And the Oscar goes to.....

My friend, Lindsey awarded me the 'blogger award.' Sorry this took so long Linds.

This award recognizes a blog’s creativity and overall contribution to the blogger community. Once you've been selected, please follow these guidelines and pay it forward.

1) Choose 5 blogs that you consider deserving of this award based on creativity, design, interesting material, and overall contribution to the blogger community, regardless of the language.

2) Post the name of the author and a link to his or her blog by so everyone can view it.

3) Each award-winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her or him the award.

4) The award-winner and the presenter should post the link of the "Arte y pico" blog so everyone will know the origin of this award.

5) Please post these rules.

Here are the 5 blogs I'm passing the award to:

1. Brittany: Sorry readers but I think Brit's blog is private. She is my sister in law and I love her blog for all the above mentioned reasons. She offers humorous anecdotes, delicious recipes, and her inspiring efforts at domesticity. But especially for the last six months it has been a great way to see how she's faring while Bryan is away. Thanks for your contribution to the blogging community!

2. Krista: Way back when blogging was new to me and I only had three or four blogs to read Krista and I exchanged blog addresses. It has never been the same since. Krista's blog is just the insight one needs to see the many dimensions of Krista. I can't even begin to list the delights found on her blog but you might find a great craft idea, a dialogue on the trials of motherhood, or a fantastic photo. One time Krista posted every day for a month. The few minutes I spent reading each day was a sweet escape.

3. Courtney: It doesn't say anywhere in the rules that it can't be a stranger's blog. At the top of her blog is this quote: "We write to taste life twice, once in the moment and in retrospection." She exemplifies this perfectly. I won't go into the background of her posts of late, you'll have to see that for yourself. But she inspires me. She shares her difficulties but always musters up optimism. I love reading this blog.

4. Sheye: It seems strange to refer to these people I've never met by their first name... More addicting photography on this blog. She lives in Australia and has three children. It is so refreshing to see an example of good parenting across cultural and religious divides. This family has been through a gut-wrenching tragedy and helps me appreciate parenthood on a new level.

5. Adri: This is my sister and therefore my giving of the award to her is saturated with bias. What is more enjoyable to view than pictures of our own relatives? And although I appreciate compliments on my writing, it doesn't hold a candle to Adri's. She doesn't post often (she seems to enjoy doing more productive things with her time, silly girl) but I always know when she does it is going to be good. She also lives far away and it makes the shared experiences and pictures all the more delightful.

If I had the time I would write an explanation here about what I relish about all the blogs I read. So maybe I'll just have to do it individually, over time in the form of comments.