Part II: Happy New Year. A Year in Review

In high school, a couple of my closest friends made up a club and called ourselves Desperado Beta Kappa. It was an inside joke in that we were creating a "secret" social club because we couldn't have been less socially active at the time. But, as all ironic things go, our secret club soon became the topic of all conversation and we had girls begging us to join. I think that this social change was best described to me in my ten year high school reunion by one of my friends who really was one of the cool kids. "You were pretty cool for a nerd." I still laugh at this because the truth is I put myself out every day to be nice to everyone and thus, was friends with everyone and melted into every click until I finally created my own. 

To my high school buddies who see this picture, you already know what I did today. For the rest of you I will explain. As long as I could remember a few of us girls would head out for a great New Years Eve but we would always make a stop at the bay and drop in our lists. In these lists we would list the things we wished for in the New Year. Some of them were resolutions but most of the things on my list were simply my aspirations. Even if they were impossible to imagine,I would write down the secrets of my heart. What I realized is that by physically launching my thoughts out into the universe I could see the possible in the impossibility. Even if it was in my subconscious. We called it "brujerias" or witchcraft but it was just silly girls with a tradition. 

This year I've decided to relaunch my brujeria but I realize that now my list is more about getting rid of things than wishing for more things. Sure I still have some wild ideas in there but now that I'm older I realize it just takes planning on my part more than wishing. And the list is empty of regrets but full of fond memories I hope to repeat soon. Lastly, my list longs for me to see my friends soon. I hope to have this be the first wish that comes true. 

What's on your list for the coming year? I hope they all come true.



Here are just a few of my cherished memories this holiday season.

1st smile

great grandma Tillie

Uncle Jerry

1st day back from hospital

grandma made new skirts

Uncle John visited

Natalie made stocking with Sylvia and Mike made stocking stuffer

Part I : Happy New Year

          Today was just another day at the office. This cutie had woken us up at the usual hour of too damn early but who could stay mad at her? As I finished changing the second pee-pee diaper I looked over to find these two snuggled up close and it just gave me pause of how different my life has been from where I thought I would be in my twenties. With that said, I would like to talk to the twenty year old me and let her know a few things.

     First, and this will be hard to swallow. Your mom WAS right. Those hoop earrings made you look like a cheap whore and the fact that your mom telling you this only made you where them more leads me to my next point. 

     Stop worrying so much what other people think of you and start worrying about why your not listening to what you think of you. Because that tiny voice you are so quick to ignore WAS right. (Righter than even your mother was about the earrings.)

     I'm still impressed with all the things you were able to accomplish by your twenties. You were such a driven woman that my only wish was that you would have put down your check list of "things to accomplish" long enough to really have savored the moments when they happened. 

     You and your friends lived a charmed life in your twenties. You could always be assured that your band of three would be in with the in crowd. But know this, that the night you were rubbing elbows with Queen Latifah and P. Diddy at the Delano will be rendered insignificant when you spend your first night with your newborn child in your hands or have a dance party with your ten year old in your pajamas. While partying with Jimmy Johnson and the Dallas Cowboys before the Superbowl was fun, it will be no match to the celebration of your kid's cowboy themed birthday party. (Cowboy costumes and horse rides included of course.)

    While in your twenties you spent most of your time finding different ways to be out and about soaking in life as if it were going to end tomorrow.A weekend at home would be near catastrophic. In your forties, you will dream of staying home in your pajamas all day and if your lucky, you will have nothing on the calendar to do. Know that one of your best memories with your future husband is when you put the TV in the bedroom and ordered take out for every meal while you had a movie marathon. Crazy but true fact.
     
     If your forty year old self would be able to go back into her twenties she would buy a million mirrors and put them up in the house and walk around naked because the twenty year old me (with all her stupid body issues) had a smoking bod. So stop worrying about stupid stuff. Know that in your forties, you are comfortable enough in your skin to walk around naked in the streets if need be because you know who you are....and have a good lawyer to get you out of jail for indecent exposure. And since we are on the naked topics: DO go back to the lady that scrubbed your boobs down till they glowed in the dark. DON'T go back to the blind masseuse...he wasn't blind. 

    Nothing you do now will match the joy that will come later in life when you get married and have children. You actually believing that you are not the marrying kind or mother material may have been one of your stupidest thoughts yet. You will not be a famous physician but you will be a good one. And even though you worked so hard for the privilege of people calling you doctor all you will care about is that you have little ones that call you mom.


     Your pet peeve of having guys who are clearly a 5 hitting on you will be something fun to look back on. The true crime and new pet peeve will be when your son ( a solid 9) leaves the house without deodorant, brushing his teeth and/or hair, making him turn into a low 3. Why is this so hard to remember? 

     Your trips to Europe will be replaced with trips to Disney World and the only crepes you will eat for a long time will come from France in Epcot. The horror comes in the fact that you seem to be okay with this. 

     You will not end up in a mansion on Miami Beach jet setting the globe. You will end up happy instead. I don't want to spoil it for you but there is a good looking guy in there somewhere. 

    And speaking of guys, you WERE smarter, better, funnier and all around more awesome than any man you ever dated and they didn't deserve you. You will come to this epiphany five minutes after you meet your future husband who you realize is smarter, better, funnier and all around more awesome than you will ever be and hope he will marry you before he figures this all out. 

     Your life now, as seen through your twenty year old eyes may seem boring and soul sucking at times but trust me, to get here you will have embarked on such a crazy roller coaster of life lessons that will have taught you just what refiner's fire means that you will soon be able to see this with new eyes as the blissful nirvana that you had always dreamed of. My only wish is that I can live in the now long enough to appreciate it. 
     

     

Welcome Dominic "Nico" Hesh Harris

He came into the world November 25, 2013 weighing 9 pounds 2 ounces and completed this family like only a sweet, chubby, cherub could. 

Halloween 2013

Put another holiday under this family's belt. We survived Halloween. That is I survived finding or making eight outfits, decorating the house, school party preparation, a pre-Halloween party and did it all without giving birth. Enough words- here are some shots.

First, you decorate the house a bit.

Some Harry Potter themed books

A girlie pumpkin by Eva

Modge podge some wicked letters

Steve

I love mantles.

A Greek goddess

Baby didn't want to feel left out. -Housewife of Frankenstein

Frankenstein in his Psycho Bunny casual look

Two princesses and their prince frog

"Oh Carlos!" Gigi said.

Everybody wants to kiss the frog....who could blame them

Loving up brother

"Mom, does this make me look mysterious" -Zombie killer Golden

Mike dresses for work on Halloween. He is always my superhero.

These two were in heaven dressed in their "princess and corona"

"Did I do my make up okay, mom?"......Too good Eva.