Dance Goals for 2007

From the head of a "student" dancer...
GwynCara’s BellyDance Goals for 2007

Hello Bhuzzers!!
(and anyone else who happens to come across my little corner of cyber space)


- Continue Advanced classes with Chelydra

- Try to get my body into the best shape it’s ever been in. I want to lose this extra weight stored in my core area (abs, back, etc…) I’m a classic apple. All my weight is in my middle section, from the shoulders to the top of my hips. I’d like to trim it down. Even if I don’t have an “hourglass” when I’m done, I want it flat, and no “muffin tops”!

- I’d like to start training myself for competitions. My dance sisters in the troupe (Gypsy Spirit) are planning to compete in some East Coast competitions this coming year, but I just don’t feel like I’m ready for that level yet. I’m shooting for November 2008 at a comp in New Jersey (For the life of me, I can’t remember which one it is right now).

- I want to expand my repertoire of dance skills, especially my zill playing. I realize this is going to take practice every day. I suppose I should make myself a pair of “Mufflers” for my zills so I don’t drive my family crazy. LOL!!

- I want to work on my improvisational skills as well. It's always good to know "what to do" when you "Just don't know what to do!" (And that happens to me quite a bit!) I suppose I should work on my choreographies as well. I'd really like to have a couple of "dance sets" put together. Things that I can polish up and really work with for haflas and such. Not that I've danced much in haflas, but I promised Chelydra that I would dance at the 2007 Beach Blanket Beledi in Nags Head, NC. After seeing some of the dancers this past year, I've got my work cut out for me!

- I will continually remind myself that I have only been dancing for 2 years, and I'm not ever going to be a BDSS. I will strive to be the best dancer, mother, wife, and Jazzercise teacher that I can be and let my spirit shine every day!

Time for an Update

Yeah, yeah, I know...

I have the best of intentions when I start keeping a journal. I really do. It's just that life always seems to get in the way. First it was soccer, Jazzercise certification, and Mike's Chief's Initiation. September and October brought the return of bellydance performances. November was the end of the soccer season but the start of a Tribal Fusion dance class. Now it's time to get ready for the holiday season. I've eaten way too many cookies lately! My friend, Veronica, at Jazzercise had a habit of bringing in cookies and candy and when you've just finished class and your body is screaming for food, it was just too easy to grab the candy. I don't have to worry about that anymore though, because the Navy has sent her and her hubby back to San Diego. I'm gonna miss her!!! She was a little ray of mexican sunshine in my morning classes!

Let's see, what else is going on?

I just did some more xmas shopping. I even got some presents for Mike. He's so difficult to buy for. Oh, speaking of xmas presents...

Here's my present!! A brand spankin' new 2007 Honda Odyssey EX!! We drove it off the lot with only 6 miles on the odometer. I finally have a vehicle that I truly love! It's such a smooth riding van. I love all the features, and it's even in a color that I've always wanted. Metallic Midnight Blue! WOO-HOO!!

PPD Performance for Gypsy Spirit

Here's a few of the pics of Gypsy Spirit dancing at the 5th Annual Pagan Pride Day Festival in Va Beach, VA. Saturday, September 23, 2006

Zahara as Pele

Rehanna as Bast

GwynCara as Arianrhod

Teleiia as a Maened (priestess of Dionysus)

Habibta as Minoan Snake Goddess

Kalista as Isis

Okay, Okay...

Yes, I'm finally getting around to update this. I have been so focused over the last 2 months that I haven't had time to think for myself very often. Here is what's been going on:

The kids are done with soccer for the season. YEAH!!

I had my dance recital and all went well. I am also now dancing again with the Gypsy Spirit middle eastern dance troupe.

My SIL, Shelley, got married in June and we were in the wedding.

I am now certified to teach Jazzercise!!! That has been the biggest accomplishment!

The above picture is me teaching a Jazzercise routine on the 4th of July. ( I was caught in mid-plie.)

This was all of the instructors doing the Stretch/Ending routine. I look so odd not being in a red shirt. Oh well. Maybe next year!

Taught my first routine

As most of you know, I'm training to be a Jazzercise Instructor. Well, after practicing for the last couple of weeks, I finally got up the courage to teach a routine at Jazzercise. I was so nervous, but I did really well. I am even going to be doing another one tomorrow. Today's routine was Axel F, by Bass Frog. (Think back to the movie Beverly Hills Cop. I think it was the theme song.) Tomorrow I'm going to do one called Mama Mia. Who knows... maybe I'll teach a new routine each day until I go through all 9 routines. It'll definitely help with the audition in June to know that I've already done all the routines in front of the classes that I will eventually be teaching.

Other updates: I got my hair cut on Tuesday. Here's what it looked like before. Not too bad, but it was just kind of limp and didn't look very good unless I really spent so time doing it.

This is the "After". Much, much better.

Let's see, is there anything else going on in my life? Actually, yes. I decided to stop selling PartyLite Candles. Now, don't get me wrong... PartyLite has the best candles on the planet, and is a terrific company to be with, but I just really got tired of sales. Here and now, let me make this public: I will no longer be in any direct sales company. I have found that the most fun I have in any given day is when I am dancing. I'm just going to concentrate on getting certified in June and I'll continue with my belly dancing as well. Speaking of which, here is a pic of me in my new belly dance outfit that I ordered from MoonDance Belly Dance.

Ari's soccer pics

Here's some pictures from Ari's 1st game.

Here's Mike holding the "Go Purple Bashers!" sign that Manda made for Ari's team.

New pics of the girls

I had Tiff and Manda's hair cut today. Here's Tiff:

And here's Manda:

Ari and I will be getting our's cut next week.

Which sports car are you?

I got this from my friend, Kim's, blog: Creative Chaos.

I'm a Ford Mustang!

You're an American classic -- fast, strong, and bold. You're not snobby or pretentious, but you have what it takes to give anyone a run for their money.

"Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

American Pride

I just got an email entitled: "I Love This Comeback" and the email subject was Proud to be an American. Usually, I just delete these types of emails. You know the ones... it's someone's "true" story or anecdote about something that happened to someone they know, and has been forwarded to everyone on the planet atleast twice. Any way, I'm starting to ramble. My point is, whether or not the above mentioned email is true, I liked it. So here you go:


One of my sons serves in the military. He is still stateside, here in California. He called me yesterday to let me know how warm and welcoming people were to him, and his troops. Everywhere he goes, telling me how people shake their hands, and thank them for being willing to serve, and fight, for not only our own freedoms but so that others may have them also.

But he also told me about an incident in the grocery store he stopped at yesterday, on his way home from the base. He said that ahead of several people in front of him stood a woman dressed in a burkha. He said when she got to the cashier she loudly remarked about the U.S. flag lapel pin the cashier wore on her smock. The cashier reached up and touched the pin, and said proudly," Yes, I always wear it and probably always will."

The woman in the burkha then asked the cashier when she was going to stop bombing her countrymen, explaining that she was Iraqi. A gentleman standing behind my son stepped forward, putting his arm around my son's shoulders, and nodding towards my son, said in a calm and gentle voice to the Iraqi woman:

"Lady, hundreds of thousands of men and women like this young man have fought and died so that YOU could stand here, in MY country and accuse a check-out cashier of bombing YOUR countrymen. It is my belief that had you been this outspoken in YOUR own country, we wouldn't need to be there today. But, hey, if you have now learned how to speak out so loudly and clearly, I'll gladly buy you a ticket and pay your way back to Iraq so you can straighten
out the mess in YOUR country that you are obviously here in MY country to avoid"
Everyone within hearing distance cheered!

Some new Layouts

Here's some of the LOs I created while I was at SDV (Scrapper's Dream Vacation) this past weekend.

Time for an update

Soccer has taken over! Here's some pics of Ari at her first couple of practices.


Ari loves to pick up the ball and carry it to where she wants it before she kicks it. LOL!!

For those of you that asked for an update about "the date"... It was fine. Unfortunately, she is no longer dating the boy. She broke up with him because he was being a jerk to somebody (not to Amanda), and she didn't like that. The very next day, she was asked out by another boy. She's definitely popular. I'm going to have to keep an eye on her as she gets older. OY!

My baby's growing up

Well, it's happened... Amanda went on her first "date". She went to the movies with her boyfriend, Justin. Thankfully, they were not alone. Amanda's friend (and Justin's cousin), Morgan, was also with them. She's growing up so fast. It seems like only yesterday that I was trying to keep her from running out into the street. Now she's roaming the streets with her friends. Man, what am I going to do when she starts driving, real dating, and all that other teenage stuff. Holy cow!

Peace and quiet...

Here I sit at my computer and the only sound is the tv in the background talking about the "Chefography" of Ina Garten on Food Network. Normally I would be watching Survivor, but basketball has taken over. UGH!! Ari is asleep on the floor next to me and Tiff and Amanda are both in their rooms. It's complete heaven!

It's Thursday!

Just 2 more days 'til the weekend!! Oh, Thank the Gods!!! Soccer practices are really keeping me on my toes. Tuesday was rough. Amanda came up with a great idea. She will stay with Tiffany at her practice while I come home to start making dinner. What a great idea! The only problem was that Ari fell asleep in her car seat and had an accident. So, unfortunately, when I got home I had to spend part of my time taking apart her seat and getting it washed and dried. Thanks god for washers and driers!! I can't imagine (nor do I want to) having to wash everything by hand. Well, I did get everything back together and got dinner made in time to get back and pick the girls up on time. I was mentally exhausted when I crawled into bed that night.

Wednesday nights are our family's "off night", at least for now. I love it! I do take belly dance class on Wednesday nights, but it's not until 8:30, so most of the time Ari and TIff are already in bed. And Amanda enjoys getting to babysit for an hour (and watching tv after 8 pm, which she doesn't usually get to do).

Oy! I just looked at the clock! Time to get ready for Jazzercise class! Maybe I'll write more later.

The start of chaos...

Well, it's finally here. Soccer season begins today! Oy-Vay!! Manda has practice on M&F, Tiff is on T&Th, and we are still waiting to hear from Ari's coach. I'm just hoping and praying that Ari's practices are on Wednesday nights. I would hate to be driving back and forth between locations every night. But then again, with my luck, that's exactly what will be happening. I guess I should really sit down and try to figure out what the heck I'm going to do about dinners from now on. It's hard to cook when you're at the soccer field for a couple of hours every night. I think I'm going to try to do alot of cooking on the weekends and then have the dinners just waiting for us in the fridge or freezer. Otherwise, we are going to be eating alot of spaghetti! And Italian or not, I don't think anyone in this house wants to eat pasta every night of the week! LOL!!

Ah.... Thursday

Well, here it is another Thursday night. Let's talk TV: American Idol - OY!! People please! What is up with getting rid of Ayla and Gedeon!!! I honestly thought that Bucky and Kevin would have been gone. And about Melissa... Um, NO! I really think Ayla would have been a much better choice to keep around. All right, I'm gonna step-down off my soapbox now. Especially since I didn't do any voting. But I would have voted for Mandisa and Chris anyway, so it really doesn't matter. And while I'm thinking about Chris (shhhh, don't tell my hubby...) Chris is a hottie! That bald head and rocker mentality really do it for me! As Rachel Ray would say: YUM-O!! LOL!!!

I figured it out!

I know why I lost my scrapbooking mojo. I was too interested in the book I was reading! I went out and bought the Chronicles of Narnia and was so hooked in the book that I didn't really want to do anything else with my free time. Now that I don't have a book to read, I find it much easier to scrap. Here's today's LO: It's called PlayTime and will be going in Ari's book.

Bring on the Mojo!

Finally!! I think my scrapbooking mojo is finally returning. I have been staring at the photos in this LO for weeks, without any inspiration at all. Finally today I figured out how to arrange them and created my first LO in more than a month!! WOO-HOO!! Hopefully this will be the start of lots of new pages completed! God knows I've got enough pictures to scrap!

Good Business Practices...

Ugh!! I'm annoyed and have to get this off of my chest. I am in the direct sales industry and have a hostess that is $20 short of the minimum sales needed for her to receive 25% hostess credit and be able to purchase the monthly hostess specials. What is truly annoying me is the fact that she sent me an email this morning asking if I couldn't just "compensate" her the $20 (read: place a $20 order for her to get her up to the minimum) and she went on to tell me how "busy" she has been lately and that she only hosted the show "as a favor" to me. Okay, well, after reading that email, I can't help but feel extremely pissed off. Normally, I wouldn't have much of a problem helping my hostesses as much as I can, but not when the hostess doesn't put forth any effort at all. The night of her show, she actually left a half hour into her show to go to her son's basketball game. (Leaving me and her few guests to continue and then lock up when we left.) Since that night, she has made no effort to collect outside orders except for once at Jazzercise and I have given her almost 3 weeks to get them together and close out her show.

I am thoroughly finished with this hostess. I will not ever ask her to host another show again. I will not compromise my business practices for this person or anyone else who does not truly need my help or deserve my kindness. I will not waste my time on her any further. I am closing her show this afternoon and sending it in tomorrow. I hope this doesn't make me seem like a harsh or mean person. I do not mean to be, but I will not have my principles "guilted" out of me or be made to change them because of someone else's arrogance. If you've read this far... Thanks for listening.

It's clean!

Well, I did it. I cleaned up the scrap closet. I did not get around to the making the altered paint can though. Maybe tomorrow. Tonight it's off to Belly Dance class.

Where oh Where...

Did my mojo go? My scrapping mojo seems to have disappeared on me this month. I don't know if it's just being overwhelmed by other things, or am I just being lazy. I do know that I need to clean up my scrap area. My desk is covered in stuff. Most of it is for SDV. I've been shopping for my Secret Pal and it is all piled on my desk. Of course, it really doesn't help that my room is nothing more than a 3x6 foot closet. I need to get some new shelving and get everything up off the floor. Okay, I think I've done enough whining for now. Today's goal: clean it up as much as possible and get a paint can altered for my SDV SP.

What's Your Pizza Personality

Everything Pizza

Diverse and adaptableYou enjoy the full buffet of lifeIt's hard to you play favorites with friends... or flavorsThere's very little that you dislike!

What's" Your Pizza Personality?

Ah, how very true this is...

My first blog post

testing, testing 123