oh crap...

My computer took a big crap! Thankfully my dear friend is dating an i/t dude and since my friend is hot, she batted her eyelashes and he's going to fix it for me!! Yippee for hot chicks and computer nerds!
I'm typing from my blackberry and even though I am the size of a 4th grader this tiny keyboard is not real great for an entire blog update! I will be back as soon as my tower is fixed! You should see how freaking clean my house is!! Its amazing what you can get done without the distraction of a computer... Yikes! Don't worry, I'm all about being unproductive... See you soon! M

My ship has come in...

No, literally, my ship has come in from all things warm & beautiful to non-tropical Michigan... but not to worry, as i type this there is *BREAKING NEWS* on our local morning show... SONIC is opening here in West Michigan. Hmmm... is that breaking "news"? Has anyone out there been to Sonic? or is it Sonic Burger?... anyway, fill me in!! But enough of that, let's get back to talking about ME! SO many topics: "what NOT to wear on a cruise", "what NOT to wear EVER", "what NOT to let your husband wear", the list is never ending! Back up, i'm getting ahead of myself here...

After surviving the flight to Florida (because in MY world 9 out of 10 flights end in a tragic death of all passengers!) we went to the "meet & greet & get free gifts & drinks & check out the other ladies outfits" kinda thing put on by the sponsor of this trip. Yes, this was a "reward" trip for my super deluxe hubby!Oh my gosh, don't you LOVE *free stuff*? i know i do... unless it's like a neon colored fanny pack, blue blocker sun glasses, or just general crap that is totally useless! This free stuff was GOOD free stuff! Great towels, toothbrushes, deodorant, snacks, sunscreen, and super expensive sunglasses i would never buy myself. I tend to lose sunglasses & let me digress from my trip talk for a moment to relay a sunglasses story. I worked for Kodak for a few years (hi ladies!) and when it came time for me to get a new company car i bought my old one & resold it for a profit, i'm crafty like that. The couple who bought it got there before i did & started cleaning out the car for me, when i got home the lady said to me "do you know we found 11 pairs of sunglasses in your car?", like that was weird or something?! duh! I was in the car ALL day & if i couldn't find my sunglasses i just bought a new pair at my next stop. See why i've never bought $100+ pairs of sunglasses? Well, now i gots me some & we'll see how long they last, although since i don't work outside the home, the chances have improved greatly! Ok, back to the cruise...

When we 1st got on board it was lunch time so we ran for this giant "alter of the morbidly obese" i've heard about, boy, was i disappointed! We got into line & immediately was cut in front of by a man that was so huge, that if i would have slipped i would have landed straight in his crack never to be seen again! Now don't get me wrong, i am NOT in anyway making fun of people that have weight problems- i have NO interest in what people weigh, but to maintain this guys weight, he has ONLY eaten deep fried everything, everyday, every hour for his entire life. Nothing green & leafy has ever touched his lips! Even though this guy was hungry (obviously), he did say to his wife "hey you just cut in front of them", man i wish i would have been able to snap a picture of the look on HER face! A cross between "oh no you dint say that to me" & "you get any closer to me & i'll eat you". i mentioned my disappointment at the lunch buffet.... "why?" you ask? Well, they were offering "hot dogs (GAG!), hamburgers, cheeseburgers, chicken strips & fries". I'm thinking "well, it's the 1st day, maybe it's just an All American BBQ lunch". When we got our food we headed out to find a table and that's when we saw it.... THE FOOD! We didn't realize we had stopped at the very 1st of i don't even know how many food "sites"! The longer we looked for a table the more food we saw: stir fry, deli, salads, pizza, Mexican.. enough food for 2 small countries! I was so annoyed i only ate 1/2 of my burger! I am happy to report that was my LAST cheeseburger of the week and that the "drink of the day" greatly cheered me up!Whewww... i'm not even past the first meal of the trip & already i'm tired of typing. So many more stories, mostly of weirdo's, but i'm going to share some pictures instead. Here is my favorite picture from my trip, but it brings up so many more thing to discuss, but i'll let you discuss it amongst yourselves.... go! I just realized it's hard to tell what you're looking at, so i'll give you some more insight before you discuss. This is a medium sized sealed "tote" that is along the balcony every so often under the life boats. The sign on it reads "Crowd Management Equipment"... IF you know what REALLY is in this tote, fill me in, until then i will continue to believe it's sticks with rusty nails sticking out of them!
Yes, that is a FULL moon rising, right there in the middle of the day... now this picture could set me off on another full tangent... BUTT CRACKS! men have been wearing this look for years, but what is up with "chick-butt-cracks"? Believe me, i got my fill of those at the airport... sorry, no pictures to share, but please... enjoy this one!

Oh hold the phone... who is worse, the dude with the side-ways smile or me, the one taking pictures of it & posting it on my blog?... something more to ponder!

Don't worry, i'm back & have a LOT more to share, so call your children in, phone your family & friends and gather around! i have GOT to get this house in order... it's driving me nuts!!

Hope you enjoyed my little taste of paradise

~m♥

leavin' on a jet plane...

Well, kind of... I'm leaving on a plane for a boat. Thanks to friends and family i am now terrified the pirates will come looking for my booty... thanks friends & family, like i'm not terrified enough of the plane ride & leaving my child behind.... So yes, i'm off to cruise the 7 seas for a week. No, i'm not excited yet... i will be once i land safely, cause i'm going to!!land safely that is, i am, i am , I AM!.... crap, i might have to pop a xanex now?! No, i can't, i have lots of driving to do today: picking up altered clothing, grabbing last minute items from Target, getting some groceries for the parents & darling daughter...

I'm going to just post some pictures of things that are still for sale in my etsy shop: chinamommy.

I'll be back a week from Saturday, so check back after that for all kinds of trip adventures and pictures :) I'm just hoping my mom doesn't screw up our dish network so bad that all my "That's Clever" and "The Office" shows are replaced by professional chess, bowling, or hot dog eating! It's happened before...

Over & out...

~m♥

sorry this is such a lame post...

My art collection

i thought i'd share with you my personal art collection today. these are pieces i've collected over the years - not worth millions, but just things i ♥!

this 1st piece is a LARGE metal hanging sculpture. i bought this at the Ann Arbor, MI Art Festival years ago. it's by a local Michigan artist (Cherie) & is 1 of 4 pieces i own of hers.i love this piece, all the metal "stuff" that hangs off of it & pieces of glass wrapped in wire. Don't mind the UGLY fan i'm trying to cover...
This next piece came from Hawaii when i was there years ago. I had it flown home because there was no way i was carrying it on my lap for 10+ hours, it is HEAVY!! It's a hand blown glass sculpture. i can't capture the colors and iridescence of this piece, not with my poor photography skills that is...

here's the back of it, you can see the hole where it was blown.

funny story: i had it flown home ALL the way from Hawaii & the next summer i was at the art fair in Ann Arbor and this artist was THERE! i could have bought it just hours from my home :)

These are my most special pieces because i got them in China when i was adopting my daughter! They are hand painted from the INSIDE! the one is a portrait they painted from a photograph I took of Kennedy the day before- i don't remember her having those giant Tom Selleck eyebrows, but hey... it was painted from the INSIDE!! they paint with these tiny hooked brushes that look like an "L"- amazing!

These glass balls are painted the same way! If you look closely you'll see a white area under the picture- that's the hole that goes up inside of these hollow glass spheres (doesn't sphere sound much better than balls?)

Some more artwork from China. The artwork was so inexpensive, i wish i'd have bought more than i did! This is a sweet baby in a traditional Chinese tiger hat.

Another by a local artist Carol Roeda. We have 5 of her pieces. She has stores in Ann Arbor, Holland, and Grand Rapids, MI- pure eye candy!

This is another piece by the artist Cherie that made the hanging sculpture. It's a piece of Raku pottery, which is my favorite type of pottery!

Another Carol Roeda, a gift from the mister for our 1st Valentines
day together.

If you're an etsy fan, you're probably familiar with this piece! It's by Emily- of: the black apple

i'm not even sure what this next piece is... a funny, funky little girl? on a stick. Right now she's on my bulletin board in the art room because i'm just not sure what to do with her. Darling daughter is NOT a fan of hers & was quite afraid of her when she was younger, but i think she's FUN!

and another Carol Roeda which hangs in my art room... her pieces are mental so you can add other little doo-dads to her pices. She sells all kinds of cute "add-ons"- hearts, starts, ice cream cones...

i hope you enjoyed my art tour... i really do because just as i was getting ready to post these the 1st time i realized i had erased them ALL off my computer AND off my camera... so everything was photographed and cleaned up twice- LOL!

Have a great day! The sun is shining in MI, so as Martha says "that is a good thing!"

~m♥

more birds...

Here are 2 more of my "bird-brains". The price on them is *very* low, less than $10 including the S&H... so go ahead and stimulate the economy!! Don't forget my etsy store is: chinamommy

You can get there just by clicking on one of the items i have for sale which are listed on the left :)

and the pink floral with the tulle skirt! those are fimo clay roses & black velvet trim. a vintage button is used for the eye.

Bird Brain...

Hope you had a wonderful Easter! We did: went to Easter service at our church, then iHOP, then home to play Wii & color Easter eggs... No, it's not our tradition to color them ON Easter, the week just got away from me!

i promised a peek of what i was up to before the plague struck me!

WEll, i'm off to my alteration guy, they just don't make clothes for those of us UNDER 5' (only 1/4 of an inch, but still...). I wish i could sew, or better yet afford to have EVERY outfit custom made... ahhhh! Have a great day!!

♥m

Spring Break on the couch...

Spring break... so not such a great start to the week! I was at the Dr. twice in 10 days for antibiotics. I didn't feel like blogging nor did i have anything to report except for what i was blowing out of my nose & let's be honest... there are just a few people that are interested in that & one happens to be my brother. I spent several days on the couch letting darling daughter do & eat pretty much whatever she wanted! Lucky for me i have the type of child where you can take a nap & when you wake up she's playing on the computer or sitting quietly next to you watching cartoons! No fear of this one wandering off or drinking bleach! I said to her at one point "i'm so sorry Mommy is sick & we aren't doing anything fun" to which she responded "i'm having a great time"... Did i mention we just got a Wii

& she was allowed to play this for hours upon hours? I guess when you're 5 (AND 1/2!!!) THIS is a great time:
1.talk mom into letting you eat junk she normally wouldn't allow with very little effort.

2.have the computer 100% to yourself.

3.play the Wii ALL day LONG!!!

Finally on Friday i felt like i was in the land of the living so I asked darling what she wanted to do... anything... she could pick and what did she pick?

McDonalds
everyone now.... Ewwwwwwwwwwwww!!!

the ONLY time i've ever eaten at McDonalds & liked it was in 1991 when i was in Hong Kong & the choice was that or a snake out of a tank... I don't get how those chicken nuggets & weak fries can make a child so happy, but, it does! Actually, though, we all know it's THE TOY! I'll give Ronald that, he does have the best toys! This week: Monsters VS Aliens.
When i woke up Friday i was thinking i have GOT to get my blog updated but what in the world do i have to say... well, i didn't realize what an exciting day i was about to have.... After we got our "food" (i went for a Mocha & some apple/walnut/yogurt thing) & i got the photo, we were just sitting there talking when excitement broke out at the local McD's! As you can see from the above photo i'm facing the bathroom- that's the men's straight ahead & the ladies is to the left (there IS a reason i'm telling you thing). You can't see it in the picture but a row of high-chairs is down that hall outside of the ladies room. Anyway... a lady (coming out of the bathroom) swings the door open as a man is walking back towards his table from the men's bathroom (that's his head behind darling BEFORE the accident). This door FLINGS open like it's made of Styrofoam! It whips open & cracks this old man in the head & throws him into the row of high chairs! The poor lady that did it was beside herself (she's probably seen those Sam B____ commercials where he promises to sue the pants of anyone that so much as scratches you). The man is slightly dazed & confused & the woman is saying "i just came in to get my dog some chicken McNuggets...." (really? why?, do you hate your dog?). The guy cleaning tables is turning in circles not sure what to do, he wants to get ice, the men is assuring him he has ice (what in your COKE? that won't be sticky at all). The goose-egg on this guys head is rising high & fast & i wonder... "would it be bad to grab a picture for my blog?" Well, after this scene settles down & they go back to their food another man wanders into the dining room with his hands FULL, he's got a full tray in one hand & a full drink carrier in the other. He walks right by us and straight for the... men's bathroom!? Does he think this is the VIP room? I'm about gagging- just the thought of that food & drink in a bathroom with all those floating bathroom spores?! I've seen those "Dateline" specials, doesn't he know about "spray" when you flush? Just about the time i'm breaking out in a cold sweat he's back out with the most confused look on his face: "where is my family?", "where's the velvet rope that keeps the others out?" "where's the tufted seating?" & "why does it smell like urine in the VIP room?". By this time i've had all the McDonalds excitement i can take so we head out for bigger & better things like... a CAR WASH! Darling says "OH goodie, i LOVE the car wash" so i go all out & order up with deluxe with the tri-color foam! Pink, Aqua blue & Yellow!!! I wish the picture showed it better, because this stuff is flying through the air like confetti at a parade! Daughter says "this is AWESOME"... some days it doesn't take much!

So, it's almost the end of our spring break and what do we have to show for it? a clean car, a growing town on My Sims, & a trash can FULL of used tissues! Today we're headed to Chuckie Cheese... Yep, darling daughters choice again! See how excited i am? I'm going to go take pictures of what i did in the art room before the infection took over my sinus's...

i'll be back: bigger, stronger & less snotty!

Aaachoooooooooo

Oh bear with me... i'm sick as a dog- on my 2nd box of tissues just today! i hope to be back this week with all my goodies i worked on last week. Darling daughter is on spring break right now, how fun- she's babysitting me! ugh! Hope you are well & having a better week than snotty ol' me!

Is it Friday yet?...

This was a GREAT week, it really was, but did it seem to go on forever to anyone else? i guess that was good since i've been in such a creative mood, i was able to get quite a bit done, even sent out my "Christmas" exchange to my pal in London! I know, i know, i've been black-listed from any "art exchange" ever again, as i should be.

Darling daughter was home yesterday from school with a horrid cough & general crud. i kept her sedated with cold medicine & was able to get quite a bit done. She really is such a good girl though, she knows when Mom is in the "art room", she needs to get her art supplies out & quietly make something too. Poor little thing, i don't think art really interests her in the least, she'd rather be doing online surgery..Yes, this is her on some site doing a knee replacement, it could come in handy & fulfill MY dream of her becoming a Dr., i mean, it is all about pleasing ME isn't it??

Ok, the mister just called & there is a "passport emergency" (long story, i'll fill you in later) and i've got to run to Walgreens and get another passport picture, thank God! I wanted a new picture anyway because the last one i looked REALLY old in, unless of course.... that's my NEW look?! i looked like i hadn't slept in weeks & was beat down by life... never a good look! I'll leave you with the following:

Many people ask me "what does a creative soul like yourself eat to keep creative and small?" Ok, no one has ever asked me that, but i like to pretend people want to know every aspect of my life... so here is one of my lunches this week:

i highly recommend the PEAR applesauce... or is it just pearsauce? anyway it's good, you'll notice it didn't even last long enough to be photographed! and those rice noodles... i just like to grab a handful & much on them- i'm weird like that! Oh that healthy crap soup with LOW sodium, i just can't add enough salt to it to ever make it taste normal, i wish i'd quit grabbing those cans!!

and my hair... oh brother my HAIR, it was totally channeling this chick:

i was kind enough to chop out my pre-shower look!

and just ONE more bit of news... i did it, yep, i got one! A Blythe! I don't know why, but apparently a lot of people own/want her, so of course, i HAD to have one!!!! Here she is Friendly Freckles or something like that... She's coming all the way from Hong Kong (like everything else!!). Now, if i start taking her on vacations, making you say hello to her on the phone, dressing darling daughter, her & i alike, or throwing her elaborate birthday parties, i give you full permission to put me in a straight jacket! i hope she doesn't have a magical power that will make me do any of those things...

Ok, off to cover those dark circles under my eyes & get a photo taken!

Have a wonderful weekend & i'll be sure to post what i was working on all week!!

~m