★★ Sunshine Award ★★

I woke up this morning, and as what I usually do after finishing some domestic duties, went to sit on my blog porch, and found that I received this blessing from my friend, Michelle.

I am honored and blessed and it definitely made my day! Thanks very much, Michelle, for the Sunshine Award. It really means a lot. I am truly happy that over the months that I've started moving from my old blogging site to this one, I have made and kept some new friends and I am wonderfully blessed by what they are sharing in their sites as well.

Now, as with all blog awards, here are the rules :)
~ Put the logo on your blog and/or within your post
~ Pass the award on to 12 bloggers
~ Link to the nominees within your post
~ Let them know they received this award by commenting on their blog
~ Share the love and the link to the person from whom you received this award

I had a little difficulty choosing the 12 as I figured most of you may have received this one already, and that some of you choose to have an "Award Free" site. That's okay, though I've decided to share it with you anyway. Hope it would still be a welcome, happy gift. :)

Here are beautiful ladies I'm sharing my "Sunshine" with. In the Philippines where I come from, we have plenty of sunshine each year, and so I hope this award would allow me to share a piece of what we always have on my side of the globe. :)

1. Trixie @ By Beaded Story

2. Katia @ My Cup Overflows

3. Susan @ Daily Coping Skills

4. Cathy @ A Bit of the Blarney

5. Gae @ Cherished Hearts at Home

6. Judy @ Benmakesten

7. Doylene @ A Gracious Home

8. Audrinna @ Audrinna's World

9. Kathy @ Blooming in Suburbia

10. Anni @ Hootin'Anni's

11. Amber @ Amber Waves of Grain

12. Joyce @ A Fistful of Dandelions

★★ Beautiful Blogger Award ★★

Judy, from Benmakesten gave this Beautiful Blogger Award to me today. I am very much honored to receive this, as the one who gave it is an admirable peson, whose strength and commitment as a Mother of 10 spans the universe. Thanks, Judy, you are one amazing blogger Mom-friend!

As a recipient of the Beautiful Blogger Award, one must:

- Add a link and a note of thanks to the person giving the award
- Pass the award on to 15 bloggers whose blogs you have recently discovered that you love
- Share 7 things about yourself

So here goes the 7 Things about myself that I want to share with you: (They're randomly thought of)

1. I am a Filipina with two loving children and one great husband, but whose entire family (meaning my Dad, Mom & Stepdad, Sister & Bro in law) resides in the US of A.

2. I am a Type 2 Diabetic, who tries hard to manage it well because I love to eat good food, adore sweet food, and can live on potato chips with dip daily. =)

3. I became a Christian when I was in College -- through a friend from Campus Crusade for Christ. Since then, I discovered, that life can, after all, be a worthwhile journey IF you go through it with the Lord, and allow Him to hold and maneuver the reins for you.

4. I love books and love to read and collect inspirational ones, including Bibles. Just recently, DH gifted me with The Message Bible and I just love this version! I like the way it "speaks" to me in modern, everyday, conversational language.

5. As much as I love kids and teaching, I also love dogs, and treat them as part of the family.

6. I've shared it before, but would like to share it again -- I pray to become the Proverbs 31 woman someday. I know I am a seemingly endless work of art, and a certified (God's) work in progress. I know one day I will get there and trust that God will help me achieve this goal.

7. I love coffee, and the aroma it leaves in the whole household when DH and I share a mug or two. Given the choice, I would take a barrel of coffee everyday. But for health reasons, a mug or a cup should be fine. =)

I now send this Beautiful Blogger Award to the following 15 bloggers, whose blogs I have recently discovered and have been enjoying immensely ---

1. Doylene @ A Gracious Home

2. Ruth @ Celebrate Friendship

3. Ann @ The I-Sisters

4. Anni @ Hootin' Anni's

5. Pia @ Pia's Journal

6. Kathy @ Blooming in Suburbia

7. Joyce Marie @ A Fistful of Dandelions

8. Audrinna @ Audrinna's World

9. Gae @ Cherished Hearts at Home

10. Amber @ Amber Waves of Grain

11. Tamara @ Branch of Wisdom

12. Jo @ Little House by the Railway Line

13. Katia @ My Cup Overflows

14. Buff @ My Daybook

15. Patricia @ Pausing to Consider

Congratulations to each of you! May God continue to bless us all through this bond called friendship. =)

★★ Honest Scrap Award ★★

I got another award from one of my Blogger friends. Thanks much, Ruth! Am really happy to be “writing elbows” with this blogging site’s community of believers, it is an enjoyable way to spend the day receiving awards like this.

I am supposed to share 7 things about myself and then award it to other people. I had to think well to do this, as I try to share fun facts about myself to share with you. So here goes...

1. I love to eat toothpaste when I was little, my Mom didn't know I claimed a secret corner of the bathroom wall where I always placed a bigger than a pea-sized paste to harden, then licked it off the wall the following day -- a chewy, mildly minty-sweet, dragee. Truly yummy, my own homemade Mentos, hahaha!

2. During bedtime, I can’t stop wiggling my foot, rubbing it on the edge of the bed while lying down on my stomach, until I bring myself to sleep. It’s a habit I can’t shake off (since toddlerhood) even my DH sometimes thinks it’s weird.

3. Back in high school I used to write a lot and received good grades from my Literature teacher. That kind of writing brought me to take up an English Studies/Creative Writing course in college. And then while studying, I wrote for a column in two glossy, non-syndicated magazines. I was paid a modest, working student's wage, but I fully enjoyed every single payment I received from them.

4. In college and in my quest for life, I was invited to join this religious group, only to find out later on, that it was a cult. God has (and always is) been very good to me, that he rescued me from this group, and led me to Campus Crusade for Christ, where I got saved. It was also at this point that I met my DH, and realized that God has a purpose and a plan for all of us.

5. I love dogs very much, and grew up with them in the family. My fondness for them reached its height when as an adult I had two lovable Shih Tzus who slept with me on the bed and who accompanied me wherever I went. One died of heart enlargement, and the other, of cancer. I was heartbroken and then I stopped having dogs around for some time. It is only now that we are planning to have one again, because my DS and DD took after my love and passion for these furry little creatures.

6. I can live on corn and potatoes, cooked any style. Also on this Filipino dish called “Nilagang Baka” (Boiled Beef) – cubes of tender beef cooked in a flavorful beef broth with fresh vegetables like bokchoy, cabbage and potatoes. I practically gorged on this dish, everyday for nine whole months during my 1st pregnancy. From Day 1 to D-day, I never got tired of the taste, and ate everything – leafy greens, golden potatoes, tasty soup – all but the beef itself.

7. Lastly, I’m a stickler for orderliness, sometimes bordering on becoming like an OC freak. I can’t go to sleep thinking about the bag of grocery items I left on the kitchen table, and/or similar scenarios like so. I always remind my 3 darling housemates – “A place for everything, and everything in its place.”

I will be giving this award to friends, and look forward to what they have to share upon receiving this award. Once again, I thank Ruth for giving me this "Honest Scrap Award". I truly enjoyed it!

★★ The Circle Of Friends Award ★★

I received my very 1st Award from Ruth @ Celebrate Friendship. I am truly honored to receive such an award, and thank God for the blessing of friends even thru cyberspace.

By accepting this award, I will have to share 5 things about myself:

1. I am married for almost 13 years, and am a Mom of two kids -- an intelligent boy aged 11 and a sweet girl aged 7.

2. I love to read books, write in my diary, and maintain a blog in Multiply and Blogger.

3.I like to bead crystal and freshwater pearl bracelets, and give them away as presents to friends.

4. I have Type II Diabetes and am trying hard to maintain a healthy lifestyle -- especially in my diet.

5. I aspire to be beautiful in God’s eyes by praying to Him for help so I can be like the Proverbs 31 woman someday.

May we all continue to share in the bond that God has allowed us to enjoy with one another. To my friend Ruth and the rest of us in The Circle of Friends – Let us all remember, that friends in Christ are friends forever!

I have placed the award in my sidebar, and share the blessing to some of my friends in this blogging site:

Doylene @ A Gracious Home
Ann @ The I-Sisters
Peggy @ The Simple Woman
Kathy @ Blooming in Suburbia
Mama Bear @ Bears in Exile