April 10, 2011

This & that...

Hi friends!

I hope your weekend has gone well so far.  I have been absent from blog world for a few days (thank you to those who commented and emailed to check on me!).

On Friday afternoon, my kids accidentally left a gate open and let our dog, Maia, out.  She ran down the street and disappeared, and we spent the rest of the evening searching and waiting for her to come back.  It was a long night, and my plans to make cards for some challenges that were ending that night were understandably forgotten.

We spent Saturday putting up posters around the neighborhood and calling local shelters.  It was such a relief when we got a phone call around 3:00 saying that Maia was safe, and we are so happy to have her back at home.

Maia is one of the sweetest dogs you could ever meet, though she is not the type of dog that wants to be in your face all the time.  She is incredibly tolerant with my kids, and really, is there anything more important than that?  But I didn't realize just how much she meant to our family until she was gone.

I even promised not to call her smelly for at least the next 2 days.

Here's my sweet girl enjoying a spot of sun, which she just happens to be doing right now as I type.


Okay, on to other things.  Recently I received a couple of awards that I need to pass on.  I am terrible about posting these, so I apologize if you have given me an award in the past that I did not acknowledge here on the blog!  The hardest part for me is passing it on to just a few of my friends, because I don't want to leave anyone out.

The first award is the Stylish Blogger Award, which I received from my new friend, Suzanne from The Card Yard.


I am supposed to share 8 things about myself and pass the award on to 8 stylish bloggers, so here goes:

1.  In my life before kids, I was a biologist studying early development in fruit flies.  Many of my days were spent dissecting the ovaries out of a bug the size of a pencil lead.

2.  My first semester of college, I was a vocal performance major.  I stayed active in the university chorus and individual voice lessons throughout college, but I haven't sung for years.

3.  For one winter term in college, I spent 2 weeks in Puerto Rico studying coqui frogs.  There were rats in our field station and ants in our cereal, but it was the most exciting adventure of my life, and I'd do it again in a second.

4.  I read just about anything I can get my hands on concerning nutrition, and I have given up eating sugar and grains.  I've considered starting a nutrition and fitness blog to chronicle my journey, but I haven't decided if I want to tackle it yet.

5.  I am a staunch advocate for environmental protection and education on climate change.

6.  I have always been a tomboy, have absolutely no interest in fashion, and I rarely wear makeup.  But I love my daughter's girly nature and find that I can't resist buying her pretty things.

7.  My absolute favorite season is fall.  I love everything about it, except that it is followed by winter.

8.  I love to crochet, mostly afghans, but I have to be careful not to aggravate my carpal tunnel.  I find it incredibly meditative and a great way to keep my hands busy while I'm watching TV.

I'd like to pass the award on to these 8 lovely bloggers:

1.  Kasia C.--The Nature of Crafty Things
2.  Andrea M.--Work in Progress
3.  Karen B.--The Bald Dragonfly
4.  Diane Jaquay--Peaceful Lane
5.  Smita--Kreativity and Me
6.  Kim Singdahlsen--Joyful Creations with Kim
7.  Karen T.--Luv to Stamp
8.  Marisa--Rosemary Reflections

The second award I have to pass on is the Cherry on Top Award, from my sweet friend Yuki.


For this award, the directions are to:

1.  Thank the person who gave it to you.  Thanks again, Yuki!

2.  Post the award on your blog.  Check!

3.  List three things you love about yourself.  I am very independent.  I am a loyal friend.  I love to learn new things.  Okay, a bit generic but I've already shared some facts about me above, so I'm running out of ideas!

4.  Post a picture you love right now:  Definitely this one of my son, Will, who surprised me a few days ago by writing his name.  He *loves* the letter W.


5.  Pass this award on to 5 people:

     1.  Nance--Canopy Crafts
     2.  Lindsay--Note to Self
     3.  Jessica--The Paper Parade
     4.  Jean Martin--Stampin' Scrapper
     5.  Nerina--A Creative Inkling

Enjoy, ladies!  And I won't be the least bit offended if any of you decide not to post the award or pass it on, as I am notoriously bad about doing it myself!

Okay, time to get out and enjoy some of this beautiful spring weather.  I hope to be back with a card very soon!  Enjoy your Sunday!

14 comments:

Marisa said...

Isn't it amazing how pets can squirm their way into your heart and take up more residence than your think they have! SO glad you got Maia back! We missed our cat terrible on an overnight to the vet so can totally empathize with you :)

I LOVED learning about you! It is always so much fun learning about the person behind the cards! Gives the cards much more personality :) I had to smile at your comment about the ants in your cereal etc. in Puerto Rico - lived in Costa Rica for 10 years and can totally relate LOL! There was an ants next in my parent's fax machine and a little gecko fried our computer because his tail and nose made a fatal connection :)

Good on you with nutrition - I'd love to learn more and would enjoy reading your blog. I'm caffine free and very limited sugar and also wheat.

I had to giggle at independent, loyal and learning new things - that would be me too :)

Thanks so much for the award (((hugs))) and have a great weekend.

Jen W. said...

So glad to hear that Maia is home safe and sound. It's such a horrible feeling wondering where they are and if they're okay when they go missing. She's a gorgeous girl and looks happy to be back in her sunbeam! :)

Heather Rogers said...

I am Sooo glad to hear you found your girl. I am sure your heart was breaking just thinking about her. I lost my cat when I first moved out on my own and cried for days. I never did find him.

Nice to read all those things about you. Ants in my cereal...I can do without! LOL

I just became a Vegitarian a week ago. I can't belive how much better I feel. I am not sure why I didn't do this years ago. Stupidity I guess. :)

Hugs~

The Paper Parade said...

Ahhhh!! Thank you so much Christina!! :) How exciting to have such a neat blog award :) So I loved reading all those interesting facts about you. Disecting flies the size of a pencil lead? I would have gone cross-eyed. And the fitness/nutritional journey is something I would definitely read if you started a blog. I am SOO happy your dog was found safe and sound! Can I say again that I'm so glad I met you?? We have to get together soon!

xiumaiyuki said...

So happy to hear about your dog. She looks adorable in that pix. Such a calm and sweet face! And your son is a cutie patootie!!!

I'm with you on being a tomboy and not wearing makeup. :o) Though, I'm really bad when it comes to nutrition... how DO you do it? no sugar and grains... oh my, you are my hero!

Diane Jaquay said...

I'm really happy you found your doggie, Christina! And thank you so much for the award :)

Lindsay said...

Thanks for thinking of me Christina! So glad you got your dog back! She is a cutie! I would love to read about your fitness journey, I have recently given up grains and sugar too! Lost 35 pounds and have never felt better! I would love to hear about some recipes you have tried and like to make!

Suzanne said...

YAY!!! I am thrilled you found Maia!! What great news!!!!! I also loved reading more about you - do you still sing? What an amazing talent to have, Christina. :)

Karen B. said...

How beautiful and regal your pup looks there, glad to hear that she is home. And it so great to hear more about yourself, sounds like you led an interesting life before the kids came! Oh, and thanks as well for passing it along to me!

Nance Leedy said...

Whew, I am so glad you got Maia back! I just know your heart sank when you saw that open gate. I've been there and it is a terrible feeling. Good to know that there are still kind, animal loving people in the world.

The size of a pencil lead, serioisly?! LOL, now I understand your crazy talent and predilection for fussy-cutting!! I loved hearing more about you!

Thank you for thinking of me and feel confident that you would be top on my list of 5 too! ((hugs))

Andrea M said...

Oh. My. Goodness. I am SOOOOOO GLAD that your sweet Maia is home, safe and sound. I completely understand how upsetting that can be! Our house was broken into a year and a half ago and MOST of our pets escaped (2 cats, 1 dog) - when I got home I was more panicked about them being out than I was about the break in! Luckily, they all came back - but I truly understand the relief you must feel to have your friend home!

WOW! Thanks so much for the award girl!! I am so honored! I, like you, am tardy in posting an award so forgive me if this takes me a few days to post :) But I really do appreciate it SO MUCH :) Have a great day!

kasia c. said...

So so glad to hear that Maia is back home afe and sound. I can't even imagine if Stella ran away. I think I would be a bit of a basket case!

It's so great to learn a little bit more about you. You have had a lot of cool experiences for being so young. :)

Thank you so much for passing that award on to me. I am honoured and so grateful that I have gotten to know you. You are so talented and I love visiting to see what fabulous things you have come up with. :)

Smita said...

Glad to see you back, Christina! :) I know I am late in reading this post but you did have me worried! Happy that Maia is safe :)

Thank you for the award :)

Hugs,
Smita

Smita said...

Ohh, btw, loved Will's picture... Aaryan too suddenly started writing (just by looking at letters) and he loves the letter W ( I still can't figure out why) and his name because he can spell it without thinking! :)

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