I'm such an ingrate.

Actually, I'm not. I just act like it sometimes. You know how sometimes you receive a really nice gift, but then it takes you a couple months to actually get a thank you note out? It's not that you aren't actually grateful, it's just that it takes you a while to get around to formally acknowledging. Well, this is kind of like that.

So, with that said, I would like to say thank you for all the nice blog awards I've received over the last couple months.

Desert Rose at Desert Rose Booklogue gave me this "lovely" award, acknowledging new blogs and blogging friends that she has discovered.  In passing on this award, I would like to acknowledge the following blogs:

Cake Wrecks-Every day, Jen puts together a collection of cakes whose decorations have gone horribly wrong and presents them for our amusement.  Having decorated my fair share of cakes while we owned our Cold Stone store, I can appreciate how something that seems easy in theory can go terribly awry, but I don't think we ever sent out anything too wrecky.  I was lucky to have a couple very talented decorators on hand, and I oversaw most of the custom orders myself.  Lest you think this is just a mean blog that makes fun of people, it's not.  Every Sunday, Jen also highlights some truly beautiful cakes so that we can see what these things should look like. 

Journey to the Center-Following the death of her husband last year, Bev Wigney, who describes herself as a naturalist-photographer-writer, began traveling around the U.S. with her dog, Sabrina.  At Journey to the Center she shares her photos and observations.  The pictures are beautiful, and her writing is thoughtful and serene.

The Amazing Life-Grace and Bradley have a home in Cape Cod but spend a lot of their time living in Taipei and traveling around the world.  Their blog showcases their amazing life in pictures.

Kerrie at Mysteries in Paradise bestowed this lovely Splash award upon me.  The rules are simple:

1.  Put the logo on your blog/post

2.  Nominate up to 9 blogs which allure, amuse, bewitch, impress or inspire you.

3.  Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.

4.  Let them know that they have been splashed by commenting on their blog.

5.  Remember to link to the person from whom you received your Splash award.

Hmmm...blogs which allure, amuse, bewitch, impress or inspire you?  Well, I think all of the blogs I already mentioned manage to do just that, so they all get this award too.  Just for good measure, I will add another blog that amuses me.

Who's More Awesome-This blog takes two hypothetical opponents (the most recent match up:  Sasquatch Vs. The Abominable Snowman) and pits them against each other to see who's more awesome.  The categories of competition are always the same-Wine Tasting, Fighting, Racing, Chess, Pie Eating, Swimsuit and Archery.  You might wonder how points are awarded in categories such as these with competitors such as those.  Well, head on over to check it out, but just so you're warned there is some language and some match ups that aren't exactly family- friendly.  

And finally:

The Super Comments Award came to me from Jeanne at Necromancy Never Pays (have I mentioned-one of the best blog names ever!).  I know we all love to get comments (at least I do! I know Jeanne does too, so stop by and tell her hi) and sometimes it's one more thing at the end of the day to go around and try to leave comments on others' blogs, so knowing that someone took the time to stop by my blog and leave a comment always makes me happy.  So, this award goes out to all of you who have ever stopped by to leave me a comment!  Thank you to everyone.  I appreciate that you took the time to stop by and read my blog, and I hope you keep coming back!