Oh my, an award!!

A view of Atlanta's downtown skyline ... with a rare addition to the ground cover!

Good morning, everyone, from freeeeeeezing (16 degrees) and ice-glazed, snow-dusted Atlanta, where we are so not used to dealing with this!!!  BRRRR!!!

As always, a cup of coffee and a visit to some of my favorite blogs started me off on the right foot -- I should say the right fashionably-clad, fit and well-fed foot.  My blogroll is chock full of JCA's, but in the wake of Julie & Julia and the holiday season I've been adding a few cooking and baking blogs, and of course I follow my most beloved fitness instructors' blogs as well.  To be a proper online guest, I really should sit down at my computer dressed in a fetching workout ensemble accessorized with great J. Crew jewelry, with one perfectly-brewed serving of coffee in a bone china cup on the rim of which is perched one perfectly-made gourmet breakfast scone.

Hold onto that image, friends.  Naturally, that is exactly what I usually look like sitting here.  Do not picture me, hair thrown up on my head like Pebbles Flintstone, sprawled in my comfy leather office chair this late in the morning in a UNC sweatshirt over candy-cane-decorated thermal jammies and fuzzy red 'n white Victoria's Secret snowflake slippers (yeah, I'm slow putting away the holiday garb, I know.)  I plead total inertia and I blame it on ice and cold and snowy dust, which in the ATL equals immobilized city.

So, you got the right pic of me in your minds, right?  Super, because yours truly was given the prized Beautiful Blogger award by one of my blog heroes, the always-wonderful Fabulous Florida Mommy!  Thank you so much, FFM!  It's a wonderful award, and especially nice to receive it from you!

To accept this award I need to tell you 7 random things about me, and then nominate 7 of my favorite bloggers to receive the same award.  Cool.  Here ya go, inquiring minds!

•  My parents nicknamed me "Kathy" when I was born (short for Kathryn), but I don't remember a single time in my entire life that either of them called me Kathy.  They had other pet names for me.  My dad's favorite was Kas -- pronounced like "Cass" -- and my mom's fave was Katie. Even my sister never called me Kathy (she did, and does, call me "Sister".)  Being the good girl that I was, for years I only introduced myself as "Kathy", as instructed.  Imagine how confusing this was to new friends who visited me at home!  As an adult I still introduce myself as Kathy, but sometimes I share this oddball naming tidbit from my past with my friends, and as a result one whole group of friends has chosen to call me "Kas."  Another group has made up a whole new nickname of their own and only call me "Kath."  By the way, my DH calls me Kathryn or Kath -- NEVER Kathy.  I'll answer to anything if you're holding movie theater popcorn for me.
  

• I'm a seriously addicted fan of everything Star Trek and own the entire 7-year box set of ST: The Next Generation.  You could strand me with Patrick Stewart and I'd be a happy castaway.

• I have watched and adored Days of Our Lives since I was in college.  Of course I missed a few years pre-VCR/pre-TiVO, when I was a full-time working mother of two busy boys.  But in the soap opera universe time is a weirdly fluid kinda thing, so when I was able to start taping the show I caught up in no time.  Now I TiVo the whole week and on the weekend I cruise through all five episodes in about 45 minutes.  A real guilty pleasure.

•  If Journey Boy (DS #1) had been a girl, we were going to name him Caroline.  His girlfriend of almost four years is named Caroline.  I consider this cosmic.

• If I'd been a boy, my parents were going to name me Kevin.  I wanted to name Blues Boy (DS #2) Kevin.  For months DH said no (and it was always more like "HELL NO", actually), but he was strangely dodgey about telling me why, so I kept trying to persuade him.  Finally he confessed that the only wrestling match he lost in his stellar high school career was to a guy named Kevin. 'Nuff said.  I didn't entirely lose the war, though; hearing me tell the story of why NOT "Kevin", my paralegal said to me "Well, why don't you name him 'Evan'?"  Eureka.  We did.  Close enough.

• I looooove spinning and take a class on Tuesday and Thursday nights at 6:00.  One of my secret (except to you ;-)) 2010 goals is to become certified to teach spinning myself.

• My taste in music is kinda all over the map.  I love 70's and 80's music (you could also strand me with Jon Bon Jovi, actually -- I'd never wanna be rescued.)  But I also like me a little country (Carrie Underwood, Martina McBride, Sugarland, a little bit of Brad Paisley and Willie Nelson, and I highly recommend you check out Billy Currington's "People are Crazy" for a classically country hoot 'n a holler.)  And I'm a big fan of Usher and Kanye.
  

Okay, fangirls, that does it for my mini-autobiography. Now I'd like to pass along this award to seven terrific bloggers, some of whom y'all might not know.  Not in any particular order...

• The Brownie Project  -- An awesome, awesome blog devoted to one of my favorite food groups.
• Mid-Century Mom -- The nom de plume of the beautiful DinaGideon, who in my book would give June Cleaver a serious run for the money as Most Elegant, Effortless & Ethereally Pretty Homemaker.
• Jillian, Inc. -- A recently-discovered new favorite; an Atlanta JCA gal like me who is gorgeous, well-dressed, devoted to her equally gorgeous family and very, very witty.
• Dinners for a Year and Beyond -- A gold mine of great recipes and a delightful cook/author.
• Smells Like Home -- Another foodie blog that I really love, devoted mostly if not entirely to Ina Garten (Barefoot Contessa) recipes -- and I always love Ina's food!  Beautiful pictures that you just wanna take a bite out of.  Great stuff.
• My Favorite Things -- Love this blog, love this gal.  Read about what she accomplished in 2009.  And she's a big fan of LOST -- me too, girl, me too. :-)
• Tracey's Blog -- The blog home of my friend Tracey Staehle, who is a truly wonderful gal.  She's a fitness instructor who has been producing fitness videos for a few years (see her website, Fit by Tracey) and she's the proud new mommy of the beautiful Scarlett Olivia Staehle.  If you own a treadmill, you MUST buy Tracey's "Walking Strong" DVD and you MUST preorder her just-filmed "Walking Stronger."  She makes walking on a treadmill hard, productive and fun.  A party in a package.

Happy Friday, everybody!  Stay warm and have a nice weekend.  Blues Boy leaves to go back to college on Sunday morning so we'll be doing Fun Things With the Family for the next two days.  See you soon!