Blogger award!

It is hard to believe I have only been blogging since January and I already have followers AND I just received a blog award from Carol!  So I am supposed to tell 7 things about myself and post 15 blogs I love.  Yikes.

Things you don't know about me.  Hmmm..
1.  I grew up in northern New England.  Surprisingly I never obtained the thick accent (was obsessed with pronunciation) so I wasn't made fun of nearly as badly as my brother when I moved to Ohio as a mid-teen.

2. I am a cat person.  I like dogs but I love cats.  I have 3 indoor cats and 2 barn cats.  The job of the barn cats is to kill things, the job of the indoor cats is to entertain me (since they don't kill mice) and thus are pestered very regularly.

3. One of my indoor cats plays fetch and when he is on a kick will be very annoyingly insistent on my participation.  The other cats just like to chase the toys.

4. I have been riding since I was 14 but didn't take a single lesson until I was in my mid 20's because I couldn't afford them.  Learned everything from books, videos and friends.

5. I went from barrel racing/trail riding to bareback trail riding for three years in my late teens because I outgrew my saddle but still wanted to ride.  Bareback riding is phenomenal for balance and strength.  When I could finally afford a saddle I ended up with a cheap english saddle so I started jumping.

6. I am a bit of a nerd even though I don't like to admit it.  And will actively hide a lot of my nerd tendencies.

7. I follow over 60 blogs, most are anonymous though.  And I rarely comment, which is bad, but LOVE to follow everyone and check in at least once every day to see who has updated a blog.  Sometimes several times a day.

For 15 blogs that I are my favorite, hmmm.

1. Eventing a Gogo  I've followed Gogo's saga for almost 3 years and am crushed by Gogo's passing.
2. For The TWH  I follow the page on Facebook too, I hate the "accepted" practices of the TWH
3. Coupons, Deals and More I like her because she shares the ways she saves $$.  I love that.
4. Rogo  I just started following her and enjoy reading her progress and thoughts on dressage.
5. Denali  I have been following Denali for almost 2 years and love reading her updates
6. Boyfriend He is hilarious, I love reading him talk about Mother and his beloved cookies
7. Chrome, Faran and Zep A good training log as she clicker trains her horses and donkey
8. Nuzzling Muzzles  Another blog I have followed for over 2 years. Great stories about her crazy neighbors
9. Pia  A horse with wobbles is becoming a fantastic all-around horse at summer camp
10. Mikey Hilarious stories from the desert, no idea how she keeps the chaos together every day
11. Shame in the Show Ring  Another great blog to combat stupidity/abuse in the show ring
12. Fugly/Mugly Another great blog to combat stupidity/abuse, now with less abrasiveness
13. Blog of Becky  Hilarious.  Absolutely hilarious stories.
14. Jumping Percheron  Love people/horses who do things despite their horse not being "made" for it
15. Sprinklerbandit Yet another blog that I follow because I like the writing and progress

So I found picking the top 15 out of my blogs was really hard!  Hopefully you know of everyone and, if not, you will check them out.  Wahoo!  First award down!