4, 3, 2, 1~love deeply...

it's been 8 long months since we've seen each other, been together, hugged each other.

what an experience.

we all grew from this experience.

life was truly hard without you.

birthdays, holy communion, holidays, anniversaries, volleyball, soccer, gymnastics, dance, cheerleading,
1st day of 3rd grade, doctor visits, movie theaters, mini-vacations up North in the special house, sleepless nights, Sunday masses, house mishaps, family dramas, heavy storms, crashing trees,
new adventures...

longing for your letters...a surprise phone call, a welcomed e-mail...

were ways to keep our hearts going...

somehow we managed to live each day with a smile on our face.

praying for your safety,

hoping you'd come home~alive+well...

thank you God and Angel Sinead for keeping Daddy safe.

thank you Daddy and your fellow soldiers for keeping our Country free + safe.

we are so very proud of you!!!

thank you for safely coming home to us...

WELCOME HOME!

we can't wait until we can endlessly hug you, have non-stop kisses galore and...
start our new adventures~TOGETHER...

you are our COURAGEOUS HERO.

i am utterly and deeply in LOVE with you

and

we truly have FOUND A WAY...

love you for eternity...

xoxo

9-5...

{location of picture: home of Thomas Jefferson, our trip to Montecello, Virginia}

thank you, God...for answering our prayers...
heard your voice really clear today.
cooler air+fluffy mattresses=happy camper!
we tend to take things for granted...
i'm gonna make sure we try our best over here!

one door, one step, one chapter is closed.

but that's ok since another door has

opened for each of us.

i love this quote by Alexander Graham Bell:

'when one door closes, another opens...'

so poignantly stated!

looking forward to the next few months...

can't wait to open a few more doors

a long-awaited hug+kiss

and just being...it won't be long...

bonne nuit

xoxo

15-10

happy tuesday!

hope your labour day weekend was fun...

had such a fab weekend!

spent time up north with my sis, Mary Ann and my adorable munchkins.

great cool weather.

it was so relaxing and serene.

went to an awesome farmer's market + had the chance to go see their version of

'taste of chicago' called 'taste of madison.'

it was packed with all sorts of vendors...

lots of fresh veggies/fruits, flowers, asian, smoothies, cheese + bakery booth galore.

the only weird thing was that it was a one-way walking traffic...

it really felt like lemmings to the sea...

try walking against traffic...it was like getting a death wish...or

like fighting to swim up stream (or even worse, getting brutal glares of

death from an angry mob...that was scary...)

{will post pics of our excursion soon...had to borrow my sissy's camera as i was such in a rush to get on the road,
i totally forgot my sweet camera, auggh!}

sis made a delicious mango salsa...wish i took pics of that but forgot my camera.

it was simply delectable!

my lil' mini trip with the kids was really nice.

nice hangin' with my sis+bro-in-law~an early wedding anniversary celebration for them-

8 beautiful years of wedded bliss...

{bonne anniversaire, sweet reya and big joe!}

good company, good rest...recharging the batteries to start working on many upcoming projects,

now that's a good thing.

very nice weekend...sad to end summer but will treasure those tiny but incredible moments...

moments of time...

lifetime of memories...

bons temps

xoxo

16...

ever meet someone who thinks they know it ALL?

and gloats because they know it all?

unfortunately, those types of people are all around us.

they bring such knowledge to the table but their personalities are

not something to write home about.

i try to stay away from those types.

i tend to gravitate towards people who are practical

and wise beyond their years.

these are the hearts that are able to share their wealth of information with

unconditional and genuine kindness.

i took this picture of this dandelion.

your typical wildflower.

there aren't any vivid colours on this flower.

however, the beauty it possesses is quite incredible.

the softness+fuzziness of its petals, the irregularities of its shape and

the way it bends with the wind.

this dandelion is beautiful in its own way.

does it boast vivid colours?

is it ever entered into a contest for the best-prized dandelion in the world?

does it ever get chosen first in a bouquet of flowers?

no.

but...

its beauty speaks beyond words.

to me it reminds me of being able to be humble.

being humble is a great quality to have.

not everyone has it.

but...

everyone can do their best to become one.

this is something i'd like my lil' ones to remember which

reminds me of what our priest said in church last week:

"some who are last will be first, and some who are first will be last..."

N'est pas maintenant que la vérité!

{now, isn't that the truth?}
xoxo

happy weekend!

22-17...

wow.

i can't believe it's the end of august.

summer is winding down and the munchkins are back to school...

tomorrow is the start of football season in my village.

my lil' 8 year old peanut is so excited to CHEER her first game.

never thought anyone in my family would be a cheerleader...
{hmmm. maybe secretly, i wished i was a cheerleader?!!}

it is really fun watching her cheer. practicing her dance routine.
it's also hilarious watching my lil' guy {also 8 years old} cheer right on with her.

he knows all the cheers...he's actually one hell of a cheerleader-wanna-be...
{despite his left vocal chord paralysis...he's actually clearer and louder than peanut. go figure?}

my lil' guy said to me, "hey, i'd like to be a cheerleader, too!"
that makes 2 of us lil' guy...woot-woot!

i love my lil' bugs' imaginative + creative sides...so inspiring to be with them...

oooooh....

in the next few weeks we will be expecting a HUGE package...we CAN NOT wait!!!

we're also trying to get our creative juices flowing bec.

we'll be joining thousands of artistic peeps around the world creating

lil' masterpieces... {more on this project soon...}

i thought this week's countdown collage spoke creativiness to me...

face-painting is such a creative way to express one's self.

the artist who created these facial wonders was an older woman
{during this past April's Earth Day Celebration in our Village}
...could be a grandmama-type.
i was impressed with her focus, her fingers on the paintbrushes and
the vision she had when each child told her what image they'd like painted on their body.

i love how ian's snake wraps around his eyes+his nose then onto his mouth to have the snake's tongue be
right on his mouth...how clever!
how pretty is shioban's butterfly fluttering over her eye...such a fairy-like face...

glitter, colours, oh my!

so fantasy-like.

the artist could have just put a simple snake on ian's arm or a plain butterfly on shioban's cheek.

but WOW!
...did she take it a couple of notches or what???!

that's why i heart albert einstein's mind. i think he would have understood what that
face-painter artist was trying to achieve.

"logic {can} get you from a to b..."
but it really takes imagination to get you even further!

how inspiring is that?

that's what this collage is for me...firing up my creative juices and

building my imagination to take me places...

that's what i'm hoping to do this week.

trying to wake up my imagination...thinking out of the box so i could get some projects started...

hope your week will spark your imagination and send you soaring futher than you could ever imagine!

bons temps

xoxo

30-23...

life is full of surprises.

each day is a blessing.

enjoy every minute.

because life is too short.

really loving our new market that opened in our neighborhood.

Pete's Market.

everything is fresh.

the munchkins especially love the bakery...taking this picture reminded me about

special occasions...

everyday should be a special occasion.

sometimes we might take each day for granted.

need to remember how special each day can be.

that's why i love this quote from Amanda Bradley:

"...make everyday a holiday and celebrate just living!"

hey, now that's a great idea, don't you think?!

Célébrer de bons temps!

xoxo

33-31...

how many times do you say to yourself that you just can't do it?

seeing my lil' ones explore their inner 'superheros' is quite inspirational.

my lil' guy took that picture of his ironman toy.

he just picked up my camera, pointed and shoot.

the outcome: a sweet lil' picture of one awesome superhero.

look how he's trying to make a basket. he's doing his best.

wow.

my peanut is doing a straight cartwheel on a beam.

from being 1.5 oz premie bebes, this is one obstacle i never dreamed my lil' ones would accomplish.

that's hope and faith for you.

each day my munchkins are trying out new things.

we're so fortunate that my sweet courageous husband is working so hard to provide for us.

that's what we'd like to give our children~opportunities.

chances to do things.

chances to find out what they love.

who they'll want to become.

my folks started this for me by coming to the US to start a new life.

and i am truly grateful.

but, there just wasn't enough $+time to really explore my passions back then.

at least i'm doing my best now.

that's what we're doing right now for our kids.

another step in the right direction.

these are my heros.

ordinary people doing extraordinary things.

a good reminder for me to keep on...

have a fantabulous + sweet weekend!!!

bons temps

xoxo

38-34...

bonjour!

been away too long...life had me tied down for the week.

school, kiddos, house, yard, car, activities etc...

i wish there were more time in the day, to do all that i can...

my countdown for the last week has to be a shorten version...

i chose a few images that depict some of the special things

that were happening this year...

i think what coco chanel said is so wise:
"it's not the houses i loved...
it's the life i lived in them"
no matter how many homes you've lived in, no matter where your home has been,

no matter how big or small,

how grand or plain...

it's how you lived in them, that counts...that truly matters.

it's how you brought life to it.

it's how you share your life with your loved ones in it.

it's the memories...

to me that is home...

home is where your heart is.

that's where part of my heart is...

thank you for sharing your life with us...

mahal kita...xoxo

39...

yesterday was one scorcher of a day.

people were cranky. continuous unpleasantry was going full force.

but one flash of the past, reminded me about another scorcher of a day, 8 years ago.

August 12, 2002.

that was my "due date."

things happened beyond our control.

a window was opened (metaphorically).

my sweet husband + i were blessed with 3 little miracles.

1 had to go back home to heaven and became our very own sweet angel.

2 became angels on earth.

those 2 lil' ones came home on their due date...August 12th, 2002,

it was like a desert outside...that one scorcher of a day.

but that (metaphorically speaking) window opening...

gave us so much possibility for EVERYTHING.

hmmm..what a very good reminder...thank you God for blessing us...

i'm going to hug+kiss my munchkins ever so tightly right now...

wow. i'm so sorry lil' ones for all the lil' things i got upset about...do you forgive me?

how 'bout you? do you remember why?
maybe saying sorry might be a good idea right about now, huh?...

bons temps

xoxo

42...

*

* {based on "What lies ahead...Possibilities" by BJ Gallagher Women's Work Is Never Done~Celebrating Everything Women Do}

Note: last spring i promised 3 special people random acts of kindness...its been quite a whirlwind the last several months that i can't really talk about right now. as soon as i put out some fires in my life...i will tend to those special hearts. i do apologize for the extreme tardiness of my delivery of these random acts of kindness.

Please forgive me...

bonne nuit

xoxo

43...

photos courtesy of labour of love 2010

countdown begins...

{side note: i'm trying something new in my journaling...it'll be like fitting pieces into a puzzle or like lil' tidbits to a story...i'll be posting a few collages that will lead into a very special surprise for my family...i'm not at liberty to say at this time...but remember, pictures are worth a 1000 words...when you look at these images...what do you see...feel? at the very end of my lil' experiement, i'm hoping it'll tell a story...hope you enjoy the ride...}

bonne nuit

xoxo

Romantic Story Telling...Feria Cinematic Imagery+Krystal Mann+Cedarwoods=Perfection

photos courtesy of Krystal Mann Photographer http://krystalmann.com/ and http://www.stylemepretty.com/gallery/gallery/1842

{i'm having trouble embedding the film's code...go here to see it!}

now that is a gorgeous COUNTRY WEDDING...

thank you Style Me Pretty (go here for their raving review)
for showcasing this one-of-a-kind wedding film...

this is the kind of lovestory, i would have loved for my wedding...

dreamy, simple, sweet, magical...ultra romantic...

from the vintagey music, the country oasis (go here), the stunning photography, the sleek videography...every angle, every detail...=
PERFECTION.

if you want a true lovestory captured on film...go here to see more loveliness that this stylish+sweet film company creates...
and if you want a lifetime of sweet memories captured on paper...go here...
go check it out...
FERIA CINEMATIC and KRYSTAL MANN

you're going to be swept off your feet!

bons temps!
xoxo