still me

happy birthday to me!

so i am not a big fan of my own birthday- not that i don't like a little birthday indulgence... in the form of red velvet cake.. and mint chocolate chip ice cream... or that i don't like presents ... really- i have no idea what it is, just a little aversion!  but right now... i think that i am having a pretty perfect party of my own! SMILE... i arrived late last night in Johannesburg, S. Africa and was met by my sweet friend Louise and her partner Glenda...they brought me to this great hotel called 'Wanderer' where i checked in to my room, ordered room service, had a long HOT HOT bath, and slept for a straight 9 hours. ALL ALONE! it's been quiet.. i have been able to think, write, rest and relax. and man, it seems like it's been ages...  leaving the kids and eric is so hard, even more so since the babies are still so little, and demanding...! thank you eric! for your awesome attitude and willingness to send me on my way with a big hug, and a sincere 'have FUN'... "everything here will be just fine".  like i said, i am feeling really lucky.
it dawned on me that there is a temple here- so i am going there this morning. i don't have the luxury of living close to a temple like i have my WHOLE LIFE...and it's true, you totally and completely take it for granted. when we drove by it last night i knew it was all i wanted for my birthday! so it's a FABULOUS birthday for me! a  happy good thing when as a mom, you get a chance to escape just a little from those demands, and re-charge.
it's just what i needed!
again... thanks eric, thanks Louise...
and i have to give a big thanks and cyber hug to stephanie sassaville who works in florida at advantus, that not only just sent me a huge box of all my new products packed so cute and nice in little baggies on rings all ready for my to organize into my stash... but also packed out all the kits for this weeks event here in SA. (not just my kits, but Janet's too) Stephanie, you are so awesome... we couldn't do it without you! THANK YOU.
i forgot my computer adapter for the projector again.. (GRRR) so i need to find an apple store as well. dang, i have to go shopping.

suits, skirts, and PJ's

In a short 6 hours I will be leaving (like on the plane in 6 hours) for South Africa! I get to teach in both Johannesburg and Cape Town…both Janet and I are teaching classes. I hope that it will be nice weather! i was in s. Africa a few years ago- back when there were only 3 children…man, it seems like ages ago! Anyway… we had the best time! so I am looking forward to going back. I haven’t ever been to Cape Town, so that will be cool. I have heard so much good about it… very cool! I really should be packing and not blogging! but I have to share just a few fun photos! these are for you mom and dad!  You will be here in what… 10 days? We can’t wait to see you! 
  SO, we have been to the Summer Palace quite a number of times, and it never ceases to amaze me… I love it. anyway… I have been wanting to do a boat ride, so I thought this would be a good time to try! We rented this little electric boat with a pathetically S L O W motor on it… holy cow… it was sketchy! It was SUPER windy- it always is there. (look at Connor’s hair blowing!).  and my FAVORITE photo of the day was this one of Colton jumping from some rocks to the window nook of this building.  The kids love climbing around on everything! Every time we go, they explore more! Cam was nice enough to carry Capri on his back! Of course, she always gets so much attention everywhere we go!

So, today- we went to the fabric market. Cam was wanting to get a new suit or 2 made.. and I have a new fixation on getting pajamas made! so I bought more silky material! I love it.  the fabric market is such a crazy experience! They loved it. LaRane bought stuff to have some skirts made…we had a very successful trip! This afternoon, Eric took them to a local tailor and they got all measured up! I can’t wait to see the finished products..

The evening ended on this note..
Sweet Connor and a few first steps captured by LaRane… holy cow! Is that possible?
Good times, good times..

good times...

It can’t only be 10pm.  It feels like  the middle of the night. I am exhausted. I have been trying to recover from the travels of last week, and have been feeling a bit run-down ( to say the least)…sadly…my sweet cousin that has been here since the beginnig, left Thursday! I almost can’t believe that she is gone! I will miss her SO much. not just cause she is an awesome help, and so great w/ the kids, she is just such a delight, and has become a dear friend to me. sigh. SO SAD… I will miss her terribly.

However… as a worthy distraction from our heartbreak… Cam and LaRane arrived yesterday (my brother, and his cute wife). We met them at the new (and wildly impressive) new airport, and waited and waited as their bags never arrived. (this yet another reminder to put some necessities in your carry on!!). but nothing could really  dampen their enthusiasm and our excitement… it’s so fun to introduce people to this crazy place! After dinner last night (Chinese take-out…breaking them in right away), I took them to get foot massages- a certain highlight! And they loved it- we were able to keep them up until about midnight. A good first day for the jet lag battle.  We woke up this morning with lofty plans to load up 7 bikes and drive into town a ways… far enough to get to a point that we could get out on the bikes and ride around to get a closer look (closer than the car window anyway). I’ll bet we rode more than 20 miles all together. we were on the bikes for hours.  Mostly just exploring and taking a leisurely (but at the same time life-threatening) sight-seeing ride.  We had lunch right by the Forbidden City, and then walked around there a bit. We made our way back to where we had parked our bikes, and then rode a ways to check out the old drum and bell towers. It was so cool to see them, and climb up the towers and get a great birds-eye view of the immediate area.
Well here are some pictures to get our next sets of guests excited!

the last 24 hours well spent

We made it home! Just a mere 24 hour venture. Yikes… it’s good to be back. Its so fun when people are so happy to see you! the babies were just thrilled beyond belief… I think they have been wondering ‘where is that mama person?’… everyone did great while quincy and I were away, what a blessing! Everything went smoothly with travel as well… all the connections made with ease, and all the luggage made it here… I have a stockpile of tootsie rolls and A-1 sauce…(ah, the little things) Capri was so happy with her sparkly, glitter shoes from target; colton was climbing through the bags to find his new books… I got him 3: “Inkheart”, “so you want to be a wizard”, and “ the Lightning Theif”… quite a reader that kid is… Cory was thrilled by another myatchi and some rootbeer candies (next best to the real thing) and eric was just happy to have me home! Connor looks bigger, and happier and more mobile than I remember him! Chuckle. He was so excited to see me! it just made my day… So now, I have tons of unpacking to do… but I am going to sleep, and try to get back on Beijing time. I just missed an entire MONDAY!! And I just tried to download my photos, and for some reason, all my photos from the event are corrupt… so if you were in nashville, email me a photo or two! So sad! I am proud to say…that my creative mind needed a rest so something possessed me to buy a sudoku book… I finished the whole thing, and was bummed I didn’t have more! That was a really good time waster! I have to apologize to Katie, cause I made fun of her for liking it… it really is fun! Sorry kates… Ok, going to bed!

nashville TN

Once again, I have failed miserably to keep my blog current! I am typing from the Nashville Gaylord hotel. I just got all my bags packed and stuff compiled and have gauged the weight of each one… and in my ‘seasoned-traveller’ estimation, think that I am right on the brink of 50lbs (the limit) with all 4 pieces. (yikes). I have everything in here from pancake mix to books to compendium books and printer ink for my big Epson! (thanks guys!) I even have a stock-pile of bazzill bling and trail mix! Truth is, my bags are not FULL, I could fit WAY more into them! But… they are heavy. I can tell.
Quincy and I flew into PHX on Tuesday afternoon where I was lucky enough to get my hair done, and eat some choice Mexican, and make a sweet J-crew purchase…among other things! we were able to see 'grammy swapp' and catch some comfortable. Wednesday morning, after we visited her old 1st grade class, and returned Flat Stanley…(it was so cute, the kids were all so excited to see quincy, and really enjoyed asking her tons of questions about life in China- she felt loved, and SO sad to leave!) we flew to Charlotte and after delays and a cancellation- finally got to Nashville LATE. We slept in until about 2pm, and did necessary preparations for my 2 days of teaching Friday and Saturday at the Scrap ETC event. I have had a great time! SO MANY familiar faces! Monique had invited to me to teach 2 classes: one a lecture and the other a project… so I decided to tie the two together…the first day we created a super intense little mini-book using a new-not-yet-released product (a mirror-mini-album)! It was the first time I was able to teach with my new papers… so cute, I loved playing with it all!  The second day, we finished off the project by adding in quotes and tabs and I gave a spiel about ‘to your heart be true”… interestingly enough, I was able to invite a woman named: Amanda Hudson to sing a song she wrote that tied in perfectly with my message. It was really amazing, other than it was quite emotional (typical me). She sang throughout the event, and it was so cool to have her talent as a resource. It really added an awesome dimension to the class. I taught 4  2-hour rounds yesterday, and 4 2-hour rounds today, and I am exhausted! My eyes are burning. I haven’t been much of a sleeper since I have been here… hoping that quincy and I will just sleep the return trip away!
Sending out a special thanks to everyone here at the event! I totally LOVE visiting the South! And thanks to all of your behind the scenes people that went to tremendous effort to make sure I had all that I needed! I met so many awesome people! It’s one of my favorite things to connect with scrapbookers from everywhere.  It was so fun to bring quincy! She was so sweet and so cute. I just love having a sweet little daughter. It was so funny, she pretty much fell asleep everywhere… I can’t post any photos, but I will have to- poor little thing, the jet lag is so hard to deal with! unless you just completely defy it! and go the NO-sleep route, which is my strategy!
So now, 5am, we are back to the airport, and on our way home to Beijing!
I am reminded how much I love to teach, and share ideas. I am thankful for that opportunity to do every so often. Every time I do, I feel like I learn so much!
Thanks for having us Scrap ETC!


this is a little shot of the class that i taught at the show.  janet and i will be on our way to S. Africa  in a week or so, and this is the same project that we'll be working on... turned out cute. it was pretty stressful putting it all together, but i think that most people had it all put together for today's class... so that was good!
ok, i am falling asleep at the wheel!

happy birthday cory...

Yesterday we had a fabulous birthday party celebrating CORY’s 9th.  as you can see from the invites, the plan was to have everyone meet at our house… we have a soccer field right here by where we live, and we’d have a soccer game (dad’s were invited) and then we hired a bus to take us to our favorite pizza joint- the kro’s nest… where we arranged to let the boys top their own pizzas and open presents. Instead of birthday cake, Cory requested chocolate chip cookie ice cream sandwiches… so we indulged in ‘dessert first’ my favorite celebration tradition! We had lots of fun! Especially CORY… he has been awaiting his birthday with eager anticipation! He has diligently changed the countdown chart first thing when he wakes up every morning… one more day! ever since I was young, we had a tradition of opening birthday presents at breakfast…so we still have some celebrating to do tomorrow!

It seems like every time one of my children celebrate a birthday- I get caught up reminiscing on their little lives…its funny how the time passes quickly, yet it seems so long ago that he first learned to ride his bike, or lost his first tooth- and even played in his first baseball game that the stupid uniforms are like 3 sizes too big! I still remember what a happy, sweet baby Cory was… and how photogenic! I couldn’t take a bad picture of that kid if I tried. I am so proud of what a nice guy he is still. He is always willing to help me with anything. He tries to keep his nose clean, even though it’s hard to keep his room clean! I just love his bright smile, and easy laughter. It’s funny how you think about them, (the kids) and despite the 24/7 non-stop drain of your energy…you just can’t imagine life without them.

I love you Cory… so much! Happy Birthday…

slip sliding...

Do you ever just buy yourself flowers? you should.
I did, and I love them. it was as good choice. they make me happy and makes everyone think it’s a special occasion! And so it becomes one… easy enough. spring is here … and I love it. tomorrow I am going to get out and photograph blossoms. I think it’s been a really long time since I have experienced spring. We don’t really have it in Arizona. And you really do appreciate the little green buds, and bright colorful flowers after months and months of deadness.  It has been so fun to go running and note the little changes each day just right around here. People are selling flowers on the street- so beautiful and happy. It is just such an ‘alive’ feeling. It was Monday- and you know I LOVE Monday- but even more do I love Monday since I have moved here, because I can have almost a FULL day of Monday- and no one that I work with is back to work until late Monday night… so it’s almost like a free day. I had such a good day of getting things cleaned up, organized, taken care of and pulled together. AND I ran. AND we had yummy grilled chicken sandwiches for dinner… I love Monday.  I have been scrapbooking- and that also puts me in a good mood. (if I like the results) and I have been playing more with my ‘world traveler’ line, and working on the photos of when the Daynes’ were just here, and it’s been fun… I even organized all the photos that I got printed out. (this is a first)  here is a ‘shocker’… if you have your photos organized, it makes it easier to scrapbook! (lol)…I am certainly not any authority on organization…but I have been making some efforts. I am planning on taking some photos of some of my organization solutions. (they involve Cropper Hopper brilliance). So stay tuned for that… and for some new scrapbook pages. but I need some daylight to photograph them in. I wish I felt a late night coming on, but I am SO tired.

But quick funny story- and one of those moments when as a mom… you know you shouldn’t laugh, cause what the kids are doing is totally naughty, but it’s totally hilarious and you can’t help it, and then they catch you laughing and then you totally lose all creditability trying to pull out discipline… so I am sitting in my office talking to my mom and sister on skype and I can hear that noise that comes from an aerosol can. And it was quite prolonged… like much longer than you would ever spray ANY aerosol can, no matter the contents… and as it was registering that something was suspicious, I was also trying to determine where the noise was coming from: bathroom, family room or kitchen. In a split second I narrowed it down to cooking spray, bathroom spray or pledge. I had been dusting in my office (a very rare occasion) and immediately noted the yellow can missing from my desk. I peeked out of my door, toward the noise just in time to see Cory spray just a little more pledge onto the tile floor.  For only a second, I couldn’t figure out why Cory thought we cleaned the floor w/ pledge, until I REALIZED, they were spraying the floor so they could SLIDE on it. gasp… when did they think of THAT!?!?
So I have been trying all day to wipe it up- the floors are while marble- a really smooth and already slippery tile. Nothing cleans this stuff up. I have about wiped out several times just walking on the ‘pledge zone’ and forgetting to be extra careful. So I guess I need to go in and actually use soap and something to get the slick off.  Dang kids.

mail...

this is a rare quiet afternoon moment… sat: babies asleep, boys at friends, E at rugby, ky and Q painting a mural on the wall… and I have been catching up on emails and journal writing. I really appreciate the quiet, and especially during daylight hours.
Don’t you just love mail? I think I like ordering stuff just to get the mail! Well, yesterday I had an awesome mail day- usually we just get our critical mail pieces by courier every week or so, and it’s just bills. But I totally scored one of my favorite magazines, my new running shoes- both of which I was expecting and hoping for speedy delivery… but the big picture chocolate bar was totally, blissfully unexpected. It was (emphasis on was) a HUGE chocolate bar wrapped in a cute ‘happy birthday’ from big picture wrapping. What a JOY!! Chocolate in the MAIL? It’s not my birthday until the end of the month, but I guess it’s time to start celebrating! After all, these shoes were a little early present to myself. SO thank you BIG PICTURE! I totally appreciate unexpected thoughtfulness.  i think that thoughtfulness is such an amazing quality to possess and important one to cultivate. I think I am going to join the babies…

the new cory

This is the Cory I woke up to this morning. last night he left with E to run a couple errands, and I was asleep when they got home. I had gone to bed as early as possible because I had a late night Creative Escape conf. call (hence the 4am blog post).  He was talking about buzzing his head, but I didn’t really think he was serious! I have to admit, I love it buzzed. I think it’s so cute on him. Capri was a little confused, but it throws her off when I wear a baseball cap!
About 2 weeks ago I made this little count down calendar for Cory to clarify when his birthday is. He was asking me everyday, more than once a day how long until his birthday and even started sending me emails to make sure I knew what he wanted. I made this out of cardboard and used my center of attention foam stamp set to create the numbers. Instead of just ripping the numbers off, I decided to make them just flip over to the back of the count down. He is loving it…and now constantly reminding me just how many days to go! so, fair warning… only 11 days until April 14th.  And therefore only 12 days until I leave for Nashville,TN for the Scrap, ETC. event… gasp.

watered down graffiti

Today I allocated about 3 hours to cleaning the photos off my hard drive. I got really fancy and hooked up an external hard drive to my computer for photo storage only. Whew, I feel so much better with everything safe and sound. I was up to about 6,000 photos like 3MB each… holy cow, I think that my computer was going to blow a gasket. It’s funny how quickly they add up, and the problem is that I like to have easy access to all the photo files, in case I get in the mood to scrapbook something random… and often times, I even just like to scroll through them, I have them all mixed together- regular daily photos, trips and even projects and scrapbook pages.. just a huge hodgepodge of photos.. anyway… in the past I have burned them on to disks and I have them all stored, but its such a pain to get the disk, open it, find the  photo- can’t really browse through them etc… I think that the external hard drive will be a great solution. I think I still need to burn the disks. I have lost photos before, and it just makes you so mad (if you don’t have a photo, it didn’t happen! Wink!)
Anyway…I wanted to share these photos, they are such a classic Chinese thing… all the time when you go to parks and places like that…you can always see people that are practicing writing Chinese characters on the ground with water and this big long pole w/ a sponge tip on the end. It’s seriously the coolest thing to watch, and usually there is a bit of a crowd gathered doing so.   When we were at the summer palace, this guy was doing his thing on the sidewalk, and I walked up and was taking a photo, and he handed me the writing stick- so I didn’t know what to write so I wrote my name (what a dork LOL), and then Quincy and Colton and Carson all wanted to take a turn. It was so cute of the guy to let us try- he was so sweet and patient as all my kids were thinking this was the coolest thing ever… and the Chinese people gathered thought it was pretty funny too, and couldn’t take enough photos fast enough of the blonde kids writing their names on the concrete.  That is one of the things I want to remember.
What I don’t want to remember is that it’s 4am and I should be asleep. Unfortunately, when I wake up in 2 hours, I am going to remember my lack of sleep no problem.