Last week, the talented Liv Rancourt wrote a post listing ten things she loved that began with the letter D. (She was inspired to do so by the lovely Shay Fabbro who posted on the letter P.) But the fun didn’t stop there. If you left Liv a comment, she’d give you a letter to create your own list. I commented and was promptly given my letter in return: A.
At first I thought it would be difficult to find ten words that begin with the letter A that I love. But when I dug deep (and by deep I mean I consulted an online dictionary), I discovered I have quite an affinity for A words because I had a difficult time narrowing it down to just ten. So, without further ado, here are ten things I love that begin with the letter A:
Abroad: I love to travel to far off places, especially places so completely different from my own reality. I want to experience the world and its many wonders through all of my senses.
Lovely, enchanting Morocco. I’ll return some day. Source: images.search.yahoo.com via Tami on Pinterest
Accent: Still working on perfecting my British accent and slowly coming to the conclusion that I might need some help with this.
Think I could find any one here to help me practice? Source: google.com via Tami on Pinterest
Admire: There are SO many people to admire in this world – for their strength, courage, creativity, intelligence, kindness and integrity. There aren’t enough hours in the day or enough ways to tell them all how much I admire them.
Well said, Mr. Darcy. P.S. You can send me a note like this any day. Source: modernhepburn.tumblr.com via Tami on Pinterest
Adoption: My two girls are adopted from the foster care system, the Older when she was six and the Younger when she was five. Parenting two deeply wounded yet beautiful souls has been the toughest thing I’ve ever done and probably will ever do. I can’t imagine my life without them – they are the light of my life, even when their behaviors are the bane of my existence.
Adore: I just love this word and all that it means. To adore someone, to be adored, adoration – all of it. It makes me smile to think of those that I adore and it makes me blush to think of someone adoring me. There really should be more giving and receiving of adoration in the world.
My sentiments exactly. Us weird people deserve adoration, too. Source: Uploaded by user via Tami on Pinterest
Adventure: Yes, please. Preferably more of the traveling variety, less of the heart-wrenching kind. And throw in some great food, inspiring sights, and amazing, wonderful people, too. I’m not asking for too much, am I?
Excuse me while I go get my suitcase and start packing. Source: flickr.com via Tami on Pinterest
Africa: I’ve been smitten with the continent since I was teenager (see more on that here) and can’t wait to go back.
Note to self: get a better camera before going back to Africa. Source: sal-vaje.tumblr.com via Tami on Pinterest
Aluminium: Only when spoken by a certain classy British Actor. (You get a two-for-one deal on this one.) Makes me smile and giggle every time. To read more on that, check out this post.
“Again with the aluminium? You know I’d say aluminium all day if I knew where your writing cave was located.” Source: amyyam.tumblr.com via Tami on Pinterest
Art: Life would be incredibly dull without it, don’t you think? There are so many forms of it, so much to see, to be inspired and challenged by and courted to create. Music, photography, sculpture, painting, drawing, dance, writing, acting, singing and more. Sometimes, it literally blows my mind.
Archaeology/Anthropology: As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, I wanted to be an archaeologist from the time I was in second grade. Past cultures, past lives, and the psychology around it all still fascinates me.
Name the place and time, Indy. I’ll be there. I hate snakes, too. Source: dailymail.co.uk via Tami on Pinterest
Amore: In any language, what’s better than love? The Italian language is so lovely to hear that I could list at least a dozen words that start with “A” that excite me.
Amore, amor, liebe, love. No matter how you say it, it’s all good. Source: etsy.com via Tami on Pinterest
Author: An obvious one, I know, but I couldn’t leave it out. There are so many great ones out there that I could do an entire post on that alone. One day I hope to be among the published and highly regarded heroes that reside on my bookshelf and in my kindle.
Something to strive for every time I sit down to write. Source: dawncamp.bigcartel.com via Tami on Pinterest
Autumn: One of my favorite seasons, only slightly edged out by summer. The colors, the crisp air, the crunch of leaves underfoot, the scent of wood stoves, a drawing inward to hearth and home, the final harvest from the garden and putting it to rest for the winter, and pulling out favorite sweaters and boots. And the added bonus of autumn? My disguises suddenly become socially appropriate to wear out of the house on Halloween.
Awaken: To me, this word speaks of new beginnings, of newness in general. An opening of the mind, the soul, and the body to the world around you.
Hello, new day. You had me at “good morning”. Source: whimsicalepiphany.tumblr.com via Tami on Pinterest
Azure: Azure is such an extraordinarily wonderful shade of blue. Nature does it best. It brings to mind warm, tropical waters for me.
Not me but so wishing it were. I’d like to be lounging about in Indonesia right now. Source: cf4.thingd.com via Tami on Pinterest
And because I fancy myself a rule breaker from time to time (though I am sure hard-core rule breakers don’t say things like “I fancy myself…”), I’ll include an extra special, bonus “A” word, just for you, my wonderful readers:
Awesomesauce: Yes, this is a made up word but it really encapsulates so much more that just plain awesome. To me it conveys a very special sort of awesome – a saucy, sassy, spunky brand of awesome. This kind of awesome, when you think about it, really deserves its own word.
The Bloggess is a good example of pure awesomesauce. Source: thebloggess.com via Tami on Pinterest
Other “A” words on my list that didn’t make the top eleven but are worthy of mentioning: alive, alias, adagio, arouse, August, and arrive. ALL deserving of their own post – perhaps ANOTHER time.
Now, AMAZING readers: APPLY yourself and ADD a comment below so I can ADMIRE and ADORE you ALL. AS AN ADDED bonus, I’ll give you your very own shiny letter to make your own AWESOMESAUCE list of words.
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Ellen Gregory said:
I must have dropped off the planet, because I’ve not seen any of these letter posts yet!! I’ve been mired in fog.
This was really fun – loved the way you incoporated the images and it’s making me seriously think about checking out pinterest… (although I really don’t need another social media outlet to keep up with).
Birng on the letter allocation!
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Tami Clayton said:
Thanks, Ellen! Pinterest is a lot of fun as well as another social media time distraction. It’s great for finding really cool photos as well as for creating a story board for your novel.
And your letter is forthcoming… 🙂
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Judythe Morgan said:
I too have missed the Word List posts. Your list was terrific…an A+++ list. Loved your selection of words and images and the insight into you that the word list provided. Good job.
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Tami Clayton said:
Thanks, Judythe. 🙂 I’ll send you a letter if you’d like to do one of your own.
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Judythe Morgan said:
Sure send me a letter looks like a fun blog.
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Tami Clayton said:
Will do!
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Barbara Forte Abate said:
What ABUNDANT fun it was reading your A-list! Such a hoot that you managed to slide Benedict in here so smoothly. Clever, clever girl 😀
These letter posts are crazy cool and wildly entertaining. I have a letter from Liv, too. Hoping to get to it sooonnnnn……..
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Tami Clayton said:
Thanks, Barbara! I’m looking forward to reading your list soon. 🙂
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livrancourt said:
Wow! You took this and ran with it. What a fabulous post! Love love love the photos.
😉
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Tami Clayton said:
Thanks, Liv! You gave me a good letter to run with so thanks for that, too. 🙂
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Alina Sayre said:
This is fabulous, Tami! I love how creative you got with attaching ideas to A-words. This post was both funny and deep. Loved the pictures you chose 🙂
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Tami Clayton said:
Thanks, Alina! I had fun coming up with the words and finding photos to go along with them.
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Sara Walpert Foster said:
Great word choices! I feel like I know you better after reading this. All of it was great but I have to say that your adoption story really stood out for me. What a brave and wonderful thing to take on. My kids don’t come with baggage and they are hard enough to take care of. You must be an amazing Mom! They are very lucky to have you.
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Tami Clayton said:
Thanks, Sara. Parenting has been a really, really tough road to navigate but a worthwhile one at that. Parenting in general is as tough as it is rewarding so kudos to you, too. 🙂
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Julie Farrar said:
What a fabulous post idea. I’ll have to visit Liv’s. (Hey, I just noticed your comment box tagline. I A-dore it.) I did learn something about you in this. So hello from one adoptive mother to two kids we got when they were 8 to another (mine came from Russia).
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Tami Clayton said:
Thanks, Julie. Sounds like we are kindred spirits in the adoption arena. We’ll have to share stories sometime. I wonder if you have some as colorful as mine. 😉
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Elaine Smothers said:
Really enjoyed reading your A-list, Tami, and it was a great way to learn more about you. Most of your A-words were delightful surprises. I had to laugh when I scrolled down and saw Benedict and the word, alum-i-ni-um. Actually, I’m still laughing! 😀
I’m in. Shoot me a letter too 😉
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Tami Clayton said:
Thanks, Elaine. If there is a way to sneak aluminium spoken by my favorite British actor in, I can hardly resist doing it. (It makes me giggle, too.) 🙂
I’ll send you a letter, too. I’m glad so many people want to join in!
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Sherry Isaac said:
Great words, Tami. Awesomesauce. Snort!
I add my own: Abundance. I am thankful for the abundance that surrounds me. The love of my family, the closeness of good friends, two ridiculous cats, beautiful, healthy children, a roof over our heads, employment, clean water and our own back yard.
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Tami Clayton said:
Thanks, Sherry. Abundance is a great one. It is good to be reminded of the abundance in our lives. While mine is not feeling so abundant in positives right now, I am thankful for what I do have in my life.
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corajramos said:
A-Very well done post. You took the concept up a notch and made it your own. Kudos.
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Tami Clayton said:
Thank you, Cora. 🙂
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