Joyeux Anniversaire, la Maman Douce !

Joyeux Anniversaire, la Maman Douce !

hoping you had a beautiful day...looking forward to seeing you this Sunday at your favourite restaurant in Chinatown...you are the most beautiful mother anyone can ever have and i'm one of the lucky ones to have you in my life...thank you for giving birth to me, working with poppy all these years to provide for all five of us...you came to the States with 2 lil' ones, a nursing degree, no $ and not knowing what lies ahead for your family in this new world...but you and pop never ever gave up...you kept working harder, sacrificing so much, living such a modest life so your lil' ones can have a better opportunity than what you had back in the Philippines...thank you so much for your perserverance, for becoming a nurse, for taking a risk with your new family by coming to the States, for taking that leap into the unknow, for teaching us love, devout faith in our God, for your unconditional love...for being the best mom (parent) in a new world, for loving your grandchildren, for just being YOU...Happy Birthday, Sweet Mom...WE LOVE YOU FOREVER!!!

Mahal Kita...Je t'aime...your loving 2nd daughter, jo ;) xoxoxoxo

Rhondamum...Continuation Merci Beaucoup Le Vendredi #2

(handmade card from Sweet Rhonda of Rhondamum.blogspot.com/)

as promised...

(all images from Labour of Love)



(all images from Labour of Love)

i'd like to also Thank my sweet French Sister, Rhonda who was my most fantastic partner in my sis, Mary Ann's Vintage Christmas Stocking Swap 2008. Look at the most wonderful gifts she gave to me and my lil' ones. Her stocking that she made for me is ABSOLUTELY DIVINE!!! I LOVE linen and French-inspired art...and she made me such a BEAUTIFUL Vintage+French inspired stocking!!! I simply adore the embellishments...the laces and the Old Santa fabric is absolutely gorgeous!!!!

(all images from Labour of Love)


(all images from Labour of Love)

(all images from Labour of Love)
Such a BEAUTIFUL Stocking...so in LOVE with this very SPECIAL VINTAGE FRENCH STOCKING!!!!! I LOVE IT!!!!!!

(all images from Labour of Love)
Gorgeous Vintage Santa...Love the embroidered ribbon...the linen and lace are so PERFECT!!!

Rhonda gave me so many sweet items...lil' French Eiffel Tower confetti, a BEAUTIFUL + sweet Marie Antoinette vintage glass container, a gorgeous glass vial with her Halloween French Themed item for the Fantasmagorique Swap, absolutely beautiful French ledger papers, sweet Eiffel Tower and Pink Rhinestone Crown ornaments for my tree, wonderful bread warmer linen, handmade Christmas Card, delicious candies, Magical Reindeer food, French blue Rendevous post-it notes, Vintage French word cards, Burt Bees' items, nice white linen laces, lil' cracker gift (So European!) and soooooo much more...

Here's a lil' bit more pics of what I gave Sweet Rhonda for our Vintage Stocking Swap...

This is just one of my favourite lil' mantras that I made up one day for a couple of my pictures, also here and here a year ago...it is so true...I like to keep saying it to myself esp. when sending out sweet packages to special hearts...

Sorry for the longest posts and the gazillion pics...I just wanted to make sure that I properly showed Rhonda how much I LOVED everything she sent to me and how much I LOVED making her something really special too...She truly has spoiled me and my lil' ones-BIG TIME...

Hoping you had a GLORIOUS CHRISTMAS...
Wishing everyone an abundance of PEACE, LOVE + JOY in the upcoming new year...
here's to more BLESSINGS in 2009!!!!!
more thank you pics to come next week from
Sweet Josephine, Tangee and other projects that I have been working on...
Bonne Nuit!
xoxo jo ;)

You better watch out...

my lil' munchkins just finished performing their "Thanksgiving Feast" at School...who would've thought that I'd get so overly emotional when they started singing 'My Country 'Tis of Thee...' this year (1st grade) they are Indians...2nd graders were Pilgrims...absolutely a heart warming treat to watch my lil' miracle babies singing their lil' hearts out 'Indians in the Forest...never make a sound...ssshhhh...' so darling!!!!! i'm sooo happy that tim & i were there...precious memories!

anyway, i know Thanksgiving hasn't even happened yet...but we're gearing up for Christmas around here...lil' ones have been humming 'Jingle Bells, Rudy the red-nosed riendeer, Silent Night...' i just finished my itty bitty Vintage Christmas pages hosted by Callieflowergirl:

now, i'm working on my sis' Vintage Christmas Stocking Swap for my sweet + dear French Sister, Rhondamum . i'm so very lucky to have her as my partner...i asked for an extension (i know...shame on me....but i want to make her some extra special things and i want to do a very good job for her!) Please visit Rhonda's blog if you love the French, Sweet Marie, to learn more about her beautiful creations or just to be amazed...please visit her! she is so sweet, adorable and quite BEAUTIFUL (inside + out) ...she gave me a very special award...Marie Antoinette Award...

i'm so honoured and absolutely thrilled that you even thought about me and are sharing this with me... (just curious, though...who creates these awards?!...anyway, i'm just so lucky to even receive yet another one...so honoured, really...i still can't even believe someone thinks this blog or even i am even worthy of such an award...how lucky am i????)

thank you sweet Rhonda from the bottom of my heart-you are one sweetheart and i adore you!!!! i absolutely love anything and everything French and Sweet Marie is one unique person that i think was quite misunderstood...i'm reading more about her life and truly feel she was not given a fair chance...

Here are the Rules for the Award:

1. Please put the logo on your blog- check
2. Link to the person from whom you received the award- check
3. Nominate at least 7 or more blogs- see below
4. Put the links of those blogs on your blog- will work on this...
5. Leave a message on their blogs to tell them- will work on this...

y'know, i just started this on-line journal this past summer and i'm still trying to get my feet wet out there. there are so many worthy blogs out there that truly deserves this award...but for now, i am going to dedicate this award to all the 27 BEAUTIFUL CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS of our Sweet Marie-Pour l'amour du Francais Itty Bitty Book Swap that we have just completed about 2 weeks ago...once i find more time, i will post all 27 links soon... (i can do that, right?...it said to 'Nominate AT LEAST 7 or MORE blogs...' hmmm....wonder if i'm breaking some rules...oh well, rules were went to be broken! hee-hee!)

will write all 27 links soon!

(to all those who have so sweetly sent their love my way, i am basking in the joy you've sent...thank you so much for visiting me and always sending such sweetness my way! i will try to send replies to your comments/questions soon...esp. to those sweethearts that would love to swap with me...i've just got to get through the next 3 swaps and clear my calendar...will send e-mails to you soon...)

(pps...for those kind hearts that sent me beautiful hostess gifts for the Sweet Marie itty bitty book swap...WOW!!! Thank you from my heart to yours...you truly warmed my heart and LOVE, simply LOVE everything you sent to me...esp. all the MAGNIFICENT French items, Eiffel Towers oh, the beauty you've shared with me has touched me deeply! THANK YOU!!!!!!)

bonne nuit, xoxo jo ;)