DANCE...

...is the only art wherein we ourselves are the stuff in which it is made.

Great dancers aren't great because of their technique; they are 

great because of their PASSION.

I can sing and draw any time, anywhere, but I can't dance any time, anywhere. ~Sydney, deciding whether to take dance or vocal

When the world says, "Give up," Hope whispers, "Try it one more time." ~Author Unknown 

You know you're dancing when tears of pain and happiness blend in with your sweat. ~Anonymous 

The teacher doesn't teach, not really. The teacher offers stimulation and ways in which the person can educate himself or herself. At best, the teacher wakes up that person and makes a person hungry.

HOME SWEET HOME...

"A HOME should be clean enough to be HEALTHY, 
and dirty enough to be HAPPY."~Author Unknown


A glimpse of where my HEART IS.

Books and Bionicles are part of our home decor.

"All day long, you're serving Someone/Something.  Whom/What are you serving?  'As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. ~Joshua 24:15' " ~Libby Vincent

Da Girls' Room

 On our dining table, a framed copy of an old crumpled Declaration of Independence reminds us of the gift of Freedom we have in this country.  The Eiffel Tower lamp signifies our longing to travel.  And when that time comes, I'm not going back-packing this time!

All for one! One for all!

Star Wars, one of our ultimate favorite sagas of all times! Can you tell?

Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face. ~Victor Hugo

We have a no-door policy (except the Master bedroom =.)

Words of encouragement are always welcome in all forms.

Chores: one of the privileges of being a Leong

"The TORCH of LOVE is LIT in the KITCHEN." ~Author Unknown

Love of beauty is TASTE.  

The creation of beauty is ART.

Here's Anastasia, behind the Indie Cakes' beautiful cakes and pastries. Check out www.indiecakes.com and order your cake of any occasion "where each cake is designed to suit your taste and needs, baked-to-order using fresh, organic ingredients."  You won't be disappointed.

TEACHING IS A PRIVILEGE

If a doctor, lawyer, or dentist had forty people in his office at one time, all of whom had different needs, and some of whom didn't want to be there and were causing trouble, and the doctor, lawyer, or dentist, without assistance, had to treat them all with professional excellence for nine months, then he might have some conception of the classroom teacher's job. ~Donald D. Quinn 

By learning you will teach; by teaching you will understand. ~ Latin Proverb

I see the mind of a five year old as a volcano with two vents: destructiveness and creativeness. ~Sylvia Warner

Ms. Louie-Hall with little 5 year-old volcanoe-minds ready to erupt!

All the world is a laboratory to the inquiring mind. ~Martin H. Fischer

Mrs. Lee igniting a second grader's curious mind (studying fruitflies).

It is the province of knowledge to speak, and it is the privilege of wisdom to listen. ~Oliver Wendell Holmes

Active listening by our wonderful third grade teacher, Mr. Philpot

The greatest sign of success for a teacher...is to be able to say, "The children are now working as if I did not exist." ~Maria Montessori

Spelling test in Mrs. Chin's second grade class

A teacher affects eternity: he can never tell where his influence stops. ~Henry Adams

Celebrating our ultra-fun first grade teacher's 40th birthday on Chinese New Year who willingly dressed in a Chinese outfit with a queue and a party hat.  Mr. Tam is now a principal at another elementary school.

The important thing is not so much that every child should be taught, as that every child should be given the wish to learn. ~John Lubbock

 

Ms. G. preparing her fourth grade students for their writing assessment.

Nine-tenths of education is encouragement. ~Anatole France

A third grade class is missing student teacher, Mr. Barisonek. Wishing him all the best in his teaching career.

WORDS & SIGNAGE

Words should be used as tools of communication and not as a substitute for action.

I know God will not give me anything I can't handle. I just wish that He didn't trust me so much. ~Mother Teresa (Be careful what you wish for.)

What's in a name? Please don't call me ChristinA.  My name is ChristinE.  If I was a boy, my parents would've named me Christopher.  My brother now proudly holds that name.

Not "act" like kids.  But to "remember" being kids.  Big difference.

That's why I don't skate.  I've fallen and been bruised way too many times in my life.  I leave the skating to the young and invincible. Like this boy who charges through the Union Square ice rink.

Oh how I wish I could take daily naps.  Sigh...

Coffee.  Garden.  Coffee.  Does a good morning need anything else?  ~Betsy Cañas Garmon (Je t'agree, no?)

I'd stop drinking coffee, but I'm no quitter.  ~Author Unknown

Use it up.  Wear it out. Make it do. Do without. ~WWII rationing effort

You are not only responsible for what you say, but also for what you do not say. ~Martin Luther

Translation: 7 years with 2 kids in 1999 (engraved inside my wedding ring in Kona, Hawaii, attending hubby's grueling outrigger canoe race)

Do I love you because you're beautiful, or are you beautiful because I love you? ~Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II (Cinderella)

Letters are among the most significant memorial a person can leave behind them. ~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 
(Mother's Day letters are one of my cherished possessions.)

Need I "say" more?

Here's wishing you ALL a GLORIOUS 2010!
(image from Somerset Magazine)

Thank you for visiting my blog.  I am deeply encouraged by your visits as I am enjoying this creative outlet in spite of my crazy and busy household. Here's wishing that your year would be filled with love, laughter with inner joy, sprinkled with trials and challenges to help us grow into maturity.  May we always find blessings in every hurt and unpleasant situations that come our way. Let no bitterness nor resentment consume us.  Let us enjoy life, and seek the One True God. He's always waiting for us.