Blog Award Thanks and a GIVEAWAY!!

Happy Wednesday!! I hope you are having a great week so far!! I am so late in thanking some people for blog awards and I sincerely apologize.

First, I would like to thank my sweet friend Alessia from A Casa di Ale for gifting me with the Premio Dardos!! This award was invented by the Spanish writer Alberto Zambade in 2008. "This is recognition for every blogger for his commitment to transmit cultural, ethical, literary and personal." I am so honored!! Thank you again, Alessia!!

Next, I would like to thank several dear friends for giving me the Sunshine Blogger Award (in the order the award was received):

Shirl - Creations by Shirl
Lee-Ann – Snappy Scraps

Kathy – 3 Spoiled Dogs and a Cricut

Karon – Karon's Krafty Korner

Moni – Crafty Moni

Naomi – Creative Bug on the Loose

Kristan – Babycakes

Thank you so much!! I appreciate it and am so honored that you thought of me!!

Now for the rules:

1. Include award logo in blog post and thank the blogger who gave it to you & include a link back.
2. Answer 10 questions about yourself that you have made up.

So here are the ten questions about me...

1) How did I get started crafting?
I used to watch all the crafting shows DIY and HGTV used to air...I first saw Tim Holtz on the Carol Duvall Show.

2) Favorite craft products?
I have so many, but to narrow it down, I am completely hooked on Spellbinders. My goal is to own every single set :) I also love all Tim Holtz products, especially his stamps, dies and inks.

3) Crafting tool I use on a daily basis?
My Tim Holtz retractable craft pick. It can be used for so many things. My craft area might be a mess, and I can never find anything I need, but I always know where my craft pick is :)

4) Hobbies outside of crafting #1?
I am a voracious reader. I average about three books a week. It would be a toss-up which I love more...craft stores or book stores. I could spend hours in both.

5) Hobbies outside of crafting #2?
I love exercise. I try to get in two 45 minute workouts a day, once in the morning and once at night. I treated myself to a NordicTrack treadmill for Christmas on Black Friday and have already put it to good use.

6) Hobbies outside of crafting #3?
I love to travel. Three more states and I'll have my bucket list item crossed off of visiting all 50. Another bucket item is all seven continents, and I still have four to go.

7) Strangest thing that's ever happened to me?
I once found a leg in the middle of the road.

8) Oh wait, you want to know more about the leg??!! Okay, a friend and I were driving, we rounded a curve and there was something lying in the middle of the road. He swerved to avoid it and then we looked at each other and asked, "was that a leg??" at the same time. We drive a few feet and off to the side of the road was a man standing beside his motorcycle with, you guessed it, one leg. So we turned around as soon as we could, drove back to the leg and I got out and picked it up. We drove up to him and he was so thankful. Both of his legs were prosthetic and he couldn't balance the bike and pick up his other leg, so he didn't know what to do. He had just received a new set of legs the day before and they didn't fit properly.

8) Second strangest thing that's happened to me?
A few years ago, I took my mom to a doctor's appointment. I waited for her in the car and I happened to look up and out the doors of the hospital, a girl in a white gown came running out barefoot, her long black hair flying behind her like a cape. She was trying to hold the gown together and run as fast as she could. She crossed four lanes of traffic without looking back. A few seconds later, a cop came running out, looking all around for her. He saw me, came and asked me if I had seen the girl, and I told him which direction she ran. It turns out, she was wanted for several crimes, including a police chase in which she crashed, and she fled while being treated. They eventually found her hours later but I have no idea what happened with the charges against her.

9) Biggest pet peeve?
Inconsiderate people.

10) Life goal?
I want to live on the ocean. I don't care which ocean, but I feel at peace when I can hear the waves crashing and smell the salt in the air. Must be the mermaid in me :)

Thank you again Alessia, Shirl, Lee-Ann, Kathy, Karon, Moni, Naomi and Kristan!! I hope you will visit all of their blogs to see their amazing projects!! They are all fabulously talented but more important, wonderful people and I'm thankful to call them friends!!

You are supposed to pass the Sunshine Award along to 10-12 people, and 15 for the Dardos Award, but I want to pass both along to all of my followers. I am so thankful for each one of you!! Please add these to your blog with my best wishes :)

Now for the reason you are here...a GIVEAWAY!! Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, so I wanted to give one of my dear followers a little Christmas gift from me :)

I am giving away a set of Spellbinders Cherry Blossoms dies, and a Amy Tangerine 6x6 paper stack. All you have to do to be eligible to win is:

1. Be a follower of my blog
2. Leave a comment with a way to contact you

That's it!! No hoops to jump through to be eligible to win. You can earn a second entry for posting about this, either on your blog sidebar, a blog post or on Facebook. If you do, please leave an extra comment so I will know...that means 2 chances total to win.

The winner will be announced on twelve, twenty, twenty-twelve (I love saying that!!) 12/20/2012.

Thanks so much for stopping by today and good luck!!