Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Families.
Money Cake
My grandparents didn't have a lot of money, maybe that's why as an adult I remember this so well. I was pretty young, maybe turning seven and it was my birthday. We happened to be at my grandparent's little two bedroom, one bathroom house in Idaho Falls and I remember it being cold. Like the kind of cold that makes you leave your car running at the gas station while you're filling up kind of cold. Of course that isn't unusual for South-Eastern Idaho, the wind seldom stops blowing and it is legit winter for about nine months out of the year- but that's beside the point. The point is, that I was at Grandma and Grandpa's house for my birthday!! And as a little girl I couldn't be more thrilled.
By Amber Nelson6 years ago in Families
Shish Kabob
Meynardo and Lourdes Mendoza were the epitome of the American Dream. Immigrating (legally) from the Philippines during the Lyndon B Johnson era to America with nothing in their pocket except their medical degrees. Heck, they didn't even know each other yet when they began their residencies at that small hospital in Queens, NY. They were terribly homesick for their families, friends and culture but they knew that their success meant that their poor families back home would survive. Eventually Meynardo Mendoza would meet Lourdes Arquiza during their shifts at the hospital. They quickly fell in love and got married. Lulu (Lourdes nickname) soon became pregnant. Mey (Meynardo's nickname) was overjoyed with Lulu with the thought of the birth of their first son in America. What would the name the boy? They didn't want their first born to feel out of place at school with a typical Filipino first name like Carlos or Mario. They wanted a typical American name. One day while Mey and Lulu were at a greeting card store, they saw a rack with minitature license plates displaying childrens names on them. Presumably to be put on the back of a new bicycle. Thats when they saw it! "Melvin". Mey was a huge fan of 40's and 50's music as well the movies from the same period. Melvin was the first name of show business trifecta Mel Torme who acted, sang and composed. "Melvin Mendoza, what a great name"! they both agreed. Mind you, this is New York in the 60's. Melvin was far from being typical especially later on in little Melvin Mendoza life. Mey and Lulu started acheiving success in their medical careers and decided it was time to leave their little one bedroom basement apartment in Jamaica, Queens and head to the country life of Long Island (well, it was kinda the country in the early 70's). They bought a new construction 4 bedroom 2 1/2 bath home in Suffolk County with plans to move their own parents from the Philippines in with them. They purchased the home for $30,000. It was a normal tradition for the grandparents to move in to help take care of the grand children while the parents are working. As Melvin began nursery school (pre-school) he quickly learned that his name definitlely did not blend in. The neigborhood that his family moved to was mostly of Italian and Jewish families. "Hi, my name is Melvin" was usually followed by snickering and laughter. "What? Your name is Smellvin"? many of the kids would joke. The next question was always "Are you Chinese or Japanese"? Unfortunatley, most kids at that time had never heard of another country named Philippines. Melvin had a hard time making friends back then. Who wants to play with an Oriental kid with a werid name. Then it happened. An unassuming extremely thin boy with thick glasses named Abe said "I'll play with you" Melvin and Abe found an empty table full of Lincoln Logs to build an imaginary fort. Little did they know that this friendship would eventually span over 50 years. Later that evening, Melvin walked into the kitchen. Lulu and Lola (grandmother in Filipino) were placing large amounts of beef peices into a large pan to be marinated over night for Shish Kabob for the weekend barbecue. All the relatives that immigrated after Mey and Lulu were roadtripping from Queens to Long Island for one of many Mendoza back yard get togethers. Melvin was excited to tell about his new best friend Abe. Before he could get the word out, Melvin's mother said, "All your Tita's (aunts), Tito's (uncles) and cousins are coming in this weekend for the barbecue to celebrate that your going to have a baby brother and he is going to have an American name just like you! His name will be Maynard!
By Mel Mendoza6 years ago in Families
Is Halloween 2020 Canceled?
Halloween in 2020. Is Halloween Canceled This Year? With all of the recent events in the world; between the pandemic, craziness, and violence that fills our cities and towns, we have to seriously ask this question. That question is, will we even have a Halloween this year? Obviously; the day itself will still roll around, but will October 31st still look like the holiday that many of us so love? Will there be kids trick or treating? Will people leave their houses to buy candy to give out? Can we even trust anything that is given by strangers? I hope so.
By Timothy A Rowland6 years ago in Families
The Life and Family Tree of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Joan Ruth Bader was born on March 15th, 1933 in Brooklyn, New York to Nathan Bader and Celia Amster. She had an older sister, Marylin who died from Meningitis when she was just six years old.
By Bradley Greenland6 years ago in Families
Babee
Up until this point, it's been much preparation for the arrival of our baby. We painted the room and decorated it in a Dr. Seuss theme throughout. There's Horton here, Who there, and The Cat in the Hat brightly shines down from above. One fish here, Green Eggs, an Eye, The Grinch, an Ear, a Wocket, and a book I had never even heard of called, "The King's Stilts". We found it on Ebay; it's from 1939. It isn't written in Dr. Seuss or even Geisel style, but it is fascinating. All in all, we have a hundred or better books in this room already. We have many hundreds of trinkets and toys-some cool retro stuff, as well-for Elsee to train her mind with when she get here.
By Vincent Maertz6 years ago in Families
ASTONISHING AND SPECTACULAR BATTERY CAR FOR CHILD
Children’s love for toys is unconditional, and when those toys turns out to be ride-on, they are icing on the cake, especially when it comes to Boys, they are die-hard fan of ride-on cars. Children love to have cars and even dream to ride one when they will be adult but it takes a lot of time to be an adult, so do you want to fulfill their dream even when they are child? If yes, then you can do that easily as BTL Toys is here, with their amazing yet stylish battery car for child.
By Badnam Kuru6 years ago in Families
Aunts
Aunts...by definition, your mom or dad's sister, the wife of your uncle, or a particular person you give respect and affection to by dubbing her thus. They come in all shapes and sizes, attitudes and dispositions, but they are yours for a reason! I was lucky to have five special women I called "aunt."
By Shirley Belk6 years ago in Families
