More love and happy thoughts..

I am completely overwhelmed with the love and appreciation

that my dear blog friends around the world keep on giving me!

 via Pink Sherbert

Not only have I made great friends who I chat to daily via the 

blog, email or 'Facebook', but I also receive these flattering and

heart warming awards. Just recently sweet Carole over at the

'Dear Designer' gave me and a few others a 'Happy 101' award.

Carol's blog is full of enthusiasm, colour and great design finds

and I applaud her vast variety of posts and generous image parades.

With a confident hand and great eye she takes her readers from a

killer location, to a brilliant designer, to an interesting artist, to a

fantastic hotel, a celebrity home and many other inspiring sources.

 All above images are from the 'Dear Designer' blog, where you will find the original source & credits.

So when this lovely girl included me amongst her list of 10, I was

very moved, happy & honoured. Thank you again Carole!

 

As you may know, this award calls for the me to introduce

the giver of the 'Happy 101' and link back to their site.

Then I need to share 10 things that make me happy, and 

finally pass on the badge to 10 other blogers of my choice.

My regular readers will remember that I have received this

award before (HERE and HERE) and that with each of these

lovely recognitions I shared 10 things that make me happy.

Though you already know a fair few things about me and

what makes me tick, I will share yet another list with you

as I believe blogging would not be blogging if we didn't

respond to each of these generous gestures of appreciation

by honouring the award & giver in the way it was intended.

So here mes chéries, is an additional 10 of my happy things:

1. Hotel living..

via Hotel Diplomat, Stockholm

I feel very happy and liberated when staying at a (good) hotel,
and you have seen me post several of great ones here on the blog.
Fabulous places that you'll find under the 'heavenly hotels' label.

From the carefree luxury of surrendering to excellent service,

the buzz of a reception area, to the little extra touches of TLC -

it is all great and I feel very relaxed and at home at a fab hotel.

2. Snow..

This picture was shot by my husband whilst we were visiting my hometown over Christmas.
It was very very cold (-22C) and these poor ducks down in the pond didn't have much water
left to stay warm. We went down every day to feed them and also put down branches in the
water to prevent it from freezing. I am glad to hear that most of them survived and are still there.

The anticipation of Winter arriving for real and the first good
snowfall makes me very happy and excited! There is something
magical about the silence that comes with the snow and the
light that it brings to the otherwise dark months of Winter.

3. My husband..

With the risk of making him impossibly cocky now... :)

Marshall, ('The Huz') makes me very very happy! Sure he is
an absolute pain in the ... at times (ha ha!) but this man makes me

laugh like nobody else, loves me like nobody else, and is a good

and kind human being (with the most beautiful eyes in the world)..

I love him deeply, sincerely, honestly and truly. He is my rock!

4. Love

..and whilst on the subject..
In what ever shape or form it comes in, LOVE always makes
me incredibly happy, deeply moved and embarrassingly teary.
Yup, I am 'all velour' and thrive on this the greatest feeling of all!

5. Animals in the wild..

If there is something I really love doing it is spending time in
and around nature. I grew up outside the city, in between a
beautiful lake and a large forest, and feel such a deep affinity
with nature and all the creatures in it. To see animals in their
natural habitat, to watch them interact with each other and to
know they are safe and protected from harm makes me happy!

 via Nick Brandt

There are many talented nature & wildlife photographers out
there, however if you are not familiar with Nick Brandt (UK)
I urge you to jump across to his website via this link. Wow!

6. Trees

 via Interaction Point

Since for ever I have been completely drawn to trees. I find them
incredible in every sense and think there is great wisdom to draw
from them. I'm happy sitting underneath, climbing or hugging trees!

7. Sweden..

How could I not love my beloved birth country!? It is one of the
most beautiful places on Earth and I feel very proud to be Swedish!

From the baron & magestic North to the soft rolling hills & white
ocean beaches in the South this country incredibly diverse and very
very beautiful. I love that we have a reputation for honesty, great
design, genuine traditions, fabulous food, stunning girls and oh so
handsome men! From Abba to Alfred Nobel, to Ingrid Bergman to
Anita Ekberg & Greta Garbo, Pippi Longstocking, the Swedish Chef,
to Carl von Linné, Stieg Larsson, Göran Kropp and many many more,
I am so proud of my birth country and to be Swedish by body and soul!

8. Australia..

A nomadic soul with a huge appetite for life, I left Sweden at the
age of 18. Since then I have lived in England, France, Scotland,
Norway and finally here in Australia. I have travelled all over the
world however can safely say that you will find no country more
magestic, welcoming, and relaxed than Australia. Hippies live in
total harmony with Yuppies, and diverse cultures mix in a healthy
and natural manner making me feel right at home from the start.

This entrepreneurial country is full of opportunities and exciting
developments. A place you absolutely must visit once in your life!

9. Happy feet..

Is there anything better than walking barefoot!? I love the look
and feel of tanned 'Summery' feet with pretty nail varnish.

10. Mail..

via the Storque

Be that in the form of a handwritten letter or card, an email,

a blog post or FB message, I love and appreciate all mail from

my friends and family spread across the lovely world we live in!

*****

I love sharing your links and this time I would like to highlight 

some of the newcomers in my little 'blog family' (see left column).

I have picked the highlighted ones by random by available links.

Their/your loyalty and friendship is the ultimate honour and reward

of blogging to me, and every day I think about how fantastic it is to

meet so many talented, inspired and gorgeous people in 'Blogland'!

I know it sounds corny when expressing my sincere gratefulness in

this manner, but I do mean every word and hope that you can feel it!

Without further ado, here are the wonderful blogs
(in no order what so ever..) I wish to pass the 'Happy 101' to.
Some of you may have received this award before, howver
I hope you share another list of 10 things with us. I for one
can't wait to find out more about your beautiful selves!

VARNISH by Amy

URBAN FARMGIRL by Mary

HAUTE WHIMSY by Jen

ISLAND HOME by Julia

IF THE LAMPSHADE FITS by Raina

BEADBOARD UPCOUNTRY by Maryanne

CAFE CARTOLINA by Fiona

LA BOHEME by Anna

DECOR NATUREL by Anne

TEA WITH MARY by Cath

I saved 'Tea with Mary' to last because she deserves an extra hug
and thank you for posting such a sweet introduction to me on her
lovely blog. Cath, I was really touched by this - thank you again!
To read the post, please click HERE.


Also it is Cath's birthday today, so please stop by to say hi
and wish her a splendid day full of celebrations and fun!

Happy Birthday Cath!


Again, thank you Carole and congratulations to all award nominees!
I look forward to reading your 'Happy 101' lists very soon.

Love to all.

xx Charlotta