Share your Holiday Disasters AND get unplugged!

Hi everyone! Today I am asking everyone to share about their "Holiday Disasters" on my Facebook Page. I hope I get good stories, things we can now all laugh about and also to be encouraged! As you know I've been sharing tips and ideas to make the Thanksgiving Dinner an enjoyable event, not only for the guests but for the host/hostess as well! This doesn't have to be something you just want to "get it over with" but a special time to show your loved ones how special they are... not through perfection, but through YOUR best (not a Magazine's Best), through your smile (not faked, but a relaxed, sincere one), through your ability to have fellowship with them.

 Another tip I am going to share... and ... forgive me if it seems "too much" but... let's make a deal... do not discard it immediately, bare with me...

ehem... Here I go

"Turn off the TV and... avoid the cell phone"

 And this I say with my deepest, sincerest love and respect... but... why do we have to stare at a screen all the time? You can watch that show (or football game) maybe online, maybe later (DVR), you can send that text some other time... But we never have the certainty we will all have another Thanksgiving together... And I don't mean this to be a gloomy post... but I just want to encourage, all of us, to treasure each moment when you get to spend time with the family and, if you have little ones, it's a great opportunity to teach them what's really valuable! We can turn our "screens" off for PEOPLE, people are important! Family is important! If the Turkey is dry, if the cookies are flat, if the Pumpkin pie is still jiggly and the pecans burnt... that doesn't matter... everything will end up in the toilet! (sorry about the expression) but it's true! Laugh about it! It's great to have a perfect meal! But life wouldn't be as enjoyable if everything was perfect! We wouldn't have funny stories to share if nothing went wrong once in a while! Take a picture of your burnt cookies, your mismatched napkins, your chipped gravy boat... and laugh about it! Turn it into a story to talk about after dinner!

My first time Baking Christmas Cookies... I didn't add peanut butter to Peanut butter cookies - LOL!

Don't let all the guys go watch football while all the girls talk at the table about what could've gone better ... it's a great opportunity for everyone to visit! Make a Thanksgiving Tree or just have everyone write in a piece of paper what they're thankful for this year so then you can all read about it later, turn it into a game by mixing the "thankful notes" and trying to guess who wrote what!

This is such a great opportunity to create more moments to be thankful for!

I got good hugs this Thanksgiving. I don't think those watching the football game have as many good memories as I do!

So... now... share... what are your biggest "Holiday Disasters" ... anything we can now laugh about?


© Paloma K.

Fall is Here! - School Memories

 Hello friends... Fall has arrived to "The Coffee Shop" I will be working on sharing with you some delicious fall recipes, Thanksgiving ideas (including my whole menu) and everything "Autumn Related" I love fall and I embrace it!... as you can see I started with my blog... and added some fall leaves to the background... I hope you like it!

Now... I will share with you a School Memory... There's a "Fall Challenge" starting today on The SITS Girls and I am taking it, at least for today... we'll see what the rest of the days are like and see if I can combine it with my already planned posts for the season!

Today we are supposed to write some memory of our school years... I will post something about my childhood... although it's been a while ago I still have some fond memories that seem very fresh... Let's see...

I am the first one from left to right... I wasn't the oldest in the picture btw...  I was about 6 there, the rest are some cousins, my sister is the 4th. one from left to right. :)

I started elementary school in the city where I was born, in Mexico, Monterrey, N.L. to be more specific (you have to google images of that city to get a better idea how gorgeous it is!) then we moved to Matamoros, Tamps., a border city (don't google it, please! LOL!) not so gorgeous but still... I have great memories... my sister and I used to go together to elementary school, I am 3 yrs. older than her but I was 4 grades ahead because I started school 1 year earlier than I was supposed to (smart girl! LOL!) anyway... There was this time when we were particularly late, way later than our usual, so my little sister was following me to my classroom instead of going to hers, I asked her why and she said: "Look, it's soo early there's nobody here yet" until she realized there was nobody because everyone was actually in their classroom! That's actually an embarrassing memory! LOL! but yes, we used to be late quite often! My parents are sooo great but my mom was always running to get to work, always kissing us too! So... we were probably late for so many kisses! Better kissed and late than not kissed and early! Am I right?  In school I loved the street vendors that gathered at the gates and by the walls around school during recess and when it was time to go home! I always bought stuff with hot pepper in it... I don't know if there's any kid in Mexico that is not into that stuff! Tamarind with chili powder, mango or watermelon flavored hard candy all covered in chili powder as well, "bolis and chamoys" oh such great stuff that could give anybody an ulcer! I remember holding hands with my bffs during the whole recess or sitting all on the floor in a circle talking about little girls stuff,  I also loved my teachers, they were very encouraging (most of them), I always felt like I was "the most important" kid in school! LOL! very weird... I guess every kid should feel like that! I did have some bad experiences, some kids would pick on me just because I was so tall (I am tall for a Mexican but not really in the USA) I am 5' 7" but I guess I reached that height pretty early... So.. I got picked on... and I was always a gentle giant so... I couldn't even defend myself... my dad had "bodyguards" for me in school though... rougher looking kids that my dad would "hire" to protect his princess... he would "pay them" with candy and treats from those same street vendors... My best memories from school I guess involve my dad... always there for me when the bell rang... I guess that's what made me feel so important too! Looking at his face look for me in the crowd of children made me feel like the luckiest girl ever... -sigh-

How about you? Do you have any good, funny, interesting, remarkable or even scary school memories to share? :) I'd love to hear all about it!

© Paloma K.

Joyous innocence!

Look at my girls! Jumping around without any worry in the world! Isn't it sad to know... that one day... images like this one will be even blurrier in my mind? I always thought I'd always remember my little ones faces! When my oldest one (almost 4 now) was just born I thought her little face would always be with me, the expressions she made, the way she smiled... and now... only 4 years later I can hardly remember about it... and when I look at pictures of my girls only 1 year ago... I can't believe how much they've changed! How did that happen? When did I miss such a huge transformation? When did they start saying that word right? I hope I never forget it all! I hope I always remember how now my oldest says "Mommy! You are the best mommy in the whole live world" (lol) or how my little one loves kissing me and making eyes like she is angry and then burst in laughter, Oh! I am thankful for cameras that can capture such special joyful moments... their innocent giggles! I need to start some journal for the things they say! It's amazing what comes out of their mouth! it's so wonderful to see their personalities so different and at the same time so similar! they are both happy, healthy girls that want to discover the world, learn from everything around them!
My oldest one is more intuitive and cautious and my little one is just a "go getter" and almost a "dare devil" they love each other dearly and enjoy playing together and even when they fight they usually end up hugging each other! I hope  I never entirely forget... their phrases, the looks in their eyes when they discovered something new! Like yesterday that we went to the store... I can only imagine what was going through my girls heads when they saw piles of crabs piled on top of each other on ice looking almost like they were alive! I just explained... "they are crabs"... or last night when someone knocked really loud at our door (I didn't know UPS delivered up to 10 p.m.) and woke my oldest one up and she couldn't go back to sleep... I realized that was something very uncommon had happened for her... very out of our normal, peaceful routine... so I called her by me and guessing what she was thinking I hugged her and whispered to her ear: "Hijita (my little daughter - In Spanish -) I just want to let you know that there are no monsters, that we are safe, the man who came was just delivering a package for mommy and daddy and he is now in his house, daddy and mommy are ok and we are here to protect you and your sister, God takes care of all of us. You are a very special, wonderful, smart little girl and I am very proud of you! I love you very much! There is nothing to be afraid of... good night, now go to sleep" she looked at me relieved and surprised probably for how I knew what she was thinking! (Now I know how my mom always knew too!), she hugged me again, kissed me and went back to bed and fell asleep right away!

oh... these moments.. these moments I wish I could just grab in my hands, hold them tightly and put them somewhere safe where time will not make them all a blur!

Thank God we have cameras...  Thank God even when we might not remember every detail it's moments like this that form our family!

Linking up with

and her "best moment so far" link-up party! :) Thanx for inviting me to participate Jamie!

© Paloma K.