*This post was written by me on behalf of Culture Mom Media LLC. I received complimentary tickets to review the show. All opinions are 100% mine. My love affair with Broadway began years ago when I took my class on a trip to see Les Miserables. Everything about seeing a show live on stage absolutely enchanted me, from the bright lights to the beautiful costumes and beyond. Since then, anytime I have the opportunity to go see a play, it excites me. However, when I received news that I would have the chance to see Soul Doctor on Broadway, I wondered if I would be able to connect to the subject matter since I am not an overly religious person and I assumed that the show would be laden with boring religious overtones and connotations that I would not be able to relate to. Nothing could have been further from the truth... Soul Doctor tells the story of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach who is credited with being the father of popular Jewish music. His ascent to this title … [Read more...]
7 Years Bad Luck?
I have been extremely superstitious since I was a little girl. It all stems back to my childhood in Spain being raised by my Grandmother. She would always tell me stories about the region of Spain we were from called Galicia and how it was known for being the land of witches and incantations. Fast forward a few years to my maternal grandmother who was very superstitious and warned us about the bad luck that would befall us if we put our shoes on the table, opened an umbrella in the house, or walked past a black cat. I never fully understood why doing these things was considered bad but I definitely sensed the foreboding and fear in her eyes as she warned us against doing any of them. Now, don't go thinking that I'm a witch or anything because there is always that random reader who reads too much into posts and will go on a rant in the comments below about how they are unsubscribing because I have "wandered into the dark side." Rest assured that this is not the case … [Read more...]
The Mother In Law Chronicles-Letting Go!
Many of you who have been loyal readers of Tough Cookie Mommy know that I have always had a tumultuous relationship with my Mother In Law. Although I feel that I have tried to connect with her over the years, she has always pushed me away due to what I feel are her extreme conservative religious views. As time has passed, I have learned to accept that she is never going to like me or even respect me and I have resigned myself to the boundaries of our relationship. What I have not been able to accept, however, is her continued absence from my sons' lives as their grandmother. She has never worked to establish a relationship with either one of my sons and this has always been a sore spot for me. Most recently, she failed to call my oldest son for this ninth birthday and it was really the straw that broke the camel's back. You see, she never calls either one of my sons for any holiday. As a matter of fact, the extent of her contact over the years with them has … [Read more...]
Be Nice…
I'm sure that I have mentioned in previous posts that I haven't always had the closest relationship with my sister. There are many reasons for that which I could go on for days talking about. Perhaps the reason that stands out the most in my mind is the fact that we are extremely different individuals. We have always been very different people from as far back as I can remember. I've always been the one who consistently kept it all together and my sister has always been the one who was repeatedly in trouble with my parents growing up and who always got involved in everything that she wasn't supposed to. Obviously, some things have changed now that we are both adults. Now that we are mothers, our priorities have changed. However, some things never change and we continue to be different and to have different priorities with regards to parenting, relationships, and life in general. Despite this, I am committed to forging a better relationship with her and I … [Read more...]
