Last Day Of Pride Month & A Lot Of Rainbows!

There are so many reasons to love June. One-it's the official start of summer, two-a month to celebrate fathers and three- it's pride month. Love is Love and the best thing that we all need right now is just that LOVE. And no matter  who we are or what color or origin we hail from it's important to be accepting and kind to every one. I wrote this post five years ago and as I re-read couldn't believe how bold I was. I totally shared some very personal things and I'm glad I did. I'm still very much that same bold person-even five years later and will always celebrate my dear friends and family all year long! Cheers to the last day of Pride month! 

More colorful pics below>>>

Lexie Lately: 100 Days of Quarantine As A Mission, Four Months As A Missionary But Technically Six Weeks In The Field!

Reading Lexie's emails sparks so many thoughts in my head and because she is my daughter can't help but to wish I can help her somehow. I know I can pray, but sometimes we need so much more than that. And one thing that has helped me is having faith. And I know that hanging on to faith is what helps her. If you read her emails you'll understand why I am writing this.

I know that we all lead busy lives right now whether we work from home or not but for those of us who know all about the missionaries from the church of Jesus Christ and what they do I plead with you to please make time for them.

Quarantine Life In Pictures.

Quarantine hair, reading, lounging, eating, frustration, laughing, painting, origami, action figures with Legos. No makeup, dancing, tennis, tiktok, annoyance. These are just a few lost photos that were on my phone from the past couple of months. It was quite the challenge being stuck at home through the pandemic with kids and although places are slowly opening up things are still not quite the same as we'd like them to be. We are definitely living in a new normal now but it's ok. I'd rather be outdoors wearing a mask, and eating in an outdoor patio than being cooped up in the house. Still...these moments were precious and have been a way to ease my mind throughout this moment in our life of our cities being on "pause." I'm so grateful I captured some of the moments that brought me joy (even the grumpy ones) and I will cherish them for always. 

There are more photos below, and you can see the first part of our quarantine life here. 

Strawberry Picking At Fishkill Farms!

As it got closer to summer the kids and I were talking about how much we would miss picking fruit at the farm due to the pandemic, but when we heard that Fishkill farms was open to go strawberry picking by reservation only you better believe that I quickly picked up my phone to book an appointment. It was weird to be paying online and making an appointment just to go picking. There wasn't too many people as they limited it by appointment so were lucky to have had a few rows to ourselves to pick. This definitely was social distancing at its best! And boy did the kids go to town picking! Chelsea was our main picker as Noah was whining a bit due to it being so hot. I know wearing a mask wasn't comfortable in the hot weather but luckily there weren't too many people so we slid them down our face for awhile. Noah then began picking more, and we left with a ton of strawberries!! 

More pics below...

Jumping Into Summer Like.....

Happy First Day of Summer y'all! It seems like it's going to be a cruel, hot summer but please wear your masks when you go out anywhere. My kids are going to hate wearing them in this sweltering heat but it is crucial to wear them. Unless you are a huge distance away from people then take it off for a bit, but otherwise use common sense. Wear a mask and social distance yourselves as well. I know we all want to gather together with friends for beach parties, and dinner parties but please remember to keep it at a minimum of 10 people. I find that if we follow the CDC guidelines then we should be a-okay! Here's to a fabulous summer with the social distancing, and wearing a mask! Make it a fun and relaxing one folks! 

More fun pics below...

Black Lives Matter, Pride Month, & Juneteenth!

I am so grateful for the compassion and love that I have for people of every race, color, and gender. I don't discriminate against anyone! I have taught all my kids to do the same and having two younger children left at home the learning never stops. Especially with all that has been going on in the world right now. There are too many murders and shootings against people of color happening right now. I fear for my gay and black friends who have children. It seems that nowadays you can by lynched and shot at a stoplight just for being Black. Not cool and that makes me so sad and mad! These signs are hopeful to me and I pray that the more we spread it the more people will want to educate themselves into becoming a better more knowledgeable person for those who are oppressed. We may never stand together when it comes to the color of our skin but we can sure try. Martin Luther King had a dream about it, and we should never give up on that dream! Let's all join in on the fight! And unite. We can do this y'all! 

A Final Bow To The 2019-2020 School year!

Homeschooling for the past three months wasn't challenging at first but in between the frustrations of having a teenager wishing her teachers were more specific about her assignments (the woes of an honors student) and the fact that Noah would rather have his teacher explain math to him "more better than me" wasn't too terrible. I have learned a lot of lessons while wearing the teachers hat during quarantine! Such as really appreciating them and all that they deal with in teaching our children! And as much as I didn’t mind having them for the past three months I am happy sooooooooo that remote learning is over! These kids were literally ROCKSTARS throughout the whole quarantine-stay-at-home-school thing! One thing I never had  to do was tell them to wake up. Chelsea was always on time to attend early morning seminary at 7am and do her homework (even though she'd complain a bit) and same with Noah. He truly was a champ throughout this whole time being away from his friends, and...recess! So happy that they both passed on to the next grade level with flying colors. Cheers to the end of freshman year in high school and the fourth grade! Hello to sophomore year and officially becoming a fifth grader! 

Say Their Names At Union Square Park.

The Black lives matter movement continues to grow strong in my favorite city. Everywhere you turn you see the names of those who have died under the hands of racist brutality. This has given my son a huge lesson in being educated when it comes to human rights and people of color. There have been times when my kids have been asked what nationality they are and for the most people are accepting and say that they're lucky to have a lovely shade of olive skin, but sometimes that question has my son asking me, "why do they ask me that question?" I had to explain to him that being a Mexican-American can be hard sometimes and that I got the same treatment as a kid myself. People mistaking me for a black person. As a Mexican mom I've had my moments with white people and I can write an entire post about that but this is not about me. It's about looking out for my Black friends who are having it tough right now and we need to support them and pray for their safety. Their lives are significantly hurting right now.

Black Lives Matter - Protest In New York City.

About a week ago a woman walking her dog in Central Park called the cops on a man who kindly asked her to put her dog on a leash. Apparently this particular area of Central Park states leash your dog at all times but people don't listen these days. She resisted and for no reason used a microaggression in the most insidious form. She called the police and said an African-american man was threatening her and her dog. She had no reason to do this. She kept repeating this to the police and because this man was savvy and smart quelled her attitude and began to record her. Her racist actions made headlines. When I read about the young man who she called the cops on seemed very educated. An avid bird watcher. Someone who was just minding his own business and in a polite manner asked this woman to put her dog on a leash.

The Aftermath In Soho After The Riots.

Eye-opener for my kids today as we walked the streets of New York after yesterday’s riots. The remnants of what was left of a burning police car and shattered glass from broken windows was a scary sight to see. I’m well aware as to why this has happened but I’m praying for more peaceful protests in the future without the violence. Our hearts are hurting for the death of George Floyd but we should act rational and quell our behavior with peace. 

These experiences are teaching my two youngest kids to be more braver and stronger and to use their voice in defending not only their black friends, but their heritage as well. My kids are mixed and come from various background lineages. Time to time people will ask them what nationality they are and for the most part they are complemented for who they are.