Tuesday, January 31, 2012

A few ways I can help someone else this year.






Tax season is here and recently I received a receipt for money I have donated to a particular charity in 2011. As it turns out I made donations that totaled about $350 rounded up. I know that I have given to multiple charities and I have made a lot of donations to the Salvation Army for which I did not ask for a receipt, but somehow, $350 seemed like a small number even if it was less than 12 months since I started donating monthly. I want to be able to donate in the thousands. Last year I was not able to donate as much as I wanted, so this year I want to be able to give more. Not only money wise, I also want to help people through my Blog.

Family is very important to me, and since tomorrow starts a new year for Cocoons2Butterflies I want to dedicate the month of February to Marriage and Family Relationships. It is the month of Love, and the month of hearts, not only for Valentines Day but because it is the American Heart Association's Heart Month and it's also the perfect month for the Go Red campaign.

I am still going to be writing my daily Blog Dare Prompts but will add an additional Post several times a week to include the topic of Family, Marriage, and Heart Health.

My goal is to help people by giving helpful information about how to keep your marriage strong, how to have good relationships with your families and how to take good care of your heart.

What are a few ways that you feel you can help someone this year?

Monday, January 30, 2012

Make your own Valentine's Day Cards - Freebie Included!

Valentine's Day is coming soon, and I just made this cool Valentine's Day card with my family's picture.
I made this card using one of the MyMemories Suite Designer Templates, they are so easy to use and so much fun, and in Honor of Valentine's Day  I want to give you guys another Freebie Designer Pack from the makers of MyMemory Suite Scrap-booking Software, to make cute personalized Valentine's Day Cards, for your kids, or for the family and friends, and that's not all! You can also get a free tutorial on how to make these cards using the Free Designer Pack and the MyMemories Suite Software.

These is the Free Designer Pack that I used to create my Valentine's Day Cards, just click on the image to Download.



And if you would like to see the Free Tutorial on how to use the MyMemories Suite to create these cards then click HERE

And I am going to be implementing Freebie Monday and I will be giving away different templates every week. So keep coming back for more free templates that you can use and create your own photo albums to post online or print and share.

Remember that in order to enjoy these Freebies, you do not need to have the MyMemories Suite Software, they are .png files that can be used with other software.

For a Chance to Win the Software Completely Free, enter our Giveaway contest!

But if you are interested in getting the software for yourself you can use the following $10 discount code  STMMMS85137

What I want for my birthday.


My birthday is in March 30, and this Blog's birthday is actually on Wednesday February 1, 2012! I'm so excited and can't believe that this Blog has grown so much in only a year! I have been so blessed!

What I want for my Blog's birthday is more comments from more people, my mom is my most faithful reader and I am so proud about that, but I wish that more people would read me and communicate with me. I want to build some friendships, get to know people, be influential, help more, do more.

I know that through Voiceboks I have made some lasting friendships and we have a nice relationship, and I want to have something similar going on in here.

I know this takes effort on my part, be friendly first so others come back and be friendly too.

And for my own birthday in March I want to have a nice dinner at a restaurant with my family and friends, and just have a nice time. I'm thinking about going to Shiro Japan! We all love it!

What do you want for your birthday?

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Lunar New Year Parade in Chinatown NY










I'm afraid of...


Just looking at this image above these words make me cringe. I am afraid of spiders. I can't stand them, and I am also afraid of other poisonous insects like Scorpions, and Centipedes, and some non poisonous like Stink Bugs, and Beetles, not all kinds of beetles, but the ones that are black and sometimes have pincers like this:






They totally creep me out, I can't even stand to look at these pictures. I'm also afraid of roaches and many other bugs that have a threatening appearance or some threatening quality (like the stink bug)

I used to be afraid of many other things, I would worry and go over and over in my head about all the things that could go wrong in my life, but now I can't believe I even did that. I have come to realize that worrying about stuff only attracts bad things to your life as giving your energy to something you are worried about makes it more real. Worrying does not change things, it is better that when you worry about something you take a good look at yourself and think about what would make the situation better, or what would be a better outcome, and concentrate on that and it will attract a better outcome to things.

But regarding bugs, I don't normally think about them or have close encounters with them anymore. I just thought really hard trying to find something I'm afraid of and I think bugs make the top of the list now.

What are you afraid of? Are you afraid of bugs as I do or do you get scared of other things instead?

Saturday, January 28, 2012

I write for...


What do I write for, or better yet, why do I write?
I write because I have a hard time talking to people and I find it very liberating to actually be able to express myself in writing.

I write because I want to learn about myself, and I want to share that with the world. Because I know that there are a lot of people out there who also have trouble finding their path, and if I can share with the world my journey, then maybe I can help other people too.

I write because I want to make a difference in someone elses' life. I want to give my girls a good example by following through with the things that I love. Teach them that they too can do what they want to do in life.

I write because I love it, because it is fun for me, the same way I love to read, because it teaches me, and it engages me.

Do you write? If so, why do you like it? If you don't, then what is your favorite thing you like to do?

Friday, January 27, 2012

You don't know me...






Most people don't know me. But I believe that you guys who read my Blog, know more about me that most people. But still you don't truly know me.

I like to keep to myself a lot. I have gone through periods where I would keep everything inside, then feel so overwhelmed by the amount of stuff I was  keeping quiet about that I would then go the the other extreme and say everything. Either way got me some arguments that could have been avoided. Now, I tend to keep to myself, but talk when I really feel the need to, but before I am about to explode.

I have several close friends who know me a bit more than the average person, and my husband knows me even more than them, but there are still parts of me that I am recently learning they exist.

I used to be very afraid of everything, fear of abandonment has always been a big one. Of not being good enough. Very textbook symptoms of kids that grow up without their fathers. Even though I had wonderful male role models in my life, like my amazing grandfather "Papi" and my step dad "Papa Jaime" who provided the stability and the love I needed from a father figure.


These days I'm not so afraid anymore. I have realized that there's no use for fear, as fear brings about the things you least want in life. Now I concentrate on the things I want as opposed to the ones I don't want. (Law of Attraction)

I have a difficulty cleaning up and keeping the house clean, I try and try and try and there seems to be an endless list of chores, and I want to be able to learn more, because my goal is to have a perfectly clean house like those in the magazines.

I want a house, my own house, just like the one I have been dreaming of since I was a child, one that will have an office, a gym, a recording studio for my husband, Huge kitchen with walk in closets, garage, roof deck, patio, and at least 4 BR.

I like giving to people, I like helping people, I currently make donations to charities on a regular basis. I want to be able to help someone in need whenever I can. I can go out of my way for friends.

I love my family, my husband, my daughters.

I love writing, and editing, and marketing, and being part of creating events.

I like cozying up in bed, and watch TV.

My favorite gifts are always kindle books, and sometimes perfumes.

 I am prone to hibernate in winter, I hate being cold, and when the weather is cold I don't want to do anything. That's why moving to warmer climates actually might help me be a more active person.

It is very hard to explain the depth's of ones soul in just a blog post. I guess if you really want to know me, you should read my Blog all the time.

Do you feel that you present to the world a clear picture of who you are? Or do you keep your true self to yourself?

Thursday, January 26, 2012

An annoying myth or old wives-tale.

 
I don't consider superstitions to be annoying perse. I just don't believe them and move on with life. However there are two superstitions that relate to me very much, and it's the one about the black cats being bad luck and the ones about the number 13 being bad luck, why? Because I have 3 black cats and I love them, and to me they have nothing to do with bad luck.



Another thing is that my favorite number is 13. I absolutely love the number, I consider Friday the 13th to be fascinating and good luck. Ever since I was little I have loved the number 13. I really don't like it when people come to me and tell me that black cats and the number 13 is bad luck.

Is there any superstition, myth or wives tale that you consider annoying or that it's contrary to your general opinion of things?

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

My Grandparent's house...


My grandparent's house is very significant to me. It is where I grew up, it is where I spent a great deal of my life in, and it is the only stable home I have ever had.
As I grew up, me and my mom moved a lot, and then when I got married I also moved a lot. But there was always my grandparent's house as the only constant. It is a wooden house, whose facade has changed a lot throughout the years, but the main components of it have remained the same.

This is the main location of most of my dreams. Since I am so into Dream Interpretation I have read that the house that is represented in your dreams as your house, tends to be the place that deep down you truly consider home. I have moved so much that I was never able to associate any of my houses as my home. Although for a while there I started dreaming about being in my current apartment since I have lived here for 6 years, but now I am going to be moving again so I started dreaming with my grandparent's house again.

I love my grandparent's house with it's humble wooden walls, my mom paints it every several years and keeps it looking fresh and pretty. There's 4 acres of land with lots of flowers and fruit trees (avocados, banana, mango, lemon, passion fruit, guava, coconut..) and growing up there was so amazing, I loved being able to just walk out the door and pull a fruit out of the tree and eat it. It was very upsetting when I moved to NY and saw that if I wanted to eat mango I had to pay $5 for one.


Another amazing thing about my grandparent's house or "Mami & Papi's house" as I call it, is that is is far away from the rest of civilization, which means that at night I can look up into the sky and see EVERY SINGLE STAR up in the sky.  When I was growing up I remember sitting on top of my grandpa's car, a brown El Camino truck, at night with my cousin and look up at the stars and just talk.


That el Camino was also so meaningful to me, I remember filling up the back with water and making a makeshift swimming pool with my cousin. I also remember sitting on the hood of the car and my grandpa or my mom driving up the hill to my grandparent's house with us there, or in the back.

I wanted to keep that truck, but the car got broken down and I never got to drive it.

My grandparent's house is full of most of my memories from my childhood, and it will continue to be significant to me for the rest of my life.  I am very grateful to have my grandparents still be alive and well, living in that house. And when I am old and gray I still hope to be able to have that house be part of my life, and then be part of my children's lives and hopefully it will continue to be part of the family for ever.

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

I wasn't suppose to see...





This is a very difficult post for me. Because I am not sure I have seen anything that I wasn't supposed to see.
Although I know that I have been exposed to certain information that I should have never been allowed to see.
When I find myself face to face to a piece of document, or certain incriminating evidence against someone, I tend to walk away from it. Close it, ignore it, look away.

I wasn't like that always. I used to just read the whole thing, save a copy of it and put it away, just in case.  But having information that it is not meant for me just makes me bitter, and nervous. So I don't do that anymore. I don't keep it, I don't read it, I don't do anything about it, and it is better.

I don't have to pretend I don't know something, because I really don't know it. I don't have to archive this little piece of evidence against someone, I don't have to carry a grudge, I don't have to worry about how am I going to explain my knowledge of certain piece of information that I was not supposed to know.


 I feel that ever since I stopped looking at forbidden information I feel like I'm a better person, and I can just choose to trust people, and my emotional baggage is considerably diminished.

Have you ever seen anything that you where not supposed to see? How did you handle the situation?

Monday, January 23, 2012

The Most Vivid Dream


Since I was a little girl, I have been fascinated with my dreams, they have always been full of imagery and they tend to be linked to one another in a way. I used to keep notebooks of my dreams, I would also like to link imagery's from my various dreams to find meanings for them.

I was so into my dreams that I was capable of writing my dreams as I had them. Many times I would be writing in my notebook with a pencil and I would fall asleep while doing that, and when I would wake up I would notice that I had written things that had happened in my dream. It was very cool.

In my dreams I live in a town, much like reality, but it is not like a real town I know, it is more like a collage of places, and people. In this town, there's a shopping mall, and it is 3 stories tall. I always visit it when it's about to close. There's a college campus, a few supermarkets, my house who varies between a few places (my grandparents house, my actual house in NY and an imaginary house I don't really know in real life.  There's also a highway that connects NY with Puerto Rico. A park, a city, a hotel, a few laundry's, a town square, several movie theaters (one in the mall and another one close to the college) and a Hollywood Studios type of place.  These places are like I mentioned, a collage of places that I have been to, maybe they just represent significant imagery from my life.

I also tend to have recurring dreams, things that happen over and over and over. One of those things used to be going to the mall at closing time. I would go trying to find a store, which would randomly move from it's location. It is funny because in my dreams I would remember the last time I was in the mall, which was a previous dream, as if I went to this alternate dimension in my sleep and lived a different reality that would continue every night. The mall was always closing, and if it wasn't then I would search over and over for the store and never find it.

Another recurring dream would involve the movie theater. I arrive with friends, husband or with my daughters, I would take them to their seats and leave the room to buy some popcorn, and I would never be able to come back. All the popcorn stands where closed and when I tried to go back into the movie, it was finished or it had been moved, or something.

The supermarket is also another very common place I encounter in my dreams, I have a shopping cart and I go isle by isle buying things, and the store closes before I can pay for the food and leave. I rarely get to buy the things successfully.

But these scenarios have changed throughout the years, recently in the past year I have been able to get to the store at the mall and it was open. Get back into the movie with my family, and pay for my groceries at the supermarket. To me it means that my life is getting better, that I am overcoming fears or whatever it may be, I am becoming more capable of reaching my goals because I am doing things every day that lead me closer and closer to my goals.

The other day I had a dream that was very significant to me. In the past I have had a recurring dream where I am in charge of taking care of 3 fish tanks. The fish tanks would be very large, they had not been taken care of in months. The water was dark, there was moss growing all over the glass, the fish had overgrown and mutated, they were very hungry and vicious. Many times they would float above the water and tried to escape. I would try to feed them but I was very disgusted and did not want the task of taking care of them.  But this past week I had a similar dream, yet there was something very different than before. I was still in charge of 3 fish tanks, with fish that had not been fed in a long time, and the fish where floating out of the water and trying to escape. But this time, the fish tanks where very clean, the water was crystal clear and the fish were small and cute. They looked very cartoon-like, some where shiny like jewels, other had some flowery shapes. I looked at them floating and I would put my hand to try and catch them and I would see them shine, and glow, and I remember saying to my self in the dream, "these fish are so cute!"

When I woke up I was very excited, because water represents your emotions, before everything was dark and disgusting, now everything is crystal clear and cute. I realize that I am in a much better place right now, more confident, more determined, I am actively pursuing my dreams, and I am getting there.

How about you, do you remember your dreams? Are they vivid? Please share.

MyMemories Suite Freebie


Just as I promised this is the second freebie for the My Memories Suite Giveaway contest.
Today's template is:





This is a .png file that you can use and place the picture you want layered under this and it will create a beautiful page that you can print out and share with your family and friends.

And don't forget to enter the Giveaway and use the $10 discount code  STMMMS85137 


For some examples of what I have done with MyMemories Suite, please check out the following links:


My mom's Birthday


My Memories Suite Giveaway

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Snow Days


When I was a small child I lived in Queens, NY for a while, and that was the first time I ever saw snow, since Puerto Rico never sees snow.  I immediately fell in love with the snow, I would even get upset and couldn't understand how there where mean people who would throw salt at the snow.  As a 4 year old child, I could not understand how people wanted to take away the snow from the sidewalk.

I remember that one time I was sick and it snowed and I wanted to play outside but I couldn't, so my mom took a sleigh that I had (it was a red circle) and she left it outside to accumulate snow and then brought it inside for me to play. I can remember as if it was today, playing with the snow that day.

Many years passed and I am again living in NYC where there is snow, and my children are as much in love with snow as I was back then when I was 4. The only difference is that now, as a grown woman and a mother, I can understand why people put salt in the snow, and why there is a need to get rid of it, yet my daughters still don't.

I must say that I don't like snow anymore. I only like how it looks while it falls, and how pretty it is those first few hours, but then reality strikes, and I am left to deal with the shoveling, the digging out the car, the slush, the blocked streets, the cold, and all of that and it makes me wish I was in the warm weather and able to go to the beach to relax.

I have noticed that a lot of my friends who live in warm climates, dream of snow, and those who live in cold climates dream about warm weather. The Grass may be greener on the other side for some, but what do you think, do you enjoy Snow days? Or do you prefer the warm climates?

Saturday, January 21, 2012

An Impactful Book in my life


When I started College, I made friends with some kids who showed me this book called Metafisica 4 en 1 (Spanish Edition) by Connie Mendez. You can also find an English version of the book, called Power Through Metaphysics In this book I learned about a new way of seeing life. A new way of living. It changed the direction my life took after that day.

Over Ten years later, there was a second book that changed my life The Secret by Rhonda Byrne. After ten years studying the teachings found in the first book, I had found myself lost, looking for more information and trying to find more people who had learned the same teachings that I had, but I found myself alone. When I read the Secret, I realized that what I had been looking for I could find it through the Law of Attraction.

Soon Rhonda Byrne came up with another book called The Secret: The Power and this book opened my eyes to even more new teachings, different views on life, and love. It helped me change the way I was looking at life, and love in general, and this created a whole new line of opportunities for me to grow as a person and it has taken me to the place that I am now.

Now in March Rhonda Byrne is coming up with a new book The Magic (The Secret) and I have pre-ordered it already.

I am a firm believer in the Law of Attraction and I truly believe that it has changed my life for the better 100%. I know that living a life through those teachings is not for everyone, but it is something that can be correlated to God.

There are many other books that have impacted my life in a good way, but those I will leave for another time.

Are there any books that have impacted your life? Which ones?

Friday, January 20, 2012

Something mischievous I did as a child.






When I was little, me and my cousin Karla, who is like a sister to me, would play and get in a lot of trouble. We would make ups stories and climb on top of the closet that our grandfather built. The closet didn't have a door, it was more like a wall unit. It had shelves on the left side of the wall and on the right side there was a bar that was used to put the clothes in hangers. On top of it there was a lofted space that is used to store anything else.

Karla and me would use the shelves as stairs and climb into the lofted part of the closet and play there, making stories and radio novelas that we would record on our tape recorder. We would also sometimes tie a blanket to one of the beams in the ceiling of the house (it is a wooden house with exposed beams) and we would do like Tarzan and swing ourselves from the top of the closet into my grandmother's queen bed.

One day we jumped so hard on that bed that we broke it. I remember when one of the springs came out, it did not poke over the fabric but it felt like a lump on the bed. We tried to pretend nothing happened but we eventually got caught.

We would also take the mattress and move it in a way that it would make a slide from the base of the bed to the floor, and we would roll ourselves down on it.

Other mischievous things we did was when we where hanging out with 4 other cousins and we found a leg shaver, those that used to be round, and we shaved our eyebrows.

We had a lot of fun doing all these crazy things. Do you remember some of your mischievous moments of your childhood?

Thursday, January 19, 2012

The last time I laughed so hard, I cried.






The last time I laughed so hard I cried was recently, however I can't for the life of me remember what I was laughing about. I just have this image in my head of laughing uncontrollably, my daughter's face turning all red as she can barely breathe from so much laughing.

The actual reason of the laugh I can't remember it.

Does that ever happen to you? I don't know if there's something wrong with my memory but I tend to remember things in bits and pieces. Sometimes it's just an emotion, or a laugh, or a specific image that gets stuck in my head. I think it is maybe since I tend to go about the days rushing all the time, multi-tasking. Doing a million things at a time, keeping busy. I don't pause long enough to smell the flowers or to notice the little things around me. Like the way a rain drop loves down the glass of the window.

I think that along with advances in technology comes these distractions that take away so much from the enjoyment of life. Also worrying so much about everything, a bad habit that I have been really good at breaking little by little.

But I do remember one time when me and my husband laughed a lot in a movie. I know I was crying. Right now I look back and think it's totally stupid and it's not as funny, but at the time I was totally cracking up. It's the scene in the movie Due Date when they drink their father's ashes as if it was coffee.

Do you remember a time when you laughed so hard you cried?

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Business Here

Guest written by our friend Gladys Fuentes

Business here is actually going really well despite the bad economy. I’m actually in real estate and though the bubble is still very popped here in California but I’ve found other ways to reach out to my clients that keep them on the radar and keep business good. I’ve been making some improvements to the office, too, so I can keep the interns on and also have a great place to show off when clients come in. I got San Diego business voip and a great new computer set up and I redid the walls because I needed to get those old red colors out of there since I rebranded. I can’t wait for things to pick up even further but I’m hanging on and not just by the skin of my teeth and it’s nice having a great support system, too. I love real estate and I’m in it because it’s my passion, not because it’s been making me money, and you know, I guess that’s how it works for me!

The Secret To you - A Visualization Tool

My mom just shared this wonderful video with me and since I am a fan of The Secret and Rhonda Byrne's books I wanted to share this message with all of you as well.

Take the time to read the words and enjoy the images that the video presents. It is a powerful visualization tool that helps you appreciate life and be grateful.



I hope you enjoyed this video.

Rhonda Byrne has a new book coming out in spring this year and I am really excited about it. I have already pre-ordered it. It is called The Magic (The Secret) and since I fell in love with her other books I cou;dn't help but buy this one too.

Something at home/work that serves no purpose.



This is an answer that is very hard to answer, just because most things have purpose, even if their purpose is not important. However there is something in my house that serves no purpose, I just haven't decided to throw it out, mainly for pure laziness, and since it's hidden away in a corner that I barely look at it has been easy to overlook. However since I have been forced to confront this fact I might just get rid of it this weekend.

The item I am speaking of is a dead Avocado tree that my mom had grown from a seed, it was over 2 years old and over 2 feet tall when my mom moved back to Puerto Rico and left it here in NYC with me. I have been known to kill plants,  cacti don't even stand a chance with me. So lo and behold, the tree lasted 5 months after my mom left, which is more than I can say about any other plant that has ever lived in my home.

At this moment in time the tree is a 2 feet tall stick on a very large pot of soil. It is heavy, another reason I have not thrown it away. But every time I look at it, usually as I lay my daughters to bed, I realize that I should throw the poor thing away.

I'm going to enlist the help of my daughter's friend this weekend to throw it away. Say our final goodbye. Maybe one day we will have another avocado tree, but this time in a back yard, so that it gets a better chance at life when mother earth takes care of it instead of me.

Is there anything in your house that serves no purpose? Have you ever had misfortunes with plants?

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

The first time I saw...

Gaby Born 12-24-2000

Elsie - Born 03-07-2006
The first time I saw my babies was the most loving moment in my life. Not only the first time I saw them as a tiny little pea in a sonogram, but the first time I laid eyes on their cute little faces and smelled them and hugged them.

Having my babies has been the most amazing experience in my life.



Nothing compares to the love one feels when we lay eyes on the cutest babies in our whole world.  Because to every parent our children are the most precious beings in the world.

Both my babies looked very similar, except their hair. I remember the first time I saw Elsie it felt like a Deja Vu as if I had given birth to Gaby again except with curly hair. It was amazing.




How did you feel the first time you laid eyes on your children?  And if you don't have children yet, what is the most amazing thing you have ever laid eyes on?

Monday, January 16, 2012

I convinced my children to...

This is a tough one. I think that on a day to day basis I convince them to do normal things, like take a bath, pick up their toys, brush their hair, eat their dinner, eat less candy, brush their teeth. Because they are young enough to not want to do these things without some kind of convincing. Although my oldest is starting to do the things on her own now.

I don't think I have convinced them to do many things that are out of the ordinary. I wish I could say I have convinced them to eat their vegetables, and do their homework without being told. But I haven't gotten to that point yet.

On the other hand they are the ones who convince me to try things more than I do them.  Like play dolls, get makeovers from them, go on roller coasters, watch cartoons over and over and over. Read books over and over and over. Play, ride bike, you name it.

How about you? Do you tend to convince your kids to do more stuff, or do they convince you to do more things than you do them?

Also, have you ever convinced them to do anything that you were not expecting them to do at all?

MyMemories Suite Free Software Giveaway 2



Well, I know that the Holidays were among us back when I originally made this post, so maybe no one saw it. But I will be opening the Giveaway once again because I really want someone to win this as it is a great tool.
To see the original Thread please click here:

I also want to remind you that here on the top left hand corner of the page, you can see the code that you can use to get $10 discount on the software. No need to wait for the contest.

And from now on I am going to be giving away some freebies from MyMemories Suite. There will be free templates that you can use to display your favorite pictures. No need to have MyMemories Suite to use them, but if you do have the program you can always add more things and make more creative things with it.

Today's Template Freebie is:



This is a .png file that you can use and place the picture you want layered under this and it will create a beautiful page that you can print out and share with your family and friends.

Next Monday I will be giving away another Designer Pack just for you. And don't forget to enter the Giveaway and use the $10 discount code  STMMMS85137 


Once again, the rules for the Giveaway:
Just click on the links in each entry description.
1st Entry:
In order to enter the giveaway you must make a comment is this post telling me which one is your favorite Scrap booking kit from www.mymemories.com The comment will be your entry to the contest.
You can also increase your chances of winning by doing some additional entries, which are as follows:
2nd optional Entry:
You must follow www.mymemoriesblog.com/
After you follow come back to this post and make a comment saying that you are now following My Memories Blog.
3rd optional Entry:
Like My Memories Suite on Facebook 
After you "like" it come back to this post and make a comment saying that you are now following My Memories on Facebook
4th optional entry
Follow My Memories Suite on Twitter
After you follow come back to this post and make a comment saying that you are now following My Memories Suite on Twitter
5th optional entry
"Like" Cocoons2Butterflies on Facebook
After you "like" it come back to this post and make a comment saying that you are now following Cocoons2Butterflies on Facebook
6th Optional entry
Follow Mantybat on Twitter
After you follow come back to this post and make a comment saying that you are now following Mantybat on Twitter

I will be choosing a winner by random on January 31st as it will be eve of Cocoons2Butterflies 1st birthday on February 1st 2012.

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Why I don't like a certain cartoon character.

I must say that having two small children makes me prone to watching cartoons, a lot! And I enjoy it, most of the time. Cartoons are funny, sometimes educational, entertaining, a way to pass time in the company of your adorable children.

There aren't many cartoon characters that I don't like. There's quite a few I could care less about them, but there isn't any particular one that I feel strongly against.

With that said, I am going to mention a few characters I particularly don't like.



1. Eeyore - Eeyore is an adorable character in Winnie the Pooh, many people seem to identify with him and like him a lot. However I don't like him too much, simply for the reason that he's too depressed all the time. It's like the friend that's always depressed and calls you to tell you how awful his life is and no matter how many times you try to cheer him up, he always has this dark cloud over his head and can't get out of the funk. After a while you start avoiding his calls and try to walk on the other side of the street and pretend you didn't see him coming.
This is very mean, I know. I really feel sorry for the little burro, but I like happy characters, that make you smile. Eeyore, well, he just makes me sad.


2. Jimmy Neutron -  There's nothing really wrong about Jimmy. He's super smart, he's into science which is a good role model for kids, he is friends with other nerds like Carl and even with a not so smart Hispanic kid name Sheen (which I love by the way). But even though he has many good qualities, I just don't like him. I love Sheen though, he's funny, stupid, but funny, and did I mention he was funny?
But Jimmy is too Retro, yet I'm not sure that's so bad either. I think is something about his personality, he seems to be popular for a nerdy guy, but I think in some episodes he's a little too full of himself. Maybe that's why I don't particularly like him.

3. Butthead -  I must say I have not seen the new episodes, but I remember back when they first started I used to watch them, I liked Bevis but I did not like Butthead, he seemed too much of an idiot, and his laugh was too annoying.

Like I said before there aren't too many cartoons that I particularly dislike, there are too many I wouldn't let my children watch them just yet, and there are tons that I would never watch, but mainly because I find them too boring.

There are some who feel strongly against certain characters, like how so many people hate Barney. I just watch what I like, and let my kids watch what they like as long as it is appropriate for their age. how about you? Do you feel strongly against any particular cartoon character?

Saturday, January 14, 2012

I can't believe my kids like...

PopTarts!

They like the Strawberry, Blueberry frosted and not frosted, Cookies & Creme, Hot Fudge Sundae, Choc Chip Cookie Dough, you name it.

They will eat them for breakfast, for Snack, even as a dessert!

Me, I won't eat the things. They taste awful to me!

I was surprised that this past year we had a hurricane in NYC and I read an article that read

Hurricane Irene: Pop-Tarts Top List of Hurricane Purchases

I couldn't believe this, Pop tarts wasn't even in my list of things to buy, it didn't even cross my mind. The reason why PopTarts was such a good choice as per the article? "they require no heating, can be used at any meal, and last forever," said Steve Horwitz

My daughters would agree, but at Hurricane time I chose to buy water, and canned food, mainly Chef Boyardee.

Is there a food you can't believe your kids like? Or is there something, could be anything, like music, movies, things, etc that you can't believe they like?

I'm glad I don't have kids who like Power Rangers or Barney.

Friday, January 13, 2012

My child's creepiest toy.



We all remember Chucky right? That was some creepy toy. Thankfully my daughter's don't have any creepy toys like that. But my little Elsie has a porcelain doll that my mom gave her recently and she loves her and sleeps with her, but to be honest, I think it's a little creepy. My oldest thinks so too. (Sorry Mom)

What I find creepy about the doll is the way it stares at you with those glass eyes and how the legs click when they rub each other.

Besides that doll my girls have some other odd balls, like a headless Tinkerbell (the head is somewhere, usually not with the body) once even my little one took and Easter egg and placed it where the head is supposed to be and then she drew a smiley face on it. She also has limbless dolls, like the one legged Bride and the gymnast that has an arm broken at the elbow and the opposite leg broken at the knee. And one doll that is only a torso and a head, and the doll that has all her arms and legs attached to the body with duct tape.

This Christmas my daughters got a Build-a-Monster Doll from Monster High, and they can create a doll with different body parts provided, and my little one decided to attach the head to a leg and make some torso-less doll.


Do your children have creepy toys? You know like Chucky or the Mutant toys from the Bully Neighbor in Toy Story?

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Did you know that Bankruptcy isn't as bad as people think?



I had always seen bankruptcy as one of the worst things that could happen to a person. Even in board games like monopoly and life, bankruptcy can make you loose.

I also heard that there are companies that help you negotiate your debt and help you pay only half of what you owe. But recently I read that these companies sometimes take advantage of the consumers and take hundreds of dollars in fees.

So in hard economic times what is better? Bankruptcy or Debt Consolidation?

Start Fresh Today offers possible answers to that question they offer a bankruptcy class online
I never even knew that there was such a thing. Start Fresh Today has classes for bankruptcy attorneys, credit counseling agencies and/or for consumers going through the bankruptcy process. If your debt seems to be more than you can handle, find more information and find the path to your financial freedom.

A Vacation I Hope To Take This Year.


The Vacation I hoped to take this year I just took it. The truth is that I had not taken a 3 week long vacation in what it seems like forever. Vacation from work, from the computer, from cellphones, from the constant rushing I do here in NYC.

This Christmas I took it. I went to Florida and spent an amazing time with my amazing husband and the kids. It gave me so much perspective in life. It taught me so much too.

I learned that I need a slower pace in my days, that I have to enjoy more the day to day things, like cooking as a family, and playing games as a family. It inspired me to be more active physically, to rest more, to keep an order to my days.

When I keep organized I can be more productive without exerting so much energy, so I have energy left over to do the things I really love.

This vacation we has so much fun, we went to Sea World, to Disney, Bowling, Old Town, and simply hanging out with friends and family.

I also went to see my dad and my siblings, and I learned a few things as well. I learned that I have more in common with my dad than I previously imagined. When he showed me his work space and all the things he does, how he has his own publishing company and makes books, and book covers and how he has his websites for his church and how he publishes his sermons. I realized that we do the same things, just for different audiences. The interesting thing is that me and my dad did not grow up together so there isn't that influence. Another thing that struck me as interesting is that the more I find in common with my dad, the more I appreciate my mom, and the more I feel close to her. It doesn't really make much sense, since they got divorced when I was 2, but things don't always make sense.


In this trip also I fell in love with my husband all over again. Seeing all the things he has accomplished, how wonderful he is, how smart, and I feel so amazingly proud of him. I always knew he was this great, but I know that now he's even better and more amazing.

What Vacation do you hope to take this year? Where do you want to go? How do you expect it to feel?

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