Awarded

Well, bless my soul! (Say it with a Southern accent. It will sound better.) I have been given the Honest Scrap Award from my fellow blogger, Rae!

That's right--Rae. We share a name, as well as an interest in blogging and photography, and a willingness to serve with the Scouts when asked. (Examine the last part of that sentence closely. I am delicately phrasing my true feelings about that particular calling, which I have had no less than three times.) Rae is funny, easy to get along with, hard-working, creative, and kind. She is definitely one of my favorite bloggers!

So along with the award, I have some responsibilities.

1) I must thank the person who gave the award and list their blog and link it.
2) Share "10 Honest Things" about myself.
3) Present this award to 7 others whose blogs I find brilliant in content and/or design, or those who have encouraged me.
4) Tell those 7 people they've been awarded HONEST SCRAP and inform them of these guidelines in receiving the award.

10 Honest Things
About Me

1 - I hate when men have long nails. As in a teensy bit of white showing. Call me picky or old-fashioned--I just don't like it! I like a man's hands to look...MANLY.

2 - Last week I bought a shirt designed by Miley Cyrus (or the designer they picked to make things that Miley could put her name on).

3 - I make up random (and ridiculous) songs a lot. When I was still at home, my sisters (okay, just the younger sisters) and I made up songs on the fly quite often. My personal favorites: "Do You Like My Black Shirt? I Do" and "Do Your Armpits Smell Like..." (I will not finish the rest of that title.)

4 - I still sometimes dance like a crazy person when I'm all alone in my room. Once Phill walked in, and I almost cried with embarrassment. Sweet man that he is, he just smiled. The biggest smile I've ever seen. As in: If I don't keep smiling hugely, I will be laughing within seconds.

5 - My first job was on an Army base in the security clearance section. I got to ogle cute soldiers (and sometimes read their files), read mysteries, email friends, and listen to U2.

6 - I love shopping at D.I., but I'm telling you, there is a smell, and it is weird, and I do have to concentrate a little to forget about it when I walk in. It's worth the good deals, though.

7 - I often wish that I had an incredibly useful skill (besides photography and, well, baby-rearing), and every time I go past the crafts book section of Barnes & Noble, I am stalled for a good 30 minutes, dreaming of the new talent I will acquire. "Oooooo, beading!! I will have beaded pillows decorating the whole house!" -or- "Basket Weaving! I will have an Etsy shop and a booth at the fair and a whole BUSINESS of basket weaving! Underwater, even!" -or- "How to Become a Carpenter in 30 Days?! I WILL become a carpenter! I'll build EVERYTHING for the house!" True, I am ambitious and interested and idealistic. Most of these ideas fall flat right out of the gate, but one day, I am sure I will find a new endeavor that will latch on with ferocity.

8 - I LOVE notebooks. Paper of all kinds, really, but....notebooks. Which are a close cousin to books--just gloriously blank. I have to resist the urge to buy every moleskine notebook I see, every attractively-decorated journal, every package of pretty paper. It is bad. Very bad. I have banned myself from notebook-buying for a couple of years at a time when it was discovered (by a somewhat-shocked Phill) that I had no less than 15 unused notebooks. "Sweetheart, what do you even need these for?" "I don't KNOW! But I WILL need them! Soon! For something!" It is my only tendency towards packratism. Otherwise, I am ruthless in the amount of things I keep "just in case". *Okay. Pencils, too, and pens, and honestly, pretty much all other office supplies.

9 - Sometimes I snort when I laugh.

10 - I come from a rich family tradition of reading aloud to each other. We love to do various voices, and get into the story in an almost comical way. One of my favorite memories is a Christmas at my grandma's house (I think I was 15?) when my brother Isaac read Harry Potter aloud to my younger sisters and I. His voice for Snape was so perfect, so oily, so snake-y. It made us laugh--and him too--every time it came up. My oldest brother, Reed, used to read Roald Dahl books to us when I was little--about 7. His voices were perfect, too. The BFG is one of the first books I remember having read to me, aside from The Book of Mormon and a simple school book.

Now--you seven whom I have nominated:

My brilliant brother-in-law, Eric, over at LDS Prosperity

My beautiful friend and smashing photographer, Marie at MAG GAB

The mother to three beautiful girls and a dear friend, Cyndie at The Secret Lives of Tracys

Another photographer friend (watch out, it's contagious!) of mine who has actually known me since I was born, and is more family than friend--Christy at Life with the Schnegel-kins

My cousin, who continues to inspire me with her own personal growth and progress, Annie at The Delights of Our Lives

My sister, Abby, who manages to post just what I need, when I need it. Check out a particularly humorous post on her blog, Business As Usual.

And lastly--not leastly--Lara at Overstuffed. It's good stuff, people. And she always welcomes new readers, so hop on over and say hi.

I don't like the fact that it only let me nominate 7. There are quite a few more I would have liked to link to--so if you don't see yourself on here, count yourself nominated, anyway, please.