All systems are GO...... blast off !

Fancy being that minute percentage to have caught a Space SHUTTLE launch  "LIVE"   !!

Certainly a privilege and humbling experience as we continued our space learning mission from a week before when we visited NASA -  to witnessing this momentous event :)    

We watched the launch of space shuttle Atlantis in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Monday, Nov. 16, 2009, 2.28pm across at Titusville from Launch Pad 39A. Atlantis and its six-member crew are on a 11-day mission to the International Space Station, transporting spare hardware to the outpost and returning with a station crew member who spent more than two months in space.  There will only be 6 more space shuttle launches, and this is the first of which to deliver critical spare equipment parts to the International Space Station. As such, the Atlantis crew is carrying the largest and the most critical on this mission.

 

Even at such a distance across the lagoon at Titusville from the launch pad, we could hear the thunderous roar and the smell of burning fuel, which followed what our eyes saw as the rockets blasted off just split seconds before. The girls stood transfixed and spell-bound.  The park, peppered with cameras on tripods, deck chairs and seniors peering through binocs, ruptured with applause

Being at NASA the week before touring the exhibits and watching the various shows provided us with a deeper appreciation and understanding of the multitude of factors that needed to go right, for a successful launch. This was how close we got to the launch pad on our " Up-Close" tour. And seeing the preparations for launch just drove home how real (and dangerous) space exploration was, and made the launch all the more poignant for us.

Blue Moon Scrapbooking's 7Gypsies week !

You gals have just got to join in the fun at Blue Moon Scrapbooking ! Not only do they make the most yummy kits - (i want like ALL of them..... )
they are having a 7gypsies Week NOW ON and check out the kit (DROOOOL ....) !!
No more waiting !!! Click HERE NOW to find out how this can be yours!!

Apron Strings Sep 09 scrappy yummies

I got the chance to play with Apron Strings larger than a Breadbox kit this round, and my am I pampered !!! Thanks Lori !!

Here are the layouts i got to put together with the yummy stuff from Bo Bunny Delilah and Crate Sprout :

Tans
a wonderful feature in my new home now :)

and a closer peek at the details

SOAR
A reminder to R that she just has to put her mind to whatever she wanted to do and she could achieve it.... just loved the little animals that came with the Crate Paper... the owls, squirrels and beavers... too cute !! cut them up in pairs to show too that i'm always just a few steps behind her... every step of the way...

Melancholic You

C is always soooo cheerful and cheeky that I really loved these shots of her... in her 'off' moments.... priceless...

Exception

I was never one to buy those snaps taken at theme parks where u have to pay exorbitant prices. But THIS one. THIS ONE is different. We were just coming down the coaster ride of our lives -Project X- when i caught this picture being taken !!! I HAD to get it.

Can you see why ... here's the close up... it's gold :P (LOL !!!)

SWIM DATE

Catching up with friends while back in Singapore .... sooo miss them..

BEST PALS

Some layouts of our trip out to Monument Valley and Grand Canyon a few months back..

Sunset @ Monument Valley

JUNIOR RANGERS

thanks for dropping by....

Up close with ...

Gators !!!!

This was a baby, and it was all I and C could handle. C made sure she stood as far away as possible from the little fella who was all of 1 year old.

R did a little better :)

petting the little one ...

then posing behind this 4yr old... Hubby of cos' had to show off how 'fearless' he was

Then it was time to hop on the Airboat, and take a trip down the Everglades (which means river of grass), - the largest fresh water river in the world.

It was a fascinating experience, with the wind whirling up our hair, and a tingling excitement at the thought that we might fall into the river where alligators and poisonous snakes abound !

Then we spotted him...

The Great Blue Heron

He cockedhis head, then decided to take off...

As we made our way out further, to the deeper waters... what the native Indians call "Hammocks" or 'island of trees' ..

we spotted something in the distance....

then he got closer.....

and closer... in fact right next to our boat !

that's my head in the left and him in the water !...

then turned and made his way into his den ...

C was sooooo cute... she sat next to me and gripped my hand sooo tightly, terrified that i would fall into the water, screaming "mummy don't lean sooo far" !!!! :P

On the homefront, we created a history timeline file. Something where we can record all the dates and famous events and people we come across in our history reading...

I forgot to take pix of the internal pages where the girls handwrote the timelines on the top of the page, and have pasted stickers in the years where they were born. But here's the cover :)

Some other pix of the girls...... at Old Town Fun Park (Orlando)

my little reader before bedtime...

with their new bikes and scooters...at Masters Park (PGA National)

Let me know what's been up with your lives - all you dutiful silent readers !!!

what a catch...

It was a trying week, school wise, and the girls have been challenging to put it mildly. Maybe it's my teaching style, maybe they're still adjusting, but whatever the reason, I felt drained and discouraged. I packed off the books and declared we should take a walk after lunch.

So at 1pm (we didn't bother about the sun, i needed some air,) we explored our neighbourhood and wandered through some houses and found this creek meandering its way around the golf course. And guess who we caught having lunch ??!!

It was really quite fascinating to see it up close, frame by frame, and the girls stood, transfixed.

A close-up shot of the Heron at work ....

And in one huge gulp, that was the end of the fish !!

And then, promptly gets up arrogantly on the back of this duck figurine in the water to sun himself !

In R's words, it was " SOOOO COOOL !!" ... so that was our highlight of the day, as these faces attest.

But their glee was shortlived, as i decided i had to tell "the other parent" (aka Father) the going-ons of the past few weeks, as it was time for some intervention. Waaaaa.... i so love J's lectures.... it's the kind you want to dig a hole and bury yourself from shame type. So loads of drama that Friday, but thankfully, we still had a pretty decent weekend, so it's all good in the house again.... til' the next drama (haha !)

On other updates, Faye's on the road to independent reading (hopefully !),
and R has lost another tooth just today while we were at the supermarket !! She refused to let me hold it or keep it for her, then of course she had to drop it on the road, while we were crossing to get to our car ! We searched but couldn't find it as it looked exactly like any of the million stone grains of the tarmac ! So guess it'll be fossilized there forever, and someday some archeologist might find it, and conclude that it belonged to a little girl yonks ago !

up in the florida sky..

The bags are unpacked and i'm settled.

Finally.

The last 2 weeks have just been a whirl of setting up home, housekeeping, stocking up groceries, and settling into a routine that all of us can function happily.

And to our dismay, the hot hot hot Florida weather is no better than Singapore's with daily afternoon downpours nearly every day this week.

Nonetheless, key highlights that have kept our spirits up have been god-sent. Literally...

What greeted us after one of those thunderstorms in just perfect splendid colours
... My camera really didn't do justice to what we saw...

And a typical sunset here ...

But my personal favourite this weekend... catching the launch of the space shuttle Discovery on friday night at 2359hrs.

It was exciting as we watched the live launch on our laptops of the Discovery at Kennedy Space Centre some 3hrs drive from here. The minute the rocket launched, we rushed out of the house to gaze into the dark night sky. A minute or so later, we spied this wonderful bright spark in the sky.... AMAZING... and followed its trajectory till we could see no more, than silently made our way back to the house, with me adament that we shall see the next launch live at Kennedy :)

We've HIT the books this week, and as usual, the start is always tough going. Lots of bargaining, negotiating, and setting of ground rules as the girls try their luck sussing out my limits :P Nonetheless, I have big hopes of achieving GREAT THings with the girls, and enjoying every step of the way. To date, i've not come even remotely close to this ideal. But one can still hope :)

And we made this !! to cement in our brains the different levels of the atmosphere :)

Scrap-wise, something i did of my friend's totally adorable boys, to share....



And this just AMAZING layout my friend Sash did of Faye ..... thanks a million dearie.. it's such a treasure and is displayed now on my mantle :)

Am busy putting together the DT layouts for Apron Strings so check back soon to see the full reveal !!

August PageMaps and giveaway by Apron Strings

If you gals haven't already seen it, the August PageMaps are out and they are just tooo fun to play with and I was sooo privileged to be asked to contribute a Layout !!!!!

Here's what i did with this sketch ...

Nature's Captive

Some close ups using Sassafras Lass and Websters' goodies :)

AND what's more .... Apron Strings Design is sponsoring a WHOLE breadbox kit for the sketch contest ongoing on the PageMaps blog !!! There's still time and contest ends 16th Aug 09 so get your act together ladies !! :)