Happy Mother's Day!

An Unconventional Love Story

When I said yes to my husband's marriage proposal, I did not have any grandiose ideas about having a big wedding or even a reception. There was only one thing I had to have, and that was a nice ring. A wedding ring to me is sacred and it represents the everlasting love between a husband and wife. Hopefully. But in addition to that, my wedding ring is what I will wear everyday "till death do us part"...... so I wanted one that I really really liked. Well because I am such a nit picker, I mean selective shopper, I ended up designing the rings myself and having them custom made.  Our jeweler did a wonderful job and I fell head over heels in love with my ring at first sight.

Then the worst thing happened two years later...I lost my ring!

I had been hiding this little dark secret from my husband for three months.  I just couldn't bear to tell him I had lost it, after all it had cost him a small fortune.  To make matters worse, I knew exactly where I had lost it and there was no hope of ever retrieving it.  You see, I had lost it in the ocean. Way out in the sea where Jaws and his crew hang out......probably.  It was only a matter of time before my husband figured out the real reason why I had not been wearing my ring and I was beside myself......and out of valid excuses.

Well, the very next day my mom and brother came for a visit and I got this sudden urge to go to the beach and collect shells.  I love beach combing so why not?  My brother on the other hand could care less and refused to go with me. For some strange reason though, my mother and I relentlessly begged him to go with us until he got sick of us and gave in.  (To this day I find this quite strange since it is out of character on both sides.)  When we got to the beach the tide was low, so low you could walk out about a quarter of a mile on the sand banks which my brother did by himself.  Mom and I stayed closer to shore picking up beach goodies, there was so much beautiful shells to choose from that day.

getty images

 All of a sudden, my brother who was out so far he looked relatively smaller, starting yelling.  My mother and I rushed to see what was wrong.  He seemed quite excited, he was waving frantically at us and jumping around. When we got within earshot of him, he was grinning ear to ear.  "I found something he said."  What is it?, I asked eager to see.  He slowly opened his hand and there nestled in his palm was my ring.  The one I had lost three months ago in the ocean.  My mom recognized it instantly and asked me "Wan, isn't that your ring?"  All I could do was gulp.

Turns out my ring somehow serendipitously reappeared out of the abyss after three months in strong sea currents and miles of shifting sand. My brother finding it equates to finding a needle in a hay stack. He said he saw a small beam of light emanating from the sand out of the corner of his eye.  Those were his exact words. Trust me, I am still in awe of this, I mean what?!!!  That beach is huge, plus the ring was buried under 15-25 feet of ocean for months.  What are the chances....and my brother had almost stayed at home too. All the planets had to be aligned just right for this to have happened, and they had. To this day, I just call it what it was. A miracle. My husband and I love each other so very much and our rings are a symbol of that love.  Maybe that is why it found it's way back to me.  Back to us. ...well that is what I believe anyway.

Since this incident, I wish I could tell you I never lost it again but I did lose it once after that nine years later.  And you know what, it found me again under very strange/unlikely circumstances. Call me crazy but in my sixteen years of marriage, because of the times I lost my ring, it is even more precious to me.  It is so true that you never realize the value of something until you lose it.....even if only temporarily.  I realize now that it is not the cost of the ring that matters so much to me but the cause of the ring.  It's all about love. And so lovelies, today on Valentine's day I wish you love.

Cherio!

Knock Knock.... Who's there? 2011!!!

Wow!, its 2011 people!  I am lovin this year already.  I didn't go anywhere New Year's night, I decided to watch the celebration on television and reflect on where my life is going and how I can better maximize my potential in the new year.  Yes, I was prepared to go there.  A funny thing happened just before midnight though that totally cracked me up and put me in a completely different emotional space.  Well, I was watching Bravo TV "watch what happens live with Andy Cowen"  He hosted a new years party with guest appearances from the various stars from Bravo and other celebrity guest.  Anyhow, what was funny was as it got closer and closer to midnight some of the guest and even Andy himself seemed to get more anxious and excited as the minutes started ticking away, almost as if they they couldn't wait until they made it to the new year. What was even funnier was almost every other channel I switched to people were waiting with bated breath for the last few seconds to elapse.  Kinda like...oh my gosh, its one minute away.....45 seconds....oh I can't stand it, what if we don't make it.  It was hilarious! The facial expressions especially was priceless.

Let me just say that I totally get the fact that going into a new year is a wonderful blessing that many who was with us last year did not have the good fortune of experiencing.  Unfortunately, I know this only too well because I have personally lost love ones.  The only reason I found humor in this at all is the fact that a lot of the people were drinking excessively and partying really hard but at the same time praying to God to make it into the new year. For what I thought, to party and act the fool some more? The irony of it all was pretty funny. I wondered what God thought of this.  Some of these same people were cursing profusely, totally wasted and clutching wine or liquor bottles as if they were a life line. I sincerely hope for them that 2011 brings clarity and strength to stop doing potentially destructive things in excess.  Too much of anything is not good.

While am on the subject I also want to acknowledge all the people I saw on television New Year's night who made me feel all warm and tingly inside. Like the world is still indeed a very wonderful place  because of all the beautiful souls in it. There were mothers holding their precious little babies, older people with their spouses holding hands, smiling teenagers and all around a sea of beautiful humanity. Everyone seemed focused on just enjoying good food, music, friends, family and being together in the moment.  I decided to do the same.

Quick And Easy Last Minute Centerpieces

When I was a little girl, I remember going into the back yard and cutting foliage to dress the table at Christmas time.  I was so happy that my mother trusted me to do such an important job since most of the time it was just before the guest arrived.  I would cut fresh pine which we had growing in abundance nearby and then I just went around the house collecting candles and little trinkets to help pull the look together.  The table always came together beautifully, (at least thats what mom said) and never once did we have to buy anything other than what was in the house already.  This is something that has stayed with me and I still make my own centerpieces every year.


This year, I found four centerpiece ideas that really impressed me.  I was so excited, I just had to share them with you. This apple Christmas centerpiece was featured on www.theprettyblog.com, it is sooooooooo budget friendly and easy to do.  And how fabulous looking is this! 

To make this, all you need is egg whites, granulated sugar and apples.
Coat each apple halfway in the egg white, sprinkle liberally with sugar and let dry.
Next, arrange the apples on a nice plate and attach a a banner if you prefer. (use tooth picks to keep the banner in place) Thats it, all done.

Here is two ultra easy but gorgeous centerpieces that was featured on Better Homes and Gardens.   We all have left over Christmas bulbs and decorations left somewhere in the house and that is all you need for this project.  Grab some Christmas bulbs and beads, put them in a container of your choice, add some beads and bam! You've got yourself a stylish arrangement.  I also like the second version, just add fresh leaves (artificial can work as well) and arrange the beads in between the bulbs wherever there are spaces.  And you're done!  Its so beautiful you will ask yourself "did I do that?"



Finally, this delectable centerpiece is an idea I have used with great success many times.  Just get a couple of glass vases and put candles in them. Next, you put cranberries, cherries, or nuts, around the candles.  Thats all there is to it, very elegant and very simple.


Well, there you have it, four great ideas for your table that you can do very quickly.  Let me know if you try any of them, I would love to hear how it all turned out.  Have a Merry Christmas!