I admire my father a lot for his determination. A determination that so impressed my mother that she began to welcome his affection. You have to give him credit-- even after he found out about me, he didn't flinch or back down or change his mind. Dad is a lot of things and the one thing that he isn't is fickle. When his mind is made up, he is as rigid as a ruler. He knew he was in over his head, but he was a man of his word. Why would he desire her less just because she already had a child? Why should he care what other people thought?
They developed a bond.. And soon their relationship blossomed. They had a civil wedding, a simple wedding performed by a judge, on the 29th of October 1979 that very few people knew about. His family didn't even know. At the time, they were (all of them) vehementy against my mother.
They disapproved of the relationship, and were quite vocal about their disappointment. It would take several years before Mom would finally win them over. But they could not be stopped.
On May 10, 1980 they were wed-- it was a real church wedding this time with plenty of people in attendance. Of course, I was the flower girl. Jenni was invisible, but present-- in Mom's tummy. Little did everyone know, she was on the way.
Jen came to the world a boyish, hairless child on the 26th of November that same year. Everyone hoped she would be a boy and become Rico Junior, but she was welcomed with much jubilation anyway. She looked like a little boy, albeit a cute one at that, indulged in boyish activities and played mainly with little boys that it became an inside joke shared by the members of our family. A lot of that would change several years later, when my little sister metamorphosed into one the most beautiful people on the face of the planet.
She was cute, cuddly, adorable and much-loved by the camera. Jenni who is extremely photogenic (as evidenced by the photo above) loved the camera, as well. She enjoyed the limelight and loved being the center of attention. And if she wasn't, she would go to great lengths to achieve it.