Happy Birthday My Little Ones

Day 2 at hospital

First day home together

First photo shoot

Three years ago today, I gave birth to two very beautiful but early babies. They were born 5 weeks early and weighed in 4.4 lbs and 5. 4 lbs. They were so small, I can still recall how scared I was to bring them home, especially my boy. Seeing them in NICU with all those wires and feeding tubes, I prayed I would be able to bring them home sooner then later. When I was able to bring them home within the week, I was elated. Eight months of doing my best to keep them in but they were finally here and leaving healthy. Prayers answered.

Since that day, we have watched them as they have discovered the world around them, developing what I hope is a life long friendship with their older brother and building a twin bond that is as strong as both their personalities. They fight as much as they do hug and kiss one another. 

Now they are three years old and each showing their own very distinct personalities. There isn't a day that goes by where I don't laugh with the kids. We absolutely love them and though they were a surprise, with many sleepless nights, we also know they are a blessing.  I would change nothing. 

Happy Birthday my babies!  

Mama, Daddy and Nono love you both so much. Thanks for bringing double the love into our lives and filling our hearts exponentially. 

A Note of Thanks

This Thanksgiving, I would like to give a note of thanks to those close to me. For my friends and family that have kept ties to me despite the move and all the changes in the past 2 years.

We are blessed to have such a great support system here and to those we kept up North (you know who you are), thank you. Thank you for answering the phone or calling back. For listening to me when I needed an ear or talking just when I needed a distraction from my life. For making trips down to visit when budgets and time are tight.

To my family here, mom, dad, M and Ant, I can never express how grateful we are enough. For coming to my aid on more then one occasion. For answering my every homeowner question. To being better grandparents then perhaps parents. (So jealous. Haha!) My husband and I are forever appreciative of all you have done and continue to do. We know you don't do it for us so much but for the kids so we are all the more thankful.

That's me bottom left.

A special note to my dad who celebrates his 75th birthday today.

Dad you came to America with only a small suitcase and $30 in your pocket. As a son of a farmer from Dominican Republic you came with a dream. Later, you found mom, got married and started to have a family. In the midst of that you brought over relative after relative and started your own business. You continued to help your family back home while building a life for yourself in the United States.

When you look back on these past 75 years, I hope your heart is filled with pride. I know you are not a perfect man but you have been the best father you knew to be and I never felt less from you. Thank you for all you have given me. Thank you for all that you have given to so many. Without you, many people would be living very different lives.

I love you dad. This Thanksgiving, I hope you see and feel that from us all.

To my big brother, I simply say, I love you always.

Happy Thanksgiving.

As always, Be Blessed, Be Healthy, Be Beautiful! 

Working hard...

Where have I been? It's like I fell into a hole or something, right? Well I have been kept busy and working hard trying to raise a happy family, strong marriage and keep my sanity. Emphasis on sanity.

I would like to tell you that I have had time this summer to watch my flowers grow. That I sat back and relaxed. That would be a lie. I literally have to take pictures of my flowers so I can remind myself that I have a garden. Which is beautiful by the way.

My goodness I have been busy with these kids so much lately. Especially now that they have more going on during the school year. Tending to a million things and needs all at once. Sometimes I even surprise myself by the amount of work I can accomplish with them. However, I often forget myself and my needs in the process. I'm sure if you are a devoted mom (parent) you know exactly what I mean. You become a master juggler for sure. Daily tasks, doing your best not to drop a ball or in my case, a child.

That's where I am at theses days but I have taken some time to continue to tinker with a skin care idea I have. So that is in development and testing stage. I have a few people using it and at the end of 30 days, they will let me know what they think and if tweaking needs to be made. Then I have to pick a name, price out cost for production (at home) starting way small and then a push to build demand. I love it but I have to get all of you to love it too. 

Also in the works, is a children's book that I have written about twins. A great friend of mine will be illustrating for me. If all goes well, we might be able to put it up for sale by Christmas 2016. Fingers crossed!! 

In any case, that is what I have been up to. Would love to hear from some of you? How do you manage to take care of your family and meet your own personal needs or goals? Curious.

Please take a moment to comment, Like, Share and subscribe to my posts. Thanks so much for coming by.

As always, Be Blessed, Be Healthy and Be Beautiful!

Happy Birthday my Twins

As of yesterday, the twins turned two years old. Times certainly flies when your going insane. HAHA! All jokes aside, we absolutely love them and tried to show them that each and everyday. Since it was their birthday we tried just a little bit more. We did what they love most,  we went to the zoo and only went to see the creatures they like most, plus a few others for their oldest brother to see too. We had a small get together with family with A Curious George goes to the Aquarium theme. They got their favorite food, PIZZA. Play time in the pool and they had a special cake made by me which I will share the recipe with you here  Foolproof, One Bowl Banana Cake. Topped it with some homemade creams cheese frosting. So good!  Made my own cake topper since I had gone to store and there were absolutely ZERO Curious George party decor items anywhere to be found. So forgive me if it looks below standards, it is Curious George riding a dolphin.

"Big Country"

Here is just a small recap of the day.

My little girl, which her daddy affectionately calls "Big Country" woke up in a bad mood and continued that mood throughout the day. I am convinced that she woke up thinking, I begin my rein of terror today. That thought must be true because when she woke up this morning it was all screams and no this, and no that. Lord give me strength! In any case, I purchased the kids these adorable outfits for their birthday. She wanted nothing to do with her dress. She was pulling at it and trying to lift it over her head. I may have thought she looked so precious but she was like "If you don't get this dress off of me, I am liable to hurt someone!" She wasn't happy until we took it off. Then we put her in her swimsuit only to have her have another fit when we took her out of the pool and take the swimsuit off. When my husband took her out of the pool and brought her in she held on to the door, then the doorways on the way to her room. Then she fought to keep the swimsuit on, swung at us, kicked at us. Finally when it was off she grabbed at it to put it back on. She is a force to be reckoned with for sure and her big personality shows us that each day. She managed to pick herself up after cake and gifts but she struggled mood wise.

"Jumpy McDumpster"

As for my little man, which I affectionately call "Jumpy McDumpster" as he jumps around all over the place and dumps everything, he was so good. He had no complaints. Woke up so happy, as he always does now and played as much as he could. In the pool, he as able to maneuver up and down the slide all by himself sort of. Daddy held his hand as he slid down. He reached out for daddy's hand each time, so sweet. Was easy going when it came time to changing him and didn't mind when we took him out of the pool. He gets that when the fun is over, it's over and we move on.He was so happy when he had his pizza, two whole slices. Didn't eat his cake which was no surprise but he did have his favorite, Watermelon.  He tore through the gifts, taking everything out of its bag quickly examining the gifts as he tossed them to the floor. It was fun to watch.

Over all , a great day for the kids and that it was the day was all about. Celebrating them both and the love that we have for them. Eventually, they will each have their own special day. Two separate parties for two very different people but until then, they just have to share their air space just a little longer. Our kids continue to be the blessing and joy in our lives. Thanks to all that offered best wishes for them on their birthday.

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As always, Be Blessed, Be Healthy and Be Beautiful!

Happy Mother's Day!

My son asked me why today was Mother's Day. I started by explaining to him that today is the one special day that Mama's are supposed to get some extra special care and love.

As I continued, I mentioned how I wasn't always a Mama. I was Elizabeth and had a very different life.  That Mother's day is very special to me  because it reminds me of a time in my life when everything changed. The day he was born. And that this change will connect us both forever, no matter how far away he may be or how big he may grow. 

Which of course prompted another question, "Why is it special?" I told him " Mother's day is special for me and I imagine many other mother's because they go from being just a woman taking care of themselves to bringing new life into the world or choosing a special child to be a mama to. It's a very big responsibility but we chose it because we have so much love inside that we need to share it or we might burst."

His response, "Mama, you are just like Tarzan's Mama Gorilla." followed by a cuddly hug by my son.

To all the mom's out there, hope you all had a great day and that you were lucky enough to get a cuddly gorilla hug like I did. 

P.S. - This conversation took nearly an hour. #Wouldnotchangeathing 

Please take a moment to comment, Like, Share or Google+ my posts. Thanks so much for coming by.

As always, Be Blessed, Be Healthy and Be Beautiful!

Food, fun and Forty!

Here is what I have been up to. 

Mini Pancake muffins

In honor of National Pancake Week/Day yesterday, I made these tasty Mini-Pancake muffins for the kids. Flavors I made were the recommended Blueberry,  Chocolate chip and Banana Peanut Butter Chip. They freeze well and the recipe made 36 mini's. I have to say it was super easy and the kids loved dipping them in syrup and eating them up. I enjoyed a few syrup-less and they were still good. 

The recipe came from one of my favorite cooking shows, The Pioneer Woman. Click here for recipe. I absolutely love her show. She doesn't know it, but we are such good friends. LOL! I've watched her show for a while on Food Network but when we went antenna instead of cable, I am no longer able to watch the show. How I wish she would do a show for PBS. Thank goodness for Netflix and Amazon. I can at least catch up post airing. 

Any ways....My best friend came for a visit to celebrate my 40th birthday (What?). We have known one another for so long that we talk for hours or just sit quietly watching TV or something. It's great fun! This time around many of our conversations brought us to food. Didn't matter how we started, we ended up with "God, now I am hungry" or "Here we are talking about food again." I wouldn't have changed a minute of it. Unlike my pretend friendship with, Ree of The Pioneer Woman, I have known my best friend Lisa since childhood. I was one years old when we met, she, an ancient two years old. We have been friends ever since. If your doing the math, thats 39 years of knowing someone and maintaining a friendship. Crazy cool!  I was discussing a recipe with her when I mentioned The Pioneer Woman. Put it on Netflix and after an episode, she was hooked. We watched the entire first season over the weekend. Thanks Ree!

Natural Chow
Easy Homemade Bagels

Others things I have made this past week. I made a batch of Natural Chow's Easy Homemade Bagels. Click here for recipe. Super easy to make and taste so darn good. They reminded me of the bagels I use to eat in New York. Yes, they are that good.  It adapts easy for added ingredients for flavors. I made Plain Bagels and plan to make Rosemary Olive Oil and Blueberry bagels next. Oh so good! A must try, so please, try it. 

Pepperoni Pizza

Followed that up recipe up with Pizza for kids using a basic pizza dough recipe that I had. I mean I had the flour out so why not, right? My son did most of the work after the KitchenAide mixed the dough and I flattened it out. I think he did a great job. It was no NYC pizza but it was still very good. Most importantly it was fun for my son to make. He was proud of himself. 

If you get a chance to try any of these recipes or have one you really love, I hope you will let me know about it. I'm doing my best to make things fresh for my family and could use some of the best of the best recipes you may have. Sharing is caring. 

So I would say that my last week of my thirties has been spent well with my family, food and fun. Oh I had fun! From my BFF visiting to eating out and pole dancing, (Yes, Pole dancing) it has been awesome! Honestly,  could not have asked for a better way to say goodbye to my thirties. I'm happy, hopeful for what is to come and I wish that those of you reading this, are happy too! 

Talk to you again when I'm officially forty. What, What!!

Please take a moment to comment, Like, Share or Subscribe. Thanks so much for coming by.

As always, Be Blessed, Be Healthy and Be Beautiful!

Thanksgiving is here! What are you thankful for?

Get up and dance I says.... hehe!

Today is a day to give thanks. Granted history is a bit twisted on what actually happened this day but lets hold true to the grand marketed day,  Thanksgiving.

Since it is about giving thanks, I thought I would look back on the last year or two and summarize the many things I can give thanks for. My mom loves to make us go around the table and say what we are thankful for. She loves that stuff. It's not a terrible tradition but it can put you on the spot if you don't take the time to tell yourself often what to be grateful for through out the year.

The year my mom started this tradition,  I was taken so off guard, that I was said "I guess I am grateful for the fact that I didn't burn up in my car." (It had spontaneously caught fire while parked at a mall a few weeks prior. Not even kidding.) In any case, after that I realized I had way more to be thankful for so now I try to be prepared for when my mom asks, "what do you have to be thankful for?"

Two years ago, I was thankful that the people I love were not taken by Hurricane Sandy. And though we all had some loss to deal with, the fact that our lives were still intact was one great thing to be thankful for. When something like that happens and you lose so much, I think it is hard to remind yourself that there is still much to be thankful for. That year, I was certainly thankful because I know it could have been even worse and it was for so many.

Last year, I was grateful for my family. For the support I was given by them in a very difficult time during bed rest. That the twins were born healthy despite being born early and placed on Life supporting machines for a bit. Again, in the hospital I was reminded that life could be worse. There I was able to see the smallest of lives fighting to live. It still breaks my heart. Yet, I also was able to see many of them strive, like my own two. Every day I look at them and am reminded of the miracle that was provided to me. To be told "You will have no more children." and then actually become pregnant. And though I suffered miscarriages, here they were. All three of my children, my personal miracles. So yeah, I was really thankful last year for all that I had been blessed with.

This year, I am thankful for my family and friends. For those that have stayed a part of my life through out it all. Who chose to make the effort to love me still. To keep in touch even when it got hard or time consuming. For helping me with the kids either by sending packages filled with clothes, diapers, giant strollers, etc. (So appreciative!) Coming over to help me with them, letting me get a minute to myself (supermarket run) or pampering me with an hour of beauty to myself. To attempting to speak with me on the phone even when I have kids screaming or crying in background. Especially to those who came from far away to see me and my family. To acknowledge that in any way you still care enough about me to be apart of my new life here, no matter the distance. I once said to someone "Geography isn't what keeps us apart, it's us." So to all of you that made and continue to make the effort to stay connected, Thank you. I am truly thankful to have you in our lives. You are appreciated and loved.

For Mom, Dad and M. Wow! You have been my biggest supporters and helpers. I love you so much. Thank you. To my in-laws, for taking your son in and helping us along with so much. Thank you. We love very much.

Also, for my husband, who puts up with my attitude more then necessary. (Sometimes it really feels necessary. Just saying.) I love him so much and am thankful that we are now a complete family again. The year and a half living in two separate zip codes while he searched for employment here was rough. Very. The struggles we have been through have made us stronger. He seriously drives me nuts sometimes but I am sure he can say the same. Either way, we can honestly say we have tested our relationship over and over again. We are stronger for it. For that, I know I am thankful.

Lastly, I am thankful because after everything that has gone on this past year. I can hold my head up and know that I am stronger for it. I can handle anything life tosses my way. To do it with real  courage, dignity and without complaint. (I mean really, who really is listening when you complain all the time?) Life gave me a whole lot of lemons this past year but I fought back and made a whole lot of lemonade. (You get that this a metaphor, right?) And though I may cry from time to time, I'm still okay. Life is good. We are good today. For me, if my family, immediate or otherwise is okay, I'll take it. That in itself is enough to be thankful for.

As my parents get older and closer to meeting the end of their lives, as I approach what I hope is the middle of my life, I realized a few things. Most importantly that you can't hold on to baggage from your past. Acknowledge it, accept it for what it is/was and let it go. (Please don't start singing that song!) You can't change people or live life to please others. Appreciate what you have before you because the "wanting" is always what gets you in the end. It blinds you sometimes. I no longer buy into the bullshit that if I just give a little bit more of myself or whatever, that people will see I have something to offer. I live my life as I choose best and no longer complicate it by trying to get others to care about me or even acknowledge my existence. Finding explanation for other peoples actions is not my job. It really is like the song, Let it Go, isn't it? "Let it go, Let it go....." (haha! Try getting that out of your head now.) Oh yes and laugh. Laugh as much as you can.

So I hope that many of you reading have something to be thankful for and that you appreciate the life you have. My wish for you all in the new year is that you can do just that if you haven't already. Allow yourself to be happy, however that may be. And always, be thankful.

As always, Be Blessed, Be Healthy and Be Beautiful!

Prepping for holidays...Yippee!

You know this made you laugh.

Having mentioned that I would discuss things other than skin care from time to time her goes the latest.

We all remember the Thanksgiving episode  where on Friends, character Monica gets her head in a turkey. Then decides to make the best of a horrible situation to cheer up Chandler. 

I am currently avoiding the horrors of the holidays by going to someone else's house. Let them get their heads stuck in a turkey, metaphorically of course. However,  I can't show up empty handed. I wasn't raised that way. One positive in my up bringing. (Kudo's to you mom and dad.)

Since I haved started to cook things more from scratch for the family. I have been searching for authentic meals and desserts to feed them all. Some of the childhood memories I still have and my happiest, are around the kitchen watching my mother, grandmothers or who ever cooking. The smells, the sampling of food as it prepares and watching it cook in the oven. That little oven light was like turning on the television for me. In some ways, it still is today. 

Now sadly, I know that you should never relate joy to food because it puts you at risk to over eating. However, I feel like if you eat foods made with fresh ingredients and control the quantity, you should be all right. Plus some exercise wouldn't hurt either. (HAHA!) 

With the holidays fast approaching, I have begun the process to seek out yummy whole food meals that I can make for the family to enjoy through out the holidays. Since I am not hosting this year (Can I get an AMEN?),  I want to make sure I don't show up empty handed and that I have great meals at home prepped and ready. Incase no one eats enough at our hosts home. I always have hungry little monsters so I try to have meals prepped for them. 

The holidays are a confusing time for me. I have mixed feelings about them. They bring good memories to mind but also stress the heck out of me. Since I am not hosting this year, (notice how I keep saying that) I do have it easier then my hosts for sure. Since I am in charge of dessert as I am often during the holidays, I am posting one recipe that I will make for home and one that I will be taking to my hosts home. (Okay, it's my sister house. It's no secret we get along.) I'm still thinking I may host Christmas Eve, still thinking on how I can manage it. 

The great thing about cooking for me is that its where I let all me stress out. It's having people over that stresses me out. I never feel like the house is clean or organized enough. And now a days, I feel like that even more.  Every thing is way harder to do now with the three kids. So I have to plan ahead and often, cook enough to freeze or eat for two days. 

DIY: Rice Pudding, no jarred stuff here.

In any case, I have selected two desserts for this coming Thanksgiving. When I was a kid, my mom use to make Rice Pudding for the holidays for my brother. Back then, I wasn't a fan (cooked raisins, Yuck!) but I love the stuff now. Though I am still not a fan of cooked raisins, my husband and son love them. I think that this recipe for Rice Pudding by The Pioneer Woman would be a great one since it is so close to how my mom made it. Note: My son is only 3, so I think I will skip the Bourbon and use vanilla extract with warm water to plump up the raisins and add to their flavor.  I may just divide the batch and make a small batch without raisins for myself and introduce this treat to the twins. I'll let you know how my first sample batch comes out but looks simple enough.

The second, is an easy one that I have already made. I took a box of Hodgins Mills Gingerbread mix,  and a can of Trader Joe's All Natural Pumpkin Puree. Mixed it together. Added Chocolate chips. Poured it into a rectangle baking pan. Topped with some more chocolate chips. Placed in oven for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Note: You want to coat your pan with butter and flour. You can top with ice cream, warm chocolate, whipped cream or all of the above if you aren't concerned about your waist line. My sister and son sampled it and they liked it so it's ago. You could also use a box of Duncan Hines Spice Cake and just add can of Pumpkin Puree. One less ingredient to add but probably would contain more preservatives from this type of Spice Cake mix. It's the holidays though, so enjoy it however you like.

My hope is that you all can get through the holidays as easy as I'm planning to. Best laid plans of course so we shall see how it goes. Now I just have to start jotting down all the many things I am thankful for. Happy planning.

Be sure to comment, Like, Share and Subscribe. Thanks so much for coming by.

Until next time, Be Blessed, Be Healthy and Be Beautiful!

Falling into my life

Well what can I say but that it's a challenge getting things typed up and out into the world when you have kids and up until now I had no computer. Mine met its maker a few months back and I had been using my smart phone. However, my smart phone has little to no memory left with all the apps so I am limited. I'm going to possibly over share in a bit so bare with.

Here is the latest on...

My skin regimen for the season.

Since Fall has arrived, I have given myself two skin (chemical) peels to remove minor hyper pigmentation from this summer and prior. I am working on a small spot that has a few dark marks from sun exposure. I am using gentle peels because I am in no rush to remove and I want to avoid  damaging my skin. Slow and steady since it is minor. I have no obvious wrinkles to speak of so I am good on that front for now. The peels are an added bonus. Preventative when it comes to the wrinkles.

My skin is dry and itchy at the moment, so I have been using aloe to calm my skin through out the day.  PCA Moisturizer with SPF25 to protect from sun. Hydrate and moisturize is all I can say in regards to keeping wrinkles at bay. When it comes to wrinkles, genetics plays a part so I am glad I take after my mom in that sense, she looks younger then she is. So if you look at your parents you know what to expect. If you don't have good genes and a poor skin regimen, you can only make it worse or speed up the aging process. So I recommend a strong skin regimen at any age but especially starting in your late 20's, early 30's.

Now on a personal note,...

My family life is great. The kids are all healthy thank goodness and my husband is with us once again. I am truly blessed when it comes to my family. We are stronger for what we have been through as a couple and as parents.

My eldest son is super happy to have his daddy home and the twins are adjusting as if he was never out of their lives. Seeing them all light up when they see their dad is an awesome feeling. I know that I could have had a different life, a life with out kids and I would have been okay. But having fought to have all three was well worth it. My heart is full on a daily basis. For that I am so grateful and blessed.

My youngest son had his surgery and came out just fine. He was medicated for the first few days and then he was back to his usual self. A scary experience when you are sitting waiting for an outcome of surgery. My sister was with me as she always is. She has been by their side from the moment they entered the world and always comes to their aide whenever we need her. She rocks!(M if your reading this, "I'm boasting about you but thats because you really do rock. Love you.")

The twins celebrated their first birthdays with family and friends. Little E started walking at ten and a half months and Little El started walking just days before their First birthday. So it was great to see them walking about at their little party. It was nice to be surrounded by people that love them and were so willing to come from a far to be with them. We have the best people in our lives. Celebrating them was a big deal because two years ago I was told having them wasn't even possible. Not at all possible and here they are.

Those that know me well know I struggled over not having anymore kids. Everyone said "at least you have the one", "Consider yourself lucky and move on" and so on. I was grateful for all those reasons, but I wanted my son to have a sibling. To have someone to grow up with, to love and be loved by after I am long gone from this earth. I didn't want to take no for an answer. Another one of my personal characteristics. And to end up having two, well, that was the biggest gift from above. I'm glad that I didn't let the diagnosis of P.O.I. stop me from seeing that goal come to be. Had I, we wouldn't have them. And they are the definition of joy.

So overall, I am in a good place with my family. Another added blessing is that the people that matter in my life are apart of it on a regular. Those that choose to be anyway.


NOTE: This was supposed to have been posted three months ago but for some reason, it didn't.


June 2014

Having three kids under three has definitely made life a challenge. I absolutely love them and wouldn't change a thing about them. However, I would love 20 minutes to myself from time to time. I mean, I can't even go to the bathroom without interruptions. This is the first time I get a chance to write in a while and that's because I'm at the doctors waiting to be seen while kids are at home with my folks. Since they take up 90% of my day and 100% of my life right now, I thought I'd share some of my life with you.

I'm dealing with one of the twins needing surgery tomorrow. It's crazy but my "sapito" (Little frog) has a hernia. If someone told me that motherhood meant that I might have to one day push my kids intestines back in through his testicles, I would say not me. Yet, here I am checking him constantly and adjusting him when needed. I feel terrible for him because it looks painful. At-least, uncomfortable. He loves to jump. I mean all the time and he doesn't walk, he lunges forward. So I am concerned how the recovery time will go for a little boy that doesn't sit still. Guess we shall see.

The other two are fine thank God. Growing fast, to fast. My oldest is just so smart and testing his waters every possible moment. That's what everyone says "he's testing his waters." I think he's just testing me. I can't be doing all bad because he thinks I'm the best. Which is awesome to hear from him because I often think I could be doing better. Then he goes and tells me he loves me or "your the best mama" which melts my heart. I know I'm bound to screw them up some how but I am glad I haven't as of yet. Or at least, it doesn't seem I have to him and that's fine for now.

My little girl is taking her first steps. She's very careful when she let's go and I see her thinking her first steps through. Very cool! She is almost always smiling and has such a strong personality already. Can't wait to see as it develops more. She's tough and I love that. I think all women should be, especially in the world she is growing up in today. A woman needs to stand up on her own two feet and I can see already that she has that spirit in her.

Guess I am just a proud gushing mom. Forgive me for that but it's the first time I share so much with you all. I just love them so and sometimes you really do just want to tell the world.

In any case, I hope that your lives are going well and that you are sticking to healthy life choices. Choosing to be happy each day and working on the things that need improving be it personally or physically. Whatever leads you to personal peace and happiness.

As always, Be Blessed, Be Healthy and Be Beautiful!