Creative Blogger Award

Sunrise Sister has graciously gifted me with The Creative Blogger Award! It's a real pick-me-up during a time when I've been feeling out of sorts and grumpy...

Sunrise Sister sent the award along with some rules I'm observing to pass this award along to some of my favorite sites -

List 7 things that I love and then pass the award on to 7 other bloggers - tagging them and letting them know they've won this award! If you'd like, you may copy the picture of the award and place it on your sidebar.

So, hmmmm--seven things that I like:

1. The sound of rain drumming down on the roof. Our old barn is really the best for this, with it's old tin roof. The year the baby goats came (has it already been two years? Yikes.) I spent a lot of time out there with Momma Goat--nothing like sitting in an old barn, by the light of the lantern, sitting on a bale of hay, keeping company with an expectant goat, while listening to the raindrops singing on the roof...

2. Reading a really good book, one that keeps me totally enthralled. I remember my mom and sister used to get frustrated at me when I was reading and didn't answer their call, but I can get so involved in a book that I'm literally somewhere else. Even now, my kids sometimes have to say my name three or four times before I leave my book and say, "What?"

3. A cup of hot tea. My dad's mom (my Gramma Hansen) was the one who got me started drinking tea. She always had green tea and black tea, and kept a bottle of Half and Half in her refrigerator. she drank her tea with milk and sugar, so I do, too. No one else in my family or friends drinks tea, but now I've raised three little tea drinkers of my own, so I have someone to share this pleasure with. My mom used to pack a Thermos of hot tea for my lunch when I was little, and I remember that the teacher was surprised at conference time when she found out that my parents weren't British!

4. Soup for dinner. I love having a big pot of soup simmering on the back of the stove all day long--love the aroma and the fact that dinner's ready whenever we want to eat. One of my high school friends and I decided a loooooong time ago that there were some nights just made for warm socks and hot soup.

5. Real letters in the mailbox. I think I still have all the letters my family has ever written to me. Now that my mom's gone, I can come across one of her letters and talk to her all over again.

6. Singing harmony with someone. My dad used to harmonize with my sister and I while we did the dinner dishes every night. Such fun, and such a good memory. Now the girls can both sing harmony with me--love it.

7. Big hugs. Mmmm. Can't get enough snuggles and hugs.

And now, seven bloggers upon whom I can bestow the Creative Blogger Award. Hmmm. I think I'll make this a separate post so that I can think about it for a bit.