The Family Room

June rolled in with a quick transition to summer camp and fun family activities. The Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center had it's grand re-opening after a 3 year remodel, and the kids absolutely loved the event. We saw artwork from local students as we headed into the center, which we learned about from a proud mom. Jemma is already plotting to have her artwork displayed here too! We also had the opportunity to see a traditional Aztec ritual, along with ballet folklorico, eating tacos, tortas, y elotes from a Mexican food truck, and cooled down with some traditional paletas. 

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This same weekend, we also took a family trip to Kalahari, courtesy of the friends and family who contributed to this gift for Jemma's birthday rather than toys or other things. She absolutely enjoyed the indoor theme park, and though she complained about the foam getting in her eyes, she kept going back to the foam party! Luca had a blast too...including in the hotel room; his excitement over the beds, safe, and windows was truly endless. This brings me to a point about birthday gifting that I think is worth putting out into the world. As Rafael and I grow in our parenting journey, we're finding that material things come and go (cluttering your home along the way, especially if you plan on 1+ kids lol!). However, experiences have a long lasting impact on the whole family. Sharing in your kids' exploration and enjoyment of life is priceless, and from now on if you ask us what to get the kids for their birthdays, we'll probably say something like a pass to the zoo, tickets to a high school theater production, a day pass to Little Gym, etc. 

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It wouldn't be summer if there wasn't some sort of water activity to partake in, and Luca has discovered the joys of splash day! It's absolutely his favorite day of the week. He enjoyed it far more than his classmates, and when it was over...boy did he let his teachers know how he felt about it! Fast forward to the weekend after his second splash day, and the little man grabbed his Elmo swim shorts while we were doing laundry and promptly demanded (non-verbally, obviously) that we put them on (over his pajamas).

 

The other less obvious sign of summer, is the NBA finals! And what a series it was! Rafael is a lifelong Knicks fan, so he's no stranger to suffering. This year though, his suffering was magnified threefold every game. Until it wasn't! Experiencing the Knicks winning it all, by his side, was one of the highlights of my year thus far (minus the stress I felt for him...).