Sweet Dreams are Made of This: an adoption blog: Sunshine Award(s)!

Two sunshiney people from the ALI blogging world have nominated me for the Sunshine Award! Yay! I feel so special :) It feels good to know people read & appreciate your blog.

So here are the rules:

Proudly post your sunshiney new award
Answer the 11 questions from the blogger who nominated you
Nominate 11 wonderful bloggers
Write 11 questions for them to answer
Let the nominated blogger know you have nominated them

So here are the 11 questions from the first person who nominated me, Kristen from Adoption Love:

What is the best advice you've ever gotten? I have gotten a lot of good advice in my life, that come to my mind at different times. To try and recall the best piece of advice right now? I'm not sure if I can do. But I can remember some good pieces of advice right now: my dad once told me to not waste time feeling embarrassed or stupid. My mother-in-law, who is a wealth of very gentle advice (perfect for my personality!) has told me that people who are very sensitive (who cry easily, are hurt easily - traits usually viewed as negative) are the very same people who are also sensitive to others - people who are gentle, kind, patient, etc. She is very correct. By the way, this sensitive person I am describing is my husband :)
What is your first childhood memory? I don't know what my first memory was. I have a lousy memory! It's nothing significant, but I do seem to have a faint recollection that I used to be able to walk under the dining room table, and then one day realizing my eyes could peek above it and I could no longer walk right under it.
If you could choose another time in history to live, when would it be? Every time in history has it's pros and cons, but I would like to try living in the "Little House on the Prairie" days. I really love the sense of family, of working together, playing together. Although it would've been a lot of hard work and access to doctors was rare, I think it would've been a really simple time. No technology so thus not a lot of ignoring each other. Knowing how to sew your own clothes, cook from scratch, garden, farm. Be outdoors a lot. A simple, steady faith in God. Helping your neighbours out (even if they were miles away) was something you didn't even think twice about.
What's the last book you read and what was it about? I just finished "Behind the Veil", the 3rd and last book in the Royal Pavilions series by Linda Chaikin. She is one of my favourite Historical/Christian/Romance/Mystery/Fiction authors. The series is from the days of the crusades, and the books contain a lot of sword fights and "intrigue".
How did you meet your significant other? I met my hubby when we both started working at a new Tim Horton's that opened up in our town. We actually didn't work a lot of the same shifts, but enough that we started to get to know each other a little. At first we didn't express any of the interest we had in each other, because I am two years older, and when you're 18 and 16, that seems like a big difference, lol! Also I was dating someone else at the time. He was secretly very happy when that relationship ended. We started to get together as friends, sometimes with other people, and eventually he asked me out :)
What's the best way to get on your good side? Chocolate! And I really appreciate it when people listen to me and take me seriously. Here's another good piece of advice I was given, by a teacher back in highschool: when you ask how someone is doing, ask sincerely and then really listen to their answer. This stuck with me and I try not to do the frivolous "hi how are you" thing. So you get on my good side if you genuinely ask me how I am and then take the time to listen. Bonus points if next time I see you, you remember what I said! But I do also accept gifts of chocolate :D
What's your favourite thing to do on a Saturday morning? Sleep in with my hubby!!!
If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be? When I think of all the natural disasters, I think I might actually stay right where I am. Yes, we have minimum 5 months of snow, cold, wind, ice, and blizzards, but at least we don't have tsunamis, hurricanes, earthquakes, etc, and only occasional, not very severe, tornadoes.
What has been your favourite "adoption moment" so far? I think I will sum this answer up and say it is all the sweet things people have said to us. All the congratulations, the "you'll be a good mom" comments, the "I'm praying for you" encouragements, etc. Every one of these kind words tells me that people are thinking of us, remaining hopeful even when we lose hope, want the best for us, and are excited for us.
What would your family pet say to you if they could talk? Last year we gave away our cat, my Smacky baby, of 7 years, to my brother and sis-in-law. So I hope he'd say "I miss you, Mom!"
What is the airspeed velocity of a laden swallow? Sorry, Kristen, I have no idea what this means. A movie quote, I'm guessing?

Here are the 11 questions from the second person who nominated me, Ethan from The Littlest Brooks-Livingston:

What’s one of the songs in your current Ipod / cd player / Pandora rotation and why do you like it? Turning on my iPod, the first song that shows up is "Manger Medley" by David Phelps from his album Joy, Joy. Yes, I've been listening to Christmas music! Why do I like this song? Because I love pretty much anything by David Phelps :)
What is one thing you’re deathly afraid of? I could put Kristen's answer #8 verbatim into this one! But also, well, they have 8 legs and they're not octopuses - but they're almost as big!
Who makes you laugh? Almost anyone - I laugh pretty easily! My father-in-law is usually the one to make me laugh til my face hurts, though.
Presuming you can cook, what’s your favorite thing to cook? I love to cook and I honestly don't know if I can come up with just one dish. I do really enjoy chopping vegetables though - there's something calming about it. And it's just fun to wield a chef's knife and pretend I'm a professional!
Describe your most embarrassing moment – if you’re anything like me, you might need it narrowed down – of 2013. I never can find an answer to this question! Perhaps it's because of my dad's advice (see above) to not waste time feeling embarrassed and stupid?? I know I do embarrass myself regularly; I just can't think of an example right now.
What’s the weirdest job task you’ve ever had? I don't know if I've had to do anything exceptionally weird. I've really only had 3 main jobs in my life time (coffee shop, grocery store, fishing lodge). One thing we had no choice but to do at the fishing lodge, even though it wasn't directly part of the job, was clear mice out of our cabin regularly. Hubby & I had one tiny cabin that we lived in for about 4 months, and it had a lot of mice. In the toilet, falling from the ceiling... In the night the trap would always go off and I'd wake Hubby up to go dump the mouse outside and reset it.
What’s one parenting moment you’re looking forward to most? Just one? :) Perhaps Baby falling asleep contentedly in my arms. But I am also looking forward to simply everyday life as a family.
Would you rather have a wand or a light saber? I'd rather not have either, thanks anyway, Ethan!
What book is on your nightstand? I currently have 3 on my nightstand - my Bible (currently reading), "Eternal Security" by Charles Stanley (currently reading), and "The Terrible Hours" by Peter Maas (done reading).
What childhood moment will you try to recreate with your child(ren)? The childhood memory I have that I hoped my child(ren) would have is playing with cousins, but as life's turning out, my child(ren)'s cousins will be a lot older than they. So maybe just using their imagination and being creative.
(Stealing this one from Kristen): What’s your favorite adoption moment so far? As this was "stolen" from Kristen :) I have already answered it (see above).

Now to nominate 11 wonderful bloggers who have brought a little sunshine to my life. (I will just do 11 bloggers and 11 questions, even though I have been nominated twice.)

B&B and The Big Decision
Grafting Our Family Tree
Jim and Amy Hoping to Adopt
Waiting for Baby
Unexpected Dreams
Until Forever...
In Due Time
Seeds of the Heart
Love, Matt and Kara
Trying for a Baby (Adopting)
Our Adoption Story

What do you see when you look out your window right now?
Who would you love to be able to have a conversation with again right now?
Are you more inclined to pick a sweet snack or a salty snack?
What's one of the most thought-provoking things you've heard or read lately?
Are you a cat person or a dog person?
If you could pick one character trait for your child to develop, what would it be?
Are you more content doing nothing or being busy?
What is something you would like to change about how many people view adoption/loss/infertility?
What's your favourite restaurant and why?
When it comes down to it, what/who is all that really matters to you?
If you won the lottery, what's one thing you'd spend money on that people would think you were slightly crazy for doing?