An Award!!!

I had a nice surprise when I woke up this morning, Kim at Little Rays of Sunshine sent me an award!  This was such a fun surprise!

Here are the rules for receiving this award:

1. Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to them.

Thank you so much Kim!  I love to visit Little Rays of Sunshine to read about Kim's precious daughter Emma Grace, her crafts, and of course her sweet treats on Sundays!  Stop by and say hello to Kim :)

2. Tell seven things about yourself. 

This is kind of fun for me because I usually share personal information on my other blog, Wonderful World of Melissa, but now I have a chance to share more than just my stories behind my recipes!

1. I'm a newlywed.  I married the love of my life on October 9, 2010.  We met in 2008, got engaged in 2010, and were married 7 months later.
   
2. I love to cook and bake.  Big surprise right?  But I just can't leave recipes alone.  I constantly tweak recipes, adding or subtracting ingredients.  It drives some people I know crazy, but that's just how I work!
   
3. I was born in New Mexico, but I have lived in Michigan for the majority of my life.  I moved once when I was in middle school but we stayed in the same town.  Then I moved again last October, but we still live just 20 minutes from where I grew up.
   
4. I love to run.  I started running in December, and I have run 2 5k's so far.  It's become an obsession for me.  When I first started, I dreaded each run, but now I really look forward to running and I miss it if I don't get a chance to do a run.  I'm actually considering doing a mini-tri this fall, but I have to get a road bike first!
   
5. I'll eat pretty much anything.  I've always said that I'll try anything once.  There are only a few foods that I don't care for, mostly fish (though I do like tuna and most shellfish).  I have tried some very interesting foods when I was in Romania, and I liked most of it!
   
6. I love to travel.  I've been to Romania 4 times for mission trips, and we went to Jamaica for our honeymoon.  We would like to go to Haiti for a mission trip soon, and we'd also like to go back to Romania (I want to show Mike the country I fell in love with!)  I'd love to tour Europe someday but only time will tell!
   
7. I love my job (I'm an office manager at a counseling agency), but if I could do anything, I'd love to work in a bakery.  What could be better than spending all day doing something I'm passionate about?

3. Pay it forward and award the Versatile Blogger to 15 recently discovered new bloggers.

It was hard to pick as I follow so many wonderful blogs, but here are just a few fabulous ladies that I'd like to give a shout out to! Be sure to check them out! 

1. Kristen @ Delightfully Dowling
2. Mari @ Mari's Little Corner and Mari's Recipe Blog
3. Heather @ Heather's Life
4. Lark @ Lark's Country Heart
5. Karen @ Overcomer
6. Susan @ Permanent Posies
7. Jihane @ Sinful Sundays
8. Bianca @ Little Brick Ranch
9. Shannon @ Tales From a Fairy Blogmother
10. Cheryl @ Cherdecor
11. Lisa @ Sweet as Sugar Cookies
12. Kat @ Just a BeachKat
13. Claire @ Claire Cooks
14. Sierra @ The Tervo Times
15. Rachel @ Thou Must Live and Eat!

4. Contact everyone and let them know they've been awarded!

I apologize in advance if you see your name on this post before I am able to tell you about! I'll try to work diligently at letting everyone know about their fun new award. ;)