MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. I had a really great one and wanted to share pictures!

Christmas Eve at my house:

Christmas day at my brother's house:

The little ones waiting to open gifts!

Total chaos!

Can you tell we got new lipstick for Christmas?

Maddie appeared to have run out of batteries!!! But it was only a facade!! She was up two minutes later!

Nothing like a pool party on Christmas day!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

IT JUST DOES NOT GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS!

Yesterday was my birthday and my daughter Kristina's birthday. I turned 51 (UGGGHHH) and she turned 29. We had burgers and dogs at the house with the kids and grand babes. It just does not get any better than this.

My beautiful grand babies helping me blow the candles!

My husband of 16 years who I love very much.

My beautiful daughter who was my 22nd birthday present and who is my best friend.

Tell me I could not die happy right now? I carry these children and I feel INVINCIBLE. They are my life.

My "babies". Charlie, Me, Kristina, Pipo and Leonor. They are all adults now and most of them have been a challenge to say the least, but they are what makes my heart beat.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! May you be surrounded by people you love and who love you.

MY WORD FOR THE YEAR!

Okay, I have been thinking long and hard about this. My word for 2011 was BREATH. It has worked well for me.

For 2012 my word will be FEARLESS. Yes, Fearless. I know people think I already am but this is my word for 2012 - to face the year FEARLESS - totally and completely fearless.

THE SECRETARY: Kathy's new project!

You have GOT to see this!! It's absolutely wonderful! I know what I am going to be doing during the holidays!!



Kathy tells me her tutorial for this project will be available either tonight or early tomorrow. She is teaching the class on her UStream channel tomorrow at 2:00 pm. This class will be my birthday gift to myself tomorrow!!!

WHAT MATTERS IS THE DASH

A reminder for the coming New Year.

You know how we go to the cementery and we always look at the dash? You know what I mean 1925-2006 e.g. We say, oh, he/she led a long life. That's good. 2005-2007... OMG! A baby!!! How sad.

After the death of my uncle from cancer a few years back, I thought about that. He was only 56. So wonderful and SO full of life. He died in few months of being diagnosed. Not much time for anything. Yet he threw HIMSELF a final birthday party that August and invited our entire family to be there. His way of saying goodbye in a "happy" atmosphere. He died way too young and yet he had lived a lifetime within the dash that separated his year of birth from his year of death.

He had come from Cuba in 1980 - had built a very successful business; had a life partner of 25 years who he had a wonderful relationship with; had traveled the entire world (literally) in 20 years!!! He was my love and my hero. So instead of focusing on the year he was born and the year he died which is engraved on his tombstone, I decided to focus on the DASH!!! Those years in between when he lived such a full and wonderful life!!!

We will all have this inscription on our tombstones - mine will read 1960- _____. And no matter what that _____ turns out to be, I want the dash to count. I want those years in between to be remembered by my children, grand children and my family. I want my life to matter.

So this coming year - this 1st day of January - make a commitment to yourself that what matters is the DASH and do something wonderful with it!

She loves to dance !

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Kaitlynn Ballet RecitL

Too long and boring at times but she is sooooooo excited!!




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