Yes, it is another new year according to the Lunar Calendar of China.  It is the year of the ox and Sojo and her Mama and Baba went to downtown Bangkok for a bit of celebrating this past weekend.  There is a week long celebration going on in China.  They are missing the week long vacation and festivities, but enjoyed the bit of celebrating in Bangkok.  They especially missed the fireworks.  Sojo enjoyed the music, dragons and getting to dress in her traditional Chinese dress.  She knew it was a special day.  We know she is one very special little China doll.    Look at those cheeks and precious little rosebud mouth.  I just want to kiss those precious little cheeks.    And I want to just hug her precious Mama.    What a fun day for all.  The entire family is so happy that Sojo is getting to that age when she enjoys "ventures" and gets excited about going on one.  She enjoys the trip there and experiencing whatever it is from rides in tuk-tuks or boats or pink taxis to the festivities of Chinese New Year.  Happy Year of the Ox Sojo.  Did you get your hung bao?  (That is a traditional gift of $$$ in a red envelope)

How can we thank a daughter and her husband enough for bringing Sojo to us with all the technology offered today?  They are so good about taking pictures, blogging, calling us on Skype.  What would we do without this technology today?  I cannot even begin to imagine.  It is so hard not being there as it is to see things first hand.  Not even getting a taste of her little life without technology would be unbearable.  And so I give thanks for that Mama and Baba who love that little one to pieces and share her with us so lovingly. 

Be careful what you teach her.  I can see her at the tippy top soon.

Making special treats that brings a smile from one ear to the other.  yum...yum....

Letting her dance, dance, dance.

And teaching her about history in the making.

We went to the most awesome birthday party tonight for a friend from church.  She turned 60.  I welcomed her into the "60's" club.  Telling her that it was an awesome age to be.  Her daughter who is 39 gave her the party and can you believe it...it was held in the stables where Paul McCartney use to stable his horses when he and his wife Linda lived in Tucson.  Small world, hey! 

This woman was a widow and met her current husband while at her 35th high school reunion.  He also was a  widower.  He had a stroke a few years ago and his health has been up and down.  He is now walking with just a cane.  He has amazing resilience.  They are devoted to one another.  To watch them dance without moving was so beautiful.  It brought tears to my eyes to see their devotion to one another. He thanked everyone for putting the party together and for being there.  There was an awesome band playing lots of 60's, 70's, 80's music and everyone danced the night away.  Even Ron and I.  Ron doesn't like to dance much.  Thinks he isn't good at it, but when he does it, he does just fine.  I tell him to "listen to the music".  The grandchildren of this woman are 13 and 17 and they danced together, they danced with their parents, they danced with their grandparents.  I got to thinking...when Sojo is 13, I will be 73.  Do you think I will be able to dance with her?  I think so.  I think we should begin dancing this summer though, just in case.  She can sing with her Baba, like this:  

And then, we can let her Baba play and maybe her Mojo and Cathy can play and she and I and her Gong Gong can just dance the day away.  Let's not wait until I am 73 Sojo, let's dance today.  Hey, Hey, we're the monkees....

  Yep, this is it.  My book.  Published. I still can't believe it.  I keep thinking I am going to wake up and discover it was all a dream.  I picked up the finished product just before Christmas and haven't been able to bring myself to put it on this blog until now.  I kept hoping that the image would be on Amazon.com or Paulist Press by now and it might feel a little more real to me.  The book is actually on both sites now, but the image is not.  The image says so much about the book that I really didn't want to share it until then.  However, I seem to be technically challenged about this image upload thing and just uploaded it for the 3rd time tonight.  It may never get on the site at this rate, so I decided it was time to bite the bullet and put it on my blog.  So, all of you out there -- all two of you -- now is the time to Google Paulist Press or Amazon.com and buy my book.  Tell all of your friends about it. 

Now back to the cover.  I had a few pics of my own that I had hoped to use, but they were not of a quality that the publisher could use.  So, the artist involved in the project gave me some to choose from and I was much happier with this one than any I had chosen.  In the book, I speak about the Sonoran Desert a lot and this picture, though not taken by me, could easily have been.  It looks like our desert in the spring with wild flowers and the Saguaro cacti.  The road reminds me of the path I am on...we are all on.  It isn't always straight, sometimes it has flowers on it and other times, it is barren.   At this point in my life, the beginning is kind of cloudy and the end is far from what I can see.  The path itself is one that fills me with such amazing opportunities that sometimes, I have to pinch myself to prove it isn't all that dream I was talking about. 

A special thanks to all the people I have met along the way who have inspired me, taught me, challenged me, believed in me and loved me.  At the top of that list would be my beloved husband, my 3 amazing children, my favorite son-in-law, my favorite daughter-in-law, my adorable and precious grand-daughter, and many many, friends.  There is not a one of you that has not been a part of this book in some way. 

This book is a simple book...one filled with my thoughts, prayers, reflections and conversations with God on my journey.  It has been a blessing to me to write it and a thrill to have it published.  Hop on...take a look.  I hope that in some small way, something I have written will touch you and bring you to a closer walk with God on your faith journey.