It’s been ages since I created a stamping project that’s not design team related. In the past I used to create something everyday and post each here. But the last few years, especially since our move to England, my papercrafting time has gotten lesser and lesser.

My blogging time has shrunk dramatically too. Not only did I use to update my blog every day, or every other day at least, I used to also visit my blog friends’ blogs and leave comments. Now, I almost forgot I have a Google Reader!

I have been wondering why things are the way they are and I finally got it! I now have a social life!!!

Back in Missouri I not only just have M but I rarely go anywhere after work. On a weekday I just want to stay home after getting home at 6 p.m. (plus we lived in the country with no neighbors my age). On the weekends we tend to go to Kansas City for any sort of excitement or shopping. Now and then I’d crop or stamp but that’s not often. I had wonderful colleagues and now and then we’d hang out but it’d just be once in a blue moon.

Now we live in an active community. M’s school is a 5 minute walk and soon Jovie’s will be too (preschool in Sept, YIKES!!). There is always something going on during the term and I try to participate. I’ve made wonderful friends through the girls (and friends of friends) and we meet up quite regularly; I am now in a book club too. On the weekdays my scheduled is full. Jovie has something Monday-Thursday (flexible schedule but do tend to hit most during the week) and M has something after school Tuesday-Friday. On gymnastics days, we don’t come home until 8/9 p.m. On weekends I try to take the girls and hubby somewhere, to take advantage of our time here. Oh, don’t forget house chores, those get done between Jovie’s and M’s activities.

Papercrafting used to be my way of relaxing. A time away from computers and gadgets but now that I don’t stare at a computer 8hrs/day, when the girls go to bed, I want to get on the computer, read up on some Photoshop technique and edit some pictures. By the time I’m done (or too tired to go on), it’s past 2 a.m. Sometimes I just want to go to bed after the girls go to bed and that’s what I do.

Last night was nice. The girls went to bed and I was still feeling good. I did edit some photos but I got done with that quickly and after browsing a few challenges (which I had to Google since I don’t know what is around nowadays) and rummaging through my stamps, I created the above. I used an Embellish Magazine challenge for the card: Bicycles and the colors purple, blue, orange and yellow. I was going to do something else, since I thought I didn’t have a bicycle stamp (Stampin’ Up!), but I did find one and was quite pleased with my finding and the end result. The road, if you’re curious, is from WPlus9 Classroom Backgrounds.

I don’t want to give up on papercrafting. I still LOVE scrapbooking the girls’ pictures and making cards for friends and the girls but now that I have more things going on (and that I am also into knitting), I’ll have more varieties to share besides just papercrafting projects here on my blog.

Last but not least, I want to share M’s photo. It’s from last weekend. She had a ballet recital at a festival, her first. I have photos of her dancing but there are other girls on them and thought it’s best not to post those without their parents’ consents.

“Nothing is fun until you’re good at it” — Amy Chua

Every morning Emma would get up a few minutes early and on her own would practice the piano. Sometimes the morning would be fill with pretty tunes while other times it’d be filled with off notes and a frustrated 8-yrs-old. When the later happens I always have to come into the piano room and tell her to eat breakfast first and then revisit the piece again after she calms down. Nine out of ten that usually works and she’d come out of the room with a huge smile and an, “I DID IT!!!”

I love all of Emma’s activities. I love them because M chose them. I especially love piano though since it was one that I wanted to be good at when I was her age. I couldn’t take lessons back then since my parents couldn’t afford it (or the piano). I resorted to asking my aunts to teach me and whenever I could, at my grandpa’s house (a three hours drive), I’d practice. I learned a few songs this way. A few years later I did learn from a very good teacher but we still didn’t have a piano and Fur Elise was the last piece I did.

I still want to be decent at the piano. So now, when Jovie’s not bothering me, I’d practice the songs that M’s learning at her lessons.

Emma is very good with gymnastics. She might really have the natural talent for it but I have a better feeling about her musical talent. She’s been very quick with her reading and fingering, even her teacher is impress and rushing her along (with lots of homework), and I cannot wait to see what the end of the year will be like. She has this goal of playing a few Christmas songs at her school’s church program and I think she’ll do brilliantly!

I made the card above for Emma. I left the card that way on the piano. She was quite pleased this morning when she saw and read the note inside. I used Waltzingmouse’s stamps and sketch for this card. Just simple layers but I think the pattern paper and background stamping is making the card shine.

I hope you’re enjoying a wonderful weekend. It is GORGEOUS here today! The sun is out and if you’ve been in England the last month and a half, you know that this day is special!! Please sun, do stay awhile!!

A year ago one little girl was terrified of the swimming pool (or putting her head under the shower). Ankle deep was all she could do. Any deeper and she’d be screaming. One would think she was being attacked by a snake!! Mom was so worried about her phobia that an appointment with a specialist was almost made! One year ago, this same little girl didn’t know what she liked. She tried different activities but quit soon after. She was hoping to get back into gymnastics (she was in it for 6 months before we moved to the UK) but the nearest gym club (5 minutes away) was full and the waiting list was long.

Luckily this little girl had a great friend whom she admires and luckily many moms (or mums) gave this little girl’s mother many ideas on how to help with the swimming issue.

A year ago today, Emma stepped into the swimming pool without going crazy. I made arrangements for M to have private lessons with an instructor at our local pool. It took a lot (and I mean A LOT) of persuading (and presents afterwards) but she went and realized that the pool wasn’t so bad after all. She agreed on swimming lessons and she started in June.

Sometimes mid-May Emma said she wanted to try ballet and tap. Her best friend’s in ballet and she thought it’d be fun. I was very sceptical about this whole ballet deal since M’s a two time ballet drop-out. But since she wanted to try them (and not me putting her in ballet because the ballet school was conveniently in front of the restaurant/bar we liked to eat and hang out), I said sure. She tried, decided that tap wasn’t for her but ballet was pretty fun. In June, even after knowing that she’ll never be in the same class as her best friend, M was a permanent student.

Around the same time as her ballet tryout, the gymnastics club called (almost a year after I put her on the waiting list) and said they have space starting in June.

After writing this much (and looking at my calendar) I didn’t realize how big of a month June of 2011 was for M!!

In between the above and now a few things have changed, all for the better.

M is now in level 4 of swimming. She’s still very cautious but after the intensive one week session that she attended, I can really see her improvements. She just has the butterfly stroke to master and she’ll move up to level 5 (seven is the highest for lessons).

Emma is still in ballet and passed her first Royal Ballet exam with a distinction. Not only that, she had the highest marks for the whole school!! It was quite an unexpected surprise and M’s quite pleased with herself; she even did a little shriek {::SMILE}. She’s now in grade one and cannot wait to move up to grade two.

Gymnastics has been interesting. The almost a year of waiting was a disappointment from the first time I laid eyes on the gym. It was my fault too for not trying out first. The gym was lovely but it was only a rec gym. A rec gym in the UK is mostly for fun. A bit of equipment, some tumbling, and the such. Thankfully one of the coaches came up to me (and I swear to you that it was heavenly planned the way it happened) and told me that M has talent and that I should take her elsewhere. So we tried out at the nearest competitive gym and was surprised to get an invite for the intermediate session. At the end of July Emma was learning proper gymnastics — ya know, like the ones you see on TV {::SMILES}.

That gym didn’t last long though. The first three months were great. Emma was in an awesome group with a couple great coaches. She learned a lot!! Then she got moved around and by December she went through four coaches. After trying out at two other gyms, we decided to move to one that’s 45-50 minutes away (37 miles each way) and couldn’t be happier. While further (the second gym was 25 minutes away), the quality is 10x better.

We’ve been at the third gym for three months now and M has learn so much! Her form has improved and some new skills that she’s proud of accomplishing are (the links are not our videos, they’re just examples of what each term is): Baby giants, round off dismount on beam and cartwheels on beam. Her form gets better each practice (really beautiful to watch too) and it’s been amazing seeing her body pick up new moves in a fairly short amount of time. Her new little goal: A kip, press to handstand, and to be as skilled as other eight-yrs-old at the gym (M is considered a late starter for the UK development program and working with the 7 and 8-yrs old to catch up).

We are so proud of this girl’s hard work and commitment. She’s so little, the’s the same size as a lot of 6-yrs-old, but very hard working.

When something or SOMEBODY walks behind (or in front) of the (adorable) subject we want to photograph. I mean really? Did this person NOT see a lady with her big camera aiming at Jovie?!?!

Despite the disturbing photo above, I did get a few good ones of the girls. I’ll share those later. For now, I want to share this card that I made using Waltzingmouse’s sketch for this week.

I’ll be back later with some pictures of us here in England. Even though it’s still raining almost everyday, we’ve been going out still and doing as much as we can with our time here.

Take care!

To photograph. She’ll look away most of the time. But now and then I can catch her from a distance, or the side.

She’s of that age. Although she might also just be sick of me pointing the camera at her. She was my only model for five and a half years!

I can’t though let her get away with it. One day she’ll appreciate all the little attempts to capture her eight-years- old self. And I will be really disappointed in myself if I let myself play her little game.

There are still days when she lets me photograph her, when she’s dressed up (Punky Brewster style), or just really feeling it. Whatever look she has on though, I love every single one of them. She’s my little girl and I want to remember her in every way.