Today is a good day, the first email I opened this morning was a note from a fellow blogger sharing a little surprise. Lisa from Lisa Goulet Design awarded The I.Design Box with the Stylish Blogger Award! Fabulous! …

It especially felt great to receive this award because I really admire Lisa’s blog. She has a great eye for style and she writes in a thoughtful way that makes her blog interesting.

When receiving this award the rules are to:

1. Thank and link back to the person giving you this award
2. Share 7 things about yourself
3. Pay the award forward to 10 great bloggers
4. Contact those 10 bloggers & let them know they won the award

Okay, now for the seven things about me. Yikes! This is personal… but still fun.

1) I love animals! Obviously because at one time we had four pets: Lacey (14 year old cat), Jackson (13 year old dog), Pika (5 year old dog), and Leroy (4 year old cat). Unfortunately in 2010 we lost Lacey and Jackson to cancer. We still have a lot of fun with Pika and Leroy though. Check out this video of them that I shot with my iPhone the other night. It’s posted on YouTube at: Pika vs. Leroy

2) My heart and soul can be found wandering around the mountains… this is where I feel at home. My honey and I spend a lot of time camping, hiking, biking, and skiing in the great Rockies that are outside our back door in sunny Colorado. This is me and Jackson taking in the scenery in southern Colorado…

Now that winter is here I love skiing too. Here I am on a back country hut trip near Vail pass. It was oh so peaceful that day…

3) I’m a wanna-be DIYer. Some of my projects work swimmingly and others… not so much. One of the projects I’m most proud of was a kitchen make-over I did (with the help of my Dad) in my old place in Denver.

 4) I’m an avid cyclist. I learned to ride a bike at a very young age (once again with the help of my Dad) and it is still my first passion when it comes to outdoor activities. My first choice is to jump on the road bike but I also really enjoy mountain biking (as long as the trail isn’t uber-technical and difficult).

5) My favorite Christmas gift this year was the Kindle. My honey gave it to me and I love it! Just finished “Unbroken: A WWII Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption” and it was an amazing book.

6) My brain never seems to stop and some of the random thoughts that can be heard going through my head include, “Why oh why do people serve their dinner party guests out of Tupperware?”… “What is it about being post 35 that makes that soft layer so hard to lose?”… “I want to be outside instead of sitting at my desk.”… “Why would the builder put that there? (i.e. light switches in the middle of the wall, dining room light fixtures that are off center, etc.) … “I really really don’t like mini blinds” … “If I won the lottery I would….” well you know how the story goes.

7) I enjoy starting the day very early in the morning and watching the sun hit the face of the foothills outside the front of our house. They turn the most wonderful shade of pink at just the right time of day. All is quiet and my coffee tastes divine. This is when I have my greatest inspirations.

Now I am fortunate to pass this award along to ten other very stylish bloggers. Be sure to pay them a visit too!

1. Colour Me Happy
2. AtticMag
3. Veranda Interiors
4. The Lettered Cottage
5. Pure Style Home
6. Bryn Alexandra
7. Centsational Girl
8. Little Green Notebook
9. Good Life of Design
10. Razmataz