Absence Makes el Corazon Grow Fonder

Absence makes the heart grow fonder. After almost 2 1/2 months away, apparently that cliché became a clincher.  Babushka's going to be a bride.  Ok, si, I was engaged before going to Miami, but the date was ambivalent and, "Well, it'll be in April. Not sure what year, but definitely in April."  Bueno, now we know the year - 2013.  Oh my.

This will be BB's third marriage, his first. I can hear y'all echoeing- Oh my.  Guess you can say "they got themselves a real live one" - and we have.  We both think we're very lucky to have found each other and actually are a bit surprised it took so long to meet.  Imaginate- he's 6'4" and I'm... Babushka, so we don't exactly blend into the crowd, especially in this little rural town.  It took us 5 years to meet, 2 years together and 2.5 months apart to set a date, but it's set. 

So, how do weddings for "mature mates" differ from the younger couples? 

 JU SO FONII!!!  Maybe because I've already had my church wedding with all the whistles, but at this point we just want FUN.  A true celebration for all involved- including and especially the bride and groom.  This being his first wedding we wanted to make sure his mother would be able to attend, so we chose to have the ceremony near her home in central Florida.  Years ago I fell in love with the beautiful and tranquil  Bok Towers and thought what a beautiful place for a wedding this would be; amazing how the heart knows long before we do. 

The Singing Towers- Bok Towers

The spiritual sense of belonging, the soul of our celebration,would be represented perfectly in this setting.  But we all know, or should know, marriage isn't all tranquility and silence- especially with a Cubana, so we needed to find a place representing the other side. A place that was loud, in color and noise, mentally stimulating, tiring, and entertaining all rolled into one- a place like

LEGOLAND

Now how apropo, perfect and FUN is that? 

Can't you just see Babushka and Sweetie at the reception?

Actually, that's one of the reasons this wedding will be more fun. You dear readers will help me plan the little details that drive brides into bridezillas.  How do you see my wedding/reception dress?  Remember I'm over the top, but a no fuss kinda gal, so the wedding dress will go straight on the rollercoasters of Legoland. The bouquet? His wedding garb? Our wedding colors are turquoise- you decide w/what, and he likes folk music while I like something danceable. The grandbabies (all 4 of them) will be there so it'll definitely be lively and with your input lovely. 

Looking forward to the day and your visions of it.


Babushka Besos a todos.  Cuidensen.


P.S.  The number of wedding guests won't be over 25, 30 at most- so let's not go too crazy.

  Para eso estoy yo.

; )

Cubanos, Comida, y Chistes- La Tata's 90th?

On Saturday our family celebrated La Tata's birthday.  From a family of 12 children, La Tata is the sole survivor.  That, and the fact that she's much loved and just turned 90 made it a full house.  Imagínate, get that many Cubans together...

Master of Ceremonies was Nicanor Gonzalez,
 La Tata's first cousin on both mother's and father's side. 

What can I say- it was a very small town. 

Nica was chosen because he's the chief of chistes (jokes) and an orator extraordinaire. 

 PLUS he's the one who's known La Tata the longest and is her best sparing partner. 

Among La Tata's many accomplishments is the well known fact that she had my father when she was 5.

 

Truly- otherwise how could she have been 29 yrs old for so long?

; )

During his homenaje he announced that we were all there under false pretenses. 

La Tata was in fact 92 years old, not 90 as she claimed. 

 Let the sparing begin!!!

     

 " ¿A esta edad me voy a quitar años?"  

"At this age I'm going to take off years, lie about my age?"

"La costumbre Tata, la costumbre."  "Habit Tata, it's habit."

Due to the reputation of both, we didn't know who to believe, but in reality it didn't matter.  We were family, together, having fun. We danced, squeezed babies and caught up on each other's lives. Que?? JU SO FONII!!! No, not everyone has Feibu y Tweety.

Besides, as I said before- get that many Cubans together and you're gonna have


COMIDA

Close up of the cake.  There were 2 other banquet tables filled with food.

CHISTES

Being Dignified with our Must Have Fans

Dignified? Who are we kidding?!?!

but most of all-

LOTS OF LOVE

Epilogue: 

After returning home, I asked La Tata what was the best part of the day.  "Well... it was such a wonderful day. The family all together, the food, the presents... but if I had to pick one thing, I'd say the best part of the gathering was it was for my birthday- not my wake."   ahuh  now you know where I get it from.

Babushka Besos a todos.  Cuidensen.

A Day Without Feibu y Tweety

Babushka didn't know what to do with herself on Monday. Bueno, let's rephrase that and give y'all a little background info here.  El Dr.'s 6th bday party was on Saturday, so of course La Tata and I were going, however on Friday when my eldest picked us up I hadn't quite finished with Tweety.  Thankfully during Hispanicize I had learned about HootSuite via the preciosa Paula Bendfelt-Diaz and had scheduled most of the weekend tweets, pero I still had a few left so I took my laptop.  And then on Sunday- I forgot my laptop. ::SIGH:: Ok, si, I know.

Now how many of you have had children say "I'm bored!" and you counter with "Well, you can always clean your room." or "You can ____________ (fill the blank w/some other chore) and that will keep you busy."  Yeap, that Karma sure has a wicked sense of humor doesn't she?

 So by 11 a.m. BB had:

Laundry

This is how it's done in Little Havana

DONE

By 1:00 p.m.

 

Crocheting



Cuban Pañales aka Burp Cloths

DONE

By  2:00 p.m.
(just in time for Siesta)


Dinner

Thank Goodness for Rice Cookers!
Arroz Amarillo w/vegetales w/hotdogs cut up
surrounding a mound of fufu w/fried eggs in the middle

HEARTY CUBAN COMIDA

DONE 



Once I awoke after my 3.5 hour nap- Quuueeeee???
I was physically exhausted.  BB usually staggers her chores...over days. 
Or longer.




Babushka did notice one thing though. I was more relaxed and felt more, dare I say it - fullfilled?  I had, if only for the day, become an oldtime Cuban homemaker with the crocheting and everything! Oh my, the visions of life in the campo, the lessons of yore, the simpler pleasures... maybe I should try going without mi computadora for one day a week? What the hey, BB's all about living w/gusto- maybe the entire weekends?

JU SO FONII!!!

When my daughter swung by after work with my laptop,

I didn't know which to kiss first- her or the computer.

; )

Time for a smartphone.

Babushka Besos a todos.  Cuidensen.

My Memorable Memorial Day

BB had no plans for Memorial Day.  As you know, I am currently in Miami visiting La Tata, with no transportation except public transit, which actually isn't a bad way to travel and I wish we had it in my rural town Up North in The South, but the days are getting hotter and the walks between bus stops and final destinations seem longer when its hotter, and those of you who know me know Babushka doesn't do hotter, so before this one sentence becomes a paragraph all by itself, let's just stop it here and say BB had no plans for Memorial Day.

But then there was Feibu. 

Actually, then there was an invite via Feibu from the Hispanicize team to join them at Jungle Island- free admission w/BBQ for a blogger and a family member. Hola!

BB pass up a chance to go out, with family, for food, and for free? JU SO FONII!!

The first RSVP was Babushka's. 

In truth this event gave me a chance to have Friends

Hispanicize Miami Group





Family

BB,Eldest Daughter
La Tata, El Dr., La Princesa



and Fun

El Dr. w/his "Crocodile Live"



A picture of the siblings w/La Princesa actually being nice to her brother

lovin' the fros and the dia

For a day I didn't have plans, I couldn't have planned it better.

Babushka Besos a todos.  Cuidensen.

P.S. What fun reconnecting w/Hispanicize dear friends Farah Mesa & Lynn Ponder, getting better acquainted with Manny Ruiz, Jewel Figueras, and Katherine Johnson while also enjoying the sponsorship/hospitality of Jungle Island y  the Blackberry Tablet demo from Team Blackberry. Oh si,  lots of networking amongst the fun. 

P.P.S.  Team Blackberry, when's your next contest for the tablet?  BB ♥ that WiFi Only!!

P.P.P.S.  MOST IMPORTANTLY-

To those whose Memorial Day was spent remembering loved ones

who had died for our freedoms,

fuerte abrazos, strength, and mil gracias for the sacrifices made.