Post-Holiday Wrap Up & A Big Welcome to 2013

December is always such a chaotic month for my family.

On top of the Christmas prep, we also have tons of birthdays to celebrate as well which makes for extra chaos.  

BUT, it's always worth it.

Nothing beats spending quality time with those that you truly love and care for -- nothing but good vibes, good food, lots of laughter and of course the magic of the season.

Every year we celebrate with my entire immediate family. This year was super special because it was my son's first Christmas. Although we were pretty adamant that we did not want to host this year having a new baby and all and since we hosted last year, we knew it would mean a lot more if it was held in our home.

This is also the year we realized we need to make a bigger effort at disguising who "Santa" is moving forward because our incredibly smart four year old's cannot be fooled. "That's not Santa, it's Lolo Ed (Grandpa)!"

Ha! 

To save the night, I piped in by saying, "Oh well, Santa said you are not allowed to see him so he let Grandpa borrow his magic Santa Suit and gave him all the gifts to give you all!" 

It worked!

It was perfect and I couldn't ask for a better way to celebrate Christmas.

For New Years Eve, it was an unusual turn of events this year.  Every single person in our family came down with a mysterious yet potent and ugly virus which meant ringing in the new year on medications, surrounded by kleenex and reeking of Vicks Vaporub.

Again, because it was my son's first NYE and I was feeling a tad better, I went ahead and prepped for a great final 2012 dinner. I popped open the wine and bubbly and mustered up enough energy to stay up till midnight with a smile on my face for the sake of my family (and very energetic kids that managed to stay up till 2 AM!)

It was a good night and the best part of it all was that once the clock struck midnight and the beautiful sounds of Auld Lang Syne played in the background (always gets the tears going), I welcomed this new year in the arms of my beautiful family.

I raise my glass to you all; to a new year filled with good health, happiness, prosperity and wonderful new memories! Cheers!

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Another Year to Get it Right

Happy new year my lovely readers!
I hope this New Year started off with a bang and is continuing to be a welcome one.
With every year that inaugurates, a new chapter in our lives begin.  Whether the last year brought to you warm memories or ones that hurt the heart, the great thing about life is that you can always start new.

This year, I gave myself some simple resolutions; however, very important ones.
Ones that will help me to become a better person not just for myself, but for the ones that I love.
One of the most important things that I promised myself this year is that I will start focusing on what will strengthen my relationship with those that I care about.
What I can do to make us stronger, happier, fulfilled, encouraged, healthy.


There are a few very serious decisions that I will have to make this year that will determine which path I will take next. Decisions that are life-changing. With a good support system and a positive outlook, things will hopefully turn out great. We need to have HOPE this year.
H O P E = (H)ave (O)nly (P)ositive (E)xpectations


Wishing you all a wonderful start to your New year and the strength and courage to take bold steps to achieving your goals.
I raise a glass to the year of 2012. May it be filled with dreams come true, things checked off your to-do list, lots of laughter, hugs and kisses, good health and prosperity. Cheers!

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