.   I hope that they will inspire, enlighten, educate and most importantly entertain you.  I love to take a few minutes out of my day and jump into theirs….ENJOY!!!!!

1. Cyn @ The Chunky Goddess ...as I will continue to reiterate, the chunky is no longer relavent.  I can't say enough great things about her.  This gutsy lady speaks her mind.  I am convinced she is a Rockstar and if she didn't live half way across the country, I think we might be great friends...for reals!

2. Shannon @ Life After I "Dew" ...Shannon has recently become a SAHM, she has a precious little girl and blogs about whatever strikes her fancy...she tells it like it is with no sugar coating...just the way I like it.

3. Naked Mommy @ Naked Mommy Diaries ...if you have a sense of humor about parenting and tend to be at least a tad bit warped you will appreciate Naked Mommy for the genius that she is

4. Rachel @ "R" and "R" ...Rachel is the wife of a former co-worker and we have definitely formed a blog friendship and I can only hope that one day we can actually meet in person.  Her blog is chock full of fun pictures of their life in Colorado that frequently make me long to be somewhere cooler and more beautiful

5. Megan @ Two Parts Sunshine ...Megan is a dear friend and blogs about all things sustainable, earth and animal friendly and you may occasionally get a glimpse of her decorating genius

6. Rachel and Jesse @ Starfish and Coffee ...Jesse has taken Zachary's birthday pictures for the last three years....his genius is ALL over this blog, but Jesse and Rachel are also in the process of adopting two little ones from Uganda.  Follow their journey and read about their unwavering faith in our Lord...they are true examples of putting it all in HIS  hands.

7. Ducky @ Batcrap Crazy ...I found Ducky because she commented on this scary post.  I have been following her ever since.  She is witty and has that kick of snarky that I just love.  Her blog is a blast to read!

8. Ashley @ I Love You More Than Carrots ...soon to be mother of two and seriously funny.  Her lastest post is entitled "Tiny Baby Hands in My Hoo-Ha"  - enough said...go visit!

9. Shelley @ The House of Smiths ....this lady and her husband take creativity and DIY to a whole nother level....sometimes I feel like I am not even worthy to be there...lol.  Head on over, you will not be disappointed

10. Kelly @ Enjoying the Small Things ...yes, I am aware that probably the majority of the blogging world knows about Kelle Hampton, Bloom and Enjoying the Small Things.  That does not detract from my mad love.  I love her writing...I swoon over her pictures...and I busted out Bloom in two evenings - tears streaming and all.  Will she join in these reindeer games...probably not, but you just never know.

OK, Peeps...there you have it!  Thanks for baring with me for this incredibly long post...although it was probably much longer for me to create than for you to read through.  Thank you again to Anna for the blog love, and I hope that you will take a bit and check out some of my blog loves.  Have a GREAT weekend!!!  MWAH!!!!!

The Liebster Blog Award

I got an email yesterday morning letting me know that I had a comment on a blog post.  I love those emails....that is confirmation that somebody out there is actually reading.  Well, imagine my surprise when I read this:

You've been nominted for a Blog Award!  Please check out my latest post. : )

So yes, I am pretty darn excited!  It would have been exciting no matter who it had come from, but it came from another relatively "newbie blogger".  The award

is all about helping helping bloggers (with 200 followers or less) get some new traffic to their blog, and I am all about that!  A huge "THANK YOU" shout out to L.C over at The Brunette Bride for the nomination!

In order to keep the award rolling, here are my five nominations:

1. Rachel

2. Becky

3. Ashley

4. Danielle

5. Anna

5 RANDOM FACTS ABOUT ME:

1. I am vegetarian, but you will occasionally find me eating shrimp - if I could conquer my cheese addiction I could probably go vegan without much difficulty (does anyone know if there is a twelve step program for cheese addiction????)

2. I make every effort to buy my makeup, cleaning supplies and candles vegan/cruelty free and eco friendly.  There is still stuff that I am using that isn't, but I can't bring myself to just throw stuff out - I will just make better choices when I replenish.

3.  I think that I was more excited about the Hunger Games opening than my 11 year old son.  There is something seriously wrong with that isn't there???

4.  I am an only child and after 40-something years I am still not very happy about it.

5.  I would love to live near the beach....there is just something about the beach and the ocean that puts me at peace.  Ocean vacations seem to be the ones where I am never ready to come home...Sanibel Island anyone?
***********************************************************************************

If you have been nominated, here is what you do to keep it rolling:

Each Nominee Should:

1. Choose five, up and coming blogs to give the Liebster award to.  Blogs must have less than 200 followers.
2. Show your thanks to the blogger who gave you the award by linking back to them.
3. Post the award on your blog.
4. List the bloggers you gave the award to with links to their sites.  Leave a comment on their blogs to let them know they’ve received the award.
5. Share five random facts about yourself!

Huge hugs going out to L.C. - thank you again for giving my little blog a boost!

Night Blog Peeps!