Remi at the beach

yep, he was having fun in the water...
Warren Dunes Park, MI. Thursday, July 24th, 2008

what camp has become

this is what we do at camp these days, grown boys turn into women... all in the name of fun. by the way, this is my friend Collin, aka Fonzie, also now called occasionally Fonzerella, for obvious reasons...

Congrats card.... Cubs style

I am mailing it out tomorrow... I was going to wait until it was received by the recipient to post it here but, even though it is not perfect, I am very proud of the way it turned out, and I have to share it right now... I will elaborate on it later on.

birthdays

2 more birthdays today: my dad and my niece Melinda. So happy 67th birthday Dad and happy 20th birthday Melinda!

The best group of kids EVER

These kids totally rock my world... they make up for every minute that is not going quite well... Sure, sometimes I want to pull my hair out, BUT they have so much love to give and to receive that you can't help melting...

in-laws's 50th wedding anniversary aprty

I am finally getting around to posting photos from the party...

2007 birthday digital scrapbook layout, created by Melanis

I simply have to share it because I love it...

Nick's teaching job

I have known Nick now for 5 years. He was my assistant at the Westville after school program for 4 years. We are keeping in touch as best we can, and I am so happy that Nick finally got a job in the school system. Starting this fall he will teach 4th grade at Riley Elementary School in LaPorte. I am so happy for him and so proud of him! I am working on a card to send to him and I will make sure to post it once finished... Congrats Nick!

another birthday card

I originally made this birthday card for Melinda's 20th birthday. It was working OK until I stamped the "happy birthday' and the 20... now I do not like it that much... but there it is, so your input is always welcome.

birthday cards

I made 3 birthday cards this week:

Remi's


Jeff's


Melinda's (for her 20th birthday coming up in just a few days)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY REMI

Remi is turning 6 today! wow! time flies!

still laughing...

Melanis, this is for you!

If you're not Melanis, you need to know that she forwarded this to me last year, and I laughed so hard my sides were hurting for a while. i still smile when i see it... which reminds me... i have to post the penguin thing too...

Bryan Adams's "Don't drop that bomb on me" lyrics

I was listening to this song tonight on my way home from work. And wouldn't you know, as I am listening to this song which is asking us to take care of our planet or at least open our eyes to what is going on, not only one but two pieces of trash were thrown out of the vehicle on front of me. totally pissed me off... (excuse my language).

Brayn Adams - "Don't drop that bomb on me"

We sailed our ships upon the shores
That once were out of reach
Turned the silence into war and bloodied up the beach
Trashed the forests and the trees
Til there's nothin' left to cut
We raped the rivers and the seas and turned the land to dust
It goes on and on
On and on...

Does anybody know what's goin' on
Can anybody tell me where we went wrong
Can anyone say why wrong is right
If we wanna little peace well we got to fight

Can anyone say things are lookin' good
Just take a look around your neighbourhood
The world's gone crazy

Crash-we can fight it
Crash-we gotta try
Crash-we can't hide it
We gotta stop that fire

Don't drop that bomb on me
Save that little tree
Don't drop that bomb on me
Save our seven seas
Don't drop it, don't drop it
Don't drop that bomb on me

Should every thing thing have a life to give
Will every little child have a place to live
Does anybody feel just a little bit scared
Isn't it about time everybody cared
The world's gone crazy

Crash-we can fight it
Crash-we gotta try
Crash-we can't hide it
We gotta stop that fire

Don't drop that bomb on me
Save that little tree
Don't drop that bomb on me
Save our seven seas
Don't drop it, don't drop it
Don't drop that bomb on me

If ya gonna talk that talk
Ya gotta walk that walk
If ya gonna fly that flag
Ya gotta shake a leg
Ya everybody should try
Cause we're much too young to die

Sévy and Sylvain's wedding, and also Cornélia baptism

My younger sister got married on June 14th (and if you've read the previous posts, you might realize that that was the day of my in-laws' 50th wedding anniversary... what a coincidence!). My biggest regret this year is that I was not there with her. I did receive some photos, and I am sharing one of them. Sévy and Sylvain have been together for 10 years and I love both of them dearly. I wish the bride and groom many years of happiness! Also that day, their 1 year-old daughter Cornélia was baptized... I haven't met Cornélia yet and I am looking forward to the day when I can finally meet her!

Florent Pagny's "Savoir Aimer" lyrics...

This song is now labeled as an old song (heck, that was when I was still living in France...), but I was listening to it a while back and again earlier today and actually paid good attention to the lyrics. Someone was kind enough to translate them for me (thanks Marie-Christine!) and you'll find the translation after the French lyrics...
Those lyrics make me want to use them on a scrapbook layout.. food for thoughts...

Florent Pagny, "Savoir Aimer"

Savoir sourire,
À une inconnue qui passe,
N'en garder aucune trace,
Sinon celle du plaisir
Savoir aimer
Sans rien attendre en retour,
Ni égard, ni grand amour,
Pas même l'espoir d'être aimé,

Mais savoir donner,
Donner sans reprendre,
Ne rien faire qu'apprendre
Apprendre à aimer,
Aimer sans attendre,
Aimer à tout prendre,
Apprendre à sourire,
Rien que pour le geste,
Sans vouloir le reste
Et apprendre à Vivre
Et s'en aller.

Savoir attendre,
Goûter à ce plein bonheur
Qu'on vous donne comme par erreur,
Tant on ne l'attendait plus.
Se voir y croire
pour tromper la peur du vide
Ancrée comme autant de rides
Qui ternissent les miroirs

Savoir souffrir
En silence, sans murmure,
Ni défense ni armure
Souffrir à vouloir mourir
Et se relever
Comme on renaît de ses cendres,
Avec tant d'amour à revendre
Qu'on tire un trait sur le passé.

Apprendre à rêver
À rêver pour deux,
Rien qu'en fermant les yeux,
Et savoir donner
Donner sans rature
Ni demi-mesure
Apprendre à rester.
Vouloir jusqu'au bout
Rester malgré tout,
Apprendre à aimer,
Et s'en aller,
Et s'en aller...

translation by Marie-Christine:

"Knowing how to love"

Knowing how to smile,
To a stranger that passes by,'
Without leaving any traces,
Except that of joy,
Knowing how to love
Without anything in return,
Without regard for, nor big love
Not even the hope of being loved
Simply, knowing how to give,
Giving without expecting anything.
Doing nothing excepting learning,
Learning to love
Loving without expectations,
Loving,
Learning to smile,
Only for the deed,
Without expecting anything else ,
And learning to live
And then go.
Knowing how to wait and
Tasting that full happiness,
That's given to you a little bit by chance,
So much so that it was unexpected.
Seeing oneself and believing in it
To lure the fear from the emptiness Anchored like wrinkles
which tarnish mirrors,
Knowing how to suffer
In silence, without a word,
Nor defence, nor armor
Suffering to the point of wanting to die
And getting up again,
Like ones rises from one's ashes.
With so much love to resell
That one makes a complete
break with one's past.
To dream for two,
Only by closing the eyes,
And knowing how to give,
Giving without any hurt,
Nor half measure,
Learning to rest,
Wanting until the end
Staying despite everything,
Learning to love,
And then leaving,
And then ....moving.

Graduation card

A couple of weeks ago Paul and I were invited to a Graduation partly. Mind you, that was the first one I attended. I didn't even know the Graduate! But anyway, time came to find a card to hand to her, so I made this one quickly. The fun part was to trace and cut out the cap, make a tassel for it and roll the diploma and make sure it stayed on the page... lol... but it was all in the name of good fun...

50th Wedding Anniversary party invitation

My in-laws celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on June 14th. I volunteered to make the invitations for their anniversary party. this is what i came up with, I must say that I had a lot of fun making all 25 invitations. I love the result, and so did everybody else at the party... talking about the party, I will make sure to post some photos later on...

another birthday card... ;)

simple but elegant

card making

My best friend is a very talented card maker - check out her work through her blog at melanisss.blogspot.com. I absolutely LOVE what she does, and her cards always give me plenty inspiration to create my own cards. I do not have the same passion for it as she does, but I try my best to at least make cards for special occasions instead of buying them... One by one, here are the cards I have made over the past year or so... this one I made for my sister and her then boyfriend when their daughter Cornélia was born.

Birthday card

This is the very first card I ever made, for my best friend's birthday last year... It involved paper folding and stitching. I had a lot of fun making it...

Happy Birthday America!

This Independence Day is even more special to me since it is my first one as an American Citizen!!! Here is a fireworks photo I took at a party... If you've ever tried to take photos of fireworks, you know how unsatisfying and frustrating that can be to get the "perfect" shot. This shot looks pretty darn good to me. I am so proud of it that I even put it on my desktop! :)

Happy Anniversary to us!

8 years ago today, Paul and I were pronounced husband and wife... Here is a my favorite wedding photo!
I love you Paul..