De nuevo Frida

Any plans to visit Mexico city lately? I will consider it very seriously, because the most important and best exhibition of Frida's work will be seen in Mexico City from June 13 to August 19, 2007 in "El Palacio de Bellas Artes", as part of her 100th Birthday!
La Casa Azul is organizig another exhibition too, with documents never seen before, plus lectures and plays.

You can get into the Exhibition, The National Homage to Frida Kahlo, for less than 4 dlls. and find 354 art pieces, among them paintings, pictures, letters.

Paintings and drawings from private collections around the world and those from another museums in Mexico, United States and Japan.

Interested? .... Me too! For more Frida, stay tunned.

Más presentaciones.

Vernetta's Dance Studio had another performance last saturday, not very far from our house. Bidane had for the first time her custome of "The Little Green Man", who happen to come from Mars, that is why she has this shiny thing on her.

BRAVOOOOOOOOOOOO!

YES... The 4th Annual Talent Show of SDCCS (el nombre de la escuela).
Fantástico, Increíble, Wonderful, Beautiful!!!
Great jobs from all the participants.
All the school's community so happy to be in our new facility.
Todo sucedió en el auditorio de las instalaciones que tendrá la escuela, desde el próximo año escolar en adelante. Gran emoción Bidane y Aitana estuvieron presentes en el show.
Aitana made a performance of a jaguar... música de Jorge Reyes, poema escrito por ella misma.
Bidane was a part of the pinguin dance and she danced as a "Fairy" too.
Bidane, doble participación como pinguino y como balerina.
We had as well, good performances from very nice friends.

El escenario, New SDCCS Auditorium

.... little too cute... Así dice la canción de los pinguinos

Aitana, a very hungry cat... mask hand-made by Pepe, producción y dirección de la puesta en escena por Pepe.

Destreza con los vasos.

Indi y sus Macarenas

Proud parents

Good singing Isabel

Mamá con bailarina y jaguar....

Childhood memories.

Summer is just around the corner and I started to think about my childhood summers and these of my daughters, they have long days, beach, pool and sun every day, park concerts, museums and picnics.

Back in my hometown 30 years ago I had fun too. I remember the nice shade of the mango and avocado trees in my aunt's house, the sound of the banana tree leaves moving with the breeze before the rain and the smell of guava, papaya and other fruit placing their sweetness all over the place, the taste of sugar cane and "tuna", the fruit from the cactus (not a fish), and of course the scent of the just wet dirt with the first drops of rain.

Except in the north of Mexico, summer is rainy season, with lighting and thunders. After the late afternoon rain we used to go outside in look for the rainbow, my sister put her little candy sale business in my house's garage, my brothers played with paper boats and I went to my girl-friend neighbor to chat or to the bakery to buy sweet rolls just baked minutes before I got my hands on them.

That bakery was wonderful, dark, full of racks with bread and the big oven and the bakers covered with flour.

We played on the streets and went to the beach when my parents presumed it would be a nice day with little rain, otherwise we could have adventures (and we did) with the bad shape roads. Those stories for another day.

See the picture? those are my hometown surroundings.

Acampando

Nos fuimos de campamento con varias de las familias que componen el grupo de kinder de Bidane, incluyendo la maestra. Todo durante el pasado fin de semana, estuvimos en una localidad cercana a San Diego, llamada Mount Laguna.
Fueron dos noches, desde el viernes por la tarde hasta el domingo por la mañana.
Las niñas se divirtieron mucho, no pararon de jugar, correr, cantar y dejar su espiritu libre sin preocupaciones.

Bienvenida

Bienvenida Alondra. Cora, esposa de Eduardo (mi hermano), dió a luz a su segunda hija, nos da gusto que todo haya salido bien y las dos se encuentren en buen estado.

Art Night and Rainforest poetry

Creaciones artísticas de Bidane, arriba una señora de India -dice ella-, abajo junto a su dibujo colage, nótese que los ojos son bocas.

El grupo de Aitana, junto con niños de segundo, tuvieron una presentación artística sobre la selva, hicieron conciencia sobre la biodiversidad y la destrucción del hábitat.

Aitana participó en la poesía.

Féliz cumple papá

Papá y DalethMi papá cumple años y casi lo olvidaba, pero mi madre tuvo a bien recordármelo sin que él se diera cuenta... ojalá y disfruten los tamales.

My dad's birthday today.

Next movie...

Finally.... after months and months waiting to watch this movie I'll be able to do it! and than I can have my last veredict about the Oscar's nominated movies directed by mexicans. Pan's labyrinth is mostly a Spaniard production with some cooperation from México, Guillermo Del Toro, Director and the Artistic Director are mexicans, in fact this last one, won the Oscar.

Besides Babel, directed by Gónzalez-Iñarritu, is Children of Men directed by Alfonso Cuarón.

And... Yes.... "El marido está de regreso" or husband is home. So now I can share the next movie with him. When he is away I can see movies he never would watch, like "Devil Wears Prada" or The Queen. What I learnt from Meryl Streep's movie is that some shoes I own, are "ugly".... In the Queen, the guy that plays Tony Blair is almost his twin, and she is superb, great acting.

Nice banana.

Everybody could fix one of these hats and just charge for the banana, don't you think? Anyway, I have heard, do not use the blog as a therapist, but when you start to write in the intimacy, between you and your computer, you kind of forget...
There are days, some days when I just want to be brave enough to wear a hat with a banana and not care about what people think of me, that would make laugh my girls, at least Bidane would be thrilled. Or maybe just going "bananas" for a while.
I tell you... almost 5 weeks with no husband, running the house, the driving and everything my-self is affecting my spirits.
He is coming back soon, though.

Dos languages dos

Bidane is starting to read, now she can handle more than "pig or dog", but a lot of more words, like "paper or anybody". She loves Dr. Seuss books, she asks me to help her when she is "stuck".

For the english speakers that could sound a normal process of learning, but for me is much more, she learns, I learn.

I have to help with words that are not natural to me, and now I'm convinced the english is a language with "difficulties", -no offense- to read it, the child almost needs to memorize that see is see and sea is sea, you know? or that cross is cross instead of krs (like Bidane thinks).

I remember when I started to read, I could do it in a three months process, from september to december, by that I was able to write my Christmas letter, because in spanish one reads putting together one phonetic sound with a vowel, just five vowels sounds (all words have this combination at least once, like "si") and it is written as it sounds.

I did notice such confussion with Aitana, but she some way has a talent to write and soon she was over those difficulties, but Bidane, curious and logical as she is, she is starting to think that me is mee, becuase two e is e, in me too!( I know there is rule with ee that sounds "i" to my-self). When I say -me is me- she reacts like I'm crazy -by the way you don't speak english, mamá-, she possibly thinks.

You have to be a witness of our reading sessions, I say, "see is ver", "sea is mar"... And we don't start our spanish lesson yet...

There are some "danimals" looking your eyes...

What do the "danimals" (youghurt) want of me? -I asked Bidane- while she holding a pacakage of four danimals in front of me, and I was looking at the news in my computer... Well, she said, one of them wants to be eaten...I just thought that was cute from her.

Pokémon, quien da más?...

Miss Morgan's class (el salón de Bidane para hacernos entender), is engaged in some fascination about pokémon. They had a pokémon day weeks ago, of course the children had so much fun trading cards and negotiating about it, which is good for the skills they need to handle.
Bidane has a pack of cards that she got at school and it is her treasure.
Today we went to the thrift store (un bazar), Aitana & Bidane found a pokémon ball, they wanted it so much, -I said, O.K you can have it- It is just two dollars Aitana jumped excited. It was wrapped in a sealed bag, when shaked it, we knew somethig was in it. So finally after the whole day expecting and anxious to open it. -I used it as a reward to good behaviour-, we found, it was a collection card, "23 karat gold plated pokémon card".
I went to the internet and learnt its price is 10-50 dlls. It doesn't have a box, so according to my "Antique Road Show" training, probably it will worth inside the low range. This is the first time something like this happen to me, buying something collectible, thinking it is just more stuff to pick up from the floor.

Happy Birthday to U.

It is Bono's birthday, 47... If it wasn't for Bono, I would never get close to Pepe. At that time He (pepe) was one of a kind guy, he used to listen to U2 and one of the first movies we went together to watch, was Rattle and Hum, probaly he doesn't rememeber. And... the last date we had, happened when we went to see U2 in their San Diego concert, that exciment lasted until these days.
Anyway I like Bono, I admire Bono, love his songs, his voice, and his social responsible mind.

Para un dia de las madres.

May 10th is mother's day in Mexico, -Felicidades a mi madre, a mis tias, mi suegra, a mis cuñadas, to my friends-. The celebration starts at the night before, with "serenatas", husbands or children singing at the door (when there is no balcony handy) of some "lucky ones". Than, food, and cakes and presents, music... and at the end of the day a very tired woman fullfilled with lots of work (from the cooking and dishes) and love not given to her since Christmas.

But well, what reflexion comes to me with this M-day? Of course, the first one is that motherhood is a difficult task involving all kind of skills, that I don't know if I cover all of them. -possibly not-. Because, sometimes I get frustrated, I get angry and lost in the middle of my thoughts and questions to my-self, if I'm doing a good job with my two girls.

But as Frodo Baggings (from the Lord of the Rings), this task is appointed to me, and just me is the one that can do it!

For me having them both since the day of their birth, placed over my ached tummy, warm and still curled, crying with red faces, made me undestood that motherhood is more about them than me. That the woman they know as mamá was born that day too.
When Aitana was a little girl, I used to ask her: How did you do to be such a beuty inside of me? And she said, I did it alone.
Keep them warm, not hungy and happy, is all what they need. How? charge it to my bill girls, I'll figure it out!

Feliz Dia de las Madres!

Not flesh of my flesh.
nor bone of my bone but still miraculously
MY OWN
Don't ever forget, even for one single minute,
you didn't grow under my heart...
BUT IN IT.
Anonymous

Always Frida.

I been always an enthusiastic about Frida Kahlo, a "fan" for short. So, when I heard yesterday that Spenser Tunick (the phographer of collective nuditity), headed to la Casa Azúl, the Frida Kahlo museum and took pictures of 50-60 long-dark hair women, in the patio of the house, I just wished to be there.
Why this woman drags so much attention 50 years after her dead, like if our desire is that she would be alive?
Remember, this 2007 we celebrate her 100th birhday!

En cueros, encuerados, sin ropa.

Spencer Tunick, the photgrapher, went to Mexico City gathering 20,000 mexicans, most of them between 25-42 years old and no clothes on, all volunteers, wanting to be in one of his world-wide famous pictures.
The scenario is the main plaza of the city, called El Zócalo, the building with the sun behind is the Palacio Nacional, or the Goverment Palace, to the left the Aztec ruins of Templo Mayor (they are ground level), and some Colonial palaces and buildings at the back.

Foto de El Universal

Carrera por la literatura.

Si estuvo bien la carrera. Aunque entre tanto alboroto, ya no tomé fotos de la llegada triunfal.
Aitana se fue con Isabel, corrieron y corrieron. Bidane corrió unos pasos y luego dijo que le dolía la panza, que ya no quería seguir, pero seguimos y finalmente llegó.

Who is that girl?

I hope this picture is acceptable..., I think so... she looks fine, doesn't she?
Happy Birthday Caroline!
I put the picture in small size, just in case bdgirl is not happy with it, but always, you can click and see it enlarged!.

El pais está para enchiladas.

Ayer escuché comentarios acerca de que alguien en la Federación Internacional de Futbol Asociación (FIFA), dijo que si Sudafrica no está lista para llevar a cabo el Mundial del 2010, entonces México lo puede hacer.... Si, claro....
Creí entonces que era una cortesía de la FIFA, como decimos, nomás por no dejar y que en México dirian que no, gracias.
Ahora resulta que si, -que como no-. Bueno, como si el país entero estuviera para hospedar a miles de turistas de todo el mundo, la seguridad es de primera, los transportes son insuperables y por supuesto, los estadios son de vanguardia... Eso tal vez en el mundial del '70, porque ni en el '86 se presentaban esas condiciones.
A menos que los organizadores de la Copa del Mundo esten hartos de torear mexicanos borrachos, gritones y según ellos muy pachangueros. Y prefieran contenerlos en su propio territorio, a que anden haciendo destrozos en Inglaterra, Australia o España, en donde sí hay estadios en buenas condiciones, mejores servicios y seguridad....
Esa es la triste realidad, yo y muchos, quisieramos que México presentara condiciones insuperables en todos los áspectos, pero un Mundial es cosa grande.

Nueva temporada... a bailar!

Estamos en espera...

Mi hermano Eduardo, el chiquito, su esposa Cora e hija Paloma estan a punto de recibir en casa a la siguiente integrante, Alondra, quien nacerá en menos de un mes.

El turno para Bidane

Hoy fue el dia para que Bidane hiciera su presentación sobre mariposas en el bosque tropical húmedo. Para ello la maestra requirió que los niños construyeran un diorama. Aitana dibujó y pintó el fondo, yo hice los árboles, Bidane las flores y pintó la mariposa. La especie que escogió se conoce como King Swallowtail.

Exploradoras del bosque tropical y dia de la tierra.

El zoológico de San Diego es un buen lugar para ir a visitar algunos animales representativos del bosque tropical húmedo o como se dice Rainforest.

Casualmente las dos estan estudiando este habitat, cada una en su clase. Así que me pareció buena idea ir a sentirnos en ambiente.

Bidane comparte el sueño mañanero con el gorila

Aitana enconcontró en los tapires una historia que se volverá clásica en esta familia. Resulta que en tal exhibición, se acercó una mamá con un bebé, ella le sugiere al hijo: Say moooooo.

Finalmente el 22 de abril, Dia de la Tierra, fuimos al Balboa Park, para intervenir en el desfile, donde la escuela de las niñas participaba. Bidane decidió ir vestida de mariposa.

Historietas por Aitana

Como ya saben, Aitana es buena dibujante y le encanta escribir historias e ilustrarlas también. En este caso se le ocurrió empezar un proyecto sobre una historieta, cuando le dije que la publicaría en el blog, me contestó que todavía no, porque iba a hacer un libro. Mientras eso pasa aquí está un adelanto.

Para mis pulgas.

Este gato, cuyo nombre cambia cada vez que a las niñas ya no les gustó el anterior, (ahora se llama Señor Fuz); es un trabajo extra, que yo no necesitaba.
En primer término, le gusta acostarse en la silla que acompaña al escritorio de la computadora, y no importando nada, lucha y pelea por quedarse ahi. Ahora empieza a soltar pelos, que hay que estar limpiando para no convertirnos todos en una bola de peluza. Además pareciera que las pulgas son interminables, nada mas deja de usar el collar y aparcen para molestarlo y de paso a quien se encuentren en su camino.
Las relaciones entre el gato y Aitana son buenas, pero entre Bidane y el gato, son de arañazos y mordidas, sin embargo, ellas lo quieren... todo sea por la experiencia de la mascota.

Morena o Rubia?

Is that true? that men think a brunette woman has a better conversation that a blond one?

Bendita tu Luz.

En tiempos díficiles como éstos, especial para Lauren. Enjoy

I just liked the picture.

I wonder.... what Clinton (He) could be thinking?