Chio, My Sis

I just got off the phone with my sister Chio, we talked for about 10 minutes and she had me cracking up the whole time. When people talk about my sis that's usually the first thing they say, "Omg, your sister is SO funny!" It's true, she ALWAYS has something funny to say...but she is also one of the most generous, intelligent, and dedicated people I know. I decided to dedicate this post to her since I don't often have the chance to let her know how much she means to me.

Since we were little, I've always considered Chio my hero. Although she is younger, she has always been more brave and courageous than I. While I was always (and still am) the overprotective, cautious older sister, Chio was never afraid to take risks and strike out on her own. And yes, even at a young age she would have everyone cracking up. One of my favorite memories is of my mom teasing her hair really big and her lipsinging to Amanda Miguel, hilarious!

Over the years we have been through so much together, some experiences are uniquely ours, which I can't say for many people. No matter how difficult the situation, Chio finds a way through it and makes it look easy.

I am so proud of her. She is one of the best moms I know. On a daily basis I reflect on the fact that she is raising Nicolas on her own, granted she gets a lot of help, but at the end of the day, she's the one putting him to bed and reading bedtime stories. None of this is easy and there are times when it's overwhelming, but again she gets through it all and remains the strong mujer I have always known. Watching Nicolas grow up has been the biggest blessing, sometimes I'm amazed at how much he is like his mother. Seeing his silly moments, as well as tender ones, reminds me of Chio when she was little. Although I cherish every moment, I anticipate Nico in his adulthood, I KNOW he will be an amazing man because he was rasied by an amazing woman.

Chio will be receiving her teaching credential soon and I know that the second she steps into her own classroom she will have found her nitch. She is a natural with children. Any person, especially a child, who comes in contact with her is left with a great sense of love and caring. I look forward to the day that I have children of my own so that they can experience "Tia Chio".

God has blessed me with my little sis Chio, for this I will forever be grateful...love you sis!

Obama @ Garfield

Obama visited Garfield a year ago when he was first starting his campaign. I took these pictures (and about 200 more) from the second row.

Hope (a week later)

What an exciting time to be a History teacher (or as my girls like to say "Herstory")!!! The events of the last week will NEVER be forgotten, it's like Pearl Harbor, the first time on the moon, the assassination of JFK, or 911...you will always remember what you were doing when OBAMA became president. I had my students write about it so that they could document history in the making. They did so using my favorite political cartoonist, Lalo Alcaraz's most recent cartoon. They loved it!

On election night I was working the polls against Prop. 8. I stood out in the cold for 3.5 hours passing out pamphlets and encouraging people to vote NO. My phone ended up dying during the process so I wasn't receiving any updates. As soon as the polls closed I got into my car and turned on the radio (and the heater)...I had to pull the car over because as soon as I heard that Obama won I started sobbing uncontrollably. I immediately called my mom and she answered the phone screaming, "We did it! We did it!" It was such an emotional night. I drove over to Clara's and celebrated with her, the baby and Christina. It was there that we found out that Prop 8 was winning...my joy turned to sadness.
The next day was bittersweet. I was SO excited about Obama, but also really upset about Prop 8. How could we have made such a huge step forward and taken like 10 steps back?! I thought about the three happy couples that I witnessed get married over the last month and wondered how they felt. I also thought about gay couples who were looking forward to getting married. I was glad to see that people weren't going to give up that easily and was proud to see so many people on the streets protesting. I know that we will prevail, it's just going to take a little longer.

In the meantime I will be happy about Obama and HOPE that things will change. Si Se Pudo!!!

My New Place

So I decided to move…it was time. I hate to admit it, but my old place was starting to depress me. My original goal was to buy a house, but given the horrible economy, I felt very weary about making such a drastic decision without feeling completely financially sound. So the moving process began.

I spent two afternoons driving around Montebello and saw about a dozen places. I was also looking on Craigslist but everything on there was too expensive. After the second day I still hadn’t seen anything I really liked, so I ventured north of the 60 freeway into Monterey Park. Almost immediately I noticed two signs on a busy street, but kept driving because I couldn’t imagine living there, but since I was in the area, I thought what the heck and I stopped. The first place I saw was ok, but it reminded me too much of my old place. So I headed to the second place. I called the number on the sign and could see my future landlord answer the phone. I asked if I could see the apartment and she said that they wouldn’t be showing it until the weekend. I told her that I was standing right outside and after she found out that I would be the only person living in the two-bedroom apartment, she let me in.
Have you ever had a strong gut feeling about things? I have gut feelings all the time and the second I walked into the apartment, I knew that this was the place! What immediately struck me is that it was so well taken care of. My landlords have put a lot of work into it: new tile in the kitchen, fresh paint (with colors I would have chosen), new carpet, ceiling fans, custom made drapes, and the list goes on. I walked through the place and fell in love. I took an application and my landlord said to bring it by on Saturday.

I knew the apartment would go quickly so I went home and immediately filled out the application. The next day I called and her husband answered. I explained that I had looked at the apartment the day before and that I had the application ready. Right away he asked, “Are you the teacher?” I knew that was a good sign since she had told him about me. I dropped off the application that afternoon and spent an hour and a half talking with the couple.

A week later they offered me the place, I was SO happy, especially when I found out that they had shown the apartment to over 20 people. I really feel that it was meant to be.

Mom's 50th Birthday

My beautiful Mom turned 50 on September 13. Look at her, she looks way younger! People always think we’re sisters.

Chio, Luis and I wanted to treat our Mom like a queen on her special day and I think we accomplished it. We started the day by taking her to her favorite breakfast spot, a little hole in the wall in Riverside. After that we headed to the Galleria at Tyler for some shopping. We spent a long time there, Chio and I were pretending to be on one of our favorite shows, “What Not To Wear”, it was fun. My mom got some cute outfits, but our favorite purchase were her tight, sexy jeans…we had to do a little convincing to get her to like them, but she looks hot in them!

After tiring my mom out we drove her to the Mission Inn’s spa where she was treated to a rose bath, facial and massage. While my mom was receiving her spa treatment, Chio and I checked into her room at the Mission Inn. My mom had NO idea that we would be doing any of this. We gave her the impression that after her treatment we would pick her up and head to Chio’s house. When she was done, the champagne and chocolate covered strawberries that came with the room hadn’t arrived so I had to find a way to stall her. Twenty minutes later the room was ready and we headed up, pretending that Chio wanted us to check out some view. When we got closer to the room Chio opened the door from inside the room and walked out. My Mom was shocked and said, “What are you doing?” Then we yelled SURPRISE and she burst into tears. We were all crying as we opened the champagne and toasted.

Immediately we started getting ready for dinner. Although my mom knew we would be having dinner, she didn’t know that we had invited some of her family and friends. The restaurant, Las Campanas, was beautiful and the food and margaritas were awesome! We spent the rest of the evening there. At one point each of us went around the table and shared with my mom what she means to us…there wasn’t a dry eye in the house!

After dinner we headed back to the room and my mom, my Tia and their friend Patty stayed up talking and taking tequila shots. Chio and I crashed, we were so tired from all the running around. The next morning my mom had a nasty cruda, so we bought some menudo.

All in all it was an unforgettable day, it was the least we could do for such a deserving mujer. I love you Mom!!!

Kirsten turns 10

Kirsten is my Goddaughter. Her parents are Veronica and Mikie. I’ve known Mikie since 2nd grade, a LONG time! I met Veronica through Mikie and now we’re very good friends. Kirsten turned 10 on August 11th and we celebrated at a bowling alley. I can’t believe she’s 10!!!

Mariluz - 12 weeks

Mariluz is now 12 weeks old. It seems that every time I see her she changes drastically. As you can see she is now talking and singing. It’s the cutest thing to have conversations with her.

I especially LOVE this picture of Mariluz with her Daddy!

And look at Mami, doesn't she look great!