Go ahead, make me happy...

Stace, the witty brains behind the funny and fascinating (in a good way, Stace!) blog "Stace's Space", gave me this award on Thursday when I was having a really down day. It helped to perk me up, so thank you with all my heart, Stace!

The rules of this Happy Award are to list 10 things and 10 blogs that make you happy.

Here goes...

Things:
1) my mom surviving her latest near-death experience. Having myelodysplastic syndrome (a type of leukemia) and a compromised immune system means that life is always on the edge, and because she had been in poorer health than usual (needing platelet transfusion every other day when she gets her dialysis), we were very worried she wasn't going to make it. Luckily, my dad had the foresight to bring her to ER after her dialysis on Tuesday (despite the fact that her doctors all said she didn't need to go) because he sensed that something was really not right, so that when she went downhill fast, she was already in the hospital where they could take care of her right away. Turned out she had pneumonia, but after having her lungs drained and tubes to help her breathe, she is doing much, much better.
2) dh's cooking - he made this amazing tasting venison bbq the other night...3) my sister's visits (she arrives on Wednesday)
4) the boys when they are polite and agreeable
5) sunny days
6) sleeping in
7) doing creative things such as writing, drawing, crafting...
8) when people listen to my advice
9) curling up by the fire with a good book
10) life in general - to say I have a good life is an understatement (now if I could only be less grumpy)

Blogs - I'm purposely not repeating the ones I gave an award to not too long ago, but trust me when I say that those make me very happy also:

~ Ocean Treasures - Alli's posts are informative and fun; I learn so much without even realizing it.
~ Florian Cafe - Douglas is a brilliant poet; I'm often lukewarm about poetry, but his are amazing! I will soon be the proud owner of his wonderful Dinothesaurus book.
~ Ever So Sweet - I'm all about food, so what better than Ms. P's all about food blog? Plus, it's desserts...even better.
~ * - another blog that thrills and educates me. It's hard for me to describe; you have to visit it yourself.
~ Garden Fresh Living - Theresa is not only a knowledgeable gardening celebrity, but is also very nice.
~ an open [sketch]book - Suzanne = talent. Her art is incredible and inspires me!
~ Imagine and Create - Another super talented artist, Annie's photography and art always take my breath away. Remember those gorgeous bookmarks I bought from her? I can't wait to get her new "Turtle, Turtle, Watch Out" book.
~ Let Me Think On It - Teri's family is a dream family: from her hubby to cooks for her (like mine!) to her really nice and funny and cool kids.
~ The Soap Bar - 2 words: Soap Porn, baby! Ok, that was 3 words. Jo also posts helpful soaping tutorials that introduced me to the nicest soapers.
~ Get In, Hang On, Take 2 - if I had a dollar for every one thing that I've learned from Meg, I could fly her to a swanky restaurant in NYC for lunch!
~ Much of a Muchness - Diane is uber multi-talented and I honestly don't know where she gets the time to hone all her crafts because she's often out jet-setting in exotic locale. Envy this lady; I do!
~ Inspired by... - A very happy blog if I ever saw one! Guaranteed to make you smile.

I've listed more than 10, but who's counting? Plus, just so nobody feels pressured to play along, I'm not going to notify anyone. :)

Now, really, I mean it this time, I'm going to go on blog-vacation for a while...

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Virtual award, etc.

Amy, over at Moving on From the Drama, which is always a fun read, very kindly bestowed the above Lemonade Stand Award to me. This award is given to those whose blogs show great attitude and demonstrate gratitude. I'm very flattered...thanks, Amy!

I'm supposed to choose ten recipients for this, but I'm not very good at picking people for awards, as I've mentioned before, because if I'm following you, it naturally means that I think your blog (and you) have great attitude. Also, I know some of you have done this already before, so please don't feel obligated to do it again. But here goes, in alphabetical order because that's just the kind of anal-retentive nut I am:

1. Amber's Ambry
2. Blog of the Soap Pixie
3. Chocolate and Marmalade Tea
4. Craft Knife
5. Much of a Muchness
6. Soap and the Finer Things in Life
7. Twenty-Two Pleasant
8. Under a Shady Tree
9. Under the Willow
10. Whistling Leaf Blower

I had a longer post in mind, but that doesn't play well with shortness of time. So, instead, I'll leave you with this:

Check out the giveaways at the Diary of a Mad Editor!

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Some kinda Awe-summm?

I guess I must be since both Meg and Wendy gave me this award (although I think they really need to get out more...heh!). But, seriously, thanks, ladies...you're both uber-awe-summm!

I was hoping to get this post out yesterday, but we were out all day, and then I had computer/internet connection problems (big surprise...I've had more than my fair share of computer problems this past year).

So, here are the rules of this award:

1. List Seven Things That Make You Awe-Summm!
2. Pass the award on to seven bloggers you read religiously.
3. Tag those seven bloggers.

1. It goes against every fiber of my Chinese culture to brag about myself. Honestly, we are so anti-bragging, that we'll lapse into what my good friend, and former employer, Rod, calls "false modesty". I assure you this will hurt me more than it hurts you. ;>

1) I'm awe-summm for even attempting this (patting self on back).
2) I live in an awe-summm time and place where I don't generally fear for my life on a daily basis, and we have indoor plumbing with fresh water flowing from our taps.
3) I did pretty awe-summm portraits once upon a time (or so others have told me).
4) I'm the most awe-summm procrastinator I know.
5) I'm quite awe-summm for not over-using the word "awesome".
6) I've awe-summmly killed an awe-summm half-hour of my life working on this.
7) I am truly only awe-summ because I have a bunch of awe-summ friends, both in life and in cyberspace!!

2. & 3. It was hard to choose because I love all my bloggy friends...and fear not, it'll be YOUR turn next time! In alphabetical order (because I'm awe-summmly anal) ~
Amber - because she is totally multi-talented and enjoys playing games
Carrie-Gigi - because she unfailingly visits my (and many other folks') blogs to spread love and cheer
Diane - because I envy her lifestyle, her artistic eye, and her awe-summm blog
Epicure68 - because she's my dearest sister
Firefly Mom - because she's a Firefly Fan and has the best sense of humor
Heather - because she is super nice and a loyal reader with a sweetie-pie daughter
Suzanne - because she is a seriously talented artist with a terrific blog

How's your week been going? I have too many things on my to-do list and not enough hours in the day.

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Thankful Thursday...continuing to be late...

This week, I am thankful

1) that dh has a job and we have a roof over our heads, and
2) for receiving sweet awards from my bloggy friends. It's nice to be loved, and it's even nicer to be shown a token of that love!

Minka (Stirring My Thoughts) bestowed the Lemonade Award on me yesterday:The rules of the award are:
1) Put the logo on your blog or post.
2) Nominate at least 10 blogs that show great attitude or gratitude.
3) Link to your nominees within your post.
4) Let the nominees know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.
5) Share the love and link to the person from who you received your award.

Since I can pick as many as I want, I'll pass it along to everyone whose blog is listed in the right column of this page. But, since I'm busy packing for our trip, and I'm forgetful, I may not let you know at your blog. :}

"He is happiest, be he king or peasant, who finds peace in his home." ~ Johann von Goethe

Where, oh where, has my little week gone?

I hear the whooshing sound of my week gone down the toilet. Oy.

Well, this past week, we lost a young hen (less a year old) to, we believe, TB. Luckily, the other chickens seem healthy enough for now.

I also missed Thankful Thursday, although I will tell you what I'm thankful for: that our car wasn't one of those stuck on the road, or worse, ran off the road, in the slushy conditions on our way to my friend's baby shower yesterday.

On Thursday, dh wanted a field-trip, so we took off to bird-watch at Ewing Bottoms where we saw hundreds of Sandhill Cranes. There was even one Whooping Crane among the Sandhills! Then, as we were watching the cranes, a Golden Eagle flew over them and was circling them, causing the Sandhills to panic (which basically means they were even louder than they were while at rest). I couldn't get the video to load on Blogger, but you can find it at my YouTube page. We also saw four Mute Swans at Muscatatuck National Wildlife Refuge: And here we are, Sunday again.

I'm going to try to continue catching up on my blog reading...I really miss visiting all your blogs and I'm not ignoring you, honestly! :)

Oh, forgot to mentioned that Firefly Mom, of the hilarious Pack of Hungry Snails blog, gave me some bloggy love:*mwah* - I adore ya back!

Hope everyone is enjoying the weekend!

"He is happiest, be he king or peasant, who finds peace in his home." ~ Johann von Goethe

A few random things...

Because I hadn't posted in a few days and have some brain farts stored up. :)

First off, I want to mention an award from Diane (Much of a Muchness)The dear gal thinks I have a creative blog; methinks she's in need of a good vacation. LOL!

I'm supposed to list 6 things that inspire my creativity and pass along the award, but honestly, I can't think of even 2 things, let alone 6! I don't even think I'm very creative at all.

On the other hand, apparently, I'm very good at winning things! The Candy Cane soap from Heather (One Bubble At a Time) arrived in the mail yesterday. Heidi (Soapaholics Anonymous) is sending me a bottle of infused oil that I won at her blog. Then, yesterday, I found out I won the prize from Trisha's (Suds to Love) giveaway! Happy dance....

And finally, from reading Ian's First Contact Astronomy blog, and seeing a comment at Annie's always eye-candy Imagine and Create blog, I'm inspired to re-read my old astronomy text from the class I took at UBC back in '83/'84. It's a classic:It'll be fun, but I need to remember to allot time for it.

"He is happiest, be he king or peasant, who finds peace in his home." ~ Johann von Goethe

Thankful Thursday

Well, this week, I'm thankful

1) that I don't have a bad, full-blown cold like many poor folks have been having...I have just a teeny one. ;}

2) for the awards I've been receiving, the latest from Rose at All About Cakes3) for all the generous giveaways from other folks. Today it's Urban Debris.

It's been an up and down week here; hope everyone else's has been good or better!

"He is happiest, be he king or peasant, who finds peace in his home." ~ Johann von Goethe

Giveaways Galore, and another award!

When it rains, it...is better than pennies from heaven, I'm tellin' ya! So here are a couple more giveaways I've found, as well as my own.

Over at Soapaholics Anonymous, Heidi is giving away a 16 oz bottle of calendula and comfrey infused oil! Go enter and read about how you can use this wonderful product.

Then, to celebrate her 100th post, Michelle at Chocolate and Marmalade Tea is giving away the sweetest Valentine set! You'll have to get yourself over there to see all the wonderful things included in it and to enter.

As for my giveaway, I'll bore you with the background story first (well, you have to suffer some to win, you know!). Dh wandered into my art/sewing/soaping/crafting room a couple of days ago when I was in there, and he remarks how it gives him the heebie-jeebies because it's so cluttered (thanks, dear). Then he peeked into the closet and groused about all the books in there that I had bought when I used to be the Scholastic Book Club coordinator for my homeschool group, and asked that I please get rid of them, and soon.

So, the first part of my giveaway is a set of kids' books, fun facts for kids of all ages, but probably especially perfect for homeschoolers. If you can't see the titles from my photo (because you all know what wonderful photos I take...NOT), they are the Usborne Encyclopedia of Planet Earth, a Scholastic Science Supergiants volume on the Wright Brothers, and an Ocean Origami book (with origami paper and stickers to complete your creations).

The second part of my giveaway is a 2 oz bag (3 if I can sneak some more out without dh noticing...heh heh) of our very own dried tomatoes - both cherry and grape tomatoes - grown with love in our garden and without pesticides or other harmful chemicals. I'd tell you how we pick the tomato hornworms off by hand, but I'd probably gross you out. Here it is in a jar, but I'll be mailing it in a baggie. Sorry, this second part is only available to those in the U.S. as I'm not sure what the mailing protocol for veggies is to other countries.These dried tomatoes are perfect for making sundried tomato paste, and kicks the tom kha soup up another notch with their tangy sweetness.

Please leave me a comment to be entered for the drawing; make sure it has your contact info somewhere, either a link to your blog/website or your email addy (your username on the comment usually has a link to your blog or email). Tell me which part, books or tomatoes or either, you'd like to be entered for.

I'm not trying to drum up traffic to my site, but if you do post about this contest please put that in your comment and you'll have a second entry. Or if you tell a friend about it and the friend drops by to enter, tell this friend to let me know you sent them, and that's another entry for you.

Finally, more blog love! This time, it's from The Blonde Duck, whose "A Duck in Her Pond" blog is one of the most creative ones I've ever read . She bestowed the following on me:Muchas gracias, Duckie!

This just in (added at 3:35pm), Cynthia at The Good Enough Witch (how can you not read a blog with that name??) also bestowed the above on me.

And, flaky me, I just realized that I was supposed to list 10 honest/interesting things about myself with this award. I'm not sure I know what that means...I've always been honest with my readers, unless I'm making some sarcastic joke, of course. If I'm to tell you things about myself, why would I make it up? My sister will just show up here and tell me off if I lied.

So, here goes nuthin':

1) My cell phone's ring tone is the call of a Wood Thrush. It throws me because when I hear a real wood thrush, I want to answer my phone.

2) I have to clean my toilets/bathrooms every weekend or I go nuts. Wait, I am nuts. I'd go more nuts, then.

3) I know I'm gonna get an earful from a lot of folks, but watching baseball or football puts me right to sleep.

4) I still have an unrequited love for astrophysics.

5) I used to dislike cilantro, but now I can't get enough of it.

6) I was once asked to be a Miss Hong Kong contestant.

7) I used to get strep throat at least 3 times a year when I lived in Hong Kong.

8) I don't have an addictive personality, and can break away from just about anything in a New York minute (although you wouldn't know it the way I'm glued to the computer).

9) I fear crowds. I blame it on being short and fearing being trampled, but I think I just fear the mob mentality that can stem from a crowd.

10) I don't know how to program the downstairs VCR; we've had it for about 5 years now.

I don't know if those are interesting or not, but that's all I've got for the day. I'm supposed to pass it along to 7 other bloggers, but....well, those of you who show up often enough will know that I shirk that duty as a duty. ;)

And happy Sunday, everyone!

"He is happiest, be he king or peasant, who finds peace in his home." ~ Johann von Goethe

Darn my middle-aged brain

I totally forgot that Meg (Get In, Hang On) gave me the above award. Thank you, Meg!!

I'm supposed to pick 10 others to pass it along to...me, Little Ms. Indecisive?? I wouldn't be visiting the blogs I do if I didn't think they were special. (Phew, squeaked out of that one.)

"The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet." ~ James Oppenheim

Sweeeeet!

Life is usually pretty sweet, although I'm too grumpy or tired to notice it 70% of the time. Here are the latest examples of how sweet life can be...

1) Naming a special soap. Carrie at Under the Willow Gifts has a lovely Mud Puddle Girl theme, with faerie soaps to match. She had a naming contest for the fourth faerie soap, and I won with "Nurture Girl". Dear Carrie-Gigi sent me my very own Nurture Girl!!It has an incredible scent and is so feminine and pretty. You can find them at Carrie's Etsy shop, and Carrie's other amazing creations at her Under the Willow Shoppe!

2) Getting an award.. Michelle of the delightful Chocolate and Marmalade Tea blog bestowed a Kreativ Blogger award on me.The rules of the award are to list 6 fun things about me and then pass it along to 6 other deserving bloggers. I can't list just 6 because everyone who visits my blog is very creative. I think it's a prerequisite to being a blogger, really. And many of the visitors are not only creative bloggers, but also do other creative things on the side...sometimes tons of other stuff, like making books, soaps, knitted wear, great foods, fab art, etc. So, nope, can't name 6 people, but let it be known that I think you are all superbly creative. :)

As for 6 fun things about me...hmm, I'm not that fun of a person, so I'll just list 6 random things.

i) I used to love watching horror movies when I was about 7 to the chagrin of my cousins whom I used to spend weekends with.
ii) I was stuck in the It's a Small World ride at Disneyland when I was 19...for about 15 minutes, which is one of the reasons why I will not bring the kids to Disney anything.
iii) We almost named ds#1 "Chance" after a character on a show (Strange Luck, I think it was called) that spun off of The X-Files.
iv) I used to get sick several times a year when I was a child in Hong Kong, but as soon as we moved to Canada, I got sick only once or twice a year.
v) The only joke I can ever remember is one that I can't tell in polite company.
vi) Lately, when I'm lying down, it feels like I'm breathing in water...I think I should go see a doctor.

3) Soaps that even my kids like. Got a bar of the delectable Mocha Espresso Soap from the multi-talented Joanna (Product Body blog)! .Oh, baby! My younger son, who doesn't talk too much about his likes and dislikes, told me how much he liked this soap. Go and get one for yourself; you won't be disappointed

4) Soup is good food. Because Joanna mentioned tom kha gai soup in her Soap Bar blog, I got a hankering for it, and asked dh to make some for me, which he did today. It's actually tom kha, the vegan form:(In an ironic twist, after having our vegan and vegetarian (he also made potato leek) soups for lunch, we went out and culled a bunch of chickens.)

5) Ranking is not just for the military. There was some talk about page rankings on TwitterMoms, which got me really curious. I'd never bothered to check the rank of my blog before because I do it for fun. But, off I went to http://www.prchecker.info/check_page_rank.php and discovered I rated a 4 out of 10, which apparently is pretty darned good. Who knew? That's all for now, folks. I hope not to be back to blogging until I've caught up on NaNoWriMo again. I let myself play over the weekend (visiting my blogging friends, etc), and now I'm officially behind. Have a wonderful week, and don't forget about the Green Holiday Giveaway!

"The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet." ~ James Oppenheim

Award, cake, and useful chair

Julie of Cool Mom Guide gave me a lovely award this morning - thanks, Julie! The rules are to post 6 things I value and 6 things I do not and then pass the honor to 6 other incredible bloggers.

6 things I value:
Honesty
Kindness
Fairness
Altruism
Objectivity
Generosity

6 things I don't value:
Whininess
Manipulativeness
Underhandedness
People who don't respond to smiles
Ignorance - unwillingness to learn something new or have an open mind
Illogic

6 people to tag
Well, I'm going to have to go with my usual policy of letting you decide if you want to play. :) Notice I didn't put "wishy-washiness" on my list of things I don't value...haha!

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On a totally different note, I made a German Chocolate Cake with Coconut-Pecan Frosting on Sunday. I gave 3/4 of it to our dear friend, C, and her family because they are the most generous people we know. It's because of the fact that they're not wealthy that their generosity becomes the most obvious. While not much to look at, the cake turned out to be quite tasty. I had to stop myself at 2 pieces yesterday or my kids wouldn't have any to eat. ;)Have you ever found unintended uses for things? I needed to roll a hank of yarn into a ball to start knitting a sweater, and the kids were off doing their own thing, so I used the arms of this antique chair that my MIL had given to us to help me roll yarn. It was a good use for this otherwise underused chair. "The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet." ~ James Oppenheim

I'm blushing

Diane (of the beautiful Much of a Muchness blog) has given me the following award: (created by Arte Y Pico)

I am not worthy! Really. :}

I am flattered by the compliments that have been paid to me by all you wonderful ladies who are much more accomplished and successful than I am. I very much appreciate the love because I was feeling a bit low about how little I've actually done with my life.

Speaking of making something of one's life, Martha Stewart has a Dreamers Into Doers contest that some of you may want to enter. I hope someone I know wins!

"To accomplish great things, we must dream as well as act." ~ Anatole France (1844 - 1924)