Our Turkey Day

First of all, I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. This Thanksgiving, had to be the best one I've ever had. No exaggerations! As a kid, holidays were always horrible. It was pathetic. For years, my grandma tried, to make the holidays special for us. But I know that it was hard for her.

My parents always fought. ALWAYS! My mom couldn't cook. There was so much tension. I used to HATE being off of school. As we got older, my mom remarried. Things got worse. My brother and I were tossed aside. I tried to do things. So my brother wouldn't realize what was going on. It was tough.

But this year, it was different. SO DIFFERENT! After spending last year, in the hospital, I was looking forward to a good day. My Teddy Bear and I, wanted to make it special. A new beginning. Start traditions for my Baby Girl. And we did!

My Teddy Bear's family came over. And honestly, did 98% of the cooking. We all sat and talked. Helped each other. I learned how to really cut an onion. We baked pies. Not the ones from the frozen food case either. Real pies!

There was music. Lots of jokes. Plenty of family time. Watching the parade. Can you believe it? I had NEVER seen the Macy's Thanksgiving parade. NEVER! We watched football. The guys went out and played football. We said prayers. Told everyone what we were thankful for. Spent 3 hours sitting at the table. Eating! 3 HOURS!!! It was so much fun! And look at this outfit.

My Baby Girl was dressed up like a turkey! She looked adorable. Was so cuddly and warm. The perfect Thanksgiving outfit.

We couldn't stop there. W got into the holiday spirit too! Like his outfit? He didn't mind it. But then again, he's pretty chill.

We played games and ate, well into the night. Friends came over. Blue Eyes stopped in, just to spoil my Baby Girl. Our day started at 5AM. And we played games, talked, and ate pumpkin pie until 2AM! It was so much more than I could have ever asked for. A day full of the people I love. The only person missing was my Bestie.

I want my Baby Girl to have memories like this. Happy memories. Days filled with love. Happiness. Making new traditions. Talking about our blessings. Eating more food in 3 hours, than we usually eat in a week!

At the end of the night, 5 things stood out.
1. My Brother B was so happy. He actually told me, "This is what it feels like, to be part of a family. It's incredible! Thanks Hills!"
2. My heart had so much love for my Baby Girl. Today, I really felt like a mommy. Making memories for my Baby Girl.
3. I'm 100% positive, I've never seen my Teddy Bear this happy. He told me, "This is just our beginning. We're going to have a 1000 more." You know what, I believe him. With all of my heart!
4. My Teddy Bear's mom and sister, pulled me aside. To thank me. For making this guy so happy. They can tell, we've become a family. :) 
5. I've never felt so much love in my life. Ever! My Bestie called. She made me cry. Just by telling me what I meant to her.

We had so many people come over. Fill our home with love. I know, that not every year is going to be like this. I know this. I've lived lots of those horrible years. But I want so much better for my daughter. Heck, for myself. And my brother. We deserve to be loved. To enjoy life. I'm telling you, this man is changing our lives. In so many ways. This year, I'm so thankful for the people in my life. For their love. And for my life.

De Colores

Let's start of with a little background info. I was born and raised, until I was 15, in the southwest. There were only 2 blond kids in my entire elementary school! I was one of them. The other was popular. Greg's grandma was a volunteer at our school. He was golden because of this. I on the other hand, was a total outcast. My only friend, was this gal. I was cool with that. She has been an amazing friend to me. I can't even begin to tell you, just how much she means to me.

At our school, we always did fun class performances. Things like Spanish Dancing, or singing Spanish Music. It was always a lot of fun. Our teachers would put up these props and houses. We'd practice for weeks. Then we'd put on our show. Most of the time at our school. But also at the local high school, or the Mall!

When I was 6 or 7, we were having a Holiday Show. I practiced hard. Learned all the music. Which was hard. It was all in Spanish. But my grandparents helped me. I begged my mom for a new dress. I wasn't asking for much. Something that she could make me. I didn't care. I just wanted something new. Everyone else was getting something new. Not me.

I wore black tights with this ugly, long pink sweater. It had a dog on the front. And had a hole on the side. My mom did manage to get me this embarrassingly huge bow for my hair. It was the 80s. There we were. Me and all my classmates. Everyone in new Christmas clothes. Me in my pink sweater. I was so nervous. We walked up the stage. We started singing. My favorite song, De Colores.



And I accidentally pushed over the "Hacienda." I had 3 teachers screaming at me. But I kept singing. With my "white accent" and all. As loud as I could. I'm pretty sure, everyone else had stopped singing. What could I do? I'll never forget that day. My mom wouldn't talk to me for days. My dad said I was an embarrassment. But I sang my favorite song. That's all that mattered. At least, that day.

Jump ahead. I'm 27, and pregnant. My Bestie is throwing me and my Baby Girl a Baby Shower. I'm happy as can be. As happy as a 8 month, pregnant mommy can be. I could barely move. But I was so happy! And I opened 1 of the many gifts, that my Bestie got us. It was this book...

I cried. It's the best book ever! I've read it many, many times to my Baby Girl. We've sat and talked about it. I've told her my funny story. Played her the song. Heck, I've even sang it to her a few hundred times. :) I might only be 1/4 Hispanic. But it still matters.

I want my Baby Girl to know about our family. Our roots. I want to share with her, a little bit of our history and culture. It's such a colorful, wonderful, and fun culture. This is just the beginning. But it's such a great place to start. I'm glad we have De Colores to share. :)

The Lion King

I was in elementary when the Lion King came out. I loved it! My Bestie and I, went out to watch it. It was a big deal to go to the movie theater. Especially together. It didn't happen often. But when it did, it was a big deal!

At the time, Disney was coming out with big movies every few months. And while my Bestie's favorite was Beauty and the Beast, mine was the Lion King. I liked all the animals, colors, and the music! The music was the best. I still enjoy listening to the soundtrack.

When I heard that Disney was re-releasing it, I was so excited! I've always wanted to share my favorite Disney movies, with my Baby Girl. I wish that we could go to the theaters to watch it. But the second best, we're going to buy this movie. And have lots of family movie nights.

Isn't that what having kids is all about? Sharing the things that you enjoy. Teaching them, loving them, and just enjoying the simple things in life. That's the way I feel. I want to share as many positive memories with my daughter as I can. Between, this picture of Simba, that face, reminds me of my Baby Girl.

How Times Have Changed

I can remember when I was younger. 6 of us lived in one apartment. Yes, 6 young, twenty somethings. That many women, in that small of space, is definitely a recipe for disaster. But we made it work.

Saturday nights were always our favorite. Even working 2 jobs, I made sure, to get Saturday nights off. So we could go and have some fun! I'd have a couple of these too.....

Most of the time, Sunday mornings, I felt like death. But me and my friends had had a good time. We'd forgotten about some of our troubles. At least for a few hours. My Saturday nights were full of loud music, Redheaded Sluts, and probably too much fun!

Nowadays, my Saturday nights are filled with my cooing baby girl. Curled up in my arms. A good movie is a total must have, with good takeout. Chinese is my favorite! A phone call from my Teddy Bear, is always a bonus! Don't forget the banana milk. :)

Yes, Saturday nights have changed. Drastically! But for me, they've completely changed for the better. I couldn't be happier. With my baby girl in my arms, my brother at my side, and this amazing man on the phone. Oh, and pass my banana milk!

Tomato Grower

One thing that I did get from my mom is, growing tomatoes. When I was growing up, she had so many plants. I'm not even lying. When I was really little, my mom would put 20 pots on our back patio. Filled with all kinds of tomato plants. Nothing too wild. Mostly beef streak tomatoes, and cherry tomatoes. But we always had so many. I'm not 100% sure why we grew so many. Or any at all. I'd eat them in my lunch. The rest, we'd give to my grandma. Ya, my mom didn't cook much.

I bought 2 tomato plants when I first moved out. 2 plants! We had so many tomatoes! And they were delicious. Every year after that, I'd buy a few plants. Mind you, I lived in an apartment. We had a small balcony. Where my few plants lived. In little terracotta pots. It became my thing.

Cooking? Not so much. I couldn't cook. But I could grow some delicious tomatoes! Oh yes I could. Late summer is always my favorite time of year. You get the most amazing tomatoes. The weather is perfect! It's starting to change. Oh, it's perfect!

When I moved in with my ex-husband, I brought my tomatoes. I didn't care about bath towels, dishes, or lamps. All of which I left behind. But my tomatoes, they came with me. He laughed. But when we had that first salad, he was sold. Months later, we were moving. Into this amazing house we had built. I made sure there was a perfect area for tomato planting. Perfection!

That year, I got a little fancy. I planted such a variety of tomatoes. Tomatoes I had never heard of. Heck, I'd never seen! Purple tomatoes. Have you ever? I hadn't. But I grew something like 40 different varieties of tomatoes. That year, I was also cooking. I'd learned a thing or two. My tomatoes were perfect in all these new dishes!

Later when I moved into my own home, I did it again. I planted all sorts of tomatoes. Striped, purple, mini, orange, giant. They were delicious! I'm sure I planted way too many! I would pack them in baskets, and send them to friends. I cooked and cooked. I froze, canned, anything you could figure out to make with them, I made.

This is the first time, that I can remember, not growing tomatoes. Sure the reason is legit. But I miss it. I miss watching the seeds turn into seedlings. Then into plants. Growing big, and finally getting fruit. I miss that. I miss the yummy taste. The distinct taste of homegrown food.

My goal is, next year, to have another tomato garden. I pray that my dear Lord, will allow us to be home. Allow me to show my daughter some of these amazing things. How hard work, pays off. How amazing God is to us. Yes, I can't wait. Next season is going to be so delicious!