Somebody Likes Me!

I have received blog awards from my blogging friends a few times over  the last few years, and while I haven’t always managed to blog about  them and share the love with others, I have always responded to the  giver with a heart-felt thank you.  I always appreciate the  gesture and the thought, as well as the opportunity to gain some new  readers and make some new friends. 

Rebecca at The Bates Motel recently  nominated me as one of the recipients of this lovely award!  But with  great power comes great responsibility (or something like that). 

Here  are the rules of acceptance:

Here are the rules for the award:
1.  Copy and paste the award on your blog.
2. Name the person who gave  the award to you and link to their blog (or hyperlink).
3. List 10  things that make you happy.
4. Pass the award on to other bloggers  and visit their blogs to let them know.

In no particular order, except the most important being first, here are 10 things that make me happy:

1. Abby.  It's no secret that she is the light of my life.  Every day she wakes up with a smile on her face and believes that she is a princess.  And she is, to me.

2. Anny.  We've just celebrated eight years of marriage.  I even got her flowers.  And made her dinner.

3. Thursday Dinner. Every Thursday we gather with my three aunts, my brother and sister in law and we have dinner and family time.  Every week.  It's awesome.  (Even though I'm going to miss tonight to go to a hockey game!)

4.Facebook.  It's an addiction, but it also serves as an easy outlet for my extroversion, which is helpful when I realize that Anny is an introvert and just wants me to shut up.

5. Spring weather!  I've gotten a lot of housework done in anticipation of our move, but we've also been able to spend some lazy afternoons outside kicking a soccer ball or having a picnic on the lawn.  Spring is awesome.

6. My camera.  I don't use it enough some weeks, but I really enjoy getting out place with Abby and firing away.  She's a ham and is usually willing to do just about whatever I challenge her to do, all in the name of silliness!

7. Extended family.  Anny and I are blessed with large and largely supportive families.  It's always helpful to have a great support system!

8. Our nieces.  Ellie and Ada are SO much fun. They have recently been joining us in Skype conversations.  Ellie is just so excited to see Abby and Ada is excited to see herself on the computer.  Ada and I make funny faces at each other for ten minutes straight.  Too funny.

9. My ability to put the camera down.  We have done a couple of events/activities that I have either forgotten my camera or decided to put it away after ten minutes.  I was able to just take in the wonder that Abby exuded from things like watching the dolphin show at the Aquarium. 

10. Food.  Though it is at the bottom of the list, remember that the list is not in order.  I love cooking food.  I love eating food.  I love trying new foods.  I love eating old food... wait, that's gross.  :o)  I have even recently re-found the peace and quiet that comes along with washing dishes after dinner.  Food is awesome.

So, that being said, here are my own nominees for this blog  award:

Amy at PrettyBabies - She's awesome as a parent (and her hubby is, too!) and recently she's been sharing some thoughts on weight loss, and kicking butt at that too!  Amy and I have actually met in real life!  (Strange for most of my web-friends, but mostly because I don't do BlogHer because I have boy parts.)

Beth over at The Angel Forever - She's parenting two boys - OY!   She is currently fighting to keep her son's school open as the School Board is in the midst of budget woes.  On a brighter note, she and her family made a trip to Disney earlier this year and she and her hubby, TechyDad, have been sharing some of the fun experiences from that trip.