Wordless Wednesday: I Have A Crush (On Your Blog)

AskaThug.com is my guilty pleasure blog.
I'm not saying I agree with his advise 100%
 of the time, but while he can sound
offensive and uses strong language,
most of the time his message
is full of insight, wisdom, and brilliance.
Picture Credit: AskaThug.com
"Down Bottom" (Swizz Beats/Ruff Ryders)
(Instrumental)


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Happy Birthday To Me: Being a Twin is Awesome, Aging Eggs, Fresh Pain, and Renewed Spirit

                                                                           Is Your Twin As Awesome As Mine?

Vanessa on the left & Vicky on the right.

Happy Birthday to myself and to my fraternal twin sister, Vanessa!  Just like any relationship, we have had our ups and downs.  We've even been mistaken for being a lesbian couple because of our bickering like two old married people! Haha True story.  Anyway, I love this lady, Vanessa, and I love that I've had the honor of sharing a special sisterhood.  We've been committed to having a sisterhood where we would be more loving that not loving and I think we've been successful.  The awesome thing is we get to keep at it and get even better at how to be most kind and loving with each other.  In honor of our birthday, I posted this as my status: 

Wordless Wednesday on Tuesday In Solidarity with the Internet Going Dark Wednesday: SOPA Is Only Bueno When It Looks Like This

The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), like many things
started with seemingly good intentions,
 but the problem is it's become
a tool that could enforce unwarranted
internet censorship and possibly, drastic penalties.
So, the only SOPA, I recommend is
this Colombian Chicken Noodle Soup
 (Sopa de Pollo y Pasta)- yummy!
picture credit:  My Colombian Recipes

New Latina 2012 #NLRenewal Challenge Week 1: "Shedding" Part 1

Being part of the New Latina Renewal Challenge Team has been an honor and continues to be a magical creative experience.

I will be sharing part of my journey as a participant here on Kindness and Kisses in notes and thoughts as well in comments on the New Latina Facebook page in order to maximize the personal benefits of being part of this NLRenewal Challenge. 

Still, the work that we have put forth in this Renewal Challenge is no piece of cake!  Even with my clinical training as well as my history of seeking professional help when I have needed it in the past, I am finding that as many times as I have faced myself, it is not easy to face those things I have been holding onto for so long and attempt to say, "goodbye forever."

I Won't Forget Haiti in 2012 and Kindness and Kisses: January 12, 2011: One Year After the Haiti Earthquake

Last year I wrote a post: Kindness and Kisses: January 12, 2011: One Year After the Haiti Earthquake

Since then we have seen other natural disasters affect many parts of the world. During those difficult times of trying to understand the magnitude of devastation, of having lost so many lives, and of having to rebuild, it can be challenging to stand in faith, to still see the goodness that exists in the world, and to believe that it does get better. It can and it does.

If there were only to be one child left after a severe disaster, that is hope enough for a brand new day and reason enough to do what we can for that child. Thankfully, there are many many children with many dreams and hopes for better and brighter futures, in Haiti and in other parts of the world. So, there is hope enough and reason enough to continue doing good work and to continue paying it forward as much as we can. In the above post, there are links to organizations where you can donate if you can and other creative ways you can help pay it forward.

Wordless Wednesday: I'm Getting Older and So Are My Eggs

             Hold yourself with lots of love,
even the parts that you can't seem to get a handle on. 
I've been thinking about my eggs lately,
 which is kind of common for me since hitting
my 30's.  What you don't? ;)
My birthday is coming up on January 19th.
I love aging, mostly, because I am more awesomer
but I'm not gonna lie, the older I get the more concerned
about my eggs and when possibly I might
have a baby in the future. (if and when or maybe)
Last night's episode of Parenthood had this interaction:
‎"I thought 40 was the new 30!" "Nope, not for your ovaries!"
picture credit "The Dudeez" found at shescoops.com

Three Kings Day and Losing Our Precious Cat Named Jack

Today, I had planned to write a post in Spanish about Three Kings Day, January 6th, celebrated by many Latinos.  It is also the Day of the Epiphany.  My nuclear family- my dad, mom, sisters and I haven't really made that part of our family traditions, though.  I was going to write about talking to my mom about this.  How I asked her why we didn't make a big deal of it when her family did celebrate this special day in Colombia when she was younger.  So, I was going to write about that, but now mostly my thoughts are about Jack.  I'm crying now thinking about him.  We started treating him for diabetes in the last few weeks.  I'm wishing we knew that his heart was failing and that today it would just stop.  He was only about 9 years old.  I'm heartbroken.

Our Beautiful Monster, Jack

Jack and I had a special relationship.  I was thinking about that and remembered I had written a Squidoo post about two years ago about him.  I haven't been on Squidoo for almost two years!  Anyway, we called Jack our monster because he was really big and kind of ferocious at times- not dangerous (okay mostly not dangerous).  My sisters and my mom were his primary caretakers, my dad was his buddy, and I would love him from a safe distance.  Also, I had allergies so needless to say I wasn't hugging and squeezing him like my younger sister and mom would.  

I know Jack felt how much we loved him and I am happy to have had a tender moment with him yesterday when he wasn't feeling well at all and curled up in the bathroom .  I sat on the tub and rubbed his head speaking to him and sharing how much I did love him.  

Rest In Peace Jack.  We love you.

With kindness, kisses, peace, and love,

~Vicky

Thoughtful Thursday: Fact Is You Do Have Time to Meditate

This video showcasing One Moment Meditation clearly proves this!  My favorite line is when the speaker says to practice the basic minute instead of a moment at first because "a minute is like a moment with handles on it."

Let's get a handle on life and our moments!

That's me taking a single moment! --->

So, watch videos below and make meditation part of your life- YOU DO HAVE THE TIME! ;)

Wishes of peace and clarity...

Flight 2012

WELCOME TO FLIGHT NUMBER 2012 ♥ WE ARE PREPARING FOR TAKE OFF INTO THE NEW YEAR ♥ PLEASE MAKE SURE THAT YOUR STANDARDS ARE IN AN UPRIGHT POSITION ♥ ALL SELF-DESTRUCTIVE DEVICES SHOULD BE TURNED OFF AT THIS TIME ♥ SHOULD WE LOSE ALTITUDE UNDER PRESSURE DURING OUR FLIGHT, REACH UP AN PULL DOWN A PRAYER -PRAYERS WILL BE AUTOMATICALLY ACTIVATED BY FAITH ♥ NOW YOUR FAITH IS FULLY ACTIVATED YOU CAN ASSIST OTHER PASSENGERS ♥ THERE WILL BE NO BAGGAGE ALLOWED ON THIS FLIGHT ♥ THE CAPTAIN HAS CLEARED US FOR TAKE OFF ♥ DESTINATION GREATNESS ♥ ENJOY YOUR FLIGHT ♥♥♥ 2012 BELONGS TO YOU,TAKE IT AWAY!! -Unknown

Thanks to the wonders of sharing, this message greeted my eyes today.  It captures the spirit, drive, appreciation, passion and action-taking that I see myself embarking on and that I hope you see for yourself too.

My Lessons & Reminders from this post:

• Prepare yourself for the things you want.
• Know your standards and boundaries so that when you say YES!- it is a real yes! And when you say NO!- you mean it and you honor your decision.
• Recognize that your biggest obstacle in most cases is YOU, YOU, and YOU! Stop standing in your own way.  Stop tripping yourself up.  Stop making the same mistakes without growing from it.  Stop STOPPING your good work.  Leave the the self-destructive and self-sabotaging in 2011 OR make sure that when it presents itself (because it likes to show up) to nip it in the bud quickly, move on, and keep moving!  As a Recovering Procrastinator, I have had my fair share of relapses. ;)
• Recover when things feel like they are going terribly wrong, or there is a crisis, or panic moment, by remembering to be still and call on God/Universe/Trusted Higher Being- Faith is a powerful source of comfort and support.
• Pay it Forward when you feel good, have something to offer, and your light is shining.  You can be somebody's miracle.
• Guide your life and what you bring to it by understanding that you are in control of it.  Your control comes from within not from outside and not from controlling others.  See your worth.  Know your strength.  You are great and powerful.  You are lovable and loving.  Everything else is baggage you don't need it.  If you are carrying excess baggage, your task is to master forgiveness (and to keep doing it until there is no weight holding you down).
• Seek Clarity and focus on the many good truths that exist for your many great possibilities!
• Journey through in the direction of your amazing destination, knowing that it is not about the destination but the how you manage your journey.  How will you handle turbulence? How will you handle reaching higher heights?  How will you handle lift offs and landings?  
• Enjoy the trip.  I mean really enjoy every moment.  Laugh hard when it's funny, hug all your friends, and be present with your surroundings.  Appreciate where you are.
• 2012 is your present.  Open it up!

Choose Kindness and Kiss often,

~Vicky