Beloved

Kristen, from  Saint Monica's Bridge, gave me this award and I love the idea of passing on a little love to more little known and under appreciated blogs out there.  Kristen is a talented and prolific writer keeping it real on her blog; writing about her faith, family, and the struggles and joys of having an autistic daughter. While I can't read her posts every day, when I get a chance to peruse her blog I am always inspired.  She and I share a devotion to Saint Monica and at least a couple secular guilty pleasures, such as The Office and reading Jane Austen novels.  Is it wrong to pair Elizabeth Bennet with Dwight Schrute?

Liebster is a German word which means “dearest” or “beloved”.  It can also mean favorite.  The idea behind the Liebster Blog Award is that it is given to upcoming bloggers (with fewer than 200 followers) in order to create new connections and bring attention to wonderful growing blogs.

Now it is my turn to pass on the award, with these simple rules:
·          Add the award to your blog.
·         Thank the giver with a link back to them.
·         List your top five picks and let them know they’ve been given the award by
leaving a comment on their blog.
·         Encourage your followers to “spread the love” to the blogs that you’ve spotlighted.

It isn’t easy to pick 5 ladies to give this award to, but please enjoy visiting these wonderful blogs:

My first choice, and one of the reasons I kept blogging, was due to the positive prompting of Sam from Thy Will Be Done.  Sam and her hilarious and sardonic hubby, Rob, have 12 fantastic children and Sam blogs regularly about life in a fairly good sized Catholic family.  She also posts great recipes, home making and organizational tips, and money saving ideas.

My second awardee is a family blog, Moments of Grace.  They are also a Catholic homeschooling family and have just recently had their fifth baby.  One of their teenage sons attends a minor seminary in Minnesota within the same family as the Aspirancy school our dear Oleander goes to.  This family personally close to us, and when we chose them as Godparents to Lil' Lamb, we knew would have the best of prayer warriors storming heaven for our little one.  Moments of Grace isn't updated nearly as often as I'd like, but when it is, it is one of the first blogs I read in the morning.

One of my absolute favorite blogs, is completely under appreciated.  Rebecca (AKA the Mom) of Shoved to Them is an incredibly talented writer.  She writes some of the most beautiful, honest, and emotionally charged posts in the Catholic blogosphere. And when she isn't tugging at your heartstrings, she can also be quite the humorist.  I have it on good authority she is working on a book and I can not wait for it to be published.

Another daily read is Blessed with Full Hands.  Katie is a busy Catholic homeschooling mom of three adorable boys.  She's an avid runner, certified personal trainer and a life coach.  Recently Katie has been very candid about her family's decision to adopt. A creative and enthusiastic writer, her blog will never disappoint.

My last blog plug is for Mary at Passionate Perseverance.  Mary blogs regularly about writing, books, food, marriage, family, her struggles with exercise, and especially about her beautiful and blessed daughter, Courtney, who is severely disabled.  Mary is a true inspiration as a Catholic, wife, mother, and writer. I was amazed to see she has fewer than 200 followers as she is a true gem of a writer!