Thanks, Emily!

I got an award for the CHD blog... woo hoo! Ok, it's a blog award, but all the same, it counts! Fellow blogger Emily of Lovely and Amazing presented the CHD Blog I created with this lovely award:

1. You have to pick 5 blogs that you consider deserve this award for their creativity, design, interesting material, and that contribute to the blogging community, no matter what language.
2. Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his/her blog.
3. Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her/him the award itself.
4. The award winner and the one who has given the prize have to show the link of Arte y Pico blog, the origin of this award.
5. Post these rules.

So, ahem... speech!

I'd like to thank everyone who contributed to the CHD blog, and to those who actually took time to read it, even though you're not personally affected by CHD. I'd like to thank those who posted links, and sent stories. But the big thing is the amazing survivors I've been so honored to meet or share experiences with, the parents who've gone on after losing a child to CHD, the children who struggle every day to survive, the ones who no longer struggle but faced horrors in their past, and the adults who are paving the way into a new frontier of survival on the long-term. Thank you!

And onto the viral part of this award... Seeing as this weekend is all about celebrating moms, the chosen award winners are all superwomen in my book. Survivors, fighters, advocates and great moms. My nominees for the Arte y Pico award are (drumroll...)

• Whoa Camel! - Amanda's witty material never ceases to be entertaining, even when she's undertaking the battle of a lifetime against leukemia. I've admired her writing skills since I was a mere lass, and I've learned a lot about zombies from her. Her musings are a true work of art.
  
• Gabriel's Heart - although this is also authored by Emily, she officially gave me the award on Lovely and Amazing, so I can legally do this. Her son has TGA (same brand o' defect as Sadie) and her site is creative, insightful, has gorgeous photos, is fresh, clever and fun.
• Home of the Four Trans - Beautifully designed, well executed, easy to maneuver, and Jen's not afraid to mince words and so tells it like it is about how tough it can be to have a child with a severe form of CHD.
• The Holton Family - The journal of Christy, a mom with an unimaginably intense life caring for a special needs child... she keeps it real, writes eloquently, has some amazing video clips of her kids and her writing brings me to tears or to shear joy on a regular basis.
• Toddler Planet - I'm a regular lurker on the site, but don't know the author. She's a working mom of two small kids who is battling breast cancer... need I say more?! I stumbled upon her when my friend Marie was diagnosed, and have been lurking ever since.