The new me! (getting rid of grey hair)

It feels so good to do something for you! Today finally I had the chance to get rid of my grey hair, I have so many grey hair I am worried now. I just don't like it, I know there is people who is comfortable with it, but not me certainly. I know it is in my genes, my dad had the head completely white when he was only 37 and my mom had a lot of gray hair too. I started this "problem" really young too, around 18! so by now you can imagine it it terrible!
finally today I could paint my roots and had my hair cut. I feel so good and renewed!

FINALLLLLYYYY I am officialy published.

What a great day! I received an e-mail from Denise telling me that she just received the Creating Keepsakes idea book where my layout was published!! I am so excited.
Being published was so important for me, don't get me wrong, it is not that it is not important any more but I think that nothing can be like that first call I received! I haven't seen it yet but as soon as I get my copy I will post the page
I submit EVERYTHING to mags, especially to CK and this is the very first time they pick one of my layouts! I really like this one, I think the pictures are great.
Ana Paula is as excited as me, she can't wait to get the book and take it to school (I promised she will be able to do that).
So here I am, drinking a glass of wine to celebrate with myself, Oscar doen't really get how important this is to me, so until I see my frinds next week and I can say cheers with them I have to celebrate by my own.
I just had to share I really feel special right now!

What a week!

I had a very busy week, starting with the last weekend. My sister Karla came to visit with her friend Jesus. They arrived on friday night and left on Monday morning but they were in a shopping mission. I visited a lot of stores/malls during the weekend, on Saturday we left Walmart at 1 am!
Also on Saturday morningI had the Easter photo shoot at Let's Scrap, we started at 8:30 and finished at 2:00, because of the shopping spree I didn;t have time to work on the pcitures during the weekend and on top of it Oscar left to Mexico on Monday too and took my computer, so I was working with my old (very slow) one. I just finished printing all the pcitures for the class. But I am very happy with the results! I think I have great shots and all my clients are happy with my work. I even received a call from a photographer that saw my pictures and wants me to help him with his weddings! That was very nice and I really needed something like that in this moment.
Here are a few of my favorite photos, the re are a lot good ones, it was very hard to pick only five but here they are:

Finding a Job!

Why is it so hard to find a job? I've been looking for a job for so long without luck. I know that my field is hard, I was retired for 3 years and returning seems like an imposible mission. I've been applying to everything but nothing... Seems like everything I can find is as receptionist, answering phones or as the assistant of people I do not admire at all, of course the pay is 8 an hour and unfortunatelly that doesn't make a difference right now. I do not need a side job, I need something that really helps my family. I so wish the photography business will be the option. It is working but not as good as I hope. I know it needs time, but time is what I don't have.
I feel so depressed and sad letely, I feel that there is nothing I can do to help my family, I feel that I can do so much more than answering the phone but where? who is going to believe in me if I don't do it? This has been a VERY hard week, I am not ashamed to say that I've been crying a lot and that I am terrified. I know things will get better... but when?
Is it that I am too old to retake my professional life? is it that I need to forget what I've done and just take whatever? I am not afraid to work and I really don't mind the kind of job I have to do, I've always been a hard worker but now I need to work for money and what I am getting is just not enough.
I missed so much my mom, she always had the right words, she had that power of comforting me with just one call, nobody can do that now. I keep on trying to listen to her in my mind but it is not helping at all.
I feel so lonely and sad, I am glad my sister is comming at least for 2 days. I need so much to feel family... why is it so hard???

WEEKEND????

this past weekend did not feel like a weekend at all, I spent all saturday and sunday working. On saturday I had a Baptism shoot. first I tool some studio portraits at at home and then I went to the event at the church and then the lunch. I have some good pictures and also I got some new clients. I spent all afternoon and part of the night working in the computer and preparing the pictures to upload them and burn them in cd to deliver them on Sunday.
Then Sunday morning I had a pregnancy shoot of Lisely's friends, this was a very young couple and I got to use a dramatic light. I really like the results! Then I spent all afternoon in the computer uplading the event and giving the finishing touches to my Photography Workshop. I start teaching it tomorrow. A complete weekend. TG I had this shoots in this moment.
Here are some of my favorite pictures of both shoots.

CROP NIGHT

On friday we had a green crop night! we had a great time and although I didn't complete a lot of LOS I got a lot of "to do things" completed. I finished this LO for SA, I love this picture of a martini glass I took at Russ's party. As always we listened to good music, we ate Briana pasta and pizza and have a lot to drink! A thing called grasshopper and apple martines. And Lisely discovered the new Lucila's cheesecake mmmmmm! delicioso.
Too bad this crops are only once a month!

Scrapbook Traveler's Club!

Thursday was the official launch of the WTC at Let's Scrap. This is a new creative program for stores created by Jen Newton, one of the most creative and talented persons I've ever met.
She designed this whole concept to help store owners with their class organization. I think it is a very cool program and Let's Scrap is the first store to give it a try with myself as instructor.
There are few things we will need to adjust but I think it was great. The class scheme is changing a bit, now people will have creative freedom and I think that will be the hardest part, but also the can stick to the old scheme so basically now they have the otion to copy or to create and I think that is great.
I hope this work as we think.!

The MEXICO book

I spent all this week helping Ana Paula in a school project. She had to do a book about the country of her heritage so she did it about Mexico. We used a cute acordion book I had. We printed pictures of different things and we looked for information in the internet. Then we made cute foldables for each picture. She wrote her infomation on the cover of the foldable, when you lift the cover you find the picture for the information.
We had a great time doing it, we included information about the map, flag, people, food, schools, language, festivals, beaches and ruins.
We had a great time doing it, Ana Paula enjoyed a lot distressing everything!! (like mother like daughter) and she learned a lot about our Country.
Here are some pictures of the book. Isn't it cute?

THE CALL

It is funny how this afternoon so many scrapbookers were waiting for the call, finally HOF calls started. As for me I was also waiting for a call, but not a call from Lisa B but from my husband, a call that was really important and that would define some how our future. As for 20 of the scrapbookers the call also came for me, to bad it didn't make me feel like the one from Lisa B. Well before I cointinue I have to congratulate all the winners, I am glad for all of you who had the guts to enter and that made it to the HOF! It should be a great experience, maybe next year I am going to give it a try, I hope my life lets me do it.
Returning to the other call, it didn't make me happy it just gave me another time frame to continue with the anguish (what a strange word, but I looked for it in the dictionary so it should exist) of the waiting. You see HOFS your waiting finished today, mine just restarted.
It is funny how a call can change your life, how the waiting can be so consuming, how 2 people with complete different circumstances but that share the same hobby, can be waiting for a phone call that will change their lives. But for sure I hope I was in any of the HOF shoes.

New title picture

So my dear friend Jen Newton, better known as CaptainNewt or the Admiral, finally helped me to upload my new title with this picture of Ana Paula and Santi that I absolutelly love. I really like my blog's new look.
I hope you like it too! and yes I know I am missing one space on the words but I don't know how to change it without bothering so it will stay that way!

No good news

so I didn't get the good news I was expecting, on the contrary I received bad news. Well, what can I do, I guess hang in there and keep moving on.
On the other hand I have to say that I bacame an aunt again. Carlos and Erika (Oscar's cousin and his wife) just had their beautiful baby girl. Her name is Maria Jose and seh was born this morning. I do not have a picture yet nor the details but as soon as I know something else I will post it.
Off to go on with my life.

Some picture from Saturday

I went to take pictures of a baseball game. Cameron, Denise's nephew plays so we went to the park to take some pictures of the boys and the action.
I had a good time and I really needed to be out for a while.
ere are some of my favorite pictures.

Monday Morning

So here I am, monday morning, I am doing laundry and waiting for good news, I hope I get them I really need those good news, Santi's birthday is in 2 weeks and I really want him to have a great time, he's never had a big birthday party as Ana Paula and I think I feel guilty for that. I wish I could take him to Disney, he wants to go so bad. Well... life changes so fast, please pray for my good news.
I am planning to work all day in my photography workshop, I am almost done with the notes, just need to start and finish the power point and examples. Another to do is my Scraps Ahoy assingments for April, they are due this week and also I am nervous waiting for the CK Hall of Fame calls, I didn't enter but I am crossing my fingers for a good friend that did and she so deserves to get it! (I didn't mention your name!)
This weekend I worked on my Easter photo shoot LO! I had a good time taking the pictures, the white background was a little bit of trouble but I love my pictures.
Here is the LO! (WARNING: the scan sucks! but it is really pretty in real life.
God luck to the Hall of Fame wannabe's.

Scrapbooking and Beyond

sent me an e-mail requesting 4 of my Paper Werx LOS for their Augist issue. I am so happy! I just wanted to share how happy I feel that finally I a being published. This is so cool and I've worked very hard for this moment. I wish this could be CK but someday they will notice me.
It is great to receive good new between all the bad news of the last week. OK now down of Cloud 9 and back to reallity.

Everyone have two big balls...

Don't think wrong, this is me trying to explain to Russ and Denise what the PETANCA is, I was doing my best explaining that everybody in the game have 2 big heavy balls and they try to throw them close to the small wooden ball, suddenly I realized that something was wrong, they were looking @ me with this faces so I just had to laugh of myself. You see sometimes I have a little bit of problems trying to explain myself in english and if we add my body expression, it was just too funny!
Thanks for the good time guys, I really needed to laugh!

I love this picture

Today I got this picture, it was taken at the Irvine's B-day party. Russ asked Geneva to take it especially for my blog and I just got it today. I was going to add it to the party pictures but as I loved it I decided to give it a separate post. I really like the way it turned out, we were having a very good time and the picture shows it.
Denise and Russ had become very special persons in our lives, you know, now a days is really really hard to find people like them in the world, they are the best friends you can have and I think I am very lucky because I found them, and yes Russ scrapbooking had a lot to do with it!!.
Thanks gusys for your friendship you are the best, and I love you!

Good News!

today I called my sister and as always I couldn't find her, she really is living la vida loca, good for her!! she deserves to enjoy a little bit, the past years have been very hard for her.
Anyways she wasn't there but I talked to Ali, she is my aunt, my mom's sister and as she has no children or grandchildren she adopted the Moreno Cabrera clan with kids included now that my mom is not here. So she is a sort of mom, grandma now to us. Well after 6 years of asking she fianally is coming to visit us! She will be here only for a weekend but that is something! She will arrive on April the 15th., Ana Paula is so excited! she wants to prepare everything so she can be happy and confy during her visit. Santi is happy too in his own way! It is very sad for me to think that my kids are growing without Aby and Pepe but at least we have Ali to keep in them the illusion of their family that lives far away.

Tutoring and Therapy

These are my 2 new activities, actually not my activities but Ana Paula ans Santiago's new activities. Ana Paula needs a little bit of help with reading, she is still confused with the sound of the vowels in English and in Spanish so after searching everywhere Maria recomended me an excellent teacher to tutor Pau, her name is Lauren and she is very good ad young. Ana Paula has had 2 sessions already and she absolutelly loves her! I hope we can catch up soon on the reading.
As for the therapy, after almost 1 year of tests and things with Santiago, finally MDCPS decided that he really has a speech delay and he qualified for therapy. We started last week for an hour but Ivette the speech pathologist, decided that is better for Santiago to cut the hour in two halfs so this week he attended thursday and Friday for 1/2 hr. each day. She says that he is doing great, we have to work a lot at home too reinforcing all the concepts but I really think this is oing to help hom a lot! she is really nice and very good therapist, Santiago LOVES her, he wants to go everyday now to see her so I am very happy. I hope we can see results soon!

I am sick!

Santiago has been home all week, no school because he is sick, he started with high fever and then a terrible cough, seems like now it is my turn. I took him to the Dr. today as he wasn't getting better and he told us to continue with Pediacare and the Triaminic patches, but seems like now I got the thing I feel terrible, my eyes won't stop tearing, I can't keep them open and I can't breath, I feel the congestion all over and my body aches. I was in bed all afternoon, I hope I feel better tomorrow as I have the new Photoshop CS2 and I want to play with it!
for now off to bed.

the scraplifted journal

Oscar is out of town again so last night Denise and Lisely came over, I made a cheese souffle for dinner and Denise brought an authentic Key West Key Lime pie! We wanted to work on a journal for CKU, I had and idea but wasn't good so Denise started to work on her own and we loved it so we had to copy it! Then Lisely, who wasn't feeling well, put the last touch to the thing and me... well I lifted the whole thing! I really feel my inspiration is on vacation! no creativity this days. Well I have to say on my defense that I did use my own handwritting on my book and on Lisely's.
Here is the lifted journal wich I absolutelly LOVED! and it came very handy for Scraps Ahoy too as our theme this month is big elements so this one solved the problem.
Thanks ladies for the good night, the scrapping fun and for letting me scraplift your ideas!