Meet the Alvarez Family

Due to another issue with volunteers we had to cancel tonight.  Instead of getting super irritated, I chose to find the silver lining again.  But before I tell you about my silver lining, I want you to introduce you to the Alvarez family.

The Alvarez's are best friends with the Diaz family, that's how I met them.  The mom is Emilia, just like Isabella, I absolutely adore Emilia.  We joke around, a lot.  She's super sarcastic like me and it's great that it doesn't completely get lost in translation.

Emilia is a single mom who I admire so much.  In my line of work I see a lot of single moms.  Most of them work a lot and the older kids are left to take care of the younger.  Some of them are on welfare, some of them don't take the best care of their kids, and a few of them are exceptions to the stereo-type.  Emilia is one of the exceptions, she does not let her past dictate her future, she continually sacrifices herself for her kids, she works multiple jobs, but still spends hours with her kids.  She is involved in their lives, she knows what is going on with them, I'm pretty sure she never sleeps...

She has three kids who still live at home: Rafael, Grace, and Lucas; they are all enrolled in our programs.  I talked briefly about Rafael and Lucas yesterday.  Rafael is in high school, Grace is in middle school, and Lucas is in elementary.  I have a special bond with each of these youth and I try to spend individual time with each of them on a semi-regular basis, this is where the silver lining comes in.

Since I spent last night with Rafael and Lucas, I decided to spend time with Grace tonight.  I met Emilia at a school where Lucas was practicing with his basketball team and picked Grace up.  We went to go get some ice cream and had a blast catching up.

Grace is so flipping hilarious, she is spunky and sweet.  She's the best kind of pretty, the kind that doesn't realize how gorgeous they are.  She is a natural leader and is constantly looking out for those who are outcasts.  It was great to get to catch up and talk about the choices her friends at school are making.  I'm excited to follow-up with her and talk more about the choices we make.

After ice cream I took her home and hung out with Emilia and Isabella for a little bit.  We had some pretty interesting talks about politics, gun control, and current events.