And the Nominees are…a Bunch of Awesome Blogs and…Me?

The last time I was nominated for something was high school. That, my friends, was a loooong time ago! And I was quickly disqualified with name promptly removed. I promise, it wasn’t nearly as scandalous as it sounds 😉

But yesterday my fellow blogging friend over at BlondeRJ nominated me for The Inspiring Blogger Award! And I don’t see any way to be disqualified so I’m going to get my thank-you speech dusted off and polished up! Okay, maybe not! But I DO appreciate RJ’s thoughtfulness in this nomination. Frankly, SHE would be on my list if I could boomerang the nomination back! Her blog is full of thought provoking posts for young women, young moms, and young marrieds. She’s also the resident expert on Myers-Briggs personality types and can pin someone down with the correct four letters faster than lightening. I also have the privilege of being on her Beta-reading team for three modern-day fairytale retellings, which has been a lot of fun. Somehow this young mother of two has time to raise sweet daughters and keep up with a blog, while she writes novels! Now THAT’S inspiring!

The Rules

Post the award on your blog.
Thank your nominator, of course!
List 7 facts about yourself.
Nominate up to 15 other blogs you are inspired by.
Post the rules so people know them.

Easy peasy. 

And it would seem that this is where I’m supposed to list 7 facts about myself that you probably don’t care to know, so here it goes…

1. I’ve been married for 25 years to a really gorgeous, hilarious guy. We’ve never, ever yelled at each other or had a big blow up. Yes, we’ve had our disagreements, but we talk about them instead of shout. God knew that this INFJ peacemaker couldn’t handle an argumentative, angry man!

2. I love color! My house is drenched in it. The kitchen is my favorite room because it’s full of personality. An interesting side note is that our house (built in 1944) once stood in a neighborhood in Fort Worth. We had it sawn in three pieces (like a magic trick!) and moved to the country where we just about gutted it and started over using the good ‘bones’ of the house. 

3. I’ve had the opportunity to make a record, be in a commercial, and be an extra in a very lame Keanu Reeves movie. All three were quite fun!

4. I’m 5′ 8.5″ and have ridiculously small feet for my height. I wear a size 6.5-7. No, I didn’t tip over when I was pregnant. I think TOMs are cute shoes but refuse to wear them because my feet look like little nubs. My husband has nicknamed my feet “Wilma feet.” Think: Wilma Flintstone. Her feet are minute.

5. I’ve never had a ticket or been in an accident while driving. (Not saying I’ve never deserved a ticket, however!)

6. I am not a fan of most mainstream Christian music with the exception of Christian Rap. Yep. Give me some Flame, Tedashi, or Lecrae over Casting Crowns any day. There’s some meaty doctrine in many of their songs that is greatly lacking in Christian Pop Fluff. Plus, I think the ability to be that poetic, with rapid-fire enunciation, is just flat out impressive! 

7. I love to dance. And although I teach ballet, I secretly practice hip hop moves in my room (I mean, where is a 45 year old girl going to break it down?). I have a pretty decent moonwalk, by the way. This past summer I shocked a few people when a friend requested I do a dance for her 50th birthday bash (along with others that were doing their thing). I decided to truly “express myself” with what I love most (which isn’t ballet). Imagine Dragons’ “Radioactive” helped me bring it. IT. WAS. FUN!!!!!!!! (I feel compelled to add that I was terrified to reveal this secret side of myself to people that thought I was just a colorful, ballet loving, homeschool mom. I don’t know the last time I’ve been that nervous. But it was worth it! I haven’t had an opportunity to dance like that in 30 years. If I had to wait another 30 for such and opportunity then…’Nuff said.)

Well, if you made it this far, I should nominate YOU for something! In any case, I shall put forth my personal nominees now, in no particular order!

I hereby nominate:

Deanna Brown at StrokemansWoman. I don’t know of anyone who inspires me more than she. After her husband suffered a stroke which brought Deanna’s world to a halt and “full time caregiver” into her vocabulary, she turned to blogging to journal through her circumstances. It’s always amazing and encouraging to hear from her! She also grew up as a missionary kid in South Africa and peppers her blog with some very lovely memories of growing up in this distant land.

Stephanie Florentino over at TheGatheringFire. This sweet, musical soul is also part of my writing group! She is skilled beyond her experience, naturally gifted in her craft. Her blog contains a wonderful mix of fantasy, music, and the history of individual hymns. 

Clara Thompson from ToFindACastle is one of my very first blogging connections when this blog was brand, spanking new. She kindly did an author interview with yours truly, tirelessly encourages and promotes others, and is quite the young author as well! She wrote one of the winning entries in last years Rooglewood fairytale retelling contest (“The Moonmaster’s Ball”). Clara most certainly has a luminous writing career in her future!

Brenton Dickieson, fellow PilgriminNarnia, is another favorite blogger of mine. It’s so nice to have new (to me) tidbits landing in my inbox about my all time favorite author CS Lewis. Brenton is a Lewis scholar and offers readers many facets of the life of Lewis. He’s currently doing a series on Lewis’ “The Great Divorce” for which I’m hoping to find time to write a piece of fan fiction. I’m not sure if this form of blogging “tag” is his thing but if I’m supposed to nominate an inspiring blog, his comes swiftly to mind.

Rob Akers is a former military man who blogs about life, including various memoirs of his time spent serving our country. A great patriot is worthy of inspiration with or without a blog! He’s also faithful to engage with other’s and comment—and does so with grace—even when he may not agree with you 😉

Amy Green of TheMondayHeretic. Amy has such a sarcastic way with the truth, it’s hard not to laugh out loud when I read her stuff. She’s not afraid to talk about tough subjects, and tackles them thoroughly and in a thought-provoking way.

Emily Shiflet from LivingInHeavensShadow is a well read, mature, and prolific writer that I’ve had the pleasure of meeting in person (and, I must add, she was wearing the most adorable Lord of the Rings themed skirt). I could easily nominate Emily as the best-dressed blogger as well because she’s such a fashionista! Her blog belies her youth with topics on theology and church history, among other things. 

Nadine Brandes author of the Christian Dystopian novel “A Time to Die” has been a big inspiration to me over this past year! With the launch of her book (which I had the honor of helping to promote) I learned a lot about the process by watching what she did. She was a great team leader who tackled something she hadn’t any previous experience with (launching) and made it look fun and professional. Nadine has been more than willing to share with others the things she’s learned.

Okay, baton is officially passed to the victims nominees tagged above! I look forward to learning more about each of you in your posts.