MOTHER'S DAY GIFT GUIDE 2024

As Mother's Day approaches, my heart is filled with gratitude for the beautiful roles I cherish: a mother to my wonderful son and a devoted dog mom to the family's loyal companion. Each day with them fills my life with love and joy, teaching me patience, compassion, and the true meaning of unconditional love. Reflecting on Mother Earth and Mother Nature, I'm reminded of their endless beauty and the invaluable lessons of strength and flexibility. Thank you for the lessons passed down from my own mother, my grandmother’s, and the lessons I learn from my son; I am so grateful and appreciate the wisdom and resilience that motherhood has taught me.

Luca & Buster - One of the best days ever!!

One thing is for sure: being a mother doesn’t come with a handbook. I am grateful for my continued growth, patience, and understanding, which never stops. Happy Mother’s Day, friends. Luca and Buster, I’m so grateful to be your mom.

May we celebrate this day with gratitude and grace.

Look Optic for your readers, progressives & sun (use code Janet15) / Veronica Beard Blazers / Roam Sandals

3 things I’m all for! Comfort (FootCloud) / Safer Ride (Alto) / Great Skin

Silk Sleep Mask - Definitely improved my sleep!

I’ve been wearing Chrysmela for several years now, and not only are your earrings secure, but if you have earlobes that have been stretched over time, there is a back that actually lifts the lobe!

Beauty Pie is a membership, and worth it! The savings on products is fantastic!

Apple Air Tag Holder - Apple Air Tag I have them in every bag I travel with and in my car.

Rainy Day Wear

For Our 4-Legged Children / Dog Moms Rule!…Because I don’t have a cat :)

Bark Box - Curate your pooch’s favorite treats and get ready for a good time upon arrival!

I recently added videos to my YouTube channel, thank you so much for those who subscribed & watched!

GIVING BACK

Common Threads - Common Threads is a place where you can know for certain that what you donate and purchase makes an impact for women. Donate your clothing here.

Big hair, all the way around… Thank you to my mom and my grandmother’s who raised me like a “rockstar” I love you…I am grateful for all you taught me.

Happy Mother’s Day!

Derek & Luca in Egypt / Grandmas in Dallas

May your day be filled with love and lots of hugs from those you love. I’m always so grateful to be a mom, especially Luca’s mom, and I feel so blessed every single day to have my mom and my husband Derek’s mom. Thank you to my husband and fearless leader, Derek! We are blessed! Buster… We love you.

Thank you, and have a wonderful weekend!

MESSAGE FROM AFAR - Letter from Covid-19 to Humans

What is the use of a house if you haven’t got a tolerable planet to put it on?

gloves.jpg

Have you asked yourself what you miss the most in these isolating times? I think about young people and their excitement to be with friends and hold hands, toddlers on their playdates and older people whose lives are extended because of their friendships. I know this time will pass and it will be a while but for now, we are all left with time to sit with ourselves, ask questions and feel everything that has been pushed down or put aside. This is a time to rediscover who we really are, to de-clutter and clean house; yes, the one we live in and the one that lives in us.

A friend of mine sent me a letter titled “An Imagined Letter from Covid-19 to Humans” and when I read this “imaginary letter” it sent chills through my body. This virus is a messenger and I do believe now…We’re all listening. We will get back to holding hands, dancing together, celebrating and when we do it will be a moment of Joy that will be talked about for years to come and we will be better humans for it.

*

Stop. Just stop. It is no longer a request. It is a mandate. We will help you. We will bring the supersonic, high-speed merry-go-round to a halt. We will stop the planes, the trains, the schools, the malls, the meetings, the frenetic, furied rush of illusions and “obligations” that keep you from hearing our single and shared beating heart, the way we breathe together, in unison. Our obligation is to each other,

As it has always been, even if, even though, you have forgotten. We will interrupt this broadcast, the endless cacophonous broadcast of divisions and distractions, to bring you this long-breaking news: We are not well. None of us; all of us are suffering. Last year, the firestorms that scorched the lungs of the earth did not give you pause. Nor the typhoons in Africa, China, Japan. Nor the fevered climates in Japan and India. You have not been listening. It is hard to listen when you are so busy all the time, hustling to uphold the comforts and conveniences that scaffold your lives.

But the foundation is giving way, buckling under the weight of your needs and desires. We will help you. We will bring the firestorms to your body We will bring the fever to your body We will bring the burning, searing, and flooding to your lungs that you might hear:

We are not well.

Despite what you might think or feel, we are not the enemy. We are Messenger. We are Ally. We are a balancing force. We are asking you: To stop, to be still, to listen; To move beyond your individual concerns and consider the concerns of all; To be with your ignorance, to find your humility, to relinquish your thinking minds and travel deep into the mind of the heart; To look up into the sky, streaked with fewer planes, and see it, to notice its condition: clear, smoky, smoggy, rainy? How much do you need it to be healthy so that you may also be healthy?

To look at a tree, and see it, to notice its condition: how does its health contribute to the health of the sky, to the air you need to be healthy?

To visit a river, and see it, to notice its condition: clear, clean, murky, polluted? How much do you need it to be healthy so that you may also be healthy? How does its health contribute to the health of the tree, who contributes to the health of the sky, so that you may also be healthy?

Many are afraid now.

Do not demonize your fear, and also, do not let it rule you. Instead, let it speak to you—in your stillness, listen for its wisdom. What might it be telling you about what is at work, at issue, at risk, beyond the threats of personal inconvenience and illness? As the health of a tree, a river, the sky tells you about the quality of your own health, what might the quality of your health tell you about the health of the rivers, the trees, the sky, and all of us who share this planet with you?

Stop. Notice if you are resisting. Notice what you are resisting. Ask why. Stop. Just stop. Be still. Listen. Ask us what we might teach you about illness and healing, about what might be required so that all may be well. We will help you if you listen.

xo,

Thank you for reading, thank you for caring,

Stay safe, stay healthy, take your vitamins, go for a walk, and get grateful…and by all means, find laughter. Life is full of uncertainty, recognize this fear is revealing all of these things that relate to the human psyche, we can see what a true gift it is to be alive, to feel alive.

“You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment.

Fools stand on their island of opportunities and look toward another land.

There is no other land; there is no other life but this.” Thoreau

Let us give thanks to our doctors, our nurses, our firefighters, our caretakers, the teachers and the people at the grocery stores, the truckers transporting the food…these are our heroes.

For our younger & older kiddos, this a time to lead by example.

Letter from a mom in Italy

Maria Shriver’s - The Sunday Paper

Brands Giving Back

Emi-Jay / Franne Golde / Soma Ayurvedic / Roam Wear

Bandolier Stay Connected - Use Code GG15

Roam Wear Use Code WWWXROAM

Pictured here- Bandolier - RoamWear - Franne Golde

Pictured here- Bandolier - RoamWear - Franne Golde