Beautiful Blogger

Thanks SO much to Kelli at Life With My Little Prince for nominating me for this award! In the past, I admit that I have sometimes neglected any award duties that have come my way(not that I receive tons or anything...LOL) and usually its been due to lack of time to play along or fear of leaving someone out who I wish to honor. But this award is too juicy to pass up and though I would very much like to award ALL the bloggers who I know, frequent & love with this honor, its my hope that by sharing it with a handful, it will trickle onward and find its way to all the amazing blogs and bloggers gracing the blogosphere!

I've made no secret of my admiration for the many talented, compassionate, thoughtful and incredible bloggers I have had the pleasure of "meeting" and not surprisingly I always take something.....something pretty gosh darn wonderful, from each & every blog that I visit. I have been privileged to follow along with your families and your adventures and feel richer for it!

I also wish I could give this award to all the many folks who take a moment in their busy days to peek at our daily happenstance and leave a friendly or supportive comment ~ they mean so much and truly help to keep my blogging perspective fresh and fun! AND thanks to absolutely everyone who emailed me or left a comment sharing tidbits and tips about our Disney trip! They were all SO helpful! Yup, I loved the well wishes too! :)

Soooooo....without further delay, here are my nominations: ( cue Oscar music please....)

Jen of Bringing Home Baby #2 ~ Beautiful Mama (and blogger) extraordinaire to the gorgeous Simone & Sam and absolutely my bloggy BFF and sounding board! Sometimes you just meet someone that you feel like you have known forever & could share anything free of judgement. That's Jen! I *heart* ya my friend & value your amazing perspectives!

Wanda of At Last....Milana's Comin' Home ~ because she enchants me with her breathtaking photos(lovely lovely girls and sweet Milana IS home!!), artistic soul and beautiful Mama's heart. She makes blogging look easy even when its not!

Tiff at Blessed with Sweatpeas ~ oh gosh, I just adore everything about her blog. I guess you could say, "she had me at hello". And those sweatpeas? So beautiful! Truly a beautiful Mama with BOTH hope & faith......

Amy at She Writes ~ if you have not stopped by her blog please run, don't walk and take a peek. Hers is a rare gift ~ a magic weaver of words with a champion's heart of gold. A courageous Mama in all the important ways! (Yes, you really are!!)

Rachel of Wherever You Go, Go With Your Heart ~ I smiled to myself just typing this. Rachel has a way of sharing that makes you feel like you are seated across from her sharing a cup a tea. Talented, beautiful, patient and just home with the breathtaking Baby Evie from Ethiopia!!(plus 2 more cuties at home!!) AND she can sew!!

Lisa of Red Thread to our Daughter ~ Lisa and I go way back, at least in the bloggy sense. Lisa always keeps it real and I value her insight into all things family. She's got 2 fab. boys and a diminutive beauty home from Taiwan. Lisa faced a twist in the adoptive road(once upon a time) that would have left even heartiest shattered ~ she handled it with both grace and faith ~ a beautiful blogger indeed.

Staci of Two in Taiwan ~ Beautiful inside and out and a Mama I greatly admire. Gorgeous kids and an infectious love of life! And her photos? Stunning! (private blog)

Tracy of Anna Banana and Baby Pancake ~ Beautiful girls, beautiful family, beautiful spirit ~ always graces a blog she visits with THE sweetest comments and spreads a bit of sunshine with each post or comment she shares. (private blog)

Jules of Pink Velvet Baby ~ our babes share a special connection and in Jules I see a loving Mama and lovely spirit. Her journey to Mama hood was long and winding but she never lost faith. Beautiful Miss H. has brought such a flourish and delight to her days and I know this because she never fails to share her incredible blessing and feelings of incredible joy in her creative and oh so pretty blog! And she's got incredible fashion sense!

AND please note that I would have liked to have given this to a few other gals too(Christine, Sarah), but alas they were already nominated by other bloggers. Drat! :) I have a few new bloggy friends too I would love to honor, but don't wish to scare 'em away! LOL AND a few who are taking a small hiatus ~ maybe I can catch them next time!

AND I know I should be embedding the appropriate blog links for sharing, but by golly I must be the last blogger on earth who just does not know how to do that! :( Anyone care to give a gal a quick tutorial sometime? :) But all of these spectacular ladies can be found on my blog roll with the exception of the private gals! Please stop by and leave them all some sugar! :)

Finally and yes, this is turning out to be quite long (sorry) the final part of this award is to share 7 things about.......well, ME. (gulp) Its always so much easier writing about the kids! Here goes....

1. I love to workout and get crabby if too many days go by without exercising.
2. I rarely drink milk ~ ugh ~ hated it as a child, but LOVE yogurt. Go figure! :)
3. I have a small scar on the left cheek of my face from having a birthmark removed as a child.
4. The birthmark was pink and roundish and was called, "an angel's kiss". Doctors feared it could become cancerous, so it was removed in grade school. I don't think of it often, but I also rarely touch that part of my face.
5. If I like a song, I REALLY like a song. I would rather listen to one or two favorites on my Ipod than a huge mix of songs.
6. In 6Th grade I played one of the "Buzzards" in the Jungle Book play. LOL I was beyond proud and I think my Mom earned an extra set of wings by feigning enthusiasm for her daughter, the buzzard. :)
7. I can barely choke down coffee. LOVE the Diet Coke (but am trying to quit!)

Wishing you all a great day!