me? i'm honored...

Lovely Minnie was kind enough to pick me for a Beautiful Blogger Award, and well, I'm just tickled that she thought of me. How sweet! I do hope she knows that the feeling is quite mutual.

So, I guess I should share seven things with you. Some random bits...

1. My husband and I took our honeymoon in Italy. It was an amazing trip with stops in Santa Margherita, Cinque Terre and Florence. We ate our hearts out and saw so much beautiful architecture. But probably my most memorable thing from the trip happened on the last Sunday that we were there. I got up a little early, laced up my sneakers and headed out for a jog through the hills just outside of Florence. It was a gorgeous morning, and I was just trucking along taking in the sights, when a single church bell started ringing. And then another. And then another. More and more bells chimed in until it seemed as if the whole city was ringing. It was magical. Brought tears to my eyes and goosebumps to my skin. I'll never forget it...

2. My favorite movie theater treat is a combination of milk duds and popcorn. It's the perfect duo of sweet and salty. Although, I'm sure my dentist would cringe if she just read that...

3. I definitely live by the credo that things happen for a reason, and so I try very hard to have no regrets. If things didn't fall exactly into place the way they have all these years, then I may not be where I am today. (And where I am is very happy.) BUT if I did have one do-over, it would be to have studied abroad while I was in college. I could kick myself for not doing it! I was so worried about missing out on all the college parties and friends, but instead I missed out on an amazing opportunity to get some culture, make new friends, and see a whole new side of the world. I wish my younger self knew how lucky she was to have the chance to do that...

4. If money weren't an issue, I'd love to move out to the country, restore a big old farm-house, grow a huge vegetable garden and raise chickens and goats and maybe a potbelly pig. (And my kitchen would have a soft-serve ice cream machine!) Lots of fresh air, wide open space and yummy dinners using our homegrown veggies sounds quite lovely to me. So does as much soft-serve as I can eat...

5. I love cereal. It's what I have for breakfast about 95% of the time. But I rarely ever pour just one kind of cereal. Nope, my bowls are all about mixers... I'm always mixing at least two, sometimes three (heck, yesterday I had four!) different kinds together. And as long as I'm telling you, I also pour in a ton of milk, let the bowl sit for a minute or two so the cereal gets a little soggy, and then I first drink all the milk and then eat the rest. I know it's so weird...

6. I have a major girl crush on Kelly Ripa. She just seems so lovely inside and out. She's got a wonderful sense of humor, her style is impeccable, her body is rock hard -- that girl works out! -- and she just seems really down to earth. I'd love to meet her someday. And then we can become besties...

7. My idea of a perfect Saturday morning is to wake with the sun and go for a long run through the still quiet city streets. I'll return home to my bright and cheery family who are all dressed and ready to go to breakfast. At breakfast, Wade will suggest doing splitzies (he never wants to share and usually refuses my requests), and we'll both get a taste of something sweet and something savory. On our way home, we'll breeze through the farmer's market for a lovely bouquet and some ripe fruits and veggies. I'm looking forward to the weekend already...

(This is what I like to imagine the view would be on my farm. Image from Julias Vita Drommar. Found it via darling Mary.)

Thanks so much again, Minnie. Mama Without Borders is most definitely one of my favorites!