THE most unbelievable thing happened to me on Friday night – I actually won something – something BIG – my blog was chosen as winner of the Individual Travel Category in the UK Blog Awards and I even got given a trophy that had my name on it!! WOOHOO. That is the FIRST TIME EVER that I’ve won anything at all – lots of well done for entering and/or trying medals as well as quite a few shortlists, but this one was different.
There were lots of different categories – Food & Drink, Digital, Health, Fashion, Automobile, Arts and Culture (hadn’t realised there was an alphabetical element to the whole thing) so I was in the Travel section towards the end, sitting with my friends not properly listening because I’d had a series of alarming texts that had to be put in order of priority – I was trying to surreptitiously deal with a missing child and a very annoyed parent who was threatening not to have him to stay the night after all unless they appeared back at the house very soon and my other son texting saying “do you remember when I chipped my front tooth really badly when I was 8 and they glued it back on? Well it’s just fallen off!! While I was chewing my pen lid. What should I do?” – so whilst I was busy responding to him my friend was suddenly whooping and shouting “you’ve won!”. I still didn’t believe her as I couldn’t quite read the writing up on stage and thought she was joking, so I refused to get off my chair for some time until virtually pushed. Then I had to run down what felt like a never-ending carpet and up onto the stage – which meant that my dress rode up above my knees which means all the photos are ruined (it was meant to be an elegant Audrey Hepburn below the knee look) – I hadn’t really thought my costume through at all on account that I wasn’t expecting to be in any photos and my daughter was later horrified at my choice of “granny tights that must be thrown away immediately”.
ANYWAY, all that stuff aside (and ignoring my family members who have pointed out that I don’t actually have a travel blog) – THANK YOU SO MUCH to the judges from Thomas Cook and Suitcase Magazine for choosing my blog out of many far more brilliant ones. Apparently it was because I had a more accessible, real voice than some of the more aspirational blogs out there. WHATEVER, I don’t care what the reason is, I was just delighted – and after eight years of blogging it felt good to be acknowledged at a “glittering event” and I am certainly feeling very honoured.
Here are a few photos of my happy moment:-
The very cute invitation – although I never did find out what the key was for:-
The award room:-
My little old blog up on a big screen!:-
Standing in the wrong place for the photo:-
My big moment – WOOHOO (but I really must learn how to pose for photos properly):-
Even The Mad Hatter wanted to have a photo with me!:-
and then one of the best bits…my daughter’s congratulatory sign up on the door for when I got home!
Expat Mum
April 20, 2015Wow – well done you!
Family Affairs
April 21, 2015THANKS
Dumdad
April 20, 2015Big congratulations! What are you going to do with all the money?
Family Affairs
April 21, 2015ha ha yes, still thinking about that…Lx
DD's Diary
April 21, 2015Ooooh congratulations! Very exciting and very well deserved xx
Family Affairs
April 21, 2015Thank you my lovely Lx
Michelle Hassan
April 22, 2015Congratulations Lucy.
Family Affairs
April 23, 2015Thanks very much x