01 Feb 2017
by passionistaatlarge
in Inspiration
Tags: celebration, children, encouragement, find joy all around you, gratitude, inspiration, joy, lifestyle, Living, motherhood
“Joy” is one of my favorite words.
Even when life is a disappointment or a trial,
we can still have a consistent joy.
I believe that joy is that which runs deep in our spirit,
and it flows from gratitude and appreciation,
and the ability to recognize and cultivate them.
Sometimes having joy requires
making the choice to take it easy.
Breathe. Enjoy. Relish. I love that word “relish”.
By definition it means…
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great appreciation of something,
or enjoyment, gusto, liking, loving, savor, zest, and taste.
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I have “great appreciation of”, or relish, those moments of pure simplicity….
like evenings, or unexpected snow days, at home
with my “treasures” (better known as my kiddos),
birds chirping after a season of cold silence,
that flash when the sun breaks through after long periods of cloudy sameness,
oh, and the first lick of chocolate cake batter from the bowl.
Perhaps the simple things are the big things in life after all.
Did you know you can teach yourself to recognize them?
Of course, that means being purposeful about it
and being aware.
Looking for those precious moments of pure gift.
Actually seeing everything around you.
Yes, there is a lot of ugly.
And yes, it means we can’t be numb,
and when we open ourselves it can sometimes
be the gateway to emotional pain.
But without allowing ourselves to sense and see,
we also delete from our lives the gifts of joy we are given on a daily basis.
Sometimes we have no choice because we are overwhelmed by life.
Many times we do more….we fill our lives with unnecessary busyness,
often trying to please others with agendas that aren’t in our best interest.
I’m learning what matters most to me (what a process!)…
being with my children, conserving my energy so I can be “present” with them
(and learning what “conserving my energy” means, when I used to believe I had a bottomless reserve!),
choosing carefully when to meet with people,
not sacrificing my important priorities because others want me to.
Wow, it’s taken a very long time to reach this place!
I used to absolutely run ragged doing all the “shoulds”.
I’m so thankful I have learned to choose (most days).
It’s funny how all the unnecessary stuff begins to fall away
and we are left with the things and
people who matter most.
The people we treasure, the acts that feed our spirits,
and the laughter that connects us and supplies endorphins to keep us going!
I wish for you, my friend, the choice…that you may relish–with JOY–your life and the people who fill it.
Just look at the joy!
May you be blessed with JOY and abundance of the simple things in life!
Much love,
Passionista
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31 Jan 2017
by passionistaatlarge
in Living With Gusto
Tags: believing truth, grief, inspiration, lifestyle, Living, love, missing you, sister, sister love, strength
One year.
One year since I kissed you goodbye
and watched you leave us.
My heart hurts in missing you.
My arms long to hug you.
My soul needs to talk with you.
I love you with all my heart, sweet sister.
Your leaving taught me two very important things:
1) To celebrate myself.
To wear the crazy tiara, or as you did, hot pink leathers, and be a biker babe–or whatever I want to.
To have fun, party now,
and do not worry about what others think.
To enjoy that I am just a bit different
from most people.
Life is very, very short,
and it really doesn’t matter what others think.
It’s MY life, and I’m going to live it to the fullest!
2) To love even more fiercely than I do.
To speak even more truthfully.
To stand firm and not waver in the face of obstacles.
Because, I only have a short time to make an impact on people’s lives.
I’ve gotta get my truth out there!
Thank you for being an example and teaching me important things.
I’ll miss you until the day I see you again, little sis.
You have my heart. Your big sister.
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21 Jan 2017
by passionistaatlarge
in Living With Gusto
Tags: appreciating beauty, artwork, attention to detail, beauty, creating beauty, creation, lifestyle, Living
Where do you create or write or work or dream or plan?
Do you have spots of beauty in your home or workplace?
We are created in God’s image and I know He loves beauty.
Just look at His creations!
Our eyes and spirits need beauty because we are created to appreciate it.
I believe we are wired to desire beauty around us.
(Perhaps that is why so much emphasis is placed on how people look,
when what we need is to get out into the gorgeous world!)
In Genesis, after God created the world and it’s creatures, He declared it “good”.
And then He created His most amazing and wonderful masterpieces when He created humans.
And declared them “very good”!
God has given us such beautiful colors, shapes, textures, paintings, composites, structures, and bounty in the world and people He created.
And we are like Him. We all have the ability to create.
We create every single day.
We create with our words, our facial expressions, our touch, our work, our problem solving, our love, our art….
we can make places more beautiful.
Give yourself spots of beauty around your home and place of work.
Make your environment beautiful. It doesn’t take much!
Sometimes a plant, a picture, and something that reminds you of a precious time or memory or person is all you need.
Let’s all agree to bring beauty into our world wherever we go.
Because our world needs it.
Love and big hugs, Passionista Mimi
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14 Jan 2017
by passionistaatlarge
in Living With Gusto
Tags: attention to detail, find joy all around you, gratitude, lifestyle, Living, shine your light
Have you ever had one of those days where you were just filled with joy? Today was that kind of day for me. The sun was shining and it was a beautiful 30 degrees! Almost shirt-sleeve weather! I had to go grocery shopping, which I detest! But I had decided to treat myself with flowers. And wouldn’t you know? There were tons of FUSCHIA-dyed mums!! So of course I bought one bunch. They were perfect for me. And I rescued some poor, bedraggled Alstromeria lilies that were marked way down. For about $8.50 I bought enough posies to make all these bouquets. (Don’t mind the Christmas trees you can still see in the background. I HAD to stop and smell the roses–er, mums!)
On to the produce section. The grapes were tiny, about the size of my little finger nail! Another lady and I were exclaiming about it. They were the size of raisins already!
I moved on to the lovely section that holds cauliflower, broccoli, celery, red cabbage, four colors of peppers, and numerous other colorful items. I asked the produce guy, “Don’t you just love working in the produce section?” He looked at me a teeny bit funny as he shrugged his shoulders. What’s the guy to say? So I clued him as to why he should like his job! I said, “It looks so nice, and it’s all so colorful and pretty!” He agreed that when it looked nice it wasn’t so bad. Lol
These are exactly like what I bought. I love their rich colors!
Around the corner at the onion table I struck up a conversation with the lady cleaning the potato bin. I asked her if onions last better in the refrigerator. Well, she keeps hers in a box in the cabinet. And then she imparted this AMAZING bit of information!
In the spring, whether they are in a store, in your cupboard, or on the counter, onions will sprout and so will garlic. Period. In the pitch black or constant fluorescent light. In the spring–when nothing in their environment has changed–they will sprout.
WOW!! I was just in awe. I said to the lady, “That is just crazy! It’s like God sends them a memo or something! “Ok onions and garlic. You may not know it yet, but it’s spring. Time to do your thing!” We had a chuckle over that. That just made my day. I told her thank you for teaching me something today. (Any day I learn is a great day!)
I couldn’t help humming as I went along with my shopping. All those little things added up to make my heart overflow! And I am so grateful for my sight so I can celebrate God’s wonders in the flowers, veggies, and fruit department! I’m also thankful that people don’t seem bothered when I talk to them. (I kind of do it a lot. Maybe they are just being gracious.)
I must have had a smile on my face as I walked through the store because people kept looking at me. I’ll bet they wished they knew my secret. 🙂
And now you do! Here’s to a joy-filled life!
Love and big sparkle hugs, Mimi
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07 Jan 2017
by passionistaatlarge
in Mimi's Messages
Tags: Calendar, Empowordment Cards, interview, journaling, my story, passionista at large, radio, speaking, The Divalution Show, word of the year, writing journal
This show has four of us talking back and forth, so it’s like a group of friends got together and chatted. We talked about happenings in the area and the Divalution Project, tiaras and sparkle, and how cool it is to meet new people, among other things.
For those who have very limited time (this show is a bit over an hour long), but would like to listen to my story, here are some notes for listening. You can hover your cursor over the audio feed line and the time counter on the left will cue you. But if you have the time, the whole show is fun to listen to.
I was “interviewed” throughout the show, and “my” parts are as follows:
*At 3:10 I am introduced and I told a bit about who I am.
*From 5:06-17:30 I tell my story and about how my Empowordment Cards came to be.
*From 24:55-29:48 I talk about my Calendars and Journals
*From 29:50- 35:15 Why I feel I was chosen to speak and write, and a bit about my journey
*From 49:00-51:10 Choosing a Word Of The Year instead of a New Year’s resolution
*From 58:70-61:50 conclusion of my part
I’d love it if you’d listen and comment below. This is my first appearance on a radio show. Several want me to host a show and go live every other week. Hmmmm, I’m not sure I’d have enough to talk about. Bahahaha. Well, we will see. For sure it would give me another platform to get the message out.
Thanks for stopping by. As always, I love to have you!
Love and big sparkle hugs,
Mimi
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03 Jan 2017
by passionistaatlarge
in Mimi's Messages
Tags: accomplishment, believe, celebration, challenges, decisions, dreams, Empowordment Cards, encouragement, goals, hope, lifestyle, Living, now is your time, passion, shine your light, women's empowerment
Oh my gosh I’m so excited! Deborah St. Hilaire from Bay City is interviewing me, live, tonight on her Divalution Radio! Check it out. 7:00 p.m. (Eastern) on W4DIVAS.com. It should be a good time. 🙂
Also, we will meet early and collaborate about holding women’s small group meetings at her amazing studio/storefront/gathering space. This has been one of my dreams for five years. And what will I call these gatherings? Well, as Passionista At Large, they will be “Passionista Playdates”!! Comment below if you are interested in these and I’ll keep you posted. (Location is Bay city, Michigan)
It seems my words of the year “Expand” from last year and “Abundance” for this year are working for me! Sometimes it really takes just putting one foot in front of the other and doing what you know to do at the time.
So carry on with your bad selves, shine YOUR light, and rock 2017!
Love and BIG hugs, Passionista
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21 Dec 2016
by passionistaatlarge
in Living With Gusto
Particular Passions~Blog for Passionista At Large
Naval Admiral William H. McRaven returned to his alma mater last week and spoke to the graduates with lessons he learned from his basic SEAL training. I’ve posted a link to his amazing Commencement Address at University of Texas at Austin 2014, written in an article from Business Insider:
Honestly, this article is a bit hard to read.
We all wish life could just be “easy” for a while.
Let me tell you, there will ALWAYS be hard stuff if you are alive.
And YOU have the choice to be
BITTER OR BETTER.
There are many good words here.
My favorite was from #9:
“If I have learned anything in my time traveling the world, it is the power of hope. The power of one person—Washington, Lincoln, King, Mandela and even a young girl from Pakistan—Malala—one person can change the world by giving people hope.
So, if you want to…
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16 Dec 2016
by passionistaatlarge
in Words To Help
Tags: believing truth, celebration, challenges, children, decisions, hope, inspiration, lifestyle, Living, motherhood, overcomer, special needs children, strength
Today my friend’s situation reminded me of the need for this card. There are a bunch of things pressing in on me and my brain is in a tizzy (southern expression for going crazy).
*I’m trying to get a seat belt installed before heading south. I had to cut it because my son became entangled in it, it retracted, and there was no other way to get him out. My auto tech guy had torn my van apart in order to access where it has to be installed, only to find out that I received the wrong seat belt from the dealer where I’d ordered it.
I’m crunched for time here. The seat belt cost $100 and now I have to drive 20 minutes to return it. And order another one, which would come in next Tuesday or Wednesday! Or try to find one. Have I mentioned I’m crunched for time?
*I may need new tires too because mine aren’t grabbing all that well in the snow. AND it’s supposed to snow/sleet on the day we are scheduled to leave. Ugh!
*I am working tonight, and while that is generally a fun time, I have been running for months and just want to be home. Tomorrow is another day of running. I’m getting kind of pooped. And honestly, doing this alone is sometimes overwhelming.
*I have a ton of wrapping to do before I leave. Because I haven’t even been home, this has mounted up. Not to mention the laundry, packing for a week, dishes, trying to keep growing teens fed….. I just want to stay home one full day!
The list is adding up, besides all the Christmas-y “to dos” that are the usual. Programs, gifts, decorating, and such.
SO I am practicing what I write about. I am taking a deep breath. I am trusting that things will all be finished, and I am believing that my Father has it all under control.
I do NOT want worry to steal from this most miraculous season. Last night I was crabby with my kids. That’s not how I want to spend the next week! I want to celebrate this season by relishing in each precious moment with my children and my family. These times pass so very quickly, and honestly, people are what it’s all about.
I’m also looking for alternative solutions:
I can wrap my presents when I get to my family’s house.
I can stay off of Facebook so I have more time.
I can choose the most important things to do first, instead of doing 6 things at once like I usually do.
And the money? Well I know that will work out. And I am working tonight so that will help.
I know from experience that these things do actually smooth out. So right now?
I am choosing to revive my inner warrior and banish the worrier!
What about you?
I am wishing you a very blessed and calm Christmas season. It is fast approaching, and I hope you can enjoy it to the fullest. That is MY plan.
Love and blessings and big sparkle hugs!
Mimi
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12 Dec 2016
by passionistaatlarge
in Mimi's Messages
Tags: celebration, children, empower, Empowordment Cards, encouragement, greeting cards, love, overcomer, self-esteem, self-love, women's empowerment, women's movement
You didn’t sign up for my blog to receive news about my Empowordment Cards, but because positive self image and encouraging others is my THING, these cards are a part of ME. Sooooo….
I won’t do a bazillion posts about them. BUT….
I have put a bunch of cards on 50% off sale, and I thought you might want to know.
Some of these designs are the first ones I created TWO years ago! And while I love them–they are like my babies, after all–I need to make room for some new designs. Sixty-three cards is a lot to manage, especially when they decide to throw a party behind my back! And let’s not talk about carrying them around when I do shows and such! Ugh! Can we say weighsalot?
This is a great time to stock up on cards for the year. I mean, where can you purchase a colorful, unique, glossy, heavy-weight, Mimi-designed 5×7 greeting card for $1.50? These are works of art, people. Well, some folks think so!
I mean they are all the rage in NYC!!
I have cards on sale that are fitting for birthday,
graduation,
Valentine’s and Sweetest Day or anniversary,
celebrations,
and just plain ol’ encouragement.
Take a walk on the wild side and browse on over at my shop to choose the ones you want to stock up on.
NOTICE: once they are out of stock, they are gone! Unless you want to order a 10-pack and then I’d be happy to re-order you some. 🙂
Thanks for letting me pitch a sale in your inbox. 🙂
Click right HERE to gain entrance to the much-coveted SALE section of my Etsy shop.
Shhhhh, you are the first to get a shot at it. But tomorrow I’m tellin’ the WORLD!!
And thank you soooo much for being my READERS!! I can’t even tell you what it means!
Love and really big sparkly HUGs to you,
Mimi
P.S. My watermark (logo) does not appear on the front of the cards you buy. It’s just for copyright purposes that it’s on them here.
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