Very Inspiring Blogger Award

As you can probably tell by the title, today's post is going to take a small detour from the infertility journey and instead talk about the Very Inspiring Blogger Award.  I was incredibly touched (and to be honest, quite humbled) to receive a comment this week from a sweet friend, Erin Berky from Not Your Average Widow, telling me that she nominated me for this awesome award! Here's a little more about it...

In accepting this award, I have to follow a few "rules", which are:

1. To thank the person who nominated me and link back to their post.
2. List seven interesting things about myself.
3. Nominate seven other blogs that inspire me.
4. Leave a comment on each of their blogs telling them they've been nominated.

I feel so blessed and honored to have someone be moved and inspired by my blog, even more so knowing that this nomination comes from such an amazing person!  I've known Erin since "back in the day" (yes, I just busted out the "geriatric-onics", lol) when we were in middle and high school.  I always admired Erin for her breath-taking beauty, intelligence, and quiet confidence.  Although we were a grade apart, we did have several mutual friends, one of whom she ended up marrying shortly after high school.  She and Bryan were absolutely perfect for each other, and you could feel the love radiating off them when you were in their company.   He served in the Air Force as an EOD staff sergeant, and they lived overseas for several years before finally moving back to the states and having their beautiful son.  Sadly, after six years of marriage, when their baby boy was only eight months old, Bryan was killed in action in Afghanistan.  Erin had to live every wife and mother's worst nightmare: to lose your best friend, your soul mate, and the father of your child.  To think about it still makes my heart ache for this sweet, sweet lady.  But instead of letting the sorrow consume her, she decided to reach out to other widows and share how she has gotten through this trial.  Her blog shares her ups, her downs, her journey as a single mom, her faith as a Christian, and her unconditional love for her husband.  She is truly an exceptional, Godly woman, and someone I look up to on so many levels!  Thank you, Erin, for sharing this award with me!

Oh man, now comes the tricky part...listing seven interesting things about myself.  They might all just sound "weird" rather than "interesting", but I'll do my best!

1. I am majorly OCD. Not in the knock-on-the-door-five-times-before-you-enter or wash-your-hands-till-they-bleed kind of way, but in my own quirky way. You may already know this from my blog, but you may not understand the severity of it...here's a few of my compulsive behaviors:

a) I cannot stand for drawers, doors, or cabinets to be left open.  I will walk across the room just to close a drawer that might be open a crack.
b) I wipe my cups and straws after every sip because I don't like to think that there might be chapstick residue, food, or spit on it.
c) I apply chapstick way more than I probably should...we're talking at least twenty times a day.  I always have a backup tube in my pocket or purse.  (I really should buy stock in it, lol.)
d) My closet is organized by style of clothing (tanks, short sleeve, long sleeve...you get the picture), and my pantry is organized by food types (side dishes, breakfast items, canned foods, etc).
e) Every single item in my house has a set place.  If it's new, it will quickly be designated a place.  Trust me, I know when things have been moved, and I cannot rest until they are put back where they belong.

2.  I have a "thing" about nails.  I can't stand to see someone biting their nails, picking at their nails, or to even get a manicure.  (And, of course, I marry someone who bite his nails like he's on trial! lol)

3.  I am a hair-twirler.  Always have been, always will be.  Sometimes I have both hands going (that's a real talent, I tell ya).  I suppose it's a stress reliever, although I do it even when I'm not stressed at all.  Perhaps it's linked to my OCD?  Who knows!

4.  I have a serious caffeine addiction.  Even though I stopped drinking it for so long for the beginning of the IVF process, all it took was one cup of my mother-in-law's coffee and I'm hooked again!  Don't worry, I'm going to stop again before the transfer--I promise! ;)

5.  I collect spoons from different states/countries that I've visited. I haven't gotten a spoon from every place I've visited--sometimes I forget.  So far I think I have fifteen or so, but my traveling days aren't over yet!

6.  I have the memory of a demented ninety year-old.  No lie.  And it's getting worse!  I can be in the middle of a very intense discussion and completely forget what I am talking about.  I think this has to do with my OCD's and the fact that my mind just doesn't stop, so I constantly have five or so thoughts/lists running through my head at once.  (I blame everything on my OCD's, can't you tell?  I can't help it...it's a habit.  It's my OCD.  Bahaha, sorry!)

7.  I like to crochet in my spare time.  (Perhaps I AM a ninety year old woman?? lol)  I learned the basics from my mom and then my grandmother helped me to perfect my skill before she passed away.  I can make hats, scarves, blankets, pot holders, and (my favorite) props for newborn photography.  I few years ago I started to sell these items and was able to save enough money to buy an elliptical...we're talking more than a hundred different items in about a four month time period.  Needless to say, I was a little crocheted-out by the end.  So now I just do it for fun and maybe the occasional small order for a friend or coworker.

Now it's time for me to name seven other bloggers that inspire me.  To be entirely honest, I don't keep up with a lot of blogs (I have a hard enough time keeping up with my own! lol), so I can only name the three that I do visit.  I hope I'm not messing up the "rules" of the Blogger Award--sorry if I am! I do plan on checking out some of those that were mentioned in Erin's post though, so hopefully I can dive a little deeper into the blogging-world :) But for the time being, here is my list of inspiring blogs:

1.  As mentioned before, I LOVE Erin's Berky's Not Your Average Widow.  A-maz-ing.

2.  Anna Weaver's A Newfound Treasure.  Anna is from Charleston, South Carolina, and married a friend of mine from back home in Florida.  They now live back in South Carolina, and have two adorable little boys, Hudson and Avery.  Her husband is a Children's Director at Newspring Church, and Anna is an awesome stay-at-home mom, incredible photographer, and lifestyle blogger.  A few words/phrases I would use to describe her are: woman of God, gorgeous, crafty, fashion-savvy, and totally hip-n-cool-n-down-with-the-411! lol Her blog is definitely stalkable, because you never know what she's going to post about...fashion, DIY tips, crafts, interior decorating---it's all addictively interesting!

3.  My friend Niki Kirchoff's site, called Niki's Blog.  I have blogged about Niki before, in my post called, "Saying Goodbye Is Never Easy...".  If you haven't read it yet, please do, because it describes our relationship, her own personal trials, and what a marvelous person, friend, mother, wife, and Christian she is.  Then go check out her blog, which takes you through her battle with Hodgkin's Lymphoma. She hasn't updated it since her last round of chemo in January, but what she has written so far is so uplifting!  It really makes me think twice before I complain about what I'm going through!

So that's it!  I have tucked this award away in my heart, and will cherish it always! :) Thank you again, Erin, for the nomination, and thank you to all of my readers for keeping up with my ramblings on a regular basis! lol  I love each and every one of you, and I am so blessed to be able to share my life, my trials, and God's grace with you all!