GottaLoveMom

I'm almost 49 and it seems like every decade, there's a new slogan inspiring me that my life begins at this so and so decade. I've been looking forward to be 50, because for some absurd reasoning that I concocted in my silly brain, that I need a milestone to motivate myself to start celebrating life.

Tears keep falling, mostly at night when I am alone, after my family has gone to bed.  My heart feels so heavy, filled with sorrow since my dad entered heaven a few weeks ago.  My heart had already been heavy from the recent loss of my husband's dear friend, a man my children called Uncle Paulie.  Both were sudden and profound losses.  Both lived good lives as men who loved their families fiercely and unconditionally. My "village" that I have to support my parenting endeavor has been there to offer kind words, child wrangling, and food offerings.  Without this village, I would be lost.  Much more than this, there are some who have traveled this road and offered me wisdom that helps me deal with the grief. My husband's parents both passed away before his 33rd birthday, so having been through that with him, we were no strangers to this life event.  I was a pillar of strength for him then, and he is my pillar of strength now.  My...

Wednesday marked New York City's celebration of Immigrant Heritage Week. On Tuesday night, after dinner, I prepared the kids' lunches, something I usually do in the morning. I left instructions on what time my youngest needed to be in school for his early morning orchestra rehearsal. Scribbled a few notes about the after school schedule, and reminded my third child of request for paperwork needed for his semi-finalist scholarship applications. I continued to recite a litany of reminders: allergy medicine, asthma check protocol reminders and more to-do lists. It seemed like I was going away for a long time.  I was just preparing myself for the next day's event: breakfast reception at the Gracie Mansion at 8:30am. For me to get to 88 E End Ave in New York in time for the reception, I needed to be on the 5:38 train to NY Penn Station, which meant I needed to be up by 4:30am the latest. I had invited my friend to come with me to the reception, and even...

Last week life and death had kicked me in my heart (again)   that my days were in blur and my nights were short, sleep was aloof. I couldn't find the words, or the logic to understand why Adrian, an energetic eight year-old child, died of food allergies at a very young age. My own children couldn't make sense of why their cousin passed away. And the only thing we were able to do was to keep reminding ourselves:   Love. Faith. Hope. There are things in life that do not make any sense, things I will never understand. My kids grew up hearing me say, "Everything has a purpose. Everything happens for a reason." But on April 7th, understanding the reason or the purpose was beyond our comprehension. And the only thing that helped us was each other and our faith in God. We found comfort with each other - with families and friends, and through celebrating Adrian 's life through the pictures and videos that reflected the life Adrian liv...

Joy is something we receive as a gift, and a gift to be shared. And in New York, there's always something that brings joy. In the next few months, here are a few events worth registering for: SELF Workout in the Park: Saturday, May 11, day before Mother's Day. http://www.selfworkoutinthepark.com/event/new-york/ It's an all-day all-inclusive fitness event that includes classes such as Sunrise Salutations, Yoga, Pilates, Jillian Michael's Body Shred, Beach Body, and CrossFit in the Main Stage, Quiet Zone and Reebok Toning Zone. http://www.selfworkoutinthepark.com/wip-event/class-schedule/ Cost: $22.73 (includes service charge and sales tax) WanderLust - Yoga in the City: Sunday, June 9. Pier 63 Hudson River Park http://nyc.wanderlustfestival.com/schedule/yoga-and-activities Cost: FREE Solstice in Time Square: Friday, June 21. http://timessquarenyc.org/events/solstice-in-times-square/index.aspx Can you imagine being calm and generating all that positi...