Loveliness all around.

Despite the sadness of saying goodbye to my family, I was pleased to have the chance to return to the bloggie world. I spent the best part of yesterday afternoon at the computer, sipping tea, nibbling biscuits, and catching up on all of your stories. Lovely. 

And speaking of lovely ... I am honored to find out that I was given this award by the sweet yet feisty EmHart of Follow Every Rainbow. Our relationship goes all the way back to the 732nd Issue of Lost and Found and Connections Abound, in which our then-brand-spanking-new blogs were listed. (Was that really only two months ago?) She is the girl who makes me feel like learning how to wield a pair of needles and a ball of wool so I can join her for weekly knitting sessions in the local pub – my pint-wielding skills having already been acquired – and if you read this post, you will see why I love her writing so much: you can get lost reading her passionate and thoughtful ideas about difficult and painful topics, and then the surprise laugh at the end pulls you right into a world full of mischief and glee as colorful as the rainbows she treasures so much. (This post is a bit of an exception, though. Usually her surprise laughs are sprinkled throughout.)

Here's the five-step process to follow after being given this award: 

• Share who gave it to you with a link back to their blog.
• Write down seven random facts about yourself.
• Give this award to fifteen other bloggers.
• Let them know they've won.
• Pop the award on your blog.

Step One has already been checked off, so onto Step Two. Seven random facts about me:

• I spent most of my pre-Switzerland life in the US, but I'm English by birth and by background. 
• I don't have a middle name, common among the English but often perplexing to the Americans, who expect that there should be something in the middle. (My library had to have some kind of placeholder there to put me into the system – not having a middle name was not an option – so they added "NMI" (no middle initial). Once, when I didn't have my card, the librarian looked me up by name. My first and last names are fairly common, so she asked what my middle inital was. NMI, I told her. Clearly not familiar with the system's demands, she was very impressed that I had three.) 
• The universities where I studied for my bachelor's degree and a graduate degree are cross-town rivals. People frequently wonder where my loyalties lie. Since my heart belongs to my undergraduate institution, home of the Pandas (or so I'll call them), my best response is, "Koala for three years, Panda for life." 
• I have large pupils so my eyes are really sensitive to sunlight. 
• And since we're on the subject of eyes, I had terrible vision until a few years ago when I treated myself to corrective surgery, one of the best presents I have ever given myself. 
• For a while after having had that surgery, I found it really difficult to relax in the evenings. Why? Because my end-of-the-day ritual involved pouring a glass of wine, changing into something more comfortable, and taking out my contact lenses. Without that last step, I didn't feel like I could truly unwind. 
• I loved to write short stories and poems, all of the teenage-angst-ish variety, when I was younger but haven't written creatively for fifteen or so years. As much as I regret the reasons behind my writing here, I am very appreciative of the opportunity I've been given to once again pick up the pen (figuratively speaking, anyway), as well as to connect with all of you through it.

And now for Step Three, passing the award along to other bloggers. It's difficult to choose among the ever-growing number that I read, because each is lovely and thus worthwhile and worthy. Even so, instead of listing fifteen, I'll pass it to half of that number (rounding down, since seven is a most bewitching prime number) but make up for it by presenting a little explanation of why I chose each. In no particular order:

• Bethany at [BeCaME], because each of her posts is like poetry, and she uses beautiful imagery that often hints at the facts without telling them outright. Even the visual presentation of her written words on the screen is artful.  
• Ann at The Infertile Optimist, because she really is an optimist. Even when she speaks of her sorrow and longing, there is a lovely light that shines through in her words.
• Daryl at Something Out of Nothing, for her monthly poems, including three recent heartstring-tugging haikus that convey so much in so few syllables, and for her tag "balls."
• Kristin, the erstwhile CrunchyK, at Return to Go, for her honesty, openness, and sly irreverent humor (try to read phrases like "walk around trailing a vagcam and ultrasound machine" without giggling ... or wondering if it's actually possible to get a permanent hook-up like that).
• ~Maria at From Gutter to Stars, because her posts from the perspective of an infertility therapist who has herself been through that particular wringer are always insightful, supportive, and encouraging.
• Stephanie, who I will try to stop thinking of as Ess, at Good Luck – Try Again, because her posts truly show her infectious dance-loving spirit, and because her tone is so inviting, as if she were just hanging out with her girlfriends.
• Ed at Things People Said After My Miscarriage, because if you couldn't laugh about those things, you'd cry.

And now I'm off to take care of Steps Four and Five.