The Sunshine Award

Today, fellow bloggers brought me a smile by nominating Training Happy Hearts for the Sunshine Award -- an honor given to those who inspire creativity and positivity in others through blogging.  And, for this I am grateful.

I must say, that the effect of the award is self-propelling.  For while receiving it means that Training Happy Hearts has been noted as a positive, inspiring blog, the award, also makes me feel increasingly positive and inspired myself!  Truly, as I began catching up on comments, emails and blogging after a brief baby-break, only to realize that Kyle from Montessori for Learning, Evanspor from Walk Beside Me and Marcia from a Grace-Full Life had each presented me with the award, I was overwhelmed.  How encouraging to discover that our little family homeschooling blog is not only being followed by folks we've never personally met, but that it is also affecting others strongly enough that three such fantastic bloggers honored it with the Sunshine Award at virtually the same time.

Truly, I am humbled and delighted to have Training Happy Hearts nominated from within the wide sea of blogs out there.  Not long ago, I gingerly dipped my toes into this sea and, since, have sometimes found myself floating happily away in it as a source for inspiration, support and community.  To know the current of Training Happy Hearts might be carrying others along at times is fantastic.  So, thank you Kyle, Evanspor and Marcia for making my day today, and thank you to all who share honesty, faith, support and ideas through their blogs -- making many of my other days!

Upon hearing about our Sunshine Award nomination, of course, being me, I tried to discover where and when the Sunshine Award originated.  I could not trace it back far enough to figure that out, though...  So,if you know, do tell.  I would love to thank the originator for beginning such a fun, pay-it-forward with a smile sort of award.  Simple, yet so full of positive energy!

Just how simple is the award?  Well, the Sunshine Award is awarded to bloggers whose positivity and creativity inspire others in the blog world.  And, the rules for accepting this award are:

• Put the logo on your blog or within your post.
• Pass the award onto 12 bloggers.
• Link the nominees within your post.
• Let the nominees know they have received this award by commenting on their blog.
• Share the love and link to the person from whom you received this award.

The only difficult part, as I see it, is picking just a dozen blogs to nominate for the award when there are so many I discover daily that more than earn kudos for creativity and positivity!  Thus, as I move onto nominating 12 blogs below, let me say, there are MANY more I could name!!!!  These are just a small sample of ones -- both established and new, with varying focus -- that I enjoy and learn from:

• Shower of Roses was one of the first blogs I found myself clicking back to time and time again -- a wonderful, well-established blog by a homeschooling, Catholic mom, chock-full of practical and inspirational posts.
• Ditto By Sun and Candlelight -- such a rich resource for homeschooling, faith, nature and other ideas!
• Catholic Icing is a favorite blog for faith-filled, timely and fun activity, craft and cooking ideas.
• 2 Pequenos Traviesos is a fantastic Montessori homeschooling blog with loads of photos and ideas -- and it is bilingual no less!
• Hartley's Life with 3 Boys is a refreshingly real, yet positive and proactive blog, for parents and others blessed and challenged by SPD kids. 
• Try Defying Gravity is another honestly written blog I enjoy, written by an ASD mom.
• Mondorfment is written by a homeschooling, SPD mom, inspired by Montessori among other things, who not only blogs, but is very helpful in her posts in several yahoogroups.
• Living & Loving & Laughing with SPD says it all with its name.  It's a newer, very real blog written by a faith-filled, homeschooling, SPD mom. 
• Nostalgia for the Future is written by a single mom who is working to make Reggio-inspired learning accessible to those in her community.  It is a wonderful example of Reggio-inspired documentation and ideas for home educators. 
• One Hook Wonder is a delightfully helpful and inspiring Montessori-based blog for parents of young ones.
• A Munchkin's World is a blog I recently found that is full of photos, ideas and tidbits for Montessori, crafts, etc. with young ones.
• The Catholic Toolbox is such a rich resource for Catechism games, lessons, activities and ideas for home, school or CCD -- a generous planning and inspiration tool put together by a talented, experienced woman of faith.

Keep the warmth radiating!

And, to see what others are grateful for this Tuesday, visit the Gratituesday links at Heavenly Homemakers -- a place where loads of sunshine is spread!!!!