grateful | But I Smile Anyway...

The Real Neat Blog Award

13 Apr 2015 28 Comments

by Ritu in Awards Tags: Award, Blog, Blog Post, Blogger, Blogging, grateful, Real Neat Blog Award, Thankful

It appears to be that time again…! This time the lovely Akanksha has nominated me! Thank you so much dear, all wards are much appreciated! 🙂

The rules for the award go like this:

Insert the award logo onto your post.
Answer the seven questions they asked you.
Thank the blogger who nominated you.
Nominate other bloggers and ask them seven questions and let them know you’ve nominated them!

So, logo set, thanks have been extended, now for the question and answers!
My questions to answer are:

1. Which is the last book you read?

Gifted and Talented by Wendy Holden – I like a bit of easy reading, and I like Wendy Holden’s books!

2. When’s your birthday?
3rd September, a Virgo!

3. A place you’ve always wanted to visit.
The Taj Mahal… I’ve been so close, but never actually there!

4. “Kyunki soch kabhi bhi aa sakti hai.” What’s the wackiest place you’ve made a life changing decision in?
OMG! I don’t know! The Toilet??!

5. 2 am party with friends or a 2 am date with coffee and Netflix?
Nowadays it would be 2am, in bed, fast asleep!

6. Your favorite outfit. (Please post a picture in that, please?)

I love wearing my Indian outfits! Here is a quick pic of one! 20140627_114112 7. What’s the one thing you’ve tried plenty of times but have always failed at?
To grow up!!

My Nominees
One Sip At A Time A new blog I’ve started following recently
Single Family Asylum Oh he makes me laugh!
Learning Web Development I’ve learned a lot from this NEAT blog!
The Return Of the Modern Philosopher Austin… a funny guy with a great blog!

My Questions to my Nominees
1) Love or money?
2) Where would you ideally love to live?
3) Real book or electronic device like a Kindle?
4) Who is your biggest inspiration?
5) Do you have a pet?
6) How important is family to you?
7) What has been your best ever blogging day?

Please don’t feel obliged to accept and take part, its just a little fun, but I appreciate you r blogs, whichis why I have nominated them! 😀

Rob!!! I think I’m gonna need that pinny now!!!

So…why do I accept awards…?

23 Mar 2015 51 Comments

by Ritu in Awards Tags: Accepting Awards, Blog, Blog Post, Blogger, Blogging, grateful, Promotion, Thankful

… and more importantly, why do I appear to accept the same award on more than one occasion from different bloggers?

I know lots of bloggers won’t do it… many won’t accept them formally after a few, as it may seem like a tedious process, sometimes, answering questions, and then linking blogs, oh then notifying those you have nominated…

And initially, I thought the same… OMG! This is taking forever! I need the PC, can’t do this on my iPad or phone with any great ease!

But then I thought, actually…

A) It’s fun!

B) I learn a lot about other bloggers by reading their responses.

C) My readers get a closer insight into my world, with every set of questions I answer, or every set of facts I reveal

D) There is someone out there in the Blogosphere who enjoyed my blog enough to want to nominate me and I am THANKFUL!!!!

E) If nothing else, I can give a new blogger, or someone I admire, a bit of promotion! Hey, I’m not up there with the BIG GUYS with thousands of followers, but my 465(ish!) are great and they love to click on new blogs, and find amazing reads they hadn’t encountered before!

So, if anyone rolls their eyes at me, as I accept another award, think of those who I have nominated, and the fact that we were all there once, as newbies… and that first award nomination is priceless, and the encouragement that it shouts out to someone is huge!

The Very Inspiring Blogger Award

14 Feb 2015 16 Comments

by Ritu in Awards Tags: Award, Blog, Blog Post, Blogging, grateful, Thankful, VEry Inspiring Blogger Award

14-2-15

Firstly a massive thank you to K Bailey at After Midnight:A Christian Bipolar for the nomination of this award.

Display the award on your blog.
Link back to the person who nominated you.
State 7 things about yourself.
Nominate 15 bloggers, link to them, and notify them about their nominations.

So, I’ve done 1 and 2… and I must say a huge thank you to my nominator, as it is a privilege and honour to be thought of as inspiring, jut by even one person! so Thank you again! (That’s 3 times I’ve said it now lol!)

7 things about me.. this gets harder every time I get awards… what to find to tell you all that I might not have mentioned before..?

1) Being from a Sikh family that lived in Kenya, I was unaware that half of the Punjabi I spoke was actually a mishmash of Punjabi and Swahili! I found out at university when my fellow Punjabi speaking students looked at me like I was mad when I said certain things. Upon clarification from my dear mum, I realised I had in fact been speaking gobble di gook to them!

2) My Hubby Dearest is my toy boy! Well, you’re only as young as the man you feel, isn’t that what they say! 😉

3) I swam with dolphins in Jamaica, what an amazing experience!

4) My mum went to university with Mary Berry! (but a couple of years below her!)

5) At university, I was a finalist in the Miss Moonlighting Beauty contest! could have won a trip to a Caribbean Island as the prize, but I was too scared to go to the final! (We were at the venue where the contest was held by chance and I got picked!)

6) I caught chicken Pox on my 3rd birthday. What a great present!

7) I suffer from PCOS and my children are my two miracles. ❤

And now to the nominations… this is always hard, so I will attempt to find inspirational blogs for you!

(Looked for ages, and these 11 I am highlighting, are blogs I find inspirational to read)

Kunal Rane
Rachel Being Chatty
Confessions of an Addict
Wasted Days and Wasted Nights
Window With a View
10 Years a Single Mom
A Momma’s View
Mumz The Word
Blackbird’s Nest
Shaun L. Bird
Innerdragon

Thank you once again for the nomination, and I hope anyone reading visits and enjoys the musings of my nominees!

Presents

05 Jan 2015 Leave a comment

by Ritu in Thoughts Opinions & Memories Tags: grateful, meanings, Presents, simple

Christmas has passed, and that is the main time many exchange gifts, aside from birthdays obviously!

Now family and friends are one thing. You usually have a clue… Or they do, as to what to give you, or what you should give them.
Granted, it doesn’t always work, but most of the time, you come away happy.

But sometimes, it’s hard to know how to respond to certain gifts…

Christmas 2014 school booty!!

I work in a school, and Christmas, Easter and End of Year bring lots of lovely, much appreciated things… Mainly chocolate, alcohol, jewellery, a few nik naks, pens, keychains, that sort of thing. Over the years, I’ve had amazing things too, personalised gifts, handmade items, they do mean so much! I’ve also had the obviously last minute, ‘damn, I forgot to give the teacher something, this’ll do’ kinda gifts, like out of date chocolate.

Then you get gifts from people, because they ‘have to’… Like your boss, or management. This year my colleagues got beautiful gift sets, hand creams, and smelliest, that sort of thing… I got a ‘Simple’ skincare set… I’m not ungrateful, at all, but…

I don’t wear makeup to work, not particularly glam in many ways especially on a day to day basis, so do I take this as a compliment, that I am not complex, and my skin is so wonderful, I need no more than ‘Simple’… I don’t smell so don’t need smellies…

Is that what they think I am?? Simple??

Go figure…!