The Power of Storytelling

by Melanie Edwards on January 27, 2012 · 9 comments

in life

My mother with family in New York

Whenever my family gets together, inevitably stories of the past come up. My parents, their siblings, and friends love to reminisce about their younger years. It’s common to hear childhood tales of my mother and her sisters walking home from school through the narrow streets in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico and the people they’d run into. Or perhaps it’s my father sharing with us yet again how his father would take him along to work at Ramey Air Force Base and they’d listen to music together as my abuelo pressed the clothes. According to my dad, this is why he came to love music so much.

Regardless of what story is being shared, one thing remains constant. The joy on my parents’ face as they retell their memories is sure to bring you joy as well. Watching them and listening to their stories always made for an interesting evening. Even when they shared the sadder stories, like when I learned that my mom ate sopa de pan (breadcrumbs in broth) one too many times as a child, they still did so with excitement, nostalgia, and joy. They love to pass on their memories and personally, it gives me a lot of insight into our family’s history.

I still love to hear my parents tell their stories and occasionally ask them to share ones I have already heard many times. Each time, some small new detail they forgot to mention before comes to light. Hearing these stories provides a glimpse into what my parents were like as children and why they are the way they are today.

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The Perfectly Balanced Day

by Melanie Edwards on January 25, 2012 · 6 comments

in life,Wahm,Working Mothers

Piedras de primavera, spring stones.

Yesterday was one of those days I wish I could repeat – everything flowed, things got done, balance was had. It’s amazing how one day going smoothly can lift your spirits and motivate you to make it happen again.

Because I had such a great day, I feel like I need to record it. Sometimes you have to sit back and remind yourself of all that went good – little or big. Though this is simple in the grand scheme of things, having a day where work, family, and personal time were in-line is definitely something to celebrate.

We are often striving to create work-life balance, and I talk about it quite often, so I absolutely want to share with you the specifics of how my day went. I hope that by doing so, you will see a glimpse of your own day or find some ideas for small changes you can make in your routine. With that, I share my perfectly balanced day and what I hope will become a regular daily routine for achieving work-life balance in my life.

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Talking Race with My 6 Year Old

life

Every day when I pick up baby girl from school I ask her the same questions: How was your day? Did you have fun? and What did you guys do? The majority of the time her answer to the last question is a simple, “I don’t really remember.” She can tell me all about what [...]

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Disney Junior 24-Hour Channel Launching March 23!

preschoolers

If you have young children at home, then you may be excited to find out that a new 24-hour Disney Junior channel will be coming on March 23!  The current Disney Junior block will continue on Disney Channel as well, but your kids can now enjoy their favorite shows throughout the entire day. The new [...]

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Blaming Sensitive Eyes for Crying

Women

As women we tend to cry a lot. I know this is not true for all women; some women are able to control their tears quite a bit. But, in my family, we tend to be criers. It’s even been passed down to my baby girl. She and I tend to be pretty emotional and [...]

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Watching Dementia Take Over

life

Every time I visit my parents’ house, it brings about bittersweet feelings. I’m glad to be able to spend time with them, but seeing my dad fall deeper into his dementia and be forced to succumb to the disease, is heartbreaking in many ways. This was a man that growing up I saw as strong [...]

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Portraits of Kilimanjaro Safaris at Disney’s Animal Kingdom

Uncategorized

A few photos from our weekend safari tour of Kilimanjaro Safaris at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, part of the Walt Disney World resort in Orlando, Central Florida. Have you ever been to Disney’s Animal Kingdom? What’s your favorite part of that park?

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Reader Poll: Would Shorter Posts Be Welcome?

Blogging

Sometimes I have ideas and thoughts I want to share, but I don’t always have the time to sit down and write a full post. And, by the time I do, the thought seems to have passed. For this reason, I’ve been thinking of doing shorter posts mixed in with regular content. But, first, I’d [...]

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