Theeling Thabulouth on Thith Thurthday

What a happy surprise to be honored by this award not just once but twice in the same week.  Joyce and Carrie, thank you for enjoying my blog enough to give me my own little ribbon. It's purple, too--my favorite. It seems a perfect excuse to go out and buy a new dress, shoes, and handbag.  Gotta look good when I give my acceptance speech, don'tchaknow.

Too bad there ain't no speech opportunity.

Instead of giving a speech, the recipient of this award is supposed to do other things: play by the rules:

1. Thank the blogger who gave it to you and share the link back to the awarding blog.
2. Name 5 fabulous moments in your life.
3. Name 5 things that you love.
4. Name 5 things that you hate.
5. Pass the award to 5 deserving bloggers.

I am fine with rules #1-4,  but feel a little funny passing the award along because of the fifth string attached. Some folks don't feel so much honored as pressured to reciprocate. If that's you when I tag, don't worry about it. Just receive the compliment that I think your blog is fabulous, and don't worry about paying it forward.

But if you wish, go ahead and play along.

Again, thanks to Joyce and Carrie, whose blogs are warm, funny, honest, and well-written. These blogging friends write about daily life in middle age and claim to be the same person living on separate coasts. Does this mean I attract split personalities to my blog? Hmmm.

Okay, back to the rules, and cue the music...

Name 5 fabulous moments in your life:

- my wedding day
- carrying babies full-term, especially the last after losing babies and dealing with secondary infertility
- holding my newborns in my arms for the first time
- the day I became a Christian
- my first child's wedding day

Name 5 things that you love:

- having coffee with a friend 
- getting my hair done
-  riding in a convertible  with the top down on a sunny, breezy day, FAST
- anticipating grandmotherhood
- being forgiven

Name 5 things that you hate:

- repetitive noise
-dog crap
- having to put an animal to sleep
-hearing people talk about themselves all the time, dominating conversations, not coming up for air
-being interrupted when I'm talking about myself or dominating a conversation.  or asphixiating on my own drivel

Pass the award to 5 deserving bloggers.  Okay, taking a deep breath and hoping "honor" is not mistaken for "bother" by the following people.  If it is, I'm so sorry. You don't need to play along nor explain why. I'm only playing by the rules. I only like 80% of this award-giving thing myself (that is, the first 4/5 "rules"). Enough "threading the needle," here goes:


Kelly @ Wildlife and Home.   Kelly is my friend in real life, a talented seamstress and knitter, homeschooling mom of a big brood, a funny writer, a godly woman, and someone I can always count on to lift my spirits.  Or offer her laundry services when my washer breaks, or hem my outfit on graduation day,  or finds it equally hilarious to hear the name Stu Wu.

Bonnie @ Bonnie in Zambia .  Also a friend in my real life, Bonnie is a single missionary serving as a teacher in Zambia.  Her adventuresome spirit, passion for God, love of children, and hard work ethic make her a major blessing to everyone she knows.   I doubt she'll have time to participate in this (and I'm not even sure she has time to read my blog!) because she leads a full life without the luxury of surfing the net very often.  But I want others to know about her and what God is doing in her and through her. I also want HER to know I miss the way we'd spontaneously zip around town in my convertible or her dad's '62 Chevy and  find ourselves at the Double T diner at 11pm on  a Friday night.

Lea @ CiCi's Corner.  Lea is a true Southern belle and proud of it.  Her blog is upbeat, honest, funny, and chock full of southern expressions I can just hear her saying--and I don't even know her in real life. (Someday I hope to meet her.)  She makes me long for grandmotherhood (as do all good grandmothers at this stage of my life) and hope that I don't live many states away from my grandkids when the time comes.  Lea excels at organizing things and might just "clean your clock" if you put the wrong singer through on American Idol.

Amy @ Choosing Hallelujah.  Amy and I have never met in person, but have one phone conversation which felt oh-so-natural after "meeting" online through blogging. We just kind of picked up where her last post left off. Her writing is insightful, creative, inspiring, and down-to-earth. It's almost always grammatically perfect, too, without losing "her voice," which I appreciate. Amy is a mom of two cute young guys, and wife to a cute 30-something fella who knows how to handle the business end of a hammer.  I hope we can meet in person someday. Maybe I should plan a trip through these United States to meet all my bloggy buds.

Laurie @ Tulip in the Thicket.  Laurie is one of two blogging friends I met after I started online journaling.  God arranged circumstances such that I was able to spend a day with her and another great friend who lives in Kansas.  Her blog combines a lot of her favorite music (old and new) with pictures of her adorable grandchildren (see a theme here??) and her gorgeous garden and splendid photos of Kansas countryside.  She is always encouraging me along this life's path, she makes me giggle a lot., she has a knack for putting together the most thoughtful gift basket, and she "makes my day" with snail mail from time to time.

Cue the music again...I'm getting off the stage. Oh, wait a minute, that's right. No speech. No speech. Just an award with 5 rules attached.