Twenty Years

Twenty years. It feels like a lifetime ago.

Twenty years ago on August 8th, 1992, Eric and I entered into a pretty serious contract.

Seriously. Any ceremony that specifically mentions "sickness," "poverty," and "death" as potential outcomes and non-deal-breakers cannot be entered into lightly.

Before entering into this covenant, we agreed (out loud) that divorce was not an option.

And so we entered in, with eyes wide open and agreed that we would hang in there through pretty much any eventuality. And we've managed to keep our commitment for the past twenty years.

Love, we have both learned is a choice. We have been making that daily choice to love through all the great stuff and all the difficulties and it has paid off. Ours is a marriage we're both proud of.

Eric & Marta

Today we celebrate the twentieth wedding anniversary of the day we entered into our bindingly scary contract. August the 8th was the day the English man married the Cuban girl and buckled in for the roller coaster ride of his life.

He'll tell you now that as frightened as he was, he was willing. And now that commitment is paying of greater dividends. With the crystal clear hindsight that comes from looking back, Eric will tell you that marrying the Cuban girl was the best choice he ever made.

And just look at all the dividends that we have reaped:

Darby Family

Our family is growing (welcome, Stephanie!) and we couldn't be happier.

I say it often, but I think it's quite appropriate today: I lead a charmed life. I do. Thank you, Eric. I can't imagine anyone else I would choose to make the scary commitment to. You have changed my life for the better. And have loved me and the kids unconditionally. What a gift.

Happy Anniversary, Honey. I thank God every single day for the blessings you have brought to my life. I hope we get to enjoy twenty more.

*Charmed life? Why yes, it is. Thanks for noticing.* ;-)

"Veinte años no es nada." ~ Gardel

Photo credit danshalaby.com

Cada Dia con Marta Maria

I have been blogging now for 4 years and I'm celebrating! (It seems I'm always celebrating something, but that's not important right now.)

I started this blog on October 1st, 2006. I never pictured I'd still be going four years later. Four years, people! I thought by now I would have run out of stuff to write about. But, obviously, I haven't.

This surprises me, too. I sit down most days at my keyboard and wonder what I'm going to write about and the keyboard stares back at me and says nothing. But then, I start looking at my photos. And I remember that behind every photo I take there's a story.

Every day, no matter how ordinary, has a story.

And that, my friends, is the secret to blogging. Just tell your stories.(<--This bit of advice right there is like gold. You're welcome.)

So won't you celebrate with me? Here's to:

  1. My Happy New Year.
  2. My Blog Birthday.
  3. My New Beginning.
  4. The First Day of the Rest of My Blogging Life.

MBFCF-mag-cover-4-for-web

I'm celebrating that I get to tell my stories everyday. I love that you seem to enjoy them. I love that they are saved for posterity. (Win-win.)

To celebrate I'm giving stuff away. (You love this part, don't you?)

Since there are so many of you who tell me that you start the day with your coffee and MBFCF (this pleases me, by the way) and that you like cooking with me, and it's my 4th Bloggiversary, I'm inspired to give away 4 fabulous items:

1) A My Big, Fat, Cuban Family Mug

Mbfcf mug

2) A Cafe Cubano Mug from CubaToGO!

Cafe cubano mug

3) A Marta's Cuban American Kitchen Apron

Cuban American kitchen apron

and of course,

4) A My Big, Fat, Cuban Family Cookbook

Mbfcf cookbook

To enter the drawing for a chance to win the above mentioned uber-cool MBFCF stuff, please leave a comment on this post and I'll do a random drawing on Monday, October 4th at 11 AM Pacific Time. 

A big thank you to all of you who keep reading about and relating to the misadventures of my big, fat, Cuban family.

I look forward to many, many more bloggy years.

Mil gracias. De todo corazón.

[Disclaimer: That's not a real magazine cover. But you knew that, right? =D]