Okay, I don't know why I was thinking about this earlier today… but my abuelita still does a lot of things for me. And I don't mean the usual nice, sweet grandma stuff. I mean that the woman still, in her old age, enjoys not only helping me out in any way that she can but she even takes on random little things around the house. You know, the thing of things that a grown woman such as myself should be able to do. And, I mean, I technically CAN do them. But my abuela loves doing them so much, that I just let her go at it. I should probably be a bit more ashamed, but I'm just not. Here's what I STILL let my abuela do for me.
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1. Cook for me: Whose Latina grandmother doesn't like to cook for them? My abuela not only cooks for me all the time, but she sometimes sends me home with so many leftovers that my fridge is crammed full of abuela's congri, frijoles negros, lechon asado and more. She even occasionally sends me home with marinated Cuban steak so that I can make it fresh when I'm back in my apartment.
2. Hem my clothes: Okay, this is possibly one of the laziest things I'm going to ever admit… but, despite being able to handle a needle by myself and, you know, living in a city where they have professionals that do this sort of thing, I still ask my abuela to hem things for me sometimes. Hey, I'm a short girl (5'2" to be exact) and sometimes I buy a dress or pants that just won't work until my grams fix them up.
3. Send me cards: This one just seems wasteful more than anything to me, but my grandma still sends me cards every year on my birthday. And, yes, I do keep them. But to be honest, I never really look at them after the fact. I love getting cards in my email because it's just a quick look and you're done. But getting those cards from abuela and then keeping them for years… well, that's another kind of special.
4. Deep clean: Well, currently my abuela does this for my mom more than for me (abuela lives in Texas, mom in Florida and I'm in New York), but you should see the way the house sparkles after she leaves! And it's not that my mom even asks for her help (and neither do I!) but grandma knows how to get every nook and cranny that I didn't even KNOW needed cleaning, like the kitchen cabinet doors. WHAT?!
5. Fix the sheets: Okay, maybe this is just a quirk of my grandmother's, but she loves to put an elastic at the bottom of absolutely ALL of our fitted sheets at home. In fact, she has been doing this for years. All of my sheets in my own house, in my mother's house and even my brother's college sheets are outfitted with those elastic straps on all four corners, to help hold the fitted sheet in place. It's seriously genius.
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Do you still let your abuela do things for you? What kind of things has she done (or does) for you in the past? Share with us in the comments below!
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