Hospitality 101

Yesterday (Mother's Day) morning, I came downstairs and found this:

I'm glad they opted for the sit-down-in-the-dining-room breakfast because I'm so not the breakfast-in-bed type. Happily, my children learned this about me many, many Mother's Days ago. Don't get me wrong, I love breakfast. It's The Most Important Meal of the Day and all that. But in bed? Not so much. 

So my family made a Mother's Day Breakfast/Brunch for me yesterday. What I loved most (besides that they got up early and decorated and made that cool sign and set the table and that there were fresh flowers) was that when I saw all that they had done, I realized that they had learned it from me. 

I'm the one who has always insisted we use real plates and real napkins. That there be fresh flowers and serving dishes. That everyone has a place and that there be plenty of food.

I learned all of this, of course, from my own mother. And from the other amazing women in my family who are so skilled at the Art of Hospitality. Truthfully, I think hospitality is part of our Cuban DNA. Which is why it makes me so happy that my family stepped up in this way.

(The "hanging in space" letters, however, are mine. I used them to decorate back in December, see this post: Finding Joy. It was made with my Silhouette Machine, which was hijacked by Lucy to make this particular sign, but that's not important right now.)

I'm the one who usually does all these things. The Best Mother's Day Gift for me was that they had done it just like I would have. In this case, imitation truly was the best form of flattery.

There was the Cuban coffee, perfectly brewed and served by Amy. (Here's her video: How to Make Cuban Coffee With Killer Espuma. You're Welcome.)

Lucy made The Monkey Bread, which was, as always, a big hit. Here's the recipe: About the Monkey Bread or Rule Breaking 101.

Which left me free to enjoy all their efforts and bask in their love and feeling like maybe this motherhood thing was something I'd done pretty well.

And the Cuban Hospitality? Well, I am understanding that, like most life lessons, is something more caught than taught.

Good job, people. I think my job here is done.

Also, I love you, too.

Marta's Birthday Month®

I know.

Everyone else celebrates their birthDAY. And some clever folks even celebrate Birthday Week, which I did, too, until I said to myself, "Self, we should try to see if we can drag out this birthday celebration stuff for the entire month of May."

No, I don't really talk to myself that way....or maybe I do, but that's not important right now. ;-)

And so I scheduled coffee with friends and mani-pedis and saw movies and went to fun places and ate fabulous meals. And I celebrated. And celebrated. And it all made me happy.

So here's a recap of the fun stuff I got to do in the month of May, which will henceforth be known as Marta's Birthday Month®.

For starters, I got to bake in the Nestlé Kitchens in Glendale. I know. Shut up. I was beside myself with excitement. (More of that story plus a generous giveaway from Nestlé coming up later this week.)

Lucy and I went up to Universal City Walk and had dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, Buca di Beppo.

Then we got to attend a preview-screening of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. (Thanks, Disney Pictures!)

We saw it in IMAX 3D. Here we are looking appropriately nerdy in our 3D glasses. (Totally enjoyed the movie, by the way. And this is now the 2nd photo of me in 3D glasses that I've posted on my blog. Is this going to be a trend?)

And we just happened to be in L.A. on the Clearest, Most Beautiful Day Ever. (Incidentally, that's the Warner Brothers studio lot in the foreground. Do you recognize it from the beginning of WB films? Note to self: Take the WB Studio Tour one day very soon.)

All that piratey fun happened on the night of the full moon. (Which was sooo amazing and here I was trying desperately to capture the magicalness of the moment with my iPhone 4G, which I love, but which couldn't quite do the Magical Scene justice, but that's not important right now, either.)

Sometime this month I also made my famous Arroz con Pollo, which happens to be my favorite Cuban food on earth. (At least, when I make it.)

And we went out to breakfast a few times. Breakfast, by the way, is my favorite meal to eat out.

My beautiful and talented friend, Tamera took me out for coffee and let me choose a bracelet from her awesome new jewelry collection. She has finally started blogging and sharing her awesomeness with the world. (Yay!)

You can find her online at Tamera Beardsley.com. Go visit her blog and be prepared to be totally inspired by her incredible creativity.

Close up of the bracelet. It says: Live out loud. Yes, that's my plan. Thanks again, Tamera!

As if things just couldn't get more festive, my gladiolus finally bloomed.

And so did my Stairway to Heaven. Jonathan is 6'2". The bush tree is about 15 feet tall and blooming prolifically, which just makes me fall in love with it every single day.

We celebrated my (actual!) birthday with dinner with close friends.

And my BFF, Pam sent me this gorgeous necklace from Lisa Leonard Designs that I may or may not have been secretly coveting. (Love you MORE!)

And her granddaughter, CJ made me this cute video:
"The birds are angry because it's your birthday and not theirs." Isn't she adorable?

We enjoyed another breakfast (did I mention it's my favorite meal to eat out?) out in the canyon close to us. Seriously excellent home cooked meals. Particularly breakfast. =D

Eric and the kids chose these beautiful climbers for the arch in my white picket fence. (Note: we have been looking for and not having any luck with finding a hardy climber to do what I want it to do, but that's not important right now, either.)

It's called Piñata. Isn't that apropos for a birthdaymonth gift?

My friend, Wanda got me these gorgeously intricate measuring spoons. I promptly announced that I would hang them in my kitchen, to which she replied that I must actually use them. Often.

I kind of have to work through that concept of actually using cool things in my real life. (Anyone else struggle with this? No? Never mind...)

Of course I got a pedicure. That goes without saying.

Plus I got lots of Birthday Love on Facebook. (If you don't already, please feel free to "like" My Big, Fat, Cuban Family on Facebook.)

All in all, Marta's Birthday Month® (Wait! Is that an oxymoron?) was a huge success.

I feel very loved and very cherished.

And I've managed to celebrate my fifty-six years in epic form.

Did I mention I lead a charmed life? ;-)