As part of the “Over the Top” Blog Award that Tonya honored me with, I am passing the award on to six blogs that I feel are “Over the Top”.  I posted the first three yesterday, so it’s time now to reveal the next three.

And frankly this was a hard one, because there are so many wonderful blogs out there. But here are three more that I repeatedly come back to to learn, to get refreshed, and to just make my life at home easier. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do:

First goes to work-at-home, homeschooling mom (of 2) Crystal Paine over at Money Saving Mom. Crystal generously shares her insights and tips on saving money at home, grocery deals, how to coupon shop, you name it.

She also shares insights into homeschooling, working-from-home, and my favorite – her baking/freezer cooking days. If you are at all interested in saving money, Crystal’s blog is a great one to follow.

Next up is another fellow work-at-home, homeschooling mom (to 3), Nancy Carter at Lesson from the Farm.

You may have read Nancy column in The Homeschool Minute, but her blog shows her heart even more. She blogs about homeschooling her 3 boys, life on their farm, and God’s blessings through her battle with fibromyalgia. 

For a little dose of country, a lot of inspiration as a mom, a dose of perspective when you are feeling down or tired, I recommend heading over to Nancy’s blog.

And lastly, but definitely not least, is yet another work-at-home, homeschooling mom (to 4), Lori Seaborg at Just Pure Lovely.com. 

Lori shares her beautiful photography, reflections, little bits of her life, and other thoughts on striving to mediate on those things that are Just, Pure, and Lovely.

I can sit and and get absorbed in the pictures and thoughts on Lori’s blog, losing track of time, and come away feeling soft, and centered, thinking about the beautiful parts of life that sometimes I overlook in my busy-ness. And for that I thank you Lori!

Also, Lori’s other blog FreelyEducate.com is a great place to find free homeschooling resources, if you are on a tight homeschooling budget.

So, that’s my 6 picks for the “Over the Top” blog award. I now pass it on to these ladies, and can’t wait to see who they pick.

Enjoy!

…Shannon

Crystal, Nancy, and Lori: If you are up to it, please share your answers to the 35 questions on your blog and pass the award on to 6  blogs you feel are “Over the Top”.  Here’s the example of how Tonya did it, and here’s my post of my answers to the questions.

Since Tonya awarded me with the “Over the Top” blog award, it’s now my responsibility (and honor) to pass it on to six blogs that I think are “Over the Top”.

And you know what? This is harder than one would think. So many of my readers and friends have such wonderful blogs, to pull out just six is well… difficult. But here goes…

Drum roll please….

First is fellow work-at-home, homeschooling mom (of 2), Elizabeth (aka FrazzledMom) over at Frazzled Mom’s Blog. Elizabeth shares beautiful pictures of her home decorating, garden, and yummy recipes, and shares her thoughts on being a mom, wife, and homemaker.

I was recently at Elizabeth’s house for a tea party and can attest first hand that she is as gracious as she appears on the blog and her home reflects it.

Elizabeth also has a homeschooling blog (you can find the link in her side bar.) which is worth visiting as well.

Next up is my friend and fellow homeschooling mom (of 5), Melissa over at SageGarden.org. Her tagline sums up her perspective, “Planting Scripture, Growing Wisdom”. 

Melissa blogs about what she’s reading, homeschooling, her thoughts and perspective, and little stories that reflect her heart.

In real life Melissa and I get together about once a month for 3 hours for coffee and sanity and I always feel refreshed afterwards. When I need a pick-me up in between, I head over to her blog for a bit of encouragement and perspective.

And third is another fellow work-at-home homeschooling mom (to 2), Jennifer Sikora at For Such A Time As This . Jennifer blogs about homeschooling, being a mom, and a wife; and shares wonderful photos of her family and yummy recipes.

She recently moved her recipes off to another blog, so that’s worth checking out too! Jennfier’s insights into marriage and being a wife always make me think and help me be accountable to my own goals as a wife.

So that’s the first three!  And Click here the post for the next three

….Shannon

Elizabeth, Melissa, and Jennifer: If you are up to it, please share your answers to the 35 questions on your blog and pass the award on to 6  blogs you feel are “Over the Top”.  Here’s the example of how Tonya did it, and here’s my post of my answers to the questions.

My friend Tonya over at Live the Adventure has made my year by honoring me with my first blog award!

Very cool. Now part of the deal with the blog award is that I have to answer these 35 (!) questions, so here goes:

1.Where is your cell phone: I have no idea. We no longer have cell phone service so it’s somewhere collecting dust.

2. Your hair: is dark brown with more and more gray streaks showing up each day

3. Your mother: is fun to talk to.

4. Your father: always has interesting advice.

5. Your favorite food: Fresh Fruit – satsuma, oranges, apples, plums (right off the tree!), strawberries, blueberries, blackberries (right off the vine!), grapes, oh Yum!

6. Your dream from last night: haven’t the faintest clue, but I could tell you my 5yo daughter’s

7. Your favorite drink: Caribou Coffee Mint Condition Mocha, but when all else fails – hot peppermint tea

8. Your dream/goal: to be a good mommy and wife, and to fulfill my vision of success

9. What room are you in: Office/Living Room

10. What is your hobby: writing, reading, gardening, taking pictures, traveling…(oh, was I supposed to list only one..how to choose..)

11. What is your fear: that someone will hurt my kids.

12. Where do you want to be in 6 years: Hmm…Enjoying my teenagers (they’ll be 18, 16, 14, and 12 then)

13. Where were you last night: at home

14. Something you are not: a lot of things.

15. Muffins: Chocolate Chocolate Chip (Yum!)

16. Wish List items: happiness for my husband, a ranch and horses for my younger daughter, a trip to Europe with and for my oldest daughter, Robotics for my 10 yo son, and the world for my 7 yo son who wants to be President.

17. Where did you grow up: The Redwood Forest, Humboldt County, CA

18. Last thing you did: Talked to my 12 yo daughter

19. What are you wearing: jeans and a colorful (and comfy) top

20. Your TV: is OFF

21. Your pets: My cat vacated the premises when the kids’ pets moved in <pout>. But in all the total pets in our house are 6 cats who allow us to live here, 1 very cute dog (my daughter’s), and 2 fish. 

22. Your friends: are wonderful.

23. Your life: is amazing.

24. Your mood: varies.

25. Missing someone: my youngest brother Cove

26. Vehicle: a mini-van that is dead. (My husband is graciously allowing me to use his mini-van on the days I need it)

27. Something you’re not wearing: socks

28. Your favorite store: any bookstore!

29. Your favorite color: Blue

30. When’s the last time you laughed: a few minutes ago

31. When’s the last time you cried: last weekend

32. Your best friend: is gracious and forgiving.

33. One place you go over and over: the grocery store

34. One person who emails me regularly: my friend Melissa

35. Favorite place to eat? Out – take your pick (Mongolian grill, Italian, TGIFridays, Fuddruckers, as long as it’s NOT fast food and has flavor!)

Now the second part of this is that I have to pass this award on to 6 other blogs. Oh that’s hard – especially since the first blog that I would choose and can’t is Tonya’s!

If you haven’t met Tonya, well, I recommend checking out her site. She and her family are a homeschooling family on the move – literally!

They are fullfilling one of my dreams, traveling around, homeschooling, in an RV. She blogs about their adventures  regularly over on her Live the Adventure blog.

But since I can’t give her back the award, I do have a 6 blogs that I love that I will be passing this on to over the next couple days. So be sure to come back and check out who I choose.

…Shannon

Update: Here’s the links to my six picks:

And the Award Goes To… (Part 1)

And the Award Goes To… (Part 2)