I made someone's day!

Today I was presented with a "You Make My Day" award! I feel unbelievably honored and touched, especially because it was from a dear friend with an AWESOME name ;-) So without further ado, I would like to continue passing this award on... so here are the rules:

The rules for the "You Make My Day" award are to re-present it to 10 people whose blogs bring you happiness and inspiration and make you feel happy about blog land. Let them know through email or by posting a comment on their blog so they can pass it on. Beware you may get the award several times yourself, and if you do, consider yourself really, really loved.

Of course I HAVE to pass it back to my dear friend Mandi (isn't it a great name??), because she - and everything she represents - makes me smile. She was my older brother's awesome friend way "back in the day" she has never lost that "friend" status. She has a wonderful eye for photography, a fantastic sense of style, and eye for color and a great sense of humor. She recently gave birth to a big bouncing beautiful baby boy (say that 5 times fast) and I have absolutely LOVED seeing how she's blossomed into this awesome role of mama! I love her crunchy side (ahem, that's what we call natural mama's) and her adventurous side and her sweet loving side. Jack is going to grow up NEVER doubting how much he is adored and cherished. Thanks for being a great friend and a fabulous inspiration to me Mandi!

**Ok, so the other's won't be as long, but I wanted to give a shout out to my girl Mandi cause I love her and I think we need to hang out sometime ;-)**

The next person I want to pass this award onto is my Boddy Caitlin. You know it's true friendship when it can withstand a raging storm. And recently we did go through that storm. But here we are, the clouds are parting, the sun is peeking through, and we're standing in our shared driveway - a little bit wet, with arms around each other, shaking the rain out of our hair. Sure, a few branches broke off in the wind, but you know what? They grow new ones ;-) I'm grateful for our friendship, and I'm inspired by her as well. She's been quite successful with her business and I'm so proud of her. Thanks for being my Boddy, Boddy!

I couldn't do a post like this without handing an award to my sweet, silly, goofy, long lost sister Chrissy. I love this girl. She's quirky, she's unique, she's special (*giggle*), she likes pink (and "the color purple") and she's not afraid to speak her mind. She'll proudly sport some Billy Bob teeth, she'll be there for you no matter what, and she'll post 8 times a day just to make you smile. I've known Chrissy since the beginning of my Xanga blog and from day one we knew we were sisters from other misters ;-) I love you Chrissy!

Now, while I'm in Canada (eh? Hey, um does that ever get old?) I want to give an award to my newish friend Lori! I met Lori... last year? Has it been longer? No matter, it seems like we've known each other for ages! She was a friend of Chrissy's and I have been so blessed to get to know her through Xanga, and now through other venues such as Etsy. She's creative, unique, and she has an AMAZING eye for style -- seriously check out her jewelry, it's amazing! This is another one of my inspiration girls, I love her!!

Ok so I forgot how many Crazy Canadians I'm friends with in the blogging world ;-) Crazies like Melissa -- sometimes known as Booflies! Oh I love this girl. I seriously think we all need to meet up because we would all have a BLAST together! Melissa is another girl who loves to have fun, she's such a wonderful mama, and one thing I love most about her is her ability to be candid and honest. She is a true friend, and one that I am grateful for. I love you Melissa!

Now with all this talk of sisters from other misters, it would be wrong of me not to mention my REAL sister (ok ok, so she's still from another mister, but she's still in the family)! One of my most favorite sisters-in-law - Jess. Jess makes me laugh. Jess makes me think. Jess makes me want to be a better mama to my boys. I am so thankful that God brought Jess into my brother's life and that He made her my sister. She is a blessing to us all, and she's given me - literally - the cutest nephew and niece in the entire world. My love for her is deep and genuine. My life would be different and a little less silly without her. I love my Jess!

This next blogger is someone I am very excited to grow closer to in the future. She is the best friend of my cousin Julie (who will be mentioned next ;-)) and she lives in the same town as my in-laws right now! Which just happens to be a town that Ryan and I will be moving near in a couple years! I've gotten to know Jenny more through her blogs and it makes me very excited to have a built-in friend for when we move to Minnesota in a couple years. She's another mama that's a little bit crunchy (read: NATURAL), she's amazingly smart, she's dedicated, she's a fantastic wife (one that inspires me to be better) and she's a great friend. Jenny has made my day on many occasions through her blog so she deserves this award.

As promised -- my cuzzy wuzzy Julie!! (shut up, is there a correct spelling for "cuzzy"?) Julie has been my partner in crime since we were toddlers. She's adventurous, she's fun, she's loving, she's always open to learn new things, and she's a wonderful example of a Godly wife -- and an example of how a Christian should obey Christ and GO where He tells! Julie and her hubby Jesse (and adorable baby Renae) are getting ready to head "across the pond" to be missionaries! I'm excited for them and SO excited to hear all about their adventures in following Christ! Julie always has fun and interactive blogs and I'm so glad that she crossed over into the blogging world :-) I love my Julie.

Ok, as I was writing this I realized -- man... God sure did give me a lot of "long lost sisters"! Mrs Manda is one of my favorites and she definitely is one of those "we could be sisters!" friends that you hear about. We are so much alike in so many different ways. She's a wonderful photographer, a loving wife, and such a sweet, fun, and gentle mama to her little Zach. I love this girl, and she's on my list of people that I hope to meet in real life someday.

And last but not least (actually, I could go on all night, there are SO many people I want to mention! But since it's almost midnight, I'm actually grateful for the 10 people limit cause my eyes are about to fall out and I have to get up at 5 tomorrow!) I want to give love to my girl April. She's definitely on my "someday visit" list. She's got such a passion for photography, I love seeing her thirsty to know more and I LOVE seeing her grow in her skills and confidence! She's an interactive and awesome mama and she and her hubby made 2 really adorable kiddos :-) April makes my day sweet often and I love her.


Ok, so as I said, there are MANY people I want to give this "award" to, but for the sake of my sanity and sleep, I will stick to the rules. Please don't be upset if you're not on this list and you think you should be -- I guarantee if you think that, then you're one of the ones I would be listing if I had more time/awards. I promise ;-) Thanks for making my day ladies!!