Thursday, April 29, 2010

Phenomenal Woman

Phenomenal Woman.

Phenomenal Women.

They have always been my inspiration. My heroes have always been women. Strong women who have overcome obstacles in their lives. One of the poems I printed many years ago when I started journaling and digging into my past was one by Maya Angelou. She continues to be an inspiration to me. Everything she writes seems to apply to me on some level. She inspires me to think, reflect and write.

We are Phenomenal Women...all of us. We were created for something special in this world. We're strong...yet caring. We're different...we're phenomenal. You are...believe it!

Enjoy...

Phenomenal Woman

by Maya Angelou

Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I’m telling lies.
I say,
It’s in the reach of my arms,
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It’s the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.

Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can’t touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them,
They say they still can’t see.
I say,
It’s in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Now you understand
Just why my head’s not bowed.
I don’t shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing,
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It’s in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need for my care.
’Cause I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Maya Angelou, “Phenomenal Woman” from And Still I Rise. Copyright © 1978

Sunday, April 25, 2010

It's Only Just Begun...

...Spring, that is! I'm having a hard time staying out of the garden but I'm finally starting to recover from 3 weeks of feeling pretty miserable and getting a recent diagnosis of bronchitis. Having bronchitis and pneumonia within the last 4 months is taking it's toll...mostly on my emotions. I need to make some changes in my nutrition and stress management and I'm working on that now. Nutrition... I know what I need to do. Stress Management...this is something else altogether. This is hard for me. Taking time to do things for myself is necessary but finding the time is a challenge. I know I need to make these changes so the time will be found.

The sun is shining today and I'm feeling a little better. I took a little stroll through the yard the other day after it rained and this is what I found...


The potted geranium is loving all the rain...


The clematis is full of buds and I can't wait to see it in bloom...

Pretty purple blooms...

Cardinal eggs waiting to be hatched...less than 2 feet from our front door in a Holly shrub...


Oh, what's this? It's a little sneak peek of the giveaway I'll be hosting soon...

Until next time....


Jackie

Monday, April 19, 2010

On This Day...A Year Later

A year has gone by since I wrote the post titled, On This Day. This post is close to my heart since it's the story of the birth of my second son, Kyler, on April 20, 2006.

As we are about to celebrate his 4th year I'd like to share, with you, the story again. I have always loved reading and hearing birth stories but I especially relate to them since I have two of my own. I hope you enjoy reading one of mine.


Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Inspiration Delayed...

There is no time to be inspired. Yet, I continue to find projects I want to tackle...topics I want to write about...great ideas for a book...gardens to plant...spring cleaning and organizing my house...meal planning...all things I really enjoy.

My bit for the federal and state government has been put off too long and now I'm paying for it. I'm searching through paperwork, printing reports, matching up receipts and re-working budgets. I hope to be finished in time to write a big check to the IRS tomorrow...sigh!

All the while I'm thinking about how I wish I was working in an inspiring office like this from Dear Daisy Cottage....





Or, how I'm inspired to be doing some Creative Journaling like this...


Or, how I'm inspired by urban gardeners and hope my suburban garden looks something like this someday...

Mostly, I'd just like to sit outside in the shade and dig into my new book...

Time for all that later, much later, I'm afraid...better get back to work!

Until Next Time,


Jackie

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

I Won The Cutest Set of Collectibles...

I want to Thank Patti from Osage Bluff Quilter because she picked my name as the winner of her Getting Over The Flu giveaway!!! What did I win? I won a set of super cute Wade Collectibles. She has featured them several times and I had actually never heard of them until I read about them on her blog. They are small ceramic pieces and they will fit perfectly in my old printers drawer that is in my living room. Here is a photo of a printers drawer (borrowed from flickr.com) in case you've never seen one...I love the idea of putting stamps in it too.




You can see more of these collectibles at the Red Rose Tea website. I haven't had a chance to place them in the drawer yet so I'm borrowing a photo from Patti's blog to show you what I won. As soon as I get them displayed I'll post it here too!




I hope you'll go visit Patti because her blog is full of stories about her grand-kids, quilting, recipes, life on her beautiful, rural acreage with photos of her timber frame home.

Patti, Thank You, I'm so excited to have won your giveaway!

Monday, April 5, 2010

Well, Hello...


How are you? I've missed you my Blog Friends! We had a great week off. I didn't have the whole week off...but most of it. We visited with Grandmas, Grandpas, MeMe's, PaPa's, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, Brothers and many others. We had fun with friends and we spent a lot of time at home too. I believe Spring has finally arrived here in MO. Every day I see more green everywhere I go. Here is a little snapshot of our week...


Beautiful sunset after a heavy downpour...

Walks around campus are becoming more enjoyable with the warmer weather and the blooms are starting to pop out...

I hid LOTS of these this week. The boys participated in several Easter Egg Hunts...Fun Times!

We did lots of running around and not just looking for eggs...

Candy colored Tulips...perfect for Easter...


At the end of the week we looked at our stash and realized that we had lots of yummy candy but also good friends and a great families...We Are Blessed!


I haven't visited you lately and I can't wait to see what's been going on in your lives for the past week. I hope you all had a great Easter!

Oh, and this little post is my 200th.

200...can you believe that? 200 posts means I'm going to have a fun giveaway sometime this week. Stay Tuned...it's really cute!! And speaking of giveaways...I won one recently and I'll be posting a great big Thank You and photos soon!

Talk To You Soon,

Jackie