An Award & What Follows…

Well didn’t I have the nicest surprise to wake up to this morning!

Late last night, I received notification that I was nominated by a good friend and fellow blogger for the Liebster Award! How awesome is that?! I went about my normal morning routine of getting ready for work, sipping my coffee, and wondering – wondering what exactly is the Liebster Award..? I was so excited that someone thought enough of me, and my blog to nominate it for this award, but I really didn’t know too much about it.. umm.. awkward.

So today, I spent my free time researching a little bit more about it. So! Here’s what I found: The Liebster Award is given to up and coming bloggers who have less than 350 followers. So, what is a Liebster? The meaning: Liebster is German and means sweetest, kindest, nicest, valued and welcomed. Isn’t that sweet? Blogging is about building a community and it’s a great way to connect with others – I find it especially comforting to know that I have surrounded myself with a community of ladies – most that I have never met, or will ever meet that I consider sisters. Blogging awards are such a great way to learn more about your fellow bloggers – and I was truly honored to have been nominated.

Having read, and understood all of that – it’s safe to say I was – and am humbled by the nomination.
{hum·ble (hŭm′bəl) adj. hum·bler, hum·blest marked by meekness or modesty in behavior, attitude, or spirit; not arrogant or prideful}

So in conjunction with this nomination, I have to answer some questions about myself – in no particular order – here we go:

1.) Do you have any FurBabies? If so, share a picture and tell us about them!

Pictured left to right are Dakota, Rufus, & Cayley.

Cayley is our eldest and will be 6 this year. She is a rescue from Orphans of the Storm which is a local shelter. Shortly after we were married I was out shopping with my best friend and received a phone call from my husband. “Hunny, I think I found us the perfect pup…” soon after, we went up to pick her up. The first time I saw her I remember exclaiming “Is that my puppy? She is SO cute!!” When she peed on my lap during the ride home, I knew she was a keeper. The next fall, we had to put our first rescue – Cinder, a beagle down. He was sick, and it unfortunately was his time. It broke our hearts. With Christmas fast approaching, I thought it might be good to bring life, and renewed joy into our house. My husband grew up with a Chocolate Lab. I started doing research and found a breeder that was within a reasonable driving distance to meet with. I made some calls and talked with not only him, but the veterinarian that he used, and past clients. I was satisfied and one Saturday we piled in the car and I handed Chris an address saying “We need to go here, please..” On the drive I told him what I was up to, and that if he wanted this pup, we were bringing him home with us. We parked the car atop a mountainous driveway, and as we were walking across the field to their farmhouse, we saw this chocolate ball of fur gracefully falling about himself. It was love at first sight. Of course we were taking him home. Rufus will turn 4 this year. In the summer of 2011, after we returned from our beach vacation, I had to take my rings to the jeweler for cleaning. When we make the drive, it’s customary that we stop at Texas Roadhouse (yum-o!) for lunch/dinner. Located next to Texas Roadhouse is Petsmart. And it just so happened that on this particular summer day they were having an adoption drive. The entire front of the building was lined with adorable, squishy-faced, puppy-breath breathing furbutts looking for their forever home. There is one sentence that changed the entire outcome of the rest of that day spoken by my husband.. “Let’s go look – it can’t hurt.” As we walked along the line of pups awaiting adoption, I fell instantly in love with the 5 month old St. Bernard who already weighed in at over 70 pounds. His name was Jack, but Christopher quickly put a stop to that option. The very last cage we looked at contained 2 puppy Pitbull sisters: Wendy and Willow. Willow was already pending adoption, and as I crouched down to get a closer look at her sister, she put her paw right up on the cage where my hand was resting. About an hour later, we were on our way home Wendy – to us she is now Dakota.

2.) What is your favorite warm beverage to drink? Do you have a favorite coffee shop spot?
Three Words: Pumpkin. Spice. Latte. I have been known to enjoy an occasional Starbucks every now and then, but when fall is in the air – watch yourself – don’t get in between me and my PSL.

3.) What is your favorite Bible verse?
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord “plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” {Jer 29:11}
I find myself praying with this verse on my very worst days. I don’t know what is so comforting about it, but when tears are streaming down my face, and I think things will never get better – I turn to Jeremiah 29:11. Actually, I pray with this verse a lot. Good days.. bad days.. in-between days.. this is my go-to verse.

4.) Tell us about how you met your Spouse?
Christopher and I met in the late summer of 2006. I started working at the Medical Center where his Mom worked. Every so often, he’d come in to visit and it just so happened that we began saying hello in passing. The hello’s turned into more of a civilized conversation and it just so happened that I had an extra ticket to a Pirates baseball game. I mustered up the courage and asked all casually like if he wanted to go. What I didn’t tell him was that there was a group of 12-15 friends of mine that were also going. I think we exchanged maybe 25 words the entire game. I was certain he wasn’t calling me after that. To my surprise, I was wrong. Days turned into weeks, weeks into months, and so on – before I knew it we were celebrating our engagement in September of 2007 and planning an October 2008 wedding. It’s hard to believe that we will celebrate our 6th wedding anniversary this fall.

5.) What would your perfect day look like?
My perfect day..? Wow this is a tough one.. but I think I got it… I oftentimes find myself daydreaming of the future. I picture waking up to sounds of a crying Baby Bear being heard on the monitor and tending to his or her needs. I then lay back down and will undoubtedly wake again in a few hours to repeat the process. Finally when my alarm clock goes off, I’ll still be tired, but will arise and get ready for work. I’ll put in 8 or 10 hours at my job. I’ll come home, cook, and enjoy dinner together. As a family of 3. I’ll change poopy diapers, clean vomit from my clothes, walk the dogs 10 times, and take care of a million other things that will require some sort of attention. Finally after everyone is taken care of, bellies are full, lullabies have been sung, and sweet dreams are being had, I’ll set my alarm and prepare to repeat. And it’ll be perfect. It might not be your idea of a perfect day, but you can’t imagine how much I’ve longed to come home to that exact scenario – dirty diapers and all.

Wow! For not knowing how or where to start this post, I sure filled up a post. A very special thanks to Chelsea over at Starbucks, Peace, and the Pursuit of a Baby for the nomination. ( If you aren’t following her blog – you should be – check it out here: : http://trialsbringjoy.wordpress.com/ )