Honest Scrap Award

JC at Lilacs and Cats has given me an award. Thank you JC!

HERE ARE THE RULES:

First you must tell your readers ten about yourself that they may not already know, but are true.

Second you must tag ten people with the award.

Third, you must let the people know you have given them this award.

And finally, link back to the person who gave the award to you.

TEN TRUE THINGS ABOUT MYSELF:

1. I used to draw and paint, but haven't done any artwork in ages. The Lord of the Manor is working on the guest cottage/studio though, so maybe soon I can get back to that.

2. Back in the 1980's we lived on a sailboat and cruised to Mexico and back. We also skippered boats for other people. What an experience that was. I sometimes dream of getting another boat and sailing again.

3. I love to fly; large plane, small plane, helicopter, whatever. I just love the view from up there. I have flown/soloed both airplanes and helicopters, but never got my license.

4. I know how to use power tools: chop saw, skillsaw, drills, lawnmower, weed eater, etc. and comprehend mechanical things quite easily. However, the vacuum cleaner doesn't appeal to me at all.

5. I used to run/jog when I was in my twenties and wanted to do it again, but menopause (and Hashimotos) hit me hard and I literally could not run! In my dreams I could run, but in real life, I felt like I was dragging the weight of the world behind me. However, I think I've got my drug cocktail just right now, and this morning I actually ran a little over a mile! And it felt good!

6. One of my grandmothers was born in France, married an American soldier, and came to live in America. Alas, I rarely saw her and she died when I was quite young, but I have an affinity for all things French. And I'd love to look up my cousins who live in Chaumont, Haute-Marne.

7. I try to eat only real food; whole milk, butter, eggs, cheese, unprocessed meats, lots of vegetables, fruits, nuts, and whole grains. I don't drink sodas or anything out of a plastic bottle. (Do you have any idea what's in that plastic?) I try never to eat margarine or Crisco. I don't eat iceberg lettuce, Rainbow bread, or baked potatoes. I try not to eat any processed foods, but cookies and ice cream sometimes sneak by. I NEVER buy anything that says diet, lite, or low fat on the label.

8. I think it's important for a family to cook and eat together, so we always dine together. We set the table with a tablecloth, cloth napkins, and real dishes. We broil some meat, steam some vegies, and make a salad, then sit down and talk while we eat. It's just very important to me.

9. My imagination is too vivid and sometimes I tend to lose focus. I can look at a rundown house and see seventeen different ways to make it cuter, but finishing my own projects is sometimes impossible.

10. I dislike shopping at the Mall. In fact, I don't really like shopping at all. That's one of the cool things about computers; you can order anything online and have it shipped to you without ever setting foot in a Mall.

Now I'm supposed to pick ten bloggers to pass the award on to, but I think I'll just do five:

Linnea at Neabear

Mary at One Perfect Bite

Dawn at Cottage State of Mind

Blondie at Blondie's Journal

Cass at That Old House

Please have fun with it ladies, and don't feel pressured or obligated.

Mystery Photo and an Award

I found this interesting thing in my garden yesterday. I'll bet some of you will instantly shout out what it is. So post a comment with your ideas.

Tara, at Days Missed on a Hammock, has graciously given me this award. Thanks Tara, I love your blog too. I know the rules say to award it to seven blogs, but I'm just lazy, so I'm giving it to Have Paints Will Travel. Her blog is gorgeous and inspirational and makes me jealous to the bone! I soooo want to travel and paint.....Check it out - I think you'll love it too.

A Brilliante Award

Dear Tara over at Days Missed on a Hammock has given me an award. Tara and I are working together on physical and fiscal fitness, but I'm not going to tell her the latest condition of my Visa card. Let's just say, whew, the Tahoe vacation has dented it up a bit. But the good news is; I got in lots of walking!

I don't know that I deserve a "brilliant" award. I know my last Sparkly Pink Saturday post was brilliant because of the sparkles, but I doubt I'm brilliant. But thanks anyway Tara. I'm honored and I'll try to be more brilliant.

The rules say to award it to seven blogs, but I always have trouble with nominating so many bloggers, so I'm just going to award it to three and they can choose however many they want too. Now here are the rules:

1. Please put the logo on your blog.
2. Add a link to the person who awarded you.
3. You must nominate 7 fellow bloggers for this award.
4. Add links to the recipients.
5. Leave a comment so the recipients know they have received an award.

And here are my nominees:

Mary's new blog In A Soft Light. Her photographic is beautiful and ethereal.

Barbara at Ramblings From An English Garden. She consistantly shows wonderful English Gardens, villages, and historic sites.

And Dana at The Stone Rabbit. She just looks like she is having such a good time at everything she does. And the things she gets her friends to do for Pink Saturday! What fun!

Lastly, here is another mystery photo. What do you think this is?

P.S. I walked this morning; 55 minutes. It felt good to get back to my normal routine.

An Award

I am surprised, delighted and honored to say that Dana at the Stone Rabbit has presented me with this award. I'm almost speechless. Almost, but not quite. When I started this blog it was mainly for me; a place to keep track of what was happening in my life, my projects, plans, and ideas. I shared it with my family, but that's about it. Imagine my surprise when total strangers started reading it! And commenting! Now, I feel like I have a whole circle of friends out there. People I can depend on for entertainment, inspiration, and interesting viewpoints. So to all of you who continue to come up with creative blogs every day I say, "Thank you, Thank you, Thank you."

According to Arte y Pico, the originator of the award, these are the rules:

1. You have to pick 5 blogs that you consider deserving of this award for their creativity, design, interesting material, and also contribution to the blogging community, no matter what language.
   


2. Each award has to have the name of the author and a link to his/her blog.



3. Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that presented him/her with the award.



4. The award winner and the one who has given the prize have to show the link to "Arte y Pico" so everyone will know the origin of the award.

Now the fun part. I would like to present the award to Ramblings From an English Garden, Gnome Bandits, We Three Ginger Cats, Morning Has Broken, and Chronicles of a Country Girl. Keep up the great work, people! And gnomes!

Thanks so much Dana for giving me this award. Isn't the blogging community fun?

Seven Things You Don't Know About Me

I've been tagged by Zoe at The Glory Hole to share with you 7 facts about myself.

Here are the rules:

1. Link to your tagger and post these rules on your blog.

2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog. Some random, some weird.

3. Tag up to 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.

4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

So here are the seven things you didn't know about me.

1. I'm only 5' tall. This has caused some problems over the years like constant teasing from certain people. And it seems to me that people don't always take me seriously. But darn it, I'm strong and capable and I can do anything I put my mind to!

2. I crave balance and symmetry. I frequently arrange vignettes in my home in pairs of things and I'm trying to get away from that, but it's hard.

3. Several years ago I learned to fly helicopters and actually soloed. I have also flown airplanes, but all that was B.C. (before children)

4. I enjoy residential architecture. I don't mean I drive by a house and say, "Oh, that's a pretty house." I mean I study the shape of the roof, the style of windows, the details and materials. I research it when I get home in my architecture books. I take trips with the sole purpose of photographing homes just for the fun of it. I take photos of doors (but you already knew that). I designed my own home and also a home for a friend.

5. I used to live on a boat. It was a 35' sailboat that we eventually sailed to Mexico and back. It was a very interesting way to live. Beautiful in some ways, but very difficult in others. This was before cell phones, internet, and GPS. When we went out the Golden Gate and turned left, we were on our own. The experience changed me in profound ways; it made me realize what was really important in life, it made me more self reliant, and it made me question American consumerism.

6. I have different ideas about food. I think if God had intended us to eat highly processed, chemical laden carbs, He would have made cookie bushes, potato chip trees, and donut vines. And there would be rivers flowing with carbonated, high fructose corn syrup beverages. But that wasn't the plan. So I try to eat fresh veggies, fruits, nuts, whole grains, real cheese, milk, butter (yes butter), fresh meats and fish. I never buy anything that says Diet, Low Fat, Lite, or Non Fat on the label. When the food manufacturer (I hate that term) took out the fat, they put in carbs and chemicals and that's what's killing us.

7. I don't enjoy shopping at the Mall, but love antique shops, flea markets, and estate sales.


I tag Morning Has Broken, Covered Porches and Screen Doors, In The Garden with Miss Jean, At Home with the Farmer's Wife, Across the Pond, Days Missed on a Hammock, and Elizabeth Hill. And thanks to all you creative bloggers who help to make my day.