Then till Now

Wow, I can’t believe my last update was December 16, over a month and a half ago. Just when I was starting to get good about posting more often, I fell off the wagon. Sorry to all of my loyal readers. Just think of it as I gave you a LONG holiday vacation from reading. Now that we are a month into the New Year, it’s time that I get back on the saddle, so here I go. Giddy up!

As always, the holidays were crazy, fun and busy. Some of the highlights were:

It was the first year that I sent out my own holiday cards. I typically am included in my parents’ card, but since I’m on my own this year, I decided to go ahead and send everyone a card from NYC. I also received quite a few cards from family and friends which was really great because I love getting mail (other than bills!)

I went Christmas shopping in the city, which was quite the experience. I know shopping around the holidays is crazy no matter where you are, but shopping in the city was insane. I felt so overwhelmed and claustrophobic so I went in, got what I needed to get and got the heck out!

I watched the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting on TV and then Alex took me (and his daughter and his daughter’s friend) to see the tree a few days later. It was spectacular. I know it looks big on TV, but let me tell you, that tree is huge. It was a really fun night that started out by going to Rock Center, eating street vendor honey roasted peanuts, then was proceeded by touring the famous St. Patrick’s Cathedral and driving to Pelham Parkway to see amazing Christmas light displays.

Alex & me in front of the Rock Center Christmas Tree

The most elaborate Christmas light display I've ever seen

Nativity Scene portion of the light display

Katy and I threw a little Going Away/Holiday Party the weekend before Val left. We had snacks and drinks at the house and then headed to a local bar for a few going away shots. It was super sad to see Val go, but I’m so glad I got to spend 4 awesome months with one of my best friends in NYC. Our roomie experience is something I will never forget.

Val's Going Away / Holiday Party

Val is basically a hunk magnet! ;-)

Going Away Shot (#2 I think)

My friends Irina was in town from Switzerland!

My company holiday party, Patch the Halls, was the Tuesday before I left for holiday vacation and turned out to be a fun night. I was on the planning committee so I was doing a bit of behind the scenes stuff, but I still managed to have a good time.

Patch the Halls Holiday Party

The morning after the holiday party, we all (Blake, DJ, Val & I) woke up at 6:00am to embark on our journey back to Kansas. We met up with my Tio Martin in Jersey then headed west. This was my first ever road trip and let me tell you, after approximately 22 hours on the road, it might be my last. My Tio and I took turns driving so it honestly wasn’t too bad. I was so excited to arrive at my parents’ house, but considering it was around 3:30 in the morning, all I really wanted to do was hit the sack.

I spent my first full day back in Kansas by partaking in holiday traditions. I baked Banana Nut Bread with my mom, wrapped Christmas presents, and spent time with my family – my absolute favorite thing to do in the world!

Before I knew it, Christmas Eve was upon us and as always, the Zarate clan celebrated with brunch and opening gifts. Sitting around the table, then the fire with my Grandma, parents, sisters, brother-in-laws, niece and nephews was more special to me this year than any other year. The pics tell the story.

Jaxson & Adurina at Christmas Eve brunch

Carson rocking his new KU hat and chair

Jax & Aunt Wesa

Drina & Mina Sesa

Carson & Auntie Lisa

3 of my favorite people in the world!

I went to Christmas Eve mass with my family then we all headed to my Abuela’s. As always, we ate, drank, played games, chatted and stayed up until midnight waiting for Santa Claus to arrive. Once he did, we began opening gifts and sharing memories until the wee hours of the morning.

Cousinly love on Christmas Eve

Because my mom’s family does the Starks Holiday Party – a celebration of Thanksgiving and Christmas in early December – we no longer have Christmas Day on my mom’s side of the family, which is why my Christmas day was spent resting and relaxing. I stayed home with my mom and dad watching Christmas movies and let me tell you, it was lovely. I, of course, am sad that I had to miss the Starks Holiday Party and I can’t wait to see my mom’s side of the family again in 2011.

I spent the few days after Christmas and before New Years spending time with my family and friends. I, of course, soaked up Jaxson, Audrina and Carson as much as I possibly could. I just couldn’t get enough of them so I took hundreds of pictures, proof below!

Lovable Jaxson

Princess Audrina

Sweet baby Carson

The next thing I knew, Alex was on a plane to Kansas City. I was so excited for him to meet my family and get to know more about where I come from. He was only in town for 4 full days, but let me tell you, it was go, go, go the entire time. I wanted him to see as many people and places as he possibly could in such a short time frame. He got to spend New Year’s Eve at the annual Zarate NYE bash. We had fun talking, dancing, drinking, chatting, and playing beer pong with family and friends.

Alex & I at Allen Field House - A Kansas trip must see!

Alex & I on New Year's Eve

My parents dancing on NYE - aren't they so cute!

On New Year’s Day Alex and I ate a delicious barbeque lunch with my mom. I just couldn’t have Alex leave Kansas without tasting some delicious KC BBQ. That night we met up with my girlfriends and their boyfriend’s for dinner on the plaza and then went double date bowling with Blake and Val. Although I’m sure Val is going to hate me for pointing this out, but Alex and I won both games of bowling! ;-)

After almost 2 weeks in Kansas, the first Sunday in January came and it was time for Alex and I to hop on a plane back to New York. It is always hard to say goodbye, but this time was really difficult. I think it was a combination of a couple of different things. 1) I visited for so long this time and got used to being home that leaving was harder. 2) As the kids get older, it is harder and harder to leave them because they understand that I’m not coming back for a while. 3) I know the longer I live in NY, the more my sisters and parents find it difficult to be without me and it breaks my heart. The good news is, I am very good about visiting so I fight the tears with the thoughts that I will be home again soon. And it’s true, my flight is already booked for a trip home in April for Easter! Having a concrete date in my mind of when I will be home again makes being gone easier for both my family and me. I am already looking forward to Spring!

Well that brings me into the New Year and I have a great feeling about what 2011 has in store. I will catch you up on January in my next post, and I promise it won’t be months from now! ;-)

November came and went

Much like October, November was a busy month. It started out fabulous as my 23rd birthday was the first Friday in November! I got off work at 3:00pm, went to get my hair cut and styled, then headed home to find a nice surprise. Alex was at my apartment and when I walked in the door, he was walking down the hallway with a cake, candle lit, singing Happy Birthday! It was so sweet. He also gave me my birthday present, which was a brown pair of Ugg boots. I had mentioned to him once that I had fake black ones because I couldn’t justify paying full price for real ones so he took it upon himself to get me real ones for my bday. One of the things I love about Alex is that he is so thoughtful. He’s also a really good listener and will remember things that I say months after I say them. We put the ice cream cake in the fridge, got ready and then headed to dinner. It was a nice candle lit dinner at a restaurant in the trendy meatpacking district of Manhattan. Afterward we headed to the Upper West Side to meet Blake, Val, and Katy at a Latin-American club. We spent the night sipping on drinks and dancing to both American and Spanish music. Another thing I love about Alex is that he is a great dancer. He taught me a thing or two about salsa and we did our fair share at the club until the wee hours of the morning.

Alex and Me at Columbus 72 on my Birthday

At the club celebrating my bday

Saturday rolled around and the roommates and I began preparations for our Housewarming Party. Katy spent most of the day in the kitchen making tasty treats while Val and I cleaned every inch of our apartment. Woj (Katy’s friend), Katy, Blake, Val, Alex, and I enjoy drinks and conversation until our guests starting arriving around 8:00pm. Throughout the night there were about 20 people in and out of our apartment. Many guests brought wine, which was nice, and overall it was a success. Between Friday, Saturday and a nice relaxing Sunday, I had a great birthday weekend.

Roomies! :)

Housewarming treats

Me, Val, and a friend and co-worker Kirsten

Tio Marty, Alex and Me at the Housewarming Party

Monday morning came way too soon as I had to wake up at 4:00am in order to head to JFK to catch a flight to San Francisco for a work conference. After a 6-hour flight, I landed and the conference began. My long lost roomie, Jacey who just moved to San Fran, and 2 of her friends were able to join me for drinks Monday night and I met up with her again Tuesday evening after the conference ended. Before I met Jacey for dinner, I headed to Union Square to catch a Cable Car to Fisherman’s Wharf to get a glimpse of the Golden Gate Bridge. Unfortunately, just as I got on the Cable Car, it started raining. Due to it getting dark pretty early and with the foggy rainy ugliness, I wasn’t able to see the famous bridge very well, but it was still a nice little adventure. I jumped back on the Cable Car and headed to the Metro in order to take a train to Jacey’s new apartment. It was nice to see her new digs, but really made me realize how much I miss her in NYC. Jacey, 2 of her friends, and myself enjoyed drinks and dinner before I headed back to my hotel for a short night’s sleep as my car back to the SFO airport was at 5:00am in order to catch an early NYC flight.

My first trip to the West Coast

San Francisco

Fisherman's Wharf

Cable Car ride

The weekend after I returned from San Francisco, Val’s mom and sisters were in town so we had a full house. It was nice to catch up with the Gunn girls and as Val details in her blog - Life Through Val's Eyes - they had a nice weekend in the city.

At the beginning of November I joined the Park Slope YMCA. It is literally 1 block away from my apartment and with it getting too cold to jog outside, I had no excuse but to join and start working out more. There was a November special when I signed up – free 12 week program with a personal trainer – so of course I took advantage. I met with my personal trainer to establish goals and a work out regime that works for me and I continue the program on my own until our bi-weekly sessions at which time we up the ante. I try to hit the gym at least 3 times a week, but sometimes that’s difficult with work and the various holiday events going on. I absolutely love the holidays, but I hate the winter weight gain and I’m hoping I can avoid any permanent damage this year! The way I look at it, I already made the first step by joining a gym, now I just have to stay motivated to go, which of course is the hard part. I have the best of intentions and once I get to the gym, I’m all about it, but it’s the getting there part that I’m not too great at. I find it easy to find excuses not to go, but I’m really trying hard to catch myself in the act and overcome my, let’s just face it, laziness! I’ll keep you posted on how "Project Get Fit" goes.

November 15 would have been my Abuelo’s 80th Birthday and the first my family had to celebrate without him. The Sunday before, my family made a visit to his grave and then had a family gathering at my Abuela’s house. I obviously wasn’t able to attend, but was there in spirit as I thought about my grandfather all day. It was definitely one of those days I really wished I had Dorothy’s famous ruby red slippers so I could tap 3 times to return to Kansas to be with my family. It was a bit difficult to deal with on my own considering I am the type of person who likes to talk (imagine that) as it makes me feel better and allows me to cope easier. Instead, I spent most of Monday evening in my room thinking about all kinds of memories. I laughed to myself and cried myself to sleep that night. I woke up Tuesday morning feeling a little bit better, but it didn’t last too long. You see, every holiday season my mother and I bake several loafs of Banana Nut Bread together and share it with our family and friends. Every year, my Abuelo would hide almost an entire loaf so he could have it for himself to eat with his coffee in the mornings. It was exactly one week after his birthday that I was in my kitchen preparing this bread for a Thanksgiving potluck at work when I broke down and began sobbing on my kitchen floor. The thought of my Abuelo not being alive to enjoy my holiday bread this year was heart wrenching. I sobbed for 10 minutes, got it out of my system, and once I felt better again, I continued baking. Believe it or not, having a good cry always makes me feel better. My family and friends tend to joke that I’m overly emotional, and let’s face it, they are probably right, but one, I can’t help it and two, if it makes me feel better then why not?

My Banana Nut Bread turned out great and my co-workers enjoyed it the next day at our potluck. I left the office on Tuesday to make more Banana Nut Bread (yes, me in the kitchen 2 nights in a row, possibly a miracle), but this time for Thanksgiving Day. I didn’t have a breakdown this time, but I did get a little emotional as I thought about this wonderful tradition that I usually share with my mother. As I cracked the eggs, mashed the bananas, added the various ingredients and stirred the mixture, my mother was not only not in my kitchen, but thousands of miles away. Again, it’s times likes this I wish I had the ruby slippers. It was the very first time I made our bread on my own so you can understand my sadness.

Side Note: Mom, I love you so much and I can’t wait to come home this Christmas so we can make our Banana Nut Bread TOGETHER!

It’s never easy living in another state far away from your family, but it’s even more difficult celebrating a holiday without them. Sadly, this wasn’t my first Thanksgiving without my family. Two years ago I spent Thanksgiving in Spain, but luckily three of my uncles were visiting me that weekend so I wasn’t completely alone. I was fortunate again this year as Alex and his family adopted me for Thanksgiving. My roommate Katy went back home to Virginia, Val headed to her Grammy’s house in Boston and I stayed in the city to spend Thanksgiving with Alex. We had a huge Puerto Rican feast and spent the holiday with the 3 F’s: Family, Friends, and Football! ;-) I of course missed my family like crazy and wished I was spending Thanksgiving with them in Kansas, but spending time with Alex and his family was definitely the next best thing. We had a really nice time and throughout the day I reflected on how lucky I am and how many things I have to be thankful for.

I’m so thankful to have such a wonderful family who loves and supports me no matter what I do. I’m thankful they are all happy and healthy. I’m thankful for the most precious niece and nephews I could ever ask for. I’m thankful for wonderful friends. I’m thankful to have a good job. I’m thankful I’m happy, healthy and have been granted so many wonderful opportunities in my life. I’m thankful for an amazing, thoughtful boyfriend who cares about me so much. And among so many other things, I’m thankful to live in a place where freedom rings.

The month of November came and went so quickly, but I enjoyed every minute of it. As we head into the heart of December, I have so much to look forward to, including and most importantly, a trip back home!