Welcome home

I got back to Singapore Friday morning at 1. I was met at the airport by my sexy husband who had orange juice for me and 6 red roses. I think I was more thrilled by the orange juice. Flying makes me crave OJ, badly! Just to show off the roses here is a picture taken 3 days later.

When we got home my sexy husband had a bouquet of Stargazer Lillies waiting for me too. I love the smell of those Lillies. 3 days later and it looks like most of them have bloomed. My house smells amazing.

Then as I go upstairs I notice this....

I've always said that Bob is the yin to my yang so when we found one of the elephants from the Singapore elephant parade I think he started planning.

I also found 30 red roses. I guess they don't sell them in dozens here but I'm not complaining.

It was all a very nice surprise. He was busy with all the family stuff and his own job but he found time to make my homecoming memorable.

It's good to be missed but even better to be loved completely!

OH MY!

Literally hours after I wrote the last post I got a call from my sister saying my mom had just had a stroke. My world has been at a stand still since then.
I did go home to see her. The stroke was major enough that I felt the huge need to hug my mom and just see her.
It's funny how much my life has changed and I wasn't even the stroke victim. I will always have a mother who suffered a stroke, no matter how well she recovers she will still need to take extra precautions. I will always call her more and really pay attention to how she is. I will always worry if she is home alone. And honestly that is so little of a problem compared to the things my mom has to overcome.
My sisters and I have bonded over something we never thought would happen but we stuck together and we had eachothers backs when it mattered most. It was so nice to have 3 best friends who understood everything I said and did. We have a history no matter how many years we've been apart or the roads that life has taken us.
My kids and husband did excellent while I was away! It was so nice to know that everything here in Singapore was covered and they did it all on their own. They also made a great team. My husband has always appreciated the job I do but I think he has a whole new understanding of how it goes here in Singapore. He was great and didn't complain once!
My whole family is great. From my birth family to the one I birthed. I am now looking forward to getting back to Singapore life and the new lifestyle I have in store for me.

2011 where did you go?

I am so bad at time management. This last year was no exception. There were so many things I didn't get done that I had hoped to.

I didn't see enough of my friends.
I didn't spend as much time with my kids as I wanted.
I yelled too much and didn't take enough deep breaths.
I didn't listen to the voice in my head and wore my heart on my sleeve.
I didn't tell my husband how wonderful he is EVERY day.
I didn't reach out to those in need as much as I should have.
I didn't have enough "me" time for massages, pedis, book reading, crafts or just relaxing time.

I hope to get better at these things  in 2012. I might not get them all done, it might not be perfect. But I TRIED. I cared enough to TRY.  I am always the optimist thinking there is time to do everything but there never is. Time flies by too fast. I want this next year to be about things that are important, that matter, that will make MY life better.

I hope to reach out more to my friends, old and new, and make some quality friendships.
I will make sure that the little amounts of time I do spend with my kids are quality time making memories we will all cherish forever.
I'll try and remember my kids are more important than that load of dishes or laundry when THEY want to talk and not when it suits my time line!
I will not yell, as much, when things aren't done in MY timely manner.
I will continue to wear my heart on my sleeve and trust everyone I meet. I will believe in the goodness of people and hope that I may make a mark in their lives. It's my biggest character flaw somedays.
I hope to make my husband really understand that he is wonderful and without him my life would be sub-par.
I will try hard to carve out "me" time and be happy with the bits that I get and not whine that it's not enough.

2011 was a good year. It will be missed but it has now become a future scrapbook that I will need to make...someday when I have enough time.