With all of the hustle and bustle of the holidays, I have been very busy here on the blog sharing all of our family's experiences and even reviews and giveaways of some of our favorite products. As the New Year approaches, I feel the need to slow it down a little bit for this post and share some of our family's behind the scenes stuff which I'm sure many of you can surely relate to... Two weeks before Christmas, my husband got laid off from his job. It certainly wasn't the best time for this to happen but then, is it ever good timing? I keep reminding myself that it could be worse, at least I still have my job and medical benefits, thank God. Every single time I turn around, I hear about families being hard hit by unemployment in these uncertain economic times and I'm thankful for what we do have. Today, my boys attended a basketball game with my Father in Law at Fordham University and I stayed behind because walking around such a huge college campus is just not … [Read more...]
The Women Of Osage County-Which One Are You? #AugustMoments #Ad ($100 Visa GC #Giveaway)
Disclosure: This is part of a sponsored campaign with The Weinstein Co. However, all opinions expressed are my own. During my childhood, I had the pleasure of being raised around my Great-Grandmother Carmen. She was the epitome of strength and character and had known a hard life working in the fields and giving birth to her children right at home. Although she was sometimes a bitter pill to swallow, she never backed down from anyone and taught me that women could be brave and fierce. On the other hand, my Grandmother who raised me, was strong in a different kind of way. She was never as overbearing and confrontational as Carmen was but she showed me that women could be strong and ladylike at the same time. Although it seemed to outsiders that my Grandfather was the one calling all the shots in their home, she influenced his decisions behind the scenes and made her voice and opinions be heard subtly. This December 25th, we will be introduced to the women of … [Read more...]
Pass The Purple Purse To Raise Money For Domestic Violence Victims! #PurplePurse #Sponsored
*This sponsored post was written by me in collaboration with Latina Bloggers Connect and The Allstate Foundation. All opinions are 100% mine. Many people are unaware that October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Unfortunately, many of us have been affected personally by domestic violence, myself included. Back in high school, I had a good friend who was being abused by her boyfriend and I recall how frustrated I felt and how worried I was for her welfare. I just couldn't understand how she could continue to stay with someone who was treating her this way and I didn't know how I could help her. WHEN IS IT TIME TO GET HELP? The scariest moment for me was when her boyfriend beat her in the car with his friends present and then kicked her out of the car. As she recounted the story to me and I gazed upon her badly bruised face, I knew that I had to do something to help her because I was afraid that he was going to kill her. I was able to get help from teachers whom … [Read more...]
Encourage Young Drivers To Make Safe Driving Choices @StateFarm #CelebrateMyDrive
This is part of a sponsored collaboration with Latina Mom Bloggers and State Farm. However, all opinions expressed are my own. Last night, I was going through some old papers when I came upon my old Learner's Permit. It was certainly a blast from the past and I immediately showed it to my ten year-old son so he could see my old photo and so he could see what a Permit in New York State looks like. He immediately had a lot of questions about how someone gets a Permit and whether I was afraid to be able to drive for the first time. State Farm is committed to teaching young people safe driving from the moment they begin to drive to set the tone for safety in vehicles for the rest of their life. As the mother of a child who will be eligible for his Learner's Permit in a few years, I have some serious concerns about safety when it comes to handing him the keys to one of our cars. As an educator of adolescents, I know that young people don't always make the best decisions due … [Read more...]
Reading As A Punishment?
This past week, I had to get in contact with my son's teacher for the first time this year. It all started when my son came home and told me that he had to write a book report as punishment for not behaving while on line in school. I immediately asked him what he was doing on line and he explained to me that he put his hands on the shoulders of the student in front of him to make like a train. The first thing that I did was to proceed to explain to him the importance of following the teacher's directions and not fooling around either on line or in the classroom. As the conversation with him went on, however, I started to become concerned at the way that his teacher handled the whole thing and some red flags went up in my mind regarding whether I agreed with the consequences that she had doled out. It seems that she immediately sent him to the teacher's lounge to sit with the teacher's assistant and, when she was ready, handed him a book and told him, "Let's see how you do … [Read more...]
The Loss Of A Great Grandparent
This past week, we received word that my Great-Grandmother passed away in Spain. She was well into her nineties and had been bed-ridden for the past few years due to severe Rheumatoid Arthritis and Alzheimer's. In the wake of her death I find myself reflecting on her life and thinking about the legacy of the family that she left behind. We called her "Madrina" which means "godmother" in Spanish. The reason for this is that she baptized my father and was actually his godmother so, since he always called her that, the name stuck. She came from a time when women worked in the fields alongside their husbands and never complained about anything. I remember her telling me the story of how she gave birth in the old house, upstairs from where they kept the cows. Back when I was a kid, I remember feeling like she was really old fashioned and like I couldn't relate to her. She dressed in black as was customary for widows back in the day in Spain and always wore a kerchief … [Read more...]
