Happy Mother's Day!

I'm so thankful for all the mothers in my life - the young, and the young at heart! Especially my own dear mom, who is the sweetest spirit ever sent to this earth. And for my darling daughters: Steph, who is an amazing mom - always loving, always patient (I know, I know, sweetie. Not always. But 99.99% of the time, which is a much better record than I ever had :) ). And Kris, whose heart was broken when little Kade left us too early, but now has been granted the blessing and gift of Atticus William Parker (or whatever the final name is!). Kris, you've had a mama's heart ever since I can remember.

So Happy Mother's Day to all you Mom's, Mama's, Ma's ... whatever your babies call you!

Here's a quote true to my heart from one of my favorite authors (Toni Morrison): "Grown don't mean a thing to a mother. A child is a child. They get bigger, older ... but grown? What's that suppose to mean? In my heart, it don't mean a thing." Amen.

I also have to share a poem that Kris wrote for me when she was about 8 or 9. I keep a copy close at hand, if only to prove that I was once a domestic goddess!

As I sit in my yard trying to think
To describe my mother is quite hard
As I grab my pen and ink.
To describe her face,
Her brilliant green eyes,
I have given it so many, many tries.
When it comes to her, there is none other -
Not her sister, not her brother.
Cannot compare to her because
She's a cooking, cleaning mother,
Scrubbing, leaning like none other.
Doing the dishes,
Cooking the fishes,
Doing all the sewing like a woman.
Making the dress,
Getting the trim.
Don't forget the sweepin' and the moppin'.
She's always up and hoppin'.
So please don't ask
For another task
As I sit in the yard
Thinking so hard -
My mother
Like none other.

Kaiya's Swimming Lessons

Kaiya has been taking swimming lessons, and since I took today off I was able to go along. And it just so happened that Mickel had a day off. First, we went for lunch (but we all had breakfast, except Steph, who had a cheeseburger) at the Park Cafe, a place I haven't been to for years. We thought if we went early we'd get a table ok - which we did, but it was still pretty darn crowded! Then it was home for a few hours while Teague took a nap, Daddy and Mommy went to run errands and Kaiya and Grammie read and read and read! Our favorite thing.

The awesome thing about Kaiya's swimming lessons is that she is no longer using floaties, AND that she is able to go under water quite nicely. She is the first to volunteer to do things, and is really learning quickly and having fun. Grammie is very proud of her Kai Bear!

First Event of the Year

The first event of 2010 was the CEME (which stands for "Canada, Europe, Middle East") Leadership Conference. We were scheduled for two days of meetings in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, followed by a short cruise to Key West and Nassau (Bahamas). We expected approximately 160 people from the various countries. However, thanks to the volcanic eruption in Iceland, we very nearly didn't even have an event! Flights all around Europe were disrupted, delayed and cancelled, and it didn't look good for the participants from the countries "across the pond." We thought we might just have the Canadians. But slowly, we started getting messages that flights were going ahead as scheduled, or that participants had found a different way to get there. When all was said and done, there were about 40 people - mostly from the Ukraine, but also Russia and the U.K. - who were not able to join us.

We stayed at the Hyatt Bonaventure in Weston, Florida - a very nice property overlooking a golf course. Here's some of the views, including a very interesting palm tree that I had never seen before (you may not be able to tell from this picture, but it's flat when viewed from the side).


The meetings went very well, in spite of having to move the agenda all around, to accommodate the speakers who either were late getting in, or didn't make it at all. The Savchenkos did an admirable pinch hit job, considering they had only a few hours notice.

These are some of my friends from our Russia/CIS (a term used to include the former Soviet republics, such as Ukraine, Belarus, etc.). We may not speak the same language, but we still find a way to communicate! I have to give a big shout out to my Utah colleague, Irina, who provided much needed translation and other help for these markets. What a lifesaver!

This lovely couple are the Yakolev's. I have known them for several years, and they are always so warm and friendly to me.

At breakfast one morning. The weather in Florida was delightful.

The hotel arranged for buses to take us to the pier to board our cruise on Saturday morning. Unfortunately, something went amiss in that plan, and the buses never showed. It was a bit nerve-wracking, but the hotel somehow managed to drum up a dozen shuttle vans, and we managed to get everyone - AND all their bags, thank goodness! - to the ship on time.

The next day we docked in Key West, which I had not been to before. Once we got the Russia group on to their various tours, Gayle and her sister Julie and I went in to "Old Town" in Key West. The town has a great personality - the kind of place you think you would be happy living in. We went for a delicious lunch in a seafood place on the water, did some shopping, took the "train" tour of the town, and visited Hemingway's house. Did you know he had a thing about cats? They still live there (well, I'm sure these are ancestors of his cats by now, but they still rule the roost. They even have their own cat condos.).

The following day was our day in Nassau. Unfortunately, it rained most of the day. As I had been there before, I just walked into the portside shopping area for a bit.

Monday night we had a short reception on the ship to bid adieu to our NSP friends, until we meet again next year in Barcelona!

Here's our two Jenn's ... Jennifer Cole (NSP Canada staff member and my partner in crime), and Jennifer Penner, an up-and-coming distributor in Canada, who was also one of our speakers. Thanks for letting me hang with you, guys!

A beautiful sunset at sea ...

A Little Bit of Misc. in the Spring

I've had some interesting times this month and last, but I haven't taken any good photos! I either don't have my camera with me (and I just CANNOT get a good photo with my phone!), or I just forget about taking any.

So here's a couple of bad shots of the Mr. Clearfield High 2010 pageant, which was a fundraiser for Kris' debate team. It was a hoot! The boys were goony, and occassionally amazingly talented. It was a lot of fun. Kris, of course, was busy with the details and Sterling had volunteered as an AV tech.

You can't tell, but this is Kris on stage ... she did a great job!

Kaiya and Teague and I have had a sleepover, and more recently, I played hooky from work this past week and we went and played all day. First we went to the Main library, which is an awesome place with lots of fun nooks and decorations in the kids' area (and elevators that Kaiya and Teague LOVE because they tickle their tummies - they're glass and move pretty fast). Then we went to lunch at a great pub in Trolley Square - good, fresh food and amazing kids' meals. Then home for a nap for Teague while Kaiya and I went to see "How to Train Your Dragon." Fun, fun, fun!

Yesterday the kids came over while Mom and Dad had a soccer game, so we made "bird nests" for Easter out of chocolate-covered Chinese noodles with candy eggs in them.

This morning we went to Market Street for our traditional Easter brunch. We went a bit earlier than we did last year, so it wasn't quite as hectic. I'm disappointed that they have apparently stopped having the Easter bunny, but otherwise it's a great breakfast at a good price. Since it snowed last night, it was a bit chilly for Easter! This photo was taken before we were seated by this guy who thought he knew me, but had me confused with someone else, but then it turned out that we really did know each other. However, the kids were hungry and not in the mood for picture taking ... especially Kaiya. She would not turn around.

Follow My Work

I've started a Facebook page and am on Twitter to communicate about the work I do at Nature's Sunshine Products, and I'd love it if you'd "fan" (Facebook) and "follow" (Twitter) me. You can find the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/NSPInternationalEvents; and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/NSPIntlEvents. I also want to start a blog sometime, if I can find the time! I certainly do have an awesome job, and Nature's Sunshine is an AWESOME company.

It's A Boy!!

This week Kristen and Sterling were chosen by a birth mom to adopt their baby boy, due June 12. I am so happy for them!! They have been waiting for so long for a little soul to share their life, after going through such heartache. Actually, they were quite lucky in being chosen relatively quickly (many couples are on the registry for years). Kris said the overall feeling among everyone involved is a feeling of "meant to be." This child will be lucky to have Kris and Sterling for his mama and papa. Please say a little prayer for them, that everything will go well.

Coach Kris

Last night I went to Clearfield High School to watch Kristen in action with her debate team. Even though they were also in Anaheim while we were there, I didn't get to watch any of that tournament. And last night I didn't actually watch the tournament either, but did get to see the organization and challenges that come with putting on a debate tournament. It reminded me a lot of the event planning I do. You're everyone's "go to" person, with a million questions coming at you constantly. Kris handled all of it with great aplomb. The other thing that was SO impressive was to observe how much these kids - from a somewhat "tough" high school - absolutely love her and want to impress her. And it was easy to see why. She had something positive to say about every kid she introduced - usually lots of positive things. Three times as we went past a group of kids, someone would call out, "I'm her favorite!" It is a unique talent to be able to make multiple people all feel that they're your favorite. Just ask any parent with more than one child ... then again, I suppose it's easy because each one is your favorite version of that person. Lastly ... it is humbling and gratifying to watch your "baby" (because they remain that no matter old they are) not only do okay, but become amazing. Kris, you are an incredible teacher and mentor. And I love you.

The team last night


At the beach in Cali