Dancing with a monkey...

 



Spring is here! To my family this means: planting flowers, cleaning (my favorite—not so much for my two boys…), rain, picnics, and DANCING! Yes, folks I said dancing. One of our favorite activities is going to our backyard, lighting some festive lanterns, and having a mini dance party (of course there is also turkey burgers on the grill and loads of snacks... we are foodies after all.)

Children don’t care if they are getting the steps right (well... most don’t), they just want to move! My boys and I enjoy spending time together dancing to just about anything. Not only is dance a good way to get some exercise in but it is also a fantastic way to cut loose, release stress from school/homework/chores, as well as spend some quality time with your loved ones. Which brings me to dancing with our favorite monkey: Curious George!

Do your little ones love Curious George like my kids do? Do they have some crazy moves? Well, I am happy to announce that Curious George is having his very first DANCE Contest in celebration of how much the arts influence our little ones! (Can you believe that Curious George is on its sixth season on PBS KIDS®? Yikes... I am feelings a little old here...)

You can enter a video of your child/ren dancing to the Curious George theme song for a chance to be featured on a Curious George DVD…Or maybe even win a visit from George himself!

Please note (parent and guardians) that you only have until April 2, 2012 to send in videos of your child/ren (under the age of eight) to CuriousGeorgeDanceContest.com. The public will then get to vote for a winner between April 16^th - April 30^th. Good luck and get dancing everybody – you can Spring Clean later :)!

~
Bere

This post was sponsored in collaboration with Latina Bloggers Connect and WGBH.

Legal Disclosure: All images used in this post are CG (R) & (C) 2012 Universal Studios and/or HMH. All Rights Reserved. FOR PROMOTIONAL USE ONLY.

Budding flowers...

Many of you may not know but I had a birthday this month. Yes, I can actually admit my age (it is for a good cause I believe), I have turned 30! This has been an incredibly emotional year for me for a variety of reasons: New Job (which I love), New position within an organization that I consider like a family, possibly going back to school soon, the list goes on (there are a couple of personal ones that I feel deserve their own post)....

Reflections: A while ago I took the picture above at night at my son's school. I started to think about the many times that I didn't allow myself to "bloom" because I was too scared of rejection, anxious about regretting decisions later, and so on. HOWEVER, what has struck me the most is that something internal happened to me when I turned the big 3 0 ... I stopped caring. I no longer care about what others think of me, why? Well, I have finally realized that I have pushed on through some pretty crazy times... I am pretty doggone strong and resilient and I don't need the approval of any person that seeks to put me down or criticize me.

Lessons: I am very grateful  there were MANY people that have been like guardian angels, at the right place and the right time to help me through some really rough spots. I have full faith in that if you stay ready, come prepared, and never treat people in a malicious manner, you will come out okay.This year, and for the years to come, I am excited about: taking chances, believing in myself, taking time to "smell the roses", and not allowing negative comments derail me from my goals.

What have you learned as you have gotten older/wiser?

~
Bere

Remedios Caseros

Two weeks ago I was feeling so sick, however, as many of you know; I am a workaholic. I was driving home with bluish lips, wheezing, and a fever after a full week of work. Let me tell you by the next day... I called my Mami! She advised the usual: lots of rest, Vaporub (who hasn't used this to cure everything from a cold, allergies, burns, cuts ... etc...?), and chicken soup. Dragging myself out of bed and debating whether to give in to Nyquil and other meds … I decided to go with what I grew up with. 

By the following day I was wishing that I had not been stubborn about seeing a doctor because my fever had risen to 105 and I was so dizzy I couldn’t function. I found out I had acute pneumonia and was given emergency antibiotic shots and fluids. There are so many occasion where I am a BIG advocate of holistic health and going with our Remedios Caseros however, I learned a valuable lesson that weekend: you have to go to the doctor if your fever persists because your body is fighting an infection that your remedios may not combat as quickly as your body needs.

I still recommend teas, vitamins (especially Vitamin C and Zinc), Echinacea, chicken soup, and lots of water. I also would advise anyone (especially with little ones) to see a doctor when your symptoms have persisted past a couple of days because even though medicine isn’t what we grew up with (well  ... most of us anyway...). Medicine has come so far in being non-invasive and most doctors are very wary of giving little ones antibiotics.

It is second nature for us to “tough it out”, but as I learned these past couple of weeks, it can really hurt your body. There is no reason why you can’t do your holistic options as well as the headache meds, antibiotics, and other medicine that will make sure you are at least comfortable.

As Latinos we have tons of remedios handed to us from our families and friends but it is important to take advantage of the abundance of doctors and medicines that will help us get better quicker (and less contagious faster). What are some of your favorite home remedies? (Mine is chamomile tea for headaches  )

The Shelter Pet Project

“A person is the best thing to happen to a shelter pet. Be that person. Adopt.”

I have a confession: I found my soul mate last year. My doggy soul mate, my best friend, Snow Biscuit (yes, the boys named her). She was two and half when we got her.  I was skeptical because everyone (including us) wanted a cute puppy, one that we could bond with from the very beginning. BOY were we wrong! She has been the best addition, not only to my family unit, but to my mom as well (actually she has "custody" of her during the week, mostly). She came fully potty trained, vaccinated, and already used to being left home alone for most of the day. 

To say that she is amazing is an understatement. I initially accepted adopting her because the boys wanted a pet, she wouldn’t need any immediate medical visits, and she was free. However, now she is priceless. From the moment she came in our home she has taught us all something. She taught me that the love of a dog is the perfect cure to a bad day; when I get home from work she’s there with her tail going a mile a minute, no recrimination to being left for over 8 hours alone, no whining for not having a pricey chew toy. She taught the boys how to care for a little being that relies on them; they carry her around like a treasure and constantly tell her things that they wouldn’t tell anyone else. She has taught my mom how to walk for the fun of it and that she could have a pet just because it loved her, not for the kids. 

My mom bonded with her so much that we “share” Snow Biscuit. HOWEVER, I fully plan on adopting again. I tried to adopt a puppy about 4 months ago, it did not go well. I had no clue how much work went into potty training a puppy and I had to give her back to the family that gave him to us.

Snow Biscuit is one of the reasons why I am so excited to tell you about this amazing project: “The Shelter Pet Project  is a public service campaign from The Ad Council, The Humane Society and Maddie's Fund, and is aimed at increasing the number of pets that get adopted from shelters and rescue groups.”  I would HIGHLY recommend adopting a pet from a shelter, especially if you are a family with children. Most rescue dogs don’t come with too many surprises since you are able to ask upfront: “Are they good with children?” “Are they used to be being left alone?”

When we are ready for our next addition we are definitely going to The Shelter Pet Project  website because you can input your Zip code and start browsing pictures of local pets that are ready for a home (the boys are already getting excited… but we have to wait until maybe the summer when we can spend more time bonding with our new member of the family). 

Please connect with The Shelter Pet Project  on their other websites:

Youtube
Twitter
Facebook

I was selected for this campaign by Latina Bloggers Connect. All opinions are my own.

Storms

I have missed writing to you .. and I can't promise that I will not neglect you in the future.. let me explain why. I HAVE TWO NEW JOBS!! I had to give up so much three years ago when I packed up my boys, leaving a job and financial semi-stability in Florida. I drove cross-country back to LA to have a second operation and I was unsure of the outcome of that, scared, exhausted, and desperate for a miracle.

My surgery and recovery were successful but I had no job, was living with my mom, and feeling lost. All I could think about was: storms. Let me explain; one day when I was living in North Dakota it was raining so hard we had to pull over because you couldn't even see an inch in front of you. The rain subsided in about five minutes but those five minutes felt like five hours. It was a tiny car, I had a crying 9 month old, and I was in the middle of nowhere. When it was over I had this thought, "Isn't this like life.. sometimes it storms so hard that you can't even see how you are going to go on (that one inch ahead of you blurs) and then in the next moment, the sun is shining and there is even a beautiful rainbow."

I thought about those moments today because I can feel that I am where I am supposed to be (for now). Both jobs are doing what I love helping people and social media. What makes it even more amazing is that on my last day, yesterday, at my previous job they announced that in two weeks they would be laying off about 60 employees. I felt blessed, humbled, and ready for more challenges because I had angels looking out for me -- making sure I got my rainbows and miracles. 

I can attest that if you hold out in your storm, you will come out okay. However, prepare yourself, go back to school if you can, involve yourself in internships, and get out there -- do not isolate yourself. Be encouraged, be good to others (Karma is real and she has a long memory), and never forget your dreams --- let them be your incentives to push you through your storm.


P.S. For any job-seekers-- here is a blog post I did for an amazing company that may interest you: iHispano

LATISM'11 --- Letra de Amor

I have had an amazing seven or so days, but the highlight has to be the two days that I spent in Chicago for the LATISM'11 conference. Yes, it was freezing but it is STILL one of my favorite cities. I didn't really get to take a lot of pictures because I worked as volunteer for this event, however, I can honestly say that it was worth everything to be able to go. The workshops were amazing, the highlight for me was the Education TownHall with representatives from the White House asking us questions and then having us answer them in both large and small group sessions.

There will be other blog posts about some of the companies that were in attendance because they had some truly incredible things to convey to us, however, I want to talk about one component that set this conference apart from the other conferences that I have attended.

For those of you that are not familiar with LATISM one of the things that we do is we have a weekly tweetup every Thursday. We have covered issues such as education, using social media for social change, and many others. We talk to one another, answer questions, and put our views out there for the world to acknowledge. In doing so we have become a community, a family, and we really do love each other very much. Over the weeks, we have gotten to know each other because if you end your tweet with the #LATISM hashtag believe me someone is there to listen.

Often you would hear the words, "...I follow you on Twitter.." or "..I was hoping you would be here hermano/a". It may sound cheesy but there was a lot of love in the air in Navy Pier. Sure, we love to debate over politics, social views, and so on .. but at the end of the day .. we have formed a family that supports one another and tries to lift each other up.

I was so proud to see my fellow LATISM brothers and sisters because they truly inspire me each and everyday to be better and to dream bigger. There were so many people there that said or did something that touched my heart and I will take the memories of this trip with me and look forward to more in HOUSTON for LATISM 2012!

Día de Los Muertos at the Autry Museum

It is no secret that I love museums; it is also no secret that I have passed this love on to my children. They enjoy seeing how artists express their creativity and passion through acting, singing, art, and dancing. What I have come to enjoy is seeing their faces light up when seeing something new.

                                                                                     

This weekend, thanks to LatinaBloggersConnect, we got a chance to go to The Autry Museum and check out the artisans, shrines, dancers, face-painting, and awesome musical artists (they weren’t just singers.. these were some breathtaking performers!). As you can see by the pictures below, the boys had a blast and I was truly inspired by the elder that told Aztec stories with an accompaniment of instruments. 

I have to say that this was my first time at this museum (I know.. insert *gasp* here), I am not sure if it is because of its location (it is right next to the Los Angeles Zoo and Griffith Park) or because I have always been fascinated by the LACMA, Getty, and Norton Simon that I have neglected the other museums, however, this must be rectified and soon!! 

This museum had loads of interesting finds like a room that children can play in a kitchen or pretend they are selling food in a makeshift restaurant (cash register and everything). The boys specifically loved this (it was right up there with getting there face painted). 

The Autry will be having “Las Posadas” in December *excited* ... the boys and I are definitely going, join us!

Disclosure: AdventuresofThree received complimentary entrance,however, this is not a sponsored post.