I'm Still Here

When I first started this blog, I bought the domain name "www.starshinereport.com". I was just notified that my initial purchase of the domain name back in 2006 has expired, and that I can renew it for $35/year. It's just not worth it to me, especially because I really don't need a domain name! You can always find me right here at:

http://starshinereport.blogspot.com

So here I am, and here I will be. If you've had me bookmarked before at the old domain address, you might want to create a new bookmark at the above link.

Thanks for being a faithful reader, especially considering that I rarely post here anymore!

I'm Alive!

Hi! According to my site meter, there are still 37 of you who pop by here each day in hopes that I might actually post something. Thank you for having faith in me!

We've had our boys for seven weeks now, and WOW! It's hard work and so much fun all rolled up in one!

I've been unsure about what to do with this blog, since I've been posting exclusively on our adoption blog for the past two months.

Do I hang up my hat here at The Starshine Report? After all, this blog was created to chronicle my life in Los Angeles, and that chapter has come to a close and a new chapter has started. I can still post about other things on our adoption blog and make that my sole place to write.

Do I post primarily on our adoption blog and occasionally here? I do have some Starshine-y things to write about still, like the awesome acting class I found here in Houston that I've been attending on Monday nights this month, and LOVED it! Or the two new pairs of jeans that I found and bought during a one hour intensive shopping trip today. (Impressive, huh?)

Anywho, I just haven't quite figured out what I'm going to do with this blog, but for those of you who still stop by...I wanted to tell you that I appreciate you!

Until Future Notice...

I'm blogging a whole lot more over on our adoption blog, and I think I will be for the foreseeable future. So if things seem too slow around here, just come over HERE to see what's going on in our world!

700th Post!

Wow! When I went to publish this post, I realized it is my 700th!

Today almost got away from me without posting anything...Brian and I just got home from a murder mystery dinner that was AMAZING! All of the dishes the hostess prepared were Julia Child recipes. I felt so spoiled!

We took lots of pictures and I'll post them soon!

Blogging Inspiration!

Image found on Amazon.com

In the checkout line today at HomeGoods, I spotted The Book of Myself by Carl and David Marshall.  It is a "Do-it Yourself Autobiography in 201 Questions". Fascinated, I flipped through the pages and decided right then and there to buy it!

For our first anniversary, my mother gave us The Book of Us: A Journal of your Love Story in 150 Questions by David and Kate Marshall. It has since sat collecting dust on my bookshelf.

However, both books are now on my desk next to my laptop, and I've decided to begin chronicling my life in these books.  At the same time, I think the questions posed in the books will make wonderful prompts for blogging! Considering that I've been lacking in blog fodder lately, it seems like good timing!

Feeling Honored, Flattered, Loved and PUMPED!!!

Several of my San Francisco blog buddies have decided to give me the most amazing send-off from California ever!

Cherry, Jelly Jules, Autumn's Mom and Liz are making a road trip down to LA to see my show on Saturday night.

From left: Autumn's Mom, Jelly Jules, Cherry, and me last month in San Francisco.

Ladies, I can't tell you how loved I feel right now...thank you! Looking forward to finally meeting you, Liz!

The Starshine Report turns 3 !!!

I can't believe it, but yesterday, my blog turned 3 !!!  

I love having this space to express myself and to share with all of you what is going on in my life. Thank you for reading. It means a lot.

I haven't been posting too often lately--mainly because we have been so busy preparing for our move, and I'm in my final week of rehearsals before my play opens!

If any of you are in the So Cal area, come see my show!  It's called "Our Leading Lady" and it's playing at The Neighborhood Playhouse of Palos Verdes Feb 19-Mar 8. Tickets can be purchased here.

Here is a photo of me as "Clementine Smith"...yep! I'm a corset and a bustle! Clemmy's got a little junk in her trunk!  Come on out and see the show!

What makes for an awesome Saturday lunch?

Fun friends,

excellent conversation,

laughter, 

delicious food,

and 'ritas!!!

I spent the weekend in San Francisco, and on Saturday, I got to have lunch with three blog buddies who I have gotten to know over the past three years of blogging: Cherry, Autumn's Mom, and Jelly Jules! We spent three hours chatting across the table and one more hour walking around town doing a little shopping together.  It was a great girls' day, and I'm so pleased to call these three blog buddies my friends.

SHINE!--A NaBloPoMo Challenge

As you may know, November is National Blog Posting Month (NaBloPoMo), in which many bloggers choose to take the challenge to post something--anything--on their blogs everyday for the entire month. This will be my third year to participate, and I always love the challenge. The only problem is that usually about halfway through the month, I begin to lose inspiration, and I can't think of anything to write about.

So this year, I thought I would give myself (and anyone else who'd like to join me) a little inspiration. Below, you will find something to inspire you for each day of NaBloPoMo--either a word, a phrase, a quote, or an image to use as a jumping off point for your blog post. I have always been intrigued by how we can all look at the same thing, but see something different. I thought this would be a fun way to come together as a community and allow our diversity of thought and expression spring from the same source of inspiration.

If you'd like to take part in the SHINE! Challenge, leave a comment below, so we can all know who is participating. Feel free to grab the badge on my sidebar and add it to yours.  You can also join the SHINE! Challenge group on the NaBloPoMo website, though it is not necessary in order to be part of this challenge.

And now...30 days of inspiration!  Happy blogging!

1 - First kiss.

2 - Winds of change.

3 - Shhh.

4 - Political.

5 - If you could tell the newly elected President one thing, what would it be?

6 - Generation.

7 - What is she smiling about?

8 - Silly

9 - Vent

10 - Inner child

11 - Flawed

12 - Soulful

13 - Gym class

14 - 

Photo found here

15 - Best movie ever.

16 - Tell about a book you really enjoyed.

17 - 

18 - Joy!

19 - Travel story

20 - Good friend

21 - 

22 - In ten years...

23 - If you woke up tomorrow and the news said that the internet would be down for the next twenty years without any hope of repair until that time, what would you do?

24 - Bored

25 - What is the most memorable gift you have ever received?

26 -  

Photo found here.

27 - Thankful

28 - 

29 - "It's the most wonderful time of the year!" - E. Pola and G. Wyle

30 - Closure

Starshine: Unplugged (and Plugged-In Again)

Hubs and I spent a long weekend in Virginia at a surprise birthday party for his mom. We had a marvelous time and the look of surprise on the birthday girl's face was proof that she was completely shocked!  YEA!!!  (I'll write a post soon about the party with pictures.)

We stayed at the home of Hub's aunt and uncle, who are some of the most kind-hearted and warm people I have ever met. I am truly blessed to have married into a family like this. Their home is in rural Virginia, where I had only one bar on my cell phone and I never checked my e-mail once! I have to say that it felt really good to "unplug" for a while.

Several times during the weekend, I found myself thinking "Oh, I can't wait to blog about this!" It really got me thinking about how much my blog has become a part of my life. (Too much, maybe?) It also raised the question of "Why do I devote so much time to my blog?"  And not just writing my blog, but also reading lots and lots of other blogs fairly religiously. Do I do it because it's a creative outlet? Am I such an approval addict that I can't live without the feedback of my comments? 

I have to admit that unplugging did help me see that I am too plugged in as far as my everyday life goes. I often get the feeling that I need to stop living my virtual life in front of my computer and go out into the fresh air and sunshine and start living my real life!

On the plane trip home, I sat next to a native Angeleno who was returning home from a family reunion. He told me about the genealogy research he does as a hobby and the importance of passing family stories down from generation to generation. I told him about my blog, and that part of the reason I am recording my thoughts and documenting my life there is because I want my life's story to be available to my children and grandchildren. I have also written a bit about my parents and grandparents.

Truth be told, there are a whole lot of reasons that I blog. 

• It is my primary creative outlet, and it helps to keep my creative spirit alive.
• I have found a true community of bloggers who encourage me and whose lives have become important to me. Some of my blog buddies are now dear friends--friends who have been there for me during my highest and lowest moments (my bridal shower, my wedding, and my Dad's funeral). 
  
• And, yes, I'm a bit of an approval addict, and I love the feedback of comments.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I have no plans at all to stop blogging (it is a big and important part of my life), but I see the need to control the time that I spend online. 

Do you find this to be an issue in your life? How do you balance it all?

To Be Let in

Last night, I was winding down from the day and decided to read a few blogs before drifting off. I often check out Derfwad Manor late at night because the lovely Mrs. G seems to post the next day's blog before going to bed. Little did I know what a moving and hauntingly beautiful post was waiting there to be read. If you read nothing else on the internet today, please go read her post.

After reading it myself, I read it aloud to Hubs, and we both sat in stunned awe at the emotional journey her post took us on. Such poignancy mixed with humor and grace. That, I commented to Hubs, is why I absolutely adore blogging. It is an opportunity to let people see what is going on in your interior world. And that fact that other bloggers let me take a glimpse of their own hearts (whether they are swelling with joy or wracked with grief) is reason enough to keep me reading.

Thank you, Mrs. G, for letting me know you. You are a remarkable woman, who I am blessed to know.

Hi there, Derfwads!

I couldn't be more tickled and pleased to be a featured guest today on the fabulous Mrs. G's blog, Derfwad Manor. If you are here for the first time today via Derfwad Manor, welcome! I'm happy you're here!

I'm flying high right now because I just received the most wonderful news: I've been cast in a play! I had my audition Tuesday night and the callback last night, after which I was offered the part of Teresa in How the Other Half Loves by Alan Ayckbourn. So if any of you want to see me perform live and in person (British accent and all!), you can come see me at the Long Beach Playhouse Aug. 29th - Oct. 4!

I'm so thankful and encouraged by this good news. It's been four years since I have been in a play, and this will be my first show since joining the stage union, Actors' Equity Association. 

Joy abounds!  Have a great day!

Carve their initials on your heart

If you have read this blog at all over the past year, it is no secret to you that I loved everything about being a bride. One of my readers told me that my status as "bride" would last, according to tradition, an entire year. I think it's safe to say that I relished my bridal status for every bit of that year! Now that I've had my first wedding anniversary, I decided to take down my big wedding picture masthead. Hubs told me that I'll be his bride for the rest of our lives, so I'm still gonna leave several wedding pics on my sidebar slideshow.  :)

Lately, I've been enjoying doing art and craft projects a bit more, so I decided to create my new masthead using watercolor paints. It is inspired by a proverb I read and just loved :

Don't lose your grip on Love and Loyalty.

Tie them around your neck; 

carve their initials on your heart.

Earn a reputation for living well

in God's eyes and the eyes of the people.

It was so refreshing to see it written so plainly that Love and Loyalty are two virtues required for living well. 

In addition to my regular entries about my daily life, I've decided to pepper my blog this month with posts telling stories of Love and Loyalty. When you think of Love and Loyalty, what comes to mind?

Blog Redesign

I found this free blog background at The Cutest Blog on the Block.  They have lots of fun designs there and best of all, they're FREE!  The website also has instructions on their side bar of how to plug the html code into your blog template's existing code.

I liked my old blog design, but was ready for a change.  What do you think?

Imitation is the Sincerest form of Flattery!

Hi Everyone!

One of my new friends from church, Abby, let me sneak a peak of her private blog, and she has this cool slideshow feature on her sidebar.  So, of course, I copied her right away!  Thanks for the great idea Abby!  If you want to add a slideshow to your blog, just click here, and it will lead you through a simple process to set up your own.

I hope everyone's week is off to a great start!

Hi!

After writing my way through April (inspired by the "letters" theme), May greeted me with a lack of inspiration.  Plus, I've just been enjoying a short blogging respite.  Still, I have enough blogging neurosis that I don't want to let too many days go by without posting because I'm afraid my loyal readers will give up on me.  So, to tide you over until inspiration strikes again, I'll leave you with a few ADORABLE pics of Sam that one of Jilly's friend took. I miss the little guy!

"N" is for Nice

Wow.  I have some awesome friends in the blogosphere (and in real life, too!)

If I was bummed when I wrote yesterday's post, I am certainly feeling affirmed writing this one. I am continually amazed at the support and sense of community I have found through blogging, and this is a perfect example. It is such a joy to have you all out there on the other side of your computer screen reading about my life and sending your support and love right back to me. If I ever am having a bad day in the future, I will come back and read the wonderful comments you all left me on yesterday's post.

Thank you so much, each and every one of you. You really brightened my day with your outpouring of kindness.

I was really struck by how many of you identified so much with how I was feeling. It made me feel better to know that I wasn't the only one, so since so many of us are feeling the same way, I thought you might like to read a compilation of some of the things you said:

• I totally identify with what you're saying. I feel that way a lot too. Maybe it's just the artist in you. Let's not fit in together!
  
• I understand it all too well. I hope you feel better soon...and I would also like to "not fit in together" 
  
• i've felt a lot like you--oYYyyy that horrible awkward jr high feeling! it sometimes makes me want to just hide away and feel sorry for my different-silly-dorky self, ya know? it frustrates me because i feel like others arent looking for friends to make a commitment to--only people who join their cliques on an as-need basis, if you know what i mean. even sometimes with the blogosphere i feel that way, too--like i'm just a huge goofball that still cant even fit in there!
  
• I think most people feel similar, they just fake it most of the time.We Americans like to stay busy and avoid real community most of the time.
  
• I agree with those who say that I think most people feel that way. I know I feel like a huge dork most of the time. And remember, those who are totally 'cool' work very hard at it, and it's a lot of effort that could be better spent being who they are.
  
• I feel like I don't fit in ALL the time. It used to bother me, but now I like it because it means that I am truly unique.
  
• Of course, that's coming from me, a person who hasn't fit in since the day I was born.
  
• I think we all have days like these. God made you just the way you are and you fit right in with HIM. That's all that matters.
  
• I totally understand where you're coming from :)
  
• I learned alot about myself in NYC and much of that has to do with my dorky, weird, misunderstood self.
  
• We all feel disconnected from time to time.
  
• i TOTALLY understand where you're coming from.
  

All I can say is thank you for your empathy. I treasure the uniqueness that each one of you brings to my life. "Cookie cutter cool" isn't nearly as delicious as a beautiful mosaic of uniqueness and quirks!

Have a beautiful day!

"C" is for Comments

One of my favorite things about blogging is the feedback (read: love, support, critique...) I get from my readers in the comments section. Several of you have told me that you would like to leave me a comment, but that it is too confusing. Admittedly, it looks confusing, but it is actually pretty simple.

Here is a quick primer on how to comment with ease:

1.) Click on "comments" at the bottom of the post.

2.) A comment box will pop up on your screen.

3.) Write your comment in the space provided.

4.) You will see some scrambled up letters and a box under it that says "word verification". All you have to do is type the letters you see in the box. I know it's a pain, but it is keeps me from getting ridiculously annoying comment SPAM.

5.) Where it says "Choose an Identity", click on the dot next to "Name/URL".

6.) Type your name or nickname in the "Name" box. You can leave the "URL" box blank.

7.) Click "Publish Your Comment".

See?  Easy-peasy!  Now give it a try and show me some comment love!

April is a Month of Letters!

Dear Reader,

You might remember that November is NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month), in which participating bloggers write a post every day for that month. Well, the organizer of NaBloPoMo has arranged a blogger challenge for every month of the year. Essentially, you can choose to make any month NaBloPoMo, and each month has a different theme.

I'm choosing to participate during the month of April. The theme is "letters". I've decided to write a different post for each of the 26 letters of the alphabet, and for the remaining 4 days of the month (one of which would be today), I will write a letter of some kind.

I'm looking forward to a fun month of blogging, and hope that this challenge will help uncork my creativity a bit more!

Warmly,

Starshine

Glancing Back Down that Bloggy Road

This Saturday, my blog will turn two years old. My first post was about my decision to look for love online with eHarmony. Not long after that, I met my fabulous eSuitor and chronicled our love story right here on The Starshine Report--from our early dates to saying "I love you" to meeting the parents to engagement to marriage! It's fun to look back and see what God has done!

Happy Valentine's Day, Hubs! Will you be mine?