Well, this has been another banner week for me, y’all!
Monday was my birthday, and who doesn’t like having a little fuss made over them? Especially when the fuss includes TWO bouquets and a homemade cake (Emily made it).
Tuesday I published a post related to the situation in Baltimore, and not long after I cross-posted in to BlogHer I got an email telling me it was being featured there! This was HUGE for me because I’ve never had anything featured anywhere before. And it just keeps getting better, with my post being the most popular in News and Politics for two days now and almost 1,200 reads!
On Wednesday, Knoxville (that’s my hometown, y’all!) got named to yet another top ten list. I have a post where I keep an ongoing list of those (BECAUSE THERE ARE JUST THAT MANY!) so I quickly updated it and posted it to my favorite Knoxville Facebook group, almost quadrupling my page views for that day (which still amounts to small potatoes to many but was a lot for my blog).
And then on Thursday my friend JcCee nominated me for the Premio Dardos Award!
Premio Dardos (that’s Spanish, y’all!) means “prize darts.” This award recognizes cultural, ethical, literary, and personal values in the form of creative and original writing. That sounds pretty impressive, doesn’t it?
Unlike many blogging awards, this doesn’t come with a list of questions for me to answer. I don’t know why JcCee chose me specifically for this award (which I am so honored to accept), but it’s prompted me to think about how I share those values on this blog.
As many of you are aware, I started this blog when the column I had been writing on life issues for my diocesan paper for several years was canceled. This blog gave me the opportunity to broaden my focus (and boy did I broaden it!). But the truth is that I still consider blogging to be a ministry, at least some of the time. My ethical values are on display in posts like this one. Posts like this reflect my cultural values. My personal values are evident in parenting posts like this one. As for literary values, I’ll leave that one for y’all to decide. 🙂
And now it’s my turn to nominate some bloggers to receive this award. Y’all don’t have to do anything special, just acknowledge who honored you (that would be ME) and share the love with some other bloggers. I choose the following four women to receive this award.
Lizzi of Considerings: Life in Silver Linings
Crystal of So-So Mom
Amy of Planning Playtime
Kelly of The OK Momma
Let’s make it even easier . . . you don’t have to do anything AT ALL if you don’t want. 🙂 Just know that this award means that I admire you and your writing and I am happy to know you.
Pink Salt Riot
Catholics Online
Life in Every Limb on Facebook
What I like to remember on September 11.
September 11: Remember the Love | Life in Every Limb
lifeineverylimb.com
Everyone who’s old enough to remember has a 9/11 story. Mine is probably fairly typical of those of us with no personal connection to the events, and I’ve never written about it because it feels t...
And now the post you've all been waiting for--a belated review of 2022 in 12 pictures!
12 in 2022: A Year in Pictures | Life in Every Limb
lifeineverylimb.com
Ten years ago, I joined a link up to post 12 pictures, one for each month of the previous year. When that link up ended, I found another one. Now that one no longer exists, but I’m still doing this ...
It's an annual tradition, very late, and it's a great way to learn more about me and my blog.
2022 in Review: Your Favorites, My Favorites | Life in Every Limb
lifeineverylimb.com
I present to you an annual tradition that is happening later and later: the best/favorite posts from the prior year, as picked by you (my readers) and me. YOUR favorites are simply the posts that got ...
Is a faith nurtured primarily by media slanted in one direction or the other likely to bear good fruit, like humility and love, or rotten fruit, like pride and hatred?
By Their Fruits | Life in Every Limb
lifeineverylimb.com
“By their fruits you will know them,” we read in the Gospel. “ . . .[E]very good tree bears good fruit, and a rotten tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a rotten tre...
We are all called to evangelize but there are many ways to go about it!
A Tale of Three Evangelists | Life in Every Limb
lifeineverylimb.com
I have mentioned before that my favorite Gospel stories involve Peter, my favorite saint. I love Peter because he is relatable. He is human and makes mistakes, some bigger than others. Yet Jesus chose...
FRIST!!! 😆
LOL! xoxo
I couldn’t resist 😉
And happy birthday. The cake and the bouquets look awesome (this almost reads like a Ten Things of Thankful post…you should totally join us this week) and YAY for your award. Your piece on BlogHer was great and I’m so pleased for you that it got selected and received such attention 🙂
And THANK YOU for the incredibly sweet passing-on of the award. I’m so happy you like what I write and you already know how valuable this kind of feedback and encouragement is. I am honoured and truly appreciate it 🙂
Thanks, Lizzi. I do want to participate in TTOT . . . I just never can seem to get it together in time. I feel bad that I don’t have time to participate in Bloppy Bloggers as much as I’d like. The quality of the writing there is very high and I love your encouraging and uplifting daily posts even when I don’t have anything to share. 🙂
Awwwh that’s nice to hear. Thank you 🙂 I do try hard with those – trying to get engagement going sometimes is really tough.
Put THIS post into the TToT if you want 🙂
Really? OK!
Congrats! You well-deserve the recognitions.
Thank you, Betty! I appreciate your support. xoxo
Happy birthday! I truly respect that you gave me this award after I disagreed with you a little. That is awesome! I wish more people were capable of respectful disagreement and discussion.
Crystal, I am THRILLED to be able to have respectful discussions! It seems to be almost impossible to find anymore and I think that’s why our society is in the state that it’s in, because we demonize the “other side” and then we can’t work together to find solutions to problems! I don’t know everything (although my husband thinks I think I do!) so I don’t mind being disagreed with. 🙂
Happy belated birthday … and … congratulations on all the writing success lately. God is good, no?
Absolutely! Thank you!
Happy birthday, and glad you linked up your post!
Thank you!
happy birthday and congratulations on your post. I read it and agree. I was beginning to think I was alone in that assessment.
Your birthday flowers are so lovely, and the cake looks delicious! Happy birthday!
Do you live in Knoxville now or is it where you are from? I never went to Knoxville, but I lived in Nashville for a number of years and would move back in a heartbeat if I could.
Happy Birthday and congratulations on your success.
Happy birthday! Congratulations on your all of your wonderful accomplishments.
I didn’t know that was your post (that got featured)! Awesome, congrats and happy bday!
AWW Happy Birthday Leslie!!! Sounds like a great month for you!!!
Happy belated birthday! You have had some amazing things happen this month, good for you!
Happy birthday, Leslie! That cake looks lovely, and well done with the BlogHer post – I loved that post.
Happy Birthday! I cannot believe it’s already May. I’m in denial!
hope this next year is even better!
Happy Belated Birthday. Sounds like you had a fabulous week. Congrats on your accomplishments!
Wow what an awesome week! Happy Birthday and congrats on your post getting featured and so many views! That is awesome!
Happy late birthday!! Gorgeous flowers and cake!! (: Congrats!
Happy Belated Birthday, Leslie! Thanks so much for accepting it! And congrats on your feature and views 🙂
Happy Birthday Leslie, and congrats on your blogging triumphs this week!! It’s so exciting to see your work starting to spread and affect other people.
Thank you for the award nomination. I am so flattered, and appreciate your support of both my blog and my other endeavors.
P.S. That bouquet with the roses and hydrangeas is amazing!!
Happy birthday and congratulations on being featured on BlogHer. 🙂
Congrats on the feature! I read it and its great. Happy Birthday as well!
So glad you liked it and thank you!
Happy belated birthday, and congratulations on the article and the award! Sounds like it was a great week:)
It was, and now all these greetings are making it feel like a celebration this week too!
Happy Birthday Leslie! You had a phenomenal week and deserve all the blessings that came your way. Your Blogher article and discussion was great! It was nice to see the varying perspectives people took on the Baltimore situation.
I agree, Yanique. We can all learn from each other.
Congratulations on being featured in BlogHer – and a Happy Birthday too!
Thank you so much!
Happy Birthed Leslie. That cake looked yummy. What a great honor to have your post featured. You really did have a unique and interesting perspective on the Baltimore mom situation so it was really well deserved.
Thanks, Tirralan. And the cake WAS yummy!
Happy birthday! Sounds like an awesome week! Congrats on the Blogher feature! That’s huge! Have a great week!
Thank you! It was a great week. 🙂
Happy Birthday! The cake looked scrumptious!
It was delicious!
Happy Birthday and way to go!!!!!
Thanks, Sara!
Happy belated Birthday Leslie! Sounds like your week started off with a bang! I am excited for you (Huffington & BlogHer) !!! I know your family must be proud of you .
You are so sweet. 🙂
What a stellar month for you, & well deserved! Happy belated birthday (that second bouquet is stunning), & how exciting to be published, big-time!!!
Thank you!!
A busy time… Happy Birthday and the flowers are beautiful and the cake looks delicious. 🙂 Congratulations on the featured post.
Add to that you got featured for your good post on Fridays Blog Booster Party#5
That was DEFINITELY another thing a was proud of. 🙂