The pleasure's all mine cuz we have seen good times, It's our ANNIVERSARY!!!

A little Tony, Toni, Tone to start this wonderful day off.

Seven years ago today I married the love of my life, Chaka! We decided to head to Vegas and jump the broom while visiting his parents during the holidays. It was a short and sweet ceremony with my brother (who was 13 at the time) as our witness. Probably the most impulsive thing that I will ever do in my life and by far the best thing (besides having my kiddies).

Ya know how some people say they just know when they have met the love of their life, that was me, I knew. After our first date back at "the"Ohio State University (GO BUCKS!), I called my mom and said that I had met my husband. She remembers the call and jokes about it to this day because the conversation was followed by a lecture about birth control. (I love that my mom is so direct)

Chaka and I have shared such an awesome journey and we have come so far since those days back in Columbus. He truly is my best friend and provides great balance (and comic relief) to my otherwise very serious persona. Today is a day for me and my boo! CHEERS! to us for making it this far, Lord knows it wasn't easy;-) I really look forward to growing old with you and lotionin' your ashy feet when you can not reach them (WINK WINK, SMILE SMILE)

Love ya !!!!

Happy Birthday to ya, Happy Birthday!!!!

I must start by sending warm birthday wishes to mi papa!!! Without his support and generosity, Harmony would still be a dream deferred. I wish I could be with you today to celebrate but I know that we will see you soon. We send you lots of hugs and kisses and most of all peace on your special day. Love ya much Dad.

I am still up b/c I had a diet coke after 1 pm. I know better but I really needed a kick this afternoon. I was dragging and knew that I needed a small jolt to get everything done today with the kids home. Now I am paying the price. It never fails. If I drink anything with caffeine after 1pm, I am up all night. This came in really handy during my college years and especially in the R&D world when I had to do production test runs on new products. These usually occur in the middle of the night when food manufacturing slows down because it doesn't cost the plant much to run a test if a production line is not being used. I can honestly say that the one thing that I miss the most about my former job is testing new product formulations. Watching a product being made in a food plant has always fascinated me. I remember my first internship at the Nabisco Philadelphia Bakery back in the 90's. I was in charge of the fudge covered Oreo line and loved every min. of that summer. Think of the show Unwrapped, I got to make America's favorite cookie and cover it in fudge! I always thought that it was so cool that a food scientist actually got paid to test their formulas in a food plant. Some R&D folks hate going to plants, but for me there will always be a thrill in taking something from the lab and scaling it up in a manufacturing plant. I get the same thrill when I create a new cupcake flavor. My kitchen is my lab and I suppose that Harmony's kitchen will be like the plants that I made so many products in over the years, but MUCH better (and cleaner). Don't get me started about food plant sanitation and GMP's (good manufacturing practices); after all that I have seen, it's a wonder that I still eat.

Well, I guess the caffeine will come in handy when I am working true bakers hours.

I am going to try and get some sleep. We meet with the architect at our location tomorrow morning and I want to make a good impression.

Sweet dreams.

Kwanzaa - A celebration of family, culture and community

I grew up celebrating Kwanzaa in the late 70's. We were one of the first families (in Philly) to incorporate this celebration into our holiday tradition every year. Each child in the family was given one of the 7 principles of Kwanzaa to recite and understand its meaning. One of my fondest memories is hearing our family on a local radio station reciting the 7 principles. I think that this celebration is one of the reasons why I was able to stay grounded while being educated at some of the most elite institutions in the Philadelphia area. I thank my mom for taking the time to celebrate this part of my culture that really helped to build my self-esteem.

As an adult, I have been able to teach my children the importance of valuing their ancestors while celebrating their diverse background by celebrating Kwanzaa.

I will share with you the Nguzo Saba - the 7 principles of Kwanzaa- as the celebration continues through the 1st of the year.

Habari gani? (the greeting)

Umoja (Unity)- The first principal of Kwanzaa.

To strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation and race.

Tomorrow is Kujichagulia (Self-Determination), my principle growing up and by far my favorite. More to come tomorrow.....

Check out www.officialkwanzaawebsite.org if you would like to learn more about Kwanzaa.

Peace.

It was a Wonderful day in the city......

Well, Christmas has come and gone. The kids were very excited and enjoyed Christmas morning. We made lots of memories and ate lots of treats. Family was greatly missed this year though. This is the first year that we have not spent the holidays with our parents. It was different just like this past year. Great things are brewing for '08 though. I can't wait to see how everything unfolds.

I am out for now, my Mamacita (Chaka's mom) is coming from Cali tomorrow and I must prepare for her visit.

More to come............

Happy Kwanzaa!!!!!!!!!