so UNREAL! this was something i always dreamed about. to be a part of a designing community. it was a fluke to find this company. you see... i read Jamie W's. blog and needlessly to say, i was quite enamored with the kit she used and had to find out her resources. at the same day, i found out that Jennifer Brotchie (the owner) was searching for a team. requirements were not too difficult since she only asked for 3 scrapbooking layouts that the applicant consider to be their "best visually" and 1 non-layout altered project. i had a few of those that "i" consider to be my best (LOL) just laying around which Gabby loves to look at. i sent my layouts to Jennifer, and truly expecting nothing back. i was honestly expecting a call from a different call. then Jennifer Brotchie called first thing in the morning looking for Lovely Cutler. i thought it was rather odd that somebody was looking for Lovely Cutler... unless they're a money collector. i noticed the caller ID flashed CA_ california to be exact... again i thought nothing of it. but when she asked to speak to Lovely and said she was Jennifer Brotchie...... i had goosebumps everywhere, my knees waken, my eyes were welling up and started squealling and laughing and kept saying "no way!... are you sure?.... thank you!......oh my God!......i can't believe it!..." totally lost my poise if i had any to begin with.

this year, i sent out applications for a call ( as in contest) like this for about......let me count: 1...2 and this is the 3rd.... and this one was a dream come true.

went inside the forum and saw that Jenn made an announcement- she made it official. and i felt sick. like sick happy- like sick i can't believe it sick... you know that kind of sickness? remember when you first fell in love.....? you just feel so sick..... sick giddy? well whatever i was feeling or i'm feeling... i still can't believe it!
i couldn't be more proud to be a Candy Girl for Eye Candy Kits. i want to be a part of this growing company forever and ever! even when i have my very own scrapbooking store- someday.

all in one week. first off:
meeting Sergeant M- a long long long long long long lost childhood friend of Joe. Joe accidentally found him on the internet, thanks to Sky View's school website. found him just before we left for the trip. and when we came back home from the 1 month-short trip, Marshal was also heading back here in the US. what a set up. Because if they hadn't found each other, i don't know if their paths would have ever crossed. Had dinner with him, veggie and seafood fondue, YUM! then Joe pulled out the long forgotten high school year book and laughed and reminisced all that was in the past. Marshal wasn't who i thought he was, he totally was the opposite of what i thought he would be. Sergeant Marshal (as he specifically told me not to call him Sergeant) was a total kick in the pants! he was hilarious. told stories that would blow anybody's mind, like the iraqi men and their donkeys, bottle for bottled water filled up with human feces which i spare everyones the details. but also he had true heart wrenching stories, good soldier needless to say.
before we left for Japan, we both agreed that we'd swamp sake for an iraqi money. i was all for it, as long as i'd get my iraqi money. so the night he came, he arrived with a huge portfolio with 7 iraqi bills, bunch of coins and complete with stamps! whoa! i felt dizziness, i couldn't believe it, i was only expecting one bill. and oooh i'm sure he was also happy with the japanese sake we brought for him and the lumpia that he requested. so we were even.
most of all, we're so proud of him, he's out there taking care of the American men and women who are fighting for us. we are so proud that he loves his job as a combat medic- and you don't hear him griping about what he's doing. NOW>>> that's AMERICAN!



my southener bell girl friend, Mrs. Julie called and invited me and the kids over to decorate ginger bread houses inspired by Martha Stewart... who hasn't been inspired by her....? unless you are a Martha hater. i personally don't know Martha from adams but i truly love her ideas. Julie and i concured with each other that we are going to make this gingerbread thingy a tradition. she obviously loves christmas and she's not one of those twisted christians who doesn't believe in christmas. she says Merry Christmas and happy holidays and she doesn't go berserk when she says either. nice for a change. had so much fun creating the little village. we really got creative, too bad we were sorta unprepared for this. but promised that we will do much better with candies and the whatnot next year. looking forward already.


another tradition i was introduced to was decorating sugar cookies with Joe since my first christmas here in the States... then with Danie... then with Danie and Maikee........ and then with Danie, Maikee and Gabby. Grandma Mary is really adamant about this tradition, i'm glad she is because this is really something the kids will talk about to their future kids and i hope that they will carry on the tradition. it's really a wonderful thing to do together as a family.... though it can really get messy ;-)

i think 2 years ago now, we watched Polar Express with Tom Hanks in it and we watched it again tonight for the 2nd time and i'd say i love it as much as i did the first time i've seen it.
when i was a kid- by that i mean, really really young, i used to think Santa was for real and his elves were real. just like in the movie, Polar Express, i thought that somewhere in the world, it was like that in Christmas and there's an actual Santa's workshop. as i grew older, it faded away.
i think it started when someone dear to me told me to hang a stocking outside our door, because Santa was going to fill it up with surprises. and i can vividly remember pulling out my uber coolio Pipilongstocking sock and hung it outside the door. i got up rather early the following day and my sock was disappointedly empty. i truly thought i got punk'd!!! i truly didn't know what to make of it.
watching the movie again, i am reminded of the Christmas magic. though i realized that maybe i lost my hearing too over the years. i've been through a lot when i was growing up. in the past, it seemed like my holidays was always mixed up with unpleasant things- one way or another.
the part that stuck with me in the movie was when Mr. C shouted the first gift of Christmas... and it was the young boy's belief.
personally, i just wanna BELIEVE, not just on the day of Christmas but through out the year and the year to come and the years to come. to continue to believe on God's promises, to stand firm on His promises at all the times, and never questioning His ability because if i can do that, then i will never have to fret and doubt what's gonna happen next. would be nice.
in the movie, when the kid "finally" decided that he was going to believe, he could finally hear the sound of the bell and the sounds of the bells. and he could still hear the sound of the bell even when he got older, unlike his little sister. oi, that sucks.
i don't want to stop believing God so i can have something valuable to pass on to my kids. and i think to do that, i have to make a conscious effort to do right thing every single day.

a few weeks before we left for Japan, we got this book


and it totally worked us up and we couldn't be more excited after reading this book. it had very few pages with elaborate and breath taking photographies. we swore that we were to going to see it... to see what we read, however, upon arriving Japan, we came into realization that Kyoto is not something we can "JUST" get on in a train and go. Kyoto suddenly became a wish that felt like will never come to pass.

when i was 17, i flew to Japan and stayed there for about 6 months. my trip though was under unfortunate circumstance. you see, i attended my mother while she was recuparating from a major surgery. however, before she went through surgery, i was able to experience life in Japan which made such an impression on me. and i have always thought that someday i will bring my (future) family to Japan with me. i patiently waited 12 years for this dream to come into a full fruition. on October 11. 06 me and my family packed 6 suitcases and flew to Japan. i had to really pinch myself because it did not feel like we were going at all. and honestly, i feared that this trip won't be what i conceived it would be, so i prepared for the worse possible circumstances and scenarios however, subconsciously i was expecting the best. words cannot describes how our trip turned out to be the best time of our lives. it was indeed an opportune time. perfect in every inch.

we were mainly in Kawasaki but through densha_ the over crowded train, and through new dear friends, and through God who made us the path so we could see His creation in the Land of the Rising Sun, Kyoto which was once a wish became a reality.

it was rather odd to be actually in the place that we read about and actually be walking on the path photographed, touched the ancient walls, to be standing in a shrine which was made without a single nail, to eat authentic Japanese culinary and unbelievably just being there- FOR REAL!!!!




i hope to scrapbook a lot of our photos and document all the memories we had, not just for Kyoto but for all the places and friends and family that brought joy to our lives.


right now, my thoughts and prayers goes out to Ate, Kuya and Ma. someday, soon enough God will make another way for us to yet again, ascend and descend. be that through Northwest or JAL, it doesn't really matter to me.