Sharing a "Latte Love" for my Favorite Blogs {#LatteLove at Home Prize Package Giveaway}

I wish I was a morning person.

Someone who woke up rested and smiling, ready to greet the day by bounding out of bed because I'm so eager to start working, exercising, or simply living in the moment.

In reality, every member of my family knows that there are few circumstances in which they should wake up Mommy (it has also been pretty clearly determined that waking up Mommy by whining or fighting is especially not pleasant).

If I had my way, I'd not only wake up to blissful quiet or the sounds of children happily playing or eating breakfast, but I'd be allowed anywhere between 15 and 30 minutes of time to myself to fully be prepared to start the day. I'd leisurely stroll downstairs, grab a cup of coffee (or, even better, a tasty latte!) and catch up on what's been going on with my favorite bloggers.

As I shared recently, it is easier to make lattes at home than I had realized. Simply heat one cup of milk in a saucepan over medium-low heat, whisking quickly with a wire whisk to create foam. Meanwhile, brew your strong coffee (you'll need about 1/2 cup). Next, pour the heated milk into a tall mug, holding back the foam with a spoon, and then add strong brewed coffee and spoon a thin layer of foamed milk over the beverage.

So to combine this delicious drink with some great blog posts? Sounds like a perfect way to start my morning!

The fine folks over at TheBreakfastProject.com and MilkMustache.com wanted to know which blogs in particular I can't live without and, let me tell you, it is hard to narrow them down. In the past 3+ years that I've been blogging, I've come across so many women (and a few men as well) that give sound advice, bring a smile to my face or generally just make me want to read what they have to say.

In May 2011 I had the opportunity to list some of my favorites and, looking back at that post, I find that I still enjoy nearly every single one that I had mentioned (I say nearly, as Victoria from Mommy Is Green has since stopped blogging). But A Mom's Balancing Act, A Nut in a Nutshell, An Island Life, KiddiesCorner Deals, Sippy Cup Mom and The Life of Rylie... & Bryce, too! are still definite must-haves for me.

Delving further into my Google Reader, I never start the day off without a few more of my favorites (as with my previous list, these are in alphabetical order)...

Our Nifty Notebook: I admire Jenny's blog for a number of reasons, but mainly because it's so... her. Her personal posts range from family vacations to homeschooling her darling daughter to crafts or recipes that she likes and each one is easy to read and feels as though it is directed right to each reader.

There are always adorable photographs, great tips, inspiration to try something new... and don't even get me started on how much I love Jenny's themed mantels throughout the year. I get so excited when another holiday rolls around just so I can see how she is going to decorate for it!

Parenting. Illustrated with Crappy Pictures: Amber is a wife and mother and, when looking for a place to vent about some of the crazy experiences that parenthood provides, began to write them on her blog. And illustrate them. With crappy pictures.

The end result are some of the funniest, most random, most nod your head because it's totally happened to you as well situations that you can imagine and I feel a burst of excitement every time my Reader shows me that she has published another post.

Rave and Review: When I grow up, I hope to be like Leanne (I can say that because I'm pretty sure that I'm older than she is). She is eloquent, generous, thoughtful, talented, honest and freaking hilarious — whether in person or through written word — and I admire the hard work that she puts into all aspects of her life.

I'm always interested to see what high quality product she, her husband, and their two it can't be legal to have this much cuteness in one family kids have reviewed, because not only will the post be great, but it will have had to pass Leanne's high standards to have made it to them in the first place. What can I say? The woman's got good taste!

The Bloggess: If you spend much time at all online, you know that while Jenny is indeed a blogger, she's also a New York Times best-selling author, philanthropist, activist and much more.

A celebrity in her own right, Jenny's posts range from topics such as taxidermy, depression, conversations with her husband, Wil Wheaton collating paper, her crazy cats, a giant metal chicken named Beyonce (who, incidentally, has well over 50,000 Facebook fans. Can YOU say that?) and much, much more. A dozen more paragraphs still wouldn't sum up The Bloggess, which is how it should be, and I wish Jenny would post 10 times a day because it would make my day 10 times better.

There you have four more of the blogs that have a prominent place in my online reading library and that I would love to find have new posts published for me to read while sipping a morning latte. No matter if I've met, emailed or have never been in contact with these ladies, they have still left an impression on me with their individual qualities and stellar writing. Who knew that the internet could introduce me to such wonderful people?

For more information, recipes, tips and ideas for brewing your own perfect latte, cappuccino or coffee drink at home, be sure to visit The Breakfast Project and Milk Mustache. Plus, thanks to their generosity, one person will be able to fill their breakfast with a "latte love" soon as well, because...

One lucky person will win a Latte Love at Home Prize Package*!

*Care Package includes a Latte Love mug and a coupon for a free gallon of milk

(Enter with the Rafflecopter form below. If you have any questions or problems entering, there is a video tutorial found here that can help.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received products and compensation from MilkMustache.com and The Motherhood as part of my participation in this campaign. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this post are my own.