New Calling ?? :o

Well, today I got a new calling (will be sustained next week - yep - you have advance notice! Does that make me evil ??) I've never had this calling before, and it seems very daunting to me for a couple of reasons.
1~ I have to learn Microsoft Excel - is it possible for me to do this?? In a week!
2~ I will have to actually learn EVERY sister's name in the whole ward AND PUT A FACE TO THEM - is THIS possible for me to do anytime this century?? !!

The perks, though, just might out-weigh the scariness of it all!
1~ I get to have my very own lap-top (which also comes in handy for my Genealogy and movies on airplanes!)
2~ I get to work with my best friend, who happens to be the President.

Any clues?? well.................it's Relief Society Secretary ............The Lord always likes me to do things that are hard, where I might learn something new! Geezzzz! very funny! NOT haha!
Ok - breath deeply - say "ooohhhmmm" lots and put one foot in front of the other and listen carefully to the 'old' secretary, as she TRIES to teach me! So far, I have not been released from my other calling, which is Sacrament Meeting Chorister, but this one is a breeze, and I could quite literally do that one blindfolded, so I do hope I get to keep that one, at least for a while longer!

Oh - and - I probably will put up new posts even less often that I do now! Sorry! :(

Well, it's official - sobbing :(

Mandy and Blakie have flown home :( It was wonderful having them here, and now I really know that Blake is getting bigger, because I forgot to give him his Nana-babybelly phht! I can now, however, look forward, when I'm done crying, to fly home myself for GG's birthday, Sarah's baby and George & Lynnette's wedding. And then for Liv, Tim and boy's trip here! I will send on pictures from time to time, from all your trips here, to share and remember in the fun. I love all my babies -

6 Weird Things :D (ok, ok 10 things!!!)

Not tagging, just "sharing" :p If you want the rules, see Emily's or Lynnette's blog.
1~I love to dance around the house, when no one is watching - and I'm good! :D
2~I love to sing when no one is listening, 'cause my "once nice" voice isn't so nice anymore :( and NO NO NO - I hate Karaoke!!!
3~I love to pretend that I am conducting a huge symphony :p
4~I LOVE looking for, buying and owning pretty quilting fabrics, and SOMEDAY I really will finish all the quilts that I've promised everyone! Really, I will -- really.......really! ;p
5~I love to pretend that I have lots of "jewels" - playing with Pente stones or those small, cool little red Asian seeds - anything small, pretty and when there are lots of them - and then I hold them in my hand and let them fall through my fingers and I say "Aha - jewels - I'm rich!"
6~I love to go to lunch with 1 or 2 girlfriends - or my own kids - or a movie or shopping (whether I have money or not).Oh, and I always, always, always manage to find the most expensive thing in the store, without meaning to - GG and I used to have contests about this - great fun!
7~I love to just drive - anywhere - it doesn't matter (that's probably one of the hardest things about living in Singapore - while taxis get me everywhere I need to go - someone else does the driving! :( Someday, I'm going to race around a legal racetrack - and flyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy :)
8~I love to watch the final game, be it Baseball, Football - whatever - but only IF one of my 'TEAMS' is playing - the rest of the season? - nope - just the end, thank you ....
9~When I'm at the end of a really, really good book - I'll put it aside for a day or two, just so I CAN'T finish it - I don't want it to end!.....then, alas, I must cry, then struggle to find another book to start the whole cycle over again ;)
10~Every once in a while, I have to smell a certain wallet of mine - made of saddle leather - yummy smell - it calms me down :)
Be sure to look at the other entries below - I've done a lot of work today! :D

Gong Xi Fa Cai (Congratulations and May You Prosper!)

A Happy Lunar Year (from Miss Blossom and her Lion Dancer marionette friends). I have a video of Blake playing with the dolphins in the Sentosa Dolphin Show, but it's not working right now, so......I'll send it later. He also got to feed some flying hawks (from meat on the end of chopsticks) at the Birds of Prey show at Jurong Bird Park. Here is a picture of him feeding the Lorikeets at the Bird Park. And Blake and 'Manda holding a snake outside the Sentosa Underwater World exhibit! And an Elephant ride, too, at the Zoo! Phew! What an adventew (please I just had to make that rhyme - hehe)!

Happy Calendar New Year (yeah, ok it's late! so what!)

Our Holiday celebration with some friends and family in Singapore - me (Bryan took this picture), Emily, Carlos, Miriam and Elaine - and Punam Dehiya (from India) and Patrick Sharp (from USA) - in our traditional British "hats". (I just noticed that Patrick looks like an elf - it's because he's standing down two steps and behind the rest of us! funny! He's really NOT that small :) hehe - Blake and I learned about optical illusions at the Science Center - neat - we made our own.

one small change

Yesterday, Daddy was asked by his boss if we could amend the contract.......the amendment states that we will stay here for 2 years from the time a client's contract starts - which might be about April or May this year, so we said okay to that. Our new salary still starts immediately. We would like to come to Tim's graduation - timing is perfect! :)

Yippee! A New Entry :)

Ok, I can finally send this - I've known for about a week that the new contract WOULD be signed, but didn't want to say anything until the new contract WAS signed. so.....the new contract is signed and we will stay here, working for Maccine, for another 2 years, with an option for 1 additional year. We have more money (the WHOLE reason for getting a new contract in the first place!) and better benefits (at least more protected ones that are on paper). We've learned a thing or two while living here the last 2-1/2 years -- we thought we made more money than we'd ever deserve, but quickly realized that with housing costs (SGD$3000/mo - and that's the CHEAP place!!) and food costs (SGD$100 for 2 plastic sacks of groceries) utilities (SGD$1000/mo) taxes (which we pay out-of-pocket because there are no deductions, so the paycheck seems much larger than it really is) and 2 taxes (we pay taxes to both Singapore and USA) that we barely made enough to make ends meet and still buy a plane ticket home. We also learned that handshakes and verbal promises don't protect you - get it in writing! But in spite of all the negative, we like it here enough, and have some unfinished business to attend to, that we will stay and be happy. Besides, we still have some kids that haven't been here yet - Mandy and Blake come in only 2 more days - we're gonna romp and stomp and ride around :) :) Have a good day! :o) Oh - and Lynnette & George win the prize for the most blog entries! GOOD JOB, everyone - keep 'em coming ;)