Hallmark Journeys

The best part of Valentine's Day, candy!

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 01:09:00 +0000

Guest post written by Cynthia Howard

I have a really big sweet tooth and actually passed that down to my kids. But I really try to keep a limit on sweet things that I buy and especially put a big limit on candy that my kids can eat because I don't want them eating too much. Plus, I'd like to keep sweets associated with special occasions instead of just something that you consume every single day. But around the holidays, I like to buy a lot of candy and Valentine's Day is no different from other holidays in regards to that.
I thought it would be really fun if we could actually make some candy together this year for the holiday, so I decided to look online and find a good recipe for that. After I looked through it a little bit I ran across some information on debtsettlementfamily. I showed it to my husband because I think it's something our family could really use because we're in some debt trouble and I hate to be in it for any longer than we absolutely have to.

I found lots of good candy recipes to make with my kids and decided on some little cookie and chocolate combinations. They seemed a lot less messy than some other recipes that I found that sounded good.

Baby Shower

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 03:34:00 +0000

I went to visit Paw Boh's apartment, and I have spent 2 1/2 hours with her and the baby and with Ray Paw and Maw Gaw Paw. We had talked a lot of stuff. Although, most of the time they speak their Karen laungage which I don't really understand, and nobody translated them to me. However, when I have to ask something from Paw Boh, Maw Gaw Paw translated it for me.

Anyway, our topic finally came to that of a baby shower. The first time they heard about a baby shower they thought it was to give a bath for the baby. So, I explained it to them in a way that they understood. In fact, they became all excited about this Baby shower. I had given two baby shower banners to Ray Paw sometime late last year, and I asked her if she would help Paw Boh in putting up the banner for the baby shower, which she accepted.

I asked Paw Boh how many guests or visitors she would like to invite. She replied, "All...everybody!" I smiled with her response and told her kindly that that would be like 500 or more people and they would not fit into her apartment. So, I suggested to her that we will send out personal invitations to people she already knew or had met in the church with a suggested number of 10 people, but she seemed to want more than that. So, I said, "How about 20?" She replied, "Yeah, that's fine!" But, she wanted me to be the one to send out the invitation. So, I agreed to make an invitation for her.

I hope that with these acvities, we will bring more Karen in our church to worhip our Lord Jesus with us. It is in our love and charity that we can also show to others the love of Jesus Christ to the least of God's people.

May the love of Christ be with us all and may His blessings be upon us.

Mom and Me

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 08:21:00 +0000

Guest post from: Constance Rodgers

Mom helped me look into bank card processing for the restaurant when we first opened and that was good news. She’s far more into numbers and spreadsheets and rates and things than I am so I was happy to have her help – I had no idea what to do with myself in that last week before we opened because between the two of us we’d worked really hard to make sure there weren’t a lot of surprises. I was so nervous I didn’t sleep at all the night before we opened which was a terrible idea because I needed to be far more rested than I actually ended up being. But you know, I think that there’s something to be said for runningon fumesand really having to push yourself so you know what you’re capable ofat the end of the day. Running a restaurant is hard and I knew it would be(people warned me) but I’m learning each and every day which is encouraging. Ilove this new job!

Short Trip to the Emergency Hospital

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 07:58:00 +0000

We just had a short trip to the emergency hospital for Merlyn. He surely knew how to start the year for us...but, I'm glad and thankful it's nothing serious. He just had his vasovagal episode which seems part of his life now. It is a common type of fainting specially when you get up too quickly from sitting or lying down.

I'm so thankful that I'm just always right on time to assist him when he was nearly fainting, but still he got abrasion of his lower arm from the cabinet handle of our kitchen counter sink.

Small Businesses

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 16:07:00 +0000

I appreciate the guest post, Lindsay Valdez

Small businesses are really having a tough time in this economy but you know, there’s something to be said for making it work even when the deck is stacked against you. I can’t think about anything other than work and that’s because I’m one of the few entrepreneurs left in my little town but to my credit we’re actually doing better than ever even with the market the way it is. I run a delivery laundry company and apparently there’s a niche for it which is fine by me…I love what I do and getting to work with clients all day and they like that – I just enjoy being able to chat and have some flexibility when it comes to work. I can’t think about anything these days but HR rules and overtime and things like merchant services but you know, I guess that’s what makes me a good business owner. This place has become my life but I think that’s what’s helping keep us afloat right now to be honest with you.

Coutry Livin'!

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 01:19:00 +0000

We love, love, love living in the heart of Austin. We keep it weird, ya know? But, we have decided we think it’s about time for this duo to head to the country. Chad and I are building a house! Don’t get too excited, it’s not even a blue print yet. But, we have TONS of ideas about he layout, yard, pool (!!) and front porch. Pinterest has been an immense help slash waste of time at work, but I have some great new ideas. We are thinking about how to incorporate all our artwork without making the place feel too “city” in the country. Ideas are welcome. We are thinking five bedrooms, three bath, with a bigger porch than kitchen, and a bigger yard than basement. Obviously, we’d rather be outdoors. Already purchased: swing, planters, fire pit, and marshmallow sticks for roasting. Chad has already spent time on http://www.shopelectricityratestexas.com/ to find the best deals for power out in the sticks. Imagine that, he’s trying to save money, I’m researching ways we can spend it. At this rate, we may never get it built…

Trying to come up with our 4th of July picnic menu

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 18:20:00 +0000

I think that one of the best parts about parties is planning the menu. I love cooking so much and it's just like planning menus is a great precursor to all the loveliness that is upcoming to eat. Well, I've been working on planning the menu for about a week now for our upcoming 4th of July picnic. But planning that is a little more difficult because you have to make sure that you fix stuff that will keep.

While I was looking online to find some recipes that would be great for that, I ran across the website http://hearingaids.miracle-ear.com/. After I looked through it a little bit, I decided to buy some hearing aids.

I think that I came up with the perfect picnic dish. I'm going to fix some red, white and blue pasta and fix some pasta salad with it. Now I'll just have to find red and blue pasta. I do have a really great regular pasta salad recipe that I'm going to fix with that. It always gets a good reception whenever I fix it.

Caught on Fire

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 18:09:00 +0000

The last of my Father’s several barbershops was caught on fire yesterday and the building and everything in it was turned into ashes. This was his only means for income to support his daily needs and especially for his health expenses. This is a big trial that my Father, all of my siblings, and I have to handle. There was no fire insurance for the building and no insurance either for furniture & fixtures. It’s also a big problem for me since my siblings just asked help from me for my Father’s endoscopy last month. My Father’s health is not good, but he is recovering well. All of his savings are used up for several trips to doctors and hospitals, including his PT and other daily maintenance pills. With his last source of income gone, this is a big hit! Please include my Father in your prayers! The enemy would do anything to inflict us with pain, but I believe in God with all of my heart, mind, and soul. I will continue to praise God, even in times like this. He knows my afflictions, and He will surely deliver me from my enemies and He will give me rest. His love endures forever, praise to God forever more!!!

Ice Snow Accident

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 00:29:00 +0000

I saw a Robin two Sundays ago at Ate Melfa's deck, and yesterday I heard the chirping of birds very early in the morning. Spring is coming, that means goodbye snow. I love snow, but I think I have had enough of it for this year.

My husband slipped and fell on some icy snow last Friday at 5:00 pm. I took him to the emergency room just after 7:00 pm after the incident, and we came home more than an hour later. The 7th rib bone on his left side is fractured, and he has a hairline fracture on his pelvic bone particularly on the acetabulum.

After 1:00 am, I heard banging sounds on the door to our bathroom. I asked him if he was okay, but he did not answer. So, I hurriedly got out of bed, and rushed to our bathroom. I saw him standing, trying to hold on to his walker, while his back was leaning on the door to our bathroom. His body was in a going down position. I was able to hold him up, and was able to support him at his back. I was trying to make him conscious, and assuring him that he could make it to the toilet bowl and to sit there, get rested, and do what he needed to do. He was too heavy for me, but I was so thankful to God that I was able to assist him so that he could sit on the toilet bowl. But, as soon as he sat there he passed out. I made sure he would not slip and fall down to the bathroom floor. Then, I called the hospital and asked them to call 911 for us since we are only using skype, which is not capable of calling 911. The rescue team arrived in about 15 minutes. My husband was very much disoriented, and could not answer questions the team leader asked him, questions like: “Who is our President?”

I had a feeling that it was because of the pain pills he took earlier, but I wanted to be sure that it was nothing more than that. So he was back to the emergency room again and a cat scan was performed on his head. I was so happy that he did not have any head injury because of the earlier accident. What happened to him on that midnight was merely a drug reaction. We went home about 4:00 am, and he was on bed rest all day Sabbath. But, by Monday on Valentine’s Day, we were able to dine out with our friend Pastor Lawrence for our Valentine’s celebration and get together. And also, Pastor Lawrence finally got approval for his RS Visa that Monday morning. Thanks be to our God!

Snow Hat for a Snow Day

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 22:48:00 +0000

Most of the time, I avoid outdoor activities like hiking and mountain climbing just because I hate being too hot and sweaty and uncomfortable. The biggest reason, why I don’t want to be sweaty, is because I am allergic with my own sweat. I would have red rashes on my neck, my chest, armpits, and places all over my body that would easily sweat. But, I love to play out in the snow because you can just bundle up. I'd much rather be cold than hot. When the weather is hot, I cannot remove all my clothes and play around, whereas on the cold weather, I could just bundle up and get warm.

My kids feel the same way, and when I would tell them that it is snowing they would want to come where I live, so that they too could come outside and play with me. That would mean our snow wear will takes a beating. Talking about snow wear, my good snow hat got a little rip a few weeks ago. So I went online to find a replacement and while I was doing that I ran across the website Clearwirelessinternetservice.com. I showed it to my husband, and we plan to change our internet service to it.
I found a new snow hat, even though I was looking for one like I used to have and messed up. This one was just so cute and I think that when you're a mom you can get away with a silly snow hat while you're playing with your kids.

What a day!

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 02:24:00 +0000

I had an accident yesterday afternoon at the parking lot near Golden Corral. A lady driver didn’t see me backing up my car. When I was about to start forward, I heard a man's voice shouting; and when I tried to look out my left side to see who was shouting, I saw the back of a car quickly backing towards me. And then all of a sudden, clunk!!! Her car put a dent on the left side near to my car door. She was also backing up with her back window totally covered with snow. No wonder she did not see my car. And before that I skidded on North 27th when I was turning left on the traffic light from A St. The good thing is that the car following behind me found his way to the sidewalk, instead of smashing right into my car. What a day!

Our Third Christmas Together

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 22:33:00 +0000

We decided to invite my husband’s only sibling to spend several days with us for Christmas. She was enthusiastic about it and was counting the days until we could pick her up at her place by December 23. I told my husband to give her a call to remind her about it on December 19. She sounded really awful on the phone, as my husband told me. He said that she had a sore throat and a cough. However, she was really hoping that she would be fine before the 23rd day. Her being an optimist made me dash up to finish setting up our Christmas tree.

My husband and I were getting everything ready inside our apartment for her to be comfortable and to enjoy her stay with us. I already had several menus that I had planned to cook during her stay. We already had wrapped our gift for her, and bought another red stocking for her. I am not sure which of us were the most excited about the idea of her being with us on Christmas. Nonetheless, all of us were looking forward to that day.

My husband received a voicemail on December 21 from his sister’s daughter. He had trouble understanding the voicemail because it was really a bad connection, and Skype during that time was down. So, we decided to text her and email her to find out what the call was all about.

I felt like after being feverish, cold water was poured out on me. All my energy was drained. Although one corner of my mind was telling me, “I knew this was gonna happen!” She already was not well just two days ago. And bringing her back to her good old self by taking some over the counter pills is not like eating a chili pepper, and instantly you will feel the effect. She was rushed to the hospital and diagnosed with some bacterial lung infection. The good thing is that it was not pneumonia.

My husband called her on December 24, and she still did not sound okay, but she was feeling better then. We told her that we would come and visit her on the day after Christmas to give her our Christmas present. She was happy to hear about it, but she said that it’s probably best to come when she is totally back to good health. And so, her gift is still underneath our Christmas tree, unwrapped and untouched.

This is our third Christmas that my husband and I spent together just for the two of us. And for the first time, we celebrated our Christmas day with fasting, prayers, and meditation for the whole day. It’s a different approach, but surely it is a more rejuvenating experience in our relationship with each other and most of all our relationship with God. We decided to do it again every Friday night up to Saturday night each week.

Brrrr…..Need a Jacket?

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 16:54:00 +0000

“Honey, what’s the weather report?” I usually ask my husband about the weather report, or what the temperature is going to be for the day. I just don’t want to wear the red jacket that we bought more than two years ago, if I don’t really need to. Just to think of wearing my jacket, my mind would like to shout again as it always does every time I wear my jacket, “I need to breathe!”

When I moved from California to Nebraska, finding a jacket that would fit me and would give me comfort and flexibility was still a quest. I have several different types of jackets. But, I only have one jacket that could keep me warm for freezing weather, which would also fit me in the crowd (at least) and not look like I am at the North Pole in the middle of Nebraska. Even though, the jacket is too heavy and too bulky for me and makes me look like I am a football player, I have no choice, but to wear it if the temperature is really freezing (Brrrr!!) otherwise, I will freeze to death.

The good news is that my quest is over, or so I say! I still have to tell my husband about my new discovery, that I finally found the right jacket for me. I will cross my fingers when I have to approach him about this nice cool jacket that I just found on the internet. Oh my! I can’t wait to own one of these North Face jackets that I just saw. Hope my husband will buy one for me to end the quest. I’m sure he will. After all, he’s been with me for this whole quest of mine. He probably will be happy that our search is over. I would be delighted to own one of these cool breathable jackets. I already imagine myself wearing that North Face jacket myself. Wish me luck!

Echanler‘s First Real American School

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 05:31:00 +0000

If you have been following my blogs you perhaps already know that I have been teaching the little boy next door as a preschooler or as a “Quick Start” student. His Mother is a Karen refugee from Myanmar (Burma.) Echanler is barely five years old, and he should have been in kindergarten somewhere. Since I was about to start classes again for myself, his Mother agreed to try to find a school for him. So Echanler did not return.

I was a little saddened, but I was too busy and in a few days we saw him and his Mother waiting for the school bus outside our apartment building. Later his Mother told me that Echanler was enrolled in kindergarten, his first school in America. Every day there are several little children waiting in the morning and getting off of the bus later in the day.

This morning as we watched Echanler and a little girl get on the bus, my husband remarked about how sad he thought it was that the little girl getting on the bus, and no doubt enrolled in kindergarten was carrying on her back a back pack that was almost as big as she was. He wondered if children today will have back problems when they are older from the weight of back packs they carry as little children.

My Search for Auto Insurance

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 03:00:00 +0000

My husband recently had one too many “fender benders.” Mostly it was bumpers scratches that may have been there before, but who knows. Anyway, his insurance company, whom he has been with for over thirty years, has cancelled his auto insurance. So he asked me to use the Internet to find some insurance companies which he could use to compare rates.

Ultimately I ended up with http://www.carinsurancerates.me/ as a company that not only provides rates of different auto insurance companies, but information about each of the companies for which it provides rates. Information such as which companies provide insurance for young people or students, which ones will give insurance to drivers with already poor driving records, and which states will give the best rates, how long they have been in business, and other things to help the consumer make the wisest decision.

If you are like me, it’s easy to be confused by so many insurers. That’s why I appreciated the information I got from the company at http://www.carinsurancerates.me/. Comparable rates and company information was especially important to me, since in this economy one likes to do business with companies that have been in business for some time and companies you can therefore expect to be in business in the foreseeable future. This company also offers motor vehicle liability insurance at competitive rates.

Getting the quotes was really quite easy: after typing in the URL--http://www.carinsurancerates.me/ – you just have to fill in a simple form which they provide for you. You can do it on-line. It’s easy, it’s simple, and it’s fast.

Healthcare Insurance

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 14:46:00 +0000

With the Obama administration, healthcare insurance is a must – it’s a law. I am not sure if the law is being enforced yet, but it has been passed in the Senate perhaps two to three months ago. I don’t know if this law is to help us get a better health care and relieve us from the burden of sky high medical bills, or to put a greater burden on us for paying insurance bills.

Also, I don’t know what type of insurance I should get that would benefit me most in terms of healthcare insurance service and healthcare insurance cost wise. However, my concern was solved when I saw this site, http://www.healthcareinsurance.me/. This site tackles insurance coverage types and their advantages and disadvantages. It gave me some information about what PPO and HMO’s are about. This site also mentions low cost, high deductible, and group insurance. It helped me to understand my needs. Also, the site assisted me in some way to mold my decision as to what type of insurance I should have based on my needs and capabilities to pay.

The best thing about this site, http://www.healthcareinsurance.me/ is that you can get an instant quote, and compare prices with different healthcare insurance provider companies. This site really helped me a lot. I can recommend http://www.healthcareinsurance.me/ site to my friends and acquaintances to help them in their search for the best type of insurance coverage with very reasonable and affordable insurance costs. Of course, it will still depend on what they feel is the best health insurance that will suit their needs: I strongly believe that this site can assist them and I will recommend it to my friends and family.

PayPal Problem

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 23:44:00 +0000

I am very disappointed with PayPal. I do some blogging and surveys for which I get paid through PayPal. The survey company pays every 15 and 31 of each month once my balance would reach in $50.00; while the blogging company pays one month after a posted blog is approved. Well, I now have $102.50 in my PayPal account, but PayPal will not pay me stating that they have to hold it for six months to see if anyone will contest the ownership of the account.

They also state that they cannot verify who I am. I guess they use a firm that searches public records to verify if a person is really who they say they are. I am not intending to knock PayPal, for I am sure that it is a system that works very well for many people; it is simply that I do not understand why they cannot use conventional means to confirm someone’s identity, at least when there seems to be a problem. I explained to them that my driver’s license was brand new, (meaning that it might not yet be in the public records) and that a simple call to the state’s DMV department would confirm that event. But shouldn’t the firm they use do that? I am writing this as I said, not to knock PayPal, but instead with the thought that someone who reads this might have a solution for me. The other identity problem was that a bank account that I gave them was for my name before I married my husband. But I sent them a copy of my marriage certificate; what more can I do?

I did call the company that made the payment, asking them if they could recall the payment from PayPal and send the money directly to me. The person I talked to said, “No problem.” But who knows, I haven’t received payment yet, though it may still come. I just don’t think it is fair for PayPal to hold money that is rightfully mine, especially when I have sent them all the documents they need to verify who I am. Any help out there?

First Day of Work

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 18:12:00 +0000

I started a new job on Tuesday, July 27. A couple of days before that, my friend with whom I attend chemistry class and her husband were visiting my husband and me. As we were talking about the difficulty of the times and how hard it is to find work, my friend’s husband mentioned that his brother might have some work for someone in his business. Part of his business is doing warranty work for some of the “big box companies.” So he has a mechanic who repairs lawn mowers, snow blowers, chain saws, and other things like that, that have warranties. After my interview, I was hired.

My initial job was to post all the invoices from the vendors and all kinds of bills. I am also doing a physical count for the inventory. However, my boss is looking forward for me to be able to do all of the accounting jobs. I am working every Tuesdays and Thursdays – the days when I am not in school. We have had some very hot days recently, and there is no air conditioning in the building where I am working. The aisles are quite narrow where parts are stored, and there is very little air movement. While the temps have been only in the high 90s, the “feels like” temps as the weather people call it, have been as high as 115, all degrees are Fahrenheit. I finally told my boss that I had to have a fan, and he responded with two fans, wow! What a difference. It’s still hot, but the air movement on one’s sweating arms makes it “feel like” ten degrees, or something like that, less than it really is.

My hands were getting almost black from handling the parts, so I have been wearing vinyl gloves and that works really well, although my hands sweat a lot. I am supposed to get in at least but not more than 20 hours per week. I had already dropped my psychology class on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so I work those days trying to get in ten hours per day. I am very hot and tired when I get home. My husband says that I am apt to be a little cranky too, but he understands.

I haven’t received a paycheck yet, so I am looking forward to that.

American Football in High Definition Rises Above All Other HD Programming

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 03:23:00 +0000

We bought this HDTV last December, and we are enjoying our programs since then. My husband is a big fan on sports program, especially on football. He would just sit on his couch with some potato chips, and enjoy cheering for his football team.

Best Choice TV, offers enhanced viewing for many TV programs. With the high definition, the more his pleasure and fun are enhanced for every football game he watches. He lived in Denver for many years, and even though we live in Nebraska now, he always wants to watch the Denver Broncos when he can. He always wants to tell me about his favorite quarter back, John Elway.

His best memory of John Elway was in the January 11, 1987, game at old Mile High Stadium. It was a snowy night, he tells me, and The Broncos were behind the Cleveland Browns by one touchdown. With five minutes left in the game, the Broncos received the ball and started on their own two yard line. Fifteen plays and 98 yards later, the Broncos had tied the game, with one of Elway’s 31 fourth quarter comebacks. The Broncos went on to win the game in overtime with a field goal by Rich Karlis. My husband tells me over and over again how much he wishes he could have had a high definition back then just like we have now to watch the many records of John Elway (his favorite quarter back) set for the Denver Broncos.

Teaching a Preschooler

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 17:08:00 +0000

I have been enjoying a new experience for a couple of weeks now. That is the teaching of English to a little boy who does not speak English. I have been teaching him the ABCs, colors, shapes, and numbers. His name is Echanler, which means LOVE in his own language, which is Karen. Karen is a state in Myanmar (Burma), which is at war with the Burmese and has been decades. Refugee camps have been established in nearby Thailand, for the Karen people who are at risk to be killed. Echanler’s mother is only 21 years old and was born in one of these camps. She can understand some English, but speaks only a very little. Echanler will be five in November. These peaceful people have been relocated in different parts of the world by the United Nations.

School is a new experience for him as well. I teach for him for one hour in the afternoon, but sometimes they do not come. He is not use to giving his attention to anything for an hour. I try to reward him with a “goodie” at the end of the session. Echanler is very smart, but when I ask him a question, he often looks to his mother for the answer. He is learning a song about the ABCs, but I am afraid he will forget what he has learned if he does not come regularly. It is hard for Echanler to color objects at this stage, but he may never have had crayons before. He has learned red, blue, green and yellow, a circle shape, a triangle, a square and a rectangle. I would really like to help him to learn to read. Oh! Yes, he is tracing letters on a sheet of preprinted letters. I made a 30”x30” chart with upper case and lower case letters and included numbers 0 to 10. I also included a square, a triangle, a rectangle and a circle. My husband who has been a draftsman for engineering companies says that I did a good job. Coming from him, that is a compliment. We went to a used book store and found some little children’s books that I am using for Echanler.

Tomatoes Bear Big Fruit

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 23:21:00 +0000

Today I felt the joy of harvesting my first tomato from my ranging tomato plants. I say ranging because my husband and I never got them staked up this year. How amazing it is to see how large these plants have grown. I planted them about 12 inches apart, but they have spread all over the place. When we bought them, I noticed the name “Beef Steak” on the marker label. I asked my husband what that meant, and he replied, without even a hint of a smile, “That means we won’ have to buy any meat this winter.” He has a subtle sense of humor. I started to ask more, when I realized that he was teasing me. He went on to explain that they would be large tomatoes, and when sliced they might resemble a slice of beef.

We have been watching this first one as it has grown on a daily basis. It is just beginning to turn a little orange, but if we left it on the vine, insects and birds will be attracted to it and they will spoil this beautiful tomato. Already it has a small worm hole; this was caused by an insect of some kind when it was very little. (One could draw some spiritual lessons here)

If I told you that the diameter of the tomato was bigger than three inches, maybe even four, could you estimate its circumference? Well, multiply times three (for pi) and you would be very close. I learned that from my husband; he had my friend and I guess the circumference; I guessed six inches and she guessed five inches. Which one of us was closer?

I planted about six plants in this one area where I had flowers last year. They are all tangled up with each other now, much like some statuary one might see in Europe. Nonetheless, they have a lot of tomatoes on them, but they are not all “Beef Steak.” We also planted some in a “Topsy, Turvy” container which we bought. They are doing OK but not like they advertized on TV. I think I wrote about them before. Oh! By the way, the measured circumference of the tomato was 13.5 inches. It’s really big!

Party Dress

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 21:17:00 +0000

With my new sewing machine, I have now made two identical size five lilac party dresses for my twins and one pink party dress, which are all sleeveless. The dresses are designed with a zipper in the back. I like the design of the twin lilac party dress, and felt I had done a good job.

On the pink party dress, I have attached a 7/8” white satin decorative ribbon, where the skirt and the bodice meet. The bottom of the skirt is hemmed, and is sewn with a very fine short stitch, but I still have to place a lace on it. The outside material of the pink party dress is a sheer, see-through, silver glossy white material which I attached to the front of the pink fabric cloth. The bodice of the pink dress, with a scooped neck, is attached to the skirt, above the waist line, by a process called shirring. I just simply don’t like the shirring, since it turned out to be so bulky on the waistline. The child that would wear this pink dress will look chubby. The measurement of the skirt where it is attached to the bodice is about four times that of the bodice measurement, therefore, the skirt has to be gathered and sewn with a series of puckers to the bodice. It’s not fun to do the shirring and I don’t like to do it again.

I will also place all the dresses on eBay, and make new ones for my twins if they sell. I really love the dresses, and would love to see my twins in them. I took a picture of the pink dress with the seven-year-old Karen girl wearing it.

Summer School is Here Again

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 22:11:00 +0000

School started for me again two weeks ago – the summer quarter at the community college. Instead of being located about five miles from where my husband and I live, for this quarter, it is down town less than ten minutes away. I have a friend who is also enrolled in this quarter with me, but we only have one course in common, general chemistry. We spent this afternoon working out problems.

My friend lives about ten minutes from where I live, but in the opposite direction from where down town is. I will be picking her up and taking her home after our morning chemistry class. But guess what; I finally got my driver’s license in the mail today.

The class is on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Also, I will start to work part time every Tuesday and Thursday starting this week. I had a psychology class scheduled on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but I dropped it so I could work part time for the brother of my friend’s husband. He has a business that handles repairs for warranty work on lawn mowers and things like that for big box stores. I will do some accounting and set up an inventory of parts for him. I will take the psychology class later; it is the only class left as a prerequisite for the nursing program.

At Last

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 02:48:00 +0000

I am so excited today; my new Brother SE 400 sewing machine was delivered. I have written about the mechanical problem I had with my old Kenmore sewing machine. Although the problem was a “frozen” cam assembly shaft, and we got it loosened by taking it to a sewing machine shop, I could never quite get the timing correct so that the needle would do what it was supposed to do. I talked to my husband and we decided to bid on a new machine on eBay. There were several on eBay like the model that the man at the sewing shop had demonstrated for me. He was selling his for $599. We bid on several, but finally won one for about half of what the man was selling his for. That was on July 8 and it was finally delivered today, July 16. It seemed like it would never get here. The seller did not provide a tracking number for us, so we emailed him a couple of times asking him what was going on, and where was our tracking number. He didn’t answer, but the machine came anyway, so I am happy now.

My classmate who is in the same chemistry class as I am for the summer quarter was here and we were working out problems, when my husband came in from outside and hollered, “Surprise, surprise!” The UPS lady was right behind him. My husband brought the machine into my sewing room, which is also our computer room. I exclaimed, "At Last!" I was all out smiled, and I am so happy. My friend was happy for me too, but I waited until her husband came to pick her up before I opened up the box.

Keep Family and Friends Close Even When They’re Not

noreply@blogger.com (About Me) — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 22:41:00 +0000

My children are miles away from me. In fact, we are separated by the Pacific Ocean. Seeing them is the hardest thing to do. I have to buy an airline ticket which would cost me more than a thousand dollars just to see them. And, I have to travel for almost 24 hours straight flight.

The thing is, I want to see them if not always every day, at least once or twice a week. With the distance we have, that’s not going to happen. But, thanks to satellite wireless internet, it makes the impossible, possible for me. I can always see them anytime I want to. My kids and I can always talk to the headset in front of the webcam. They can see me, and I can see them. We can share photos as well instantly. Everything is so easy. I can keep in touch with my kids. Also, I can keep in touch with my father and all my siblings anytime I want to.

With the great hughesnet deals, we can get a faster service. I get updated from all the latest news. I can reach out to other friends whom I have not seen for quite a long while. I am into social networking like Facebook. From all over the world, you can keep family and friends close even when they’re not.