Flash CS4 - Very simple question. Probably a simple answer.

Hello everyone,

I'm new to this forum so I apologize for any mistakes I may make. But this question has been eating me up for years now, and I am desperate for an answer.

When I create multiple symbols in Flash and begin creating tweens, I find their timelines always conflict with one another and never synchronize. What seems to be Frame 2 in one symbol ends up appearing as Frame 8 in the symbol it's created in.

For example- if I animated a smiling face that traveled from one side of the screen to another, the smile would not play when I want it to on the main timeline, but it may play where I want within the symbol. In other words it's not synchronized- the timing is all wrong even though I place the keyframes appropriately.

I understand this is an amateur question, but I've searched the internet and have found no one with this problem. I have a few books on Flash and they never address this. Can anyone point out what I could be doing wrong, or how I could solve this?

Again I am new, and I'm sorry if this question is not appropriate for this forum. But if that's the case, hopefully someone could point me to a source that could help. Thank you! I will truly appreciate any advice.