That’s a picture of my Mom and me.  I’m her only child.  Our bond is unbreakable and as strong as a tsunami.  I think of what a wonderful parent she has been to me my whole life.  She raised me by herself and was a dedicated Mother who did her best to give me everything she could.  People always assume because I’m an only child I must have been spoiled.  I wouldn’t call it spoiled,  I would call it showered with love.  I didn’t grow up with a ton of toys but I did grow up with all of my Mom’s attention.  She always talked to me allowing open dialogue and valued my opinion.  She would recount stories to me of her youth and read me plenty of stories too.  I always remember her reading to me when I was a kid.  My Mom liked stories and she also appreciated good illustration. One of our all time favorite books to enjoy right before bed was an amazing book by the famed author Maurice Sendak called “In the Night Kitchen.”  It’s about a little boy named Mickey who finds himself in the surreal world of the Night Kitchen, when 3 bakers think he is milk and add him as one of the ingredients to make the morning cake.  Right before they are about to put the cake in the oven Mickey makes an airplane out of the dough and uses it to fly out of the cake and up to a big glass container of milk.  Then dives into the milk singing, and takes some of the milk from the container and pours it into the bakers batter so everyone can have cake in the morning. 

I think back on this book and wonder if it was one of the early influences that peaked my interest in baking?  I still love this book and find the illustrations to be close to perfection.  The picture of Mickey swimming in the milk pictured above is one of my favorites.  I am glad that I have found a new collection of modern books to read to my son that also involve milk and amazing illustrations.  Click here to download the books for free.  Who knows?  Maybe one of these books will not only encourage my son to drink milk before bed, which will help him sleep through the night, but they might also spark his interest in becoming an astronaut in search of the milky way or becoming a baker who will use milk in his cake recipe.

Disclosure: This is part of a sponsored campaign with the California Milk Processor Board and Latina Mom Bloggers. However, all opinions expressed are my own.

A few months ago I was having a really difficult time getting my 3 year old son Max to lay down and go to sleep at night.  I use to allow him to take these ridiculously long naps during the day because I knew he wasn’t getting enough sleep during the hours of darkness.  I was extra worried about his routine of broken sleep because I realized he was starting school and would need to be alert and functioning in order to learn.  That’s when the wires in my brain sparked and I said “No more long naps.”  From that point on I started skipping on the nap entirely or just allowed a 30 minute nap and started putting him in bed by 7pm with a warm cup of milk and a full belly.  This method worked so well for me, I still can’t believe it.  Max now sleeps 12 solid hours!  When before the most he would sleep was around 8 to 9 hours total.  That warm glass of milk is like a magic lullaby that has worked wonders for my son, and in turn,  he’s made such an incredible progress at school.

If you watch Telemundo or Univision you’ll see the cutest California Milk Board spot called “Ya es hora de ir a la cama” between 7p.m. and 9p.m. nightly, as a reminder to parents and children…. It’s Bedtime.  I love the spot so much, I just have to post it here for you all to see!

After I swooned over this spot, I could only hope my son’s nighttime REM sleep is as calming, animated, and imaginative.

Disclosure: This is part of a sponsored campaign with the California Milk Processor Board and Latina Mom Bloggers. However, all opinions expressed are my own.

What an exciting time!  The “Master of the Glass Half Full” (pictured above dressed in white) has befriended me and I am thrilled  to help him circulate his message as a “positivity ambassador.”  The Master of the Glass Half Full is a positivity guru on a mission to spread the philosophy of positivity across California.  I don’t know how he found me.  I think  a friend of a friend told him all about me and how much I love drinking milk.  He mentioned a gal told him how I was a firm believer in drinking  a warm glass of milk before I go to bed every night for a sound sleeping experience.  I guess she knew I need my 8 hours of sleep  in order to keep up with my emphatic  joie de vivre.  He then told me to start drinking 3 glasses a day, it makes for a pretty smile. All that calcium builds strong teeth and prevents cavities.  Now I could continue smiling all day long… a form of positivity.

Do you know the story of the Master of the Glass Half Full?  Let me give it to you in a nutshell.  Basically this guy, his real name is Simon Felix, was madly in love and the relationship went south.  His poor heart was shattered into smithereens.  Needless to say he had a hard time seeing life through rose colored lenses after that.  Best said he was now a pessimist.  One day he set out to leave his home town of San Mateo, California in search of self discovery.  During these travels he met an old wise sage.  The sage noticed his negative outlook on life, and decided he needed an uplifting change. The wise sage gave Simon Felix an old box, when he looked inside there was a crystal glass and a note that read “fill this glass with milk.” He followed the instructions and no matter how much milk he poured the glass never filled to the top, and once he started drinking out of the glass it never emptied pass the half way mark. It was permanently half full. The message became clear he would never see the world as half empty again because his glass was always Half Full!  The rest is history in the making. Simon Felix became the MASTER OF THE GLASS HALF-FULL, and is here in California to sprinkle his positivity all over the land.  Follow him on twitter here. Like him on Facebook here.

Let me show you my new friend.

Disclosure: This is part of a sponsored campaign with the California Milk Processor’s Board and Latina Mom Bloggers.