One Lovely Blog Award

I can hardly believe it, but I have been nominated for this award not once but three times recently. I am absolutely bowled over that even one person thought my natterings here are worthy of an award, but three? I am just so humbled. Thank you to all of you who were so generous and kind to nominate me for this.

The first nomination came from my fellow 31 Days blogger buddy, Charlotte whose blog really is very lovely and who is a genuinely lovely person too. The second nomination is from another 31 Days blogger buddy, Barbara who writes so eloquently about being a caregiver on her blog and is someone I'm so very glad to say is definitely a part of my online tribe! Finally, I was nominated by Tara, my sweet friend from 31 Days, whose stories about her mom's struggle with mental illness and her relationship with her mom touched my heart on so many days and inspired me to continue sharing my own story of mental illness. All of these ladies have been a wonderful encouragement to me as I've written my 31 days journey and I am very grateful to have met them and gotten to know them through this challenge.

So part of accepting this award is that I have to tell you 7 things about myself. Hmm...well, here goes!

1. I am approaching 40 at a rapid clip (a little over a year away) but I'm told I look much younger than that. I'm not sure if I believe it, but I do still get carded more than occasionally. Here's a recent picture. I'll let you be the judge:

Bear in mind that this is minus makeup, so I look a bit washed out.

2. I have been reading since about age 3 and will pretty much read anything that isn't nailed down. I especially love reading sci-fi/fantasy fiction, stories that are set in other cultures or countries (like Life of Pi), and spiritual reading. Currently, I've just started The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini and I'm in the midst of re-reading the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling and Hail, Holy Queen: The Mother of God in the Word of God by Dr. Scott Hahn.

3. I absolutely LOVE languages. Seriously. My children will tell you I speak a hodgepodge of languages to them in addition to English and I'm like as not to mix up two or three languages in a single exchange. Obviously, my madre lingua (mother tongue in Italian) is English, but I speak pretty good Italian when I get going, a moderate amount of Spanish, have a passing familiarity with Japanese (which would improve if I were immersed or in classes again) and enough French and German to get myself in trouble. I know a few basic greetings and/or phrases in Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Swahili, odd words in Irish Gaelic, Welsh Gaelic, and how to toast someone in several languages. My ability to read and understand Italian is even better than my speaking ability (that goes for Spanish as well) and I know enough ASL to communicate basic ideas. I also understand quite a lot of Latin thanks to having learned to sing in it when I was in middle school and thanks to its status as the official language of the Catholic Church.

4. Speaking of singing, that is another thing that I absolutely LOVE. I have been singing for as long as I can remember. My mom claims that I was singing "My Country 'Tis of Thee" when I was like 3 or 4 years old. I can't say that I remember that, but I do know that singing is a vital part of who I am. For me, it is like breathing. If I am not sick and a day goes by without my having sung a single note, then it is a very bad day indeed. I love singing all kinds of music, but I am especially fond of sacred choral music (I've been in choirs practically since I could talk) and sacred music in general.

5. Okay, I admit it. I'm a bit of a fangirl. My best friend Sif and I share a love of quite a few TV series and books, but particularly those in the sci-fi/fantasy genre.
Star Trek? Beam, me up, Scotty!
Harry Potter? Let me just go grab my broomstick.
Firefly? Everything's shiny, Cap'n!
Doctor Who? I'll let the pictures below do the talking:

This pretty much sums up the titular character of The Doctor.

And can we just take a moment to appreciate the gorgeousness that is these four men who have played The Doctor? (Clockwise from top left Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant, Peter Capaldi (the current Doctor), and Matt Smith)

6. Hello, my name is The Momma and I am a fabric-aholic. I have had a fascination with fabric since I was a little girl sitting at my MawMaw's knee while she did alterations for her clients. I used to love playing with the scraps and that love just grew as the years went on. In recent years, thanks to Balinda (my fabulous mom-in-law), I have gotten into quilting. Guess that means I'm playing with scraps all over again? :)

7. I have three sweet, wild, crazy, funny, absolutely beautiful daughters who are my heart's joy and who I love more than I ever knew it was possible to love someone. Sometimes all I have to do is look at them and my heart swells with love. :)

Left to right: AB, GB, and M2 loving on each other like only sisters can!

So now that you know a little more about me, it's time for me to nominate some of my fellow bloggers for this award too!

Tara at Praying on the Prairie -- Yeah, I know she nominated me, but seriously y'all, go check her blog out! Tara writes so beautifully about her faith and about her sweet momma and the challenges of living with a parent who has a mental illness. Obviously we have a shared connection via our subjects, but we've really bonded and I'm so glad we're friends!

Janice at Finding God in the Everyday -- Janice is a veteran of the 31 Day writing challenge but I've only encountered her this year. She writes with such passion about crushing all the little kingdoms we set up for ourselves that are so much less than the heavenly kingdom we're called to by Jesus.

Faith at Sweet Violet Photography-- Faith's 31 Day series captivated me from the beginning. She wrote such brave and loving words about the challenges of living with and loving a spouse who has lost his faith in God.

Robyn at Adventurous Life With Christ -- Robyn used the 31 Days to share her story of adoption. I have to admit that I haven't quite finished reading her story, but I am looking forward to finishing it this coming week. It is exciting and beautiful and heartwrenching all in one story!

Amy at Running for One -- Amy's series was so interesting and instructive. She is a runner and exercise enthusiast and although I'm not the most fit person in the world, I have enjoyed reading about her races and routines. She is a warrior and an amazing lady all in one!

Sarah at Coddled Little Life -- Sarah's 31 Days of Delicious Fall....oh my goodness, what to say about such yumminess? I love fall recipes and fall flavours and she has so many of them rolled into one blog that it's hard to know where to start!

Thank you again to my three friends who nominated me. I am very grateful that you so appreciated my blog!