Goodbye Big Sister Diaries Blog....Hello Love First <3

Welcome to Love Month.

What better month to announce the new direction of this Blog!

If you've been with me since day one- you know I launched my blog in October 2015 and called it Big Sister Diaries (BSD). I published 56 articles about family, hosting, growing up latina with 11 siblings, and anything culture and marriage related that I wanted to share.

The blog was a platform to tell stories and experiences that were burning inside me to write about.

Growing up, my mom would tell the story of my first day of pre-school. I was an only child at the time. Upon meeting my classmates, she says I embraced them all and referred to them as "my kids" all year long. I wanted brothers and sisters so badly that I took on the role of big sister in the classroom all on my own. Over the years, I accumulated 11 actual siblings and the role was a natural one for me. 

When I launched my blog and called it BSD, there was no other name suited for my blog as I could see it. Identifying as a big sister was my defining role, my purpose in life. I lived to protect, mentor, share lessons, and inspire. 

Over the last year, I had to learn a tough lesson that challenged me to my core. My siblings, all in their twenties, are making choices I don't necessarily always agree with. Go figure! I can't punish them or tell them what to do. I can't give them unsolicited advice without being challenged. I can't save them. And guess what, I don't know everything! Ha! Another lesson.

I had to learn to let go and learn that they need to live their life. And I had to figure out who I am if not the parental figure role that I had adopted. The heartbreak that comes with that realization, well....let's just say it was a hard truth to learn.   

Let's get something straight- I will always be big sister Rosy. They're my kids, no matter how old they get. But I had to re-learn who Rosy is besides a sister. So I stripped off all those other important roles in my life too- wife, daughter, friend, etc. to get down to the center of my being. 

My journey last year was about this- explore being my true self. What do I like to do when I don't put others before me? What do I want? (not in a selfish way, but in a healthy way).

Did I master this? *Insert laughter* Absolutely not!
Am I still working on this? Yes!!  

What I discovered in this new experience, is that underneath it all, when you dust off pain, anger, and constant sweeps of ego, at the center of all of that is heart and love. 

My blog is now called- LOVE FIRST!

Love First is a reminder to choose Love (key word- reminder). Choose love first and lead with love. I'm not sure this can be mastered, so I will aim for improvement for now :). 

The Love First Blog, will be content inspired with tools to practice being healthy and loving (inward and outward). 

You can expect to get an email from me once a month, twice if I'm feeling particularly ambitious. 

Thank you, humbly, for following along this journey. Let's stay connected, because I want to follow your journey too!