A blog award!

The pressure is really on. I now have to try to live up to this nomination, and all the nice things said about my little blog. Emily at Gabriel's Heart has nominated Indoprism for a Thinking Blog Award! I don't think it is deserved, as I feel like mostly what I do on the blog is regurgitate a description of our activities rather than provide much thought or insight into Indonesia. I still hope that I will do more of that in the future, once I stop doing so many "activities" (ie errands) and start really SEEING this new culture and this new country rather than just the stores and my back yard. In any case, I do feel oh so happy with the nomination and will try to live up to the generous words written by Emily - thank you!

I feel the need to let you in on a little secret though. Emily has been my friend since I was 8 years old. 8 years old! I can hardly believe it. I have only one other friend who I have known so long, my friend L with whom I went to kindergarten and with whom I have kept in touch throughout our school years and beyond. I love having friends in my life who I have known for so long. Anyway, you should check out both Gabriel's Heart and it's sister blog, Emily's original blog, Lovely and Amazing. Her writing is amazing and her ability to put her thoughts and emotions into such honest and beautiful words is supreme. I hardly think I'm energetic in the least compared to what she accomplishes in her life.

So, as the rules require, I am to nominate 5 other blogs for a Thinking Blog Award. Again, I have to tell you a secret, I don't read that many blogs. I enjoy them, but they are so time consuming and I just don't love spending a lot of time in front of a computer. I mostly just read my friends' blogs, plus a couple others I have discovered along the way. I am on the lookout for any other blogs written by parents living abroad though, so if you know of any good ones, please share them with me.

On to the nominations:

1) I don't remember how I came across this one, but I love hearing the words of another mom experiencing life abroad. Emilie of The Flame Tree lives in Kenya, and is truly a gifted writer. She is so adept at providing both insights into Kenya and telling stories about her family, all in beautiful words and ideas that naturally flow from one to another. She also includes poems or other writings to give the blog even more melody and color. I love reading about her experiences abroad, especially in Africa which I miss so much sometimes. All of her posts are worthy, but both Weeks Pass and Intersections are fine examples of what I described.

2) Another very well written blog is Iowadrift, although with a recent move to Massachusetts I wonder if she will change the name... I don't know her, but I do enjoy her writing style and have enjoyed what she says since discovering it. She has also worked abroad and I'm sure that's part of the connection. Her 2 posts about her recent trip to Mali, Mali and Encore Mali got me hooked for the long haul.

3) This nomination is probably not original in the least, as it is a very well-known blog and has probably been nominated and shared many times. But, it is one of my favorites and if you haven't been fortunate enough to discover it yet, then please realize you have just found a four leaf clover. Heather at dooce is one of the funniest and wittiest women I have heard. She is so witty and so gifted at story telling that she is able to earn her living through her blog alone. I laugh at loud at almost every post. The post A Labor Story is the one that hooked me and is still probably my favorite. It is long, but it will make you laugh and may even make you cry. I think it should be required reading for every pregnant woman, and forbidden reading for every woman who has never been pregnant but may be someday. There are reasons why women don't describe labor in such detail - we want to trap you all first! I can relate to A LOT of what she wrote, based on C's birth.

4) My next nomination is for a friend's blog, Mistersugar. This is a somewhat personal nomination, as I mostly like to check in on what my friend and his family are doing. I also like reading about places and events in the triangle area of NC, where I did my graduate program. But he is also a good writer and is full of interesting links and information about things or people I know nothing about. And talk about energy! I don't know where he finds the time to work full-time, be such an engaged husband and father, and do all the extracurricular activities he describes in his blog.

5) My final nomination is again for a friend's blog, Gabriel's Kazoo. I'm just so happy she's writing again after a 4 month hiatus, I had to nominate her! I mostly enjoy finding out what she and her family are doing, but she is also a talented writer and she continuously impresses me with managing both medical school and new parenthood at the same time! Welcome back C! Howdeedo is her post where she resurfaces from what I'm sure was a grueling last few months of medical school.


And so there ya go, consider yourselves nominated!