When Alex Blanchard was fifteen, she moved from Caracas, Venezuela, to Madison, Wisconsin. While that was a challenging chapter in her story — learning a new language as she navigated high school — it was one she faced with her signature upbeat spirit that she now brings to her blog, Mamacita Diaries.
Alex, who also works as a mortgage loan originator, recently moved to Brookfield with her husband David — a dentist in the Milwaukee area — and their toddler Gabriela Sofia. She shares more about her life and family!
How did you and your husband meet?
This is actually a funny story. We went to the same high school, same class, at Madison Memorial. I knew of him — and had a crush on him — but our paths never crossed because I was so new there. I think I even cheered for one of his hockey games! Then in our late twenties, after long relationships, we met online. Funny enough, he was staying at his parents’ house about five minutes from my apartment.
What do you like most about living in Brookfield?
We are close to most things — about an hour from Madison, twenty-five minutes from downtown Milwaukee, about an hour from Chicago and closer to our family cabin in Michigan. Oh, and Target is within walking distance!
Please tell us about Mamacita Diaries! Why did you start this account and blog and what have they meant for you?
Mamacita Diaries started about two years ago with the goal of sharing real motherhood moments. It’s grown into sharing our lifestyle, tips and tricks and affordable easy fashion and beauty. Dave came up with the name “Mamacita” — that’s what he called me and I called him “Papacito.” It has evolved to “Sito” and “Sita” and that’s literally what we shout across the rooms when we are calling each other. Both are meant as terms of endearment.
What are your favorite things to do together as a family?
We love traveling and exploring new places. Our most recent trip as a family to Door County was magical! We truly loved it and will make it an annual family trip. We also love trying new foods and restaurants and finding new outdoor adventures. We also love coming to Madison to visit Grandma and Grandpa B!
What’s a typical winter weekend like for you guys?
Dave is a pretty active skier and skater, so I’m sure this year we will be taking Gabi with us — at least to play in the snow. We also love going to our gym, which provides us with an indoor pool, and Gabi loves to swim.
What is your daughter most into at this age?
She loves outdoor activities and swimming. As far as toys, she loves doing activities at home. We have an activity table and we try to create sensory bin activities, drawing and painting supplies and stickers! We also like to get her involved when we cook and she has so much fun — but it’s quite messy.
Please tell us about being a multigenerational household!
Oh boy, where do I begin? First let me share with you who lives with us: My grandmother Mamina and my mother Ana. There’s mostly positives but it can have some minor annoyances. We were all raised in different times and sometimes their input is a little different than what we would like to do. For example, we just finished daytime potty training and Gabi had to be basically naked from the waist down for a few days — Great Grandma did not like that very much. We got through it and I explained to her why, and she’s always on board with how we want to do certain things. It’s amazing to have my grandma, though. She’s extremely helpful and we are so lucky to have her with us. We feel really blessed that we were able to get her out of Venezuela, too. The situation there is not good at all and we believe she wouldn’t be able to survive there alone at this time.
There’s never enough time to do everything, so what do you prioritize as a family? What do you always make time for?
We always make time for each other. Our priority is Gabi and keeping her busy with learning and with physical activities.
What three words best describe your family?
Multicultural, affectionate, lively.
What are the most important things to teach your daughter?
We believe that today’s world needs more kindness and acceptance. It’s super important to me that she accepts everyone for who they are. We want her to be kind and gentle with all creatures and to love, respect and value everyone, especially those with different views or opinions. We want to teach her to value family and the time we have with them. Lastly, we want her to know that she can dream of anything and with hard work and dedication, she will see those dreams come true.
This has been a strange year, but what are you looking forward to in 2021?
It sure has! We are looking forward to traveling. We had a Disney trip planned for this past May that had to be canceled. We can’t wait to take Gabi there — she LOVES Mickey and all their characters.
– Katie Vaughn
Katie Vaughn is the editor and co-founder of Northerly. She is a University of Wisconsin-Madison and Stanford University-trained journalist with experience as a writer, reporter, editor, blogger and author. She lives in Madison with her husband, daughter and son, and is always up for an adventure.