what a journey!

i think i made personal scrapping milestones in the last 3 rounds of the SMIC (Scrappin Moms Idol Challenge). first off, in round 4, i finally achieved my only scrapbooking goal for this whole challenge: to at least go home with a prize. however, i consider it virtually impossible for me to dream for the grand prize. i have never finished an LO in one sitting, much less complete one in 3 hrs. and while being watched! arrgh! It's simply not in my "powers" to finish i think. so my only chance for a prize is to make Pick of the Week (POTW) in one of the rounds...and woohoo!...i made it with the LO My Nanay's Singer! my thanks to Ms. Anne Langpap for picking my LO. after this, i can be eliminated and still be happy about it. i have already made it to my goal.

this previously concealed picture is now unblurred after SMIC finals - 10/10/07

by the 5th round, i was running out of steam. i was about ready to throw in the towel because planning and executing these challenge LOs were taking up most of my free time. i wasn't even going to the gym anymore. what i did discover about myself though is that i just cannot give up. i always thought that if this gets too taxing, i can simply not submit an entry. but i couldn't do it. first of all, i was too curious if i could indeed come up with an answer to the difficult challenges. secondly, my pride won't let me. it was pride not my my creations but in the fact that i just cannot quit. i'd hate myself if i did. funny how one discovers bits about oneself in the most mundane things.

so i plod on with finishing the LO Taking Refuge. this one is special to me because this is about an important facet in my persona: my spirituality. i hesitated awhile. making it the topic of a page that will be shared with the general public is a little touchy i thought because...well...i am not sure how the audience will take it. but this is the topic that inspires me at that moment and candor is probably one of the traits i am known for by my close friends so i went ahead and hoped for the best. at the end of the day, it is my LO to keep and each time i complete one, it is like winning a prize in itself. also, the final result made me happy because i had a lovely receptacle for this important ephemera--the little pamphlet where my dharma name, given by the Rinpoche, was written.
perhaps this attack of openness carried over to the next round because this time around i was even more daring...more, well...open. round 6 challenge was about Life's Challenges and Joys and the Lessons These Teach You. Hands down, the topic for this was my Natural Childbirth experience. i was proud of myself for facing my fears in this experience and i have always wanted to scrap it. i thought i would be making it into a mini album one of these days but i would have to be content with a spread for this challenge. my big question was how to present it. that was the extra challenge because the pictures were ummm...well...bold, in more ways than one. hahaha.

again before i started, i hesitated just like my bestfriend Nita was hesitating about her LO's topic too. i dispensed her advise that i thought was best to follow myself: you never know whose life you will touch and inspire by your story. so let go do it! this is the outcome: A Natural Childbirth Journey. view here please. i hope you are not too queasy :-D

my babies on their birth days


here they are today...after eating Lipps candy...