January 2013 Recap

Hard to believe it's already the end of January!

Many started off the month with goals and resolutions - a renewed resolve to do more and be more. Where are we now? Are you still focused and energized? I truly hope so.  Did you slack off some? Get a little discouraged or face disappointments? I know I did and have - but use those moments to keep pressing forward and motivation to succeed.

January has been quite busy and fulfilling:

We kicked off 2013 introducing The Divatude Challenge - an opportunity to connect with one another, learn from one another and grow together throughout 2013.  I'm still taking volunteers in this challenge, if you'd like additional information, please fill out the form found here.

We met, Britney - the first participant in our challenge and a graduate with a purpose whose goals this year are to be accepted in pharmacy school, have a healthier lifestyle and to create a budget and focus on savings. Can't wait for our April check-in to share how she's coming along with her goals!

Many thanks to the divas who shared their divatude with us this past month:

~ Kita - editor of Kokoa Magazine

~ Joyce Brewer - author of Use What You Know: A Business Guide for Moms

~ Shannon Peterson - author of Love's Memory 

January was Human Trafficking Awareness Month and I shared The End Trafficking Project - the US Fund for UNICEF's efforts to raise awareness and mobilize communities to help protect our children.

Did the events at Sandybrook Elementary inspire you to participate in the #26Acts of Kindness movement? One reader chimed in on that she "love[d] the 26 Acts of kindness idea, but [she] want[ed] to strive to promote kindness on a daily basis, too". A sentiment I've heard express numerous times while bringing attention to #26Acts and one I definitely agree with.  However, not everyone feels that way or has that pressing desire to go above and beyond for others.  It's events and movements like this that may be the catalyst for change in their lives and thought process.

The tributes to Grace McDonnell and Jessica Rekos were not to bring anyone down but to remember these young lives and remind us to treasure the moments with the young people in our lives. 

Are you on Google+? If so, I'd love if you'd connect with the DWP community - another forum to inspire, motivate and support one another.

Have a fantastic evening, Divas! 

Looking forward to the wonderful things in store for February!

Blessings to you all!

~Michelle

#26Acts ... Remembering Jessica

"Jessica was our first born. 

She started our family, and she was our rock...

We called her our little CEO for the way she carefully thought out and planned everything. We can not imagine our life without her. We are mourning her loss, sharing our beautiful memories we have of her"

 ~ taken from statement from Jessica Rekos' family

Courtesy of MSNBC.com

Six year old Jessica loved horses.  She spent her free time reading about, writing about and drawing horses.  Big sister to two little brothers. Oldest daughter to two loving parents. Taken from those who loved her way too soon in a crime that we may never be able to comprehend.


Reading the stories of Jessica that have been shared by those who knew her best, she reminds me so much of my little ones. Precocious, outspoken, lively and full of love.  I can't even begin to imagine the void left in her family.

This dedication to her was extremely hard to write.  Today was one of those days that just seemed to start off wrong and went downhill from there.  My kids seemed to all plot together ways to push Mommy further over the edge...and I snapped. Shut the house down. Bed time came immediately when yet another fight amongst my two boys broke out. I needed complete and utter silence to just be with my thoughts and emotions.

Then I realized that I had this dedication post to do...and now I welcome the noise and fights and calls for me to intervene.
 

"I always felt lucky to be your mom." 

~ Krista Rekos at Jessica's memorial service

In honor of Jessica's life , I encourage you to share with your children how they've made your life better and share with them why you're glad they're a part of your life.  Remember and reflect on those reasons the next time you're ready to pull your hair out and put yourself in timeout.

This post is brought to you as part of my involvement with The Global Team of 200 - a highly specialized group of Mom Bloggers for Social Good members who focus on maternal health, children, hunger, and women and girls. Many of us have committed to keeping the awareness on the #26Acts of Kindness and the victims of the Newtown tragedy. If you're a blogger and have written a post on either (or both), we'd love for you to link up with us below.  

Focus on Divatude - Week 3

When you begin holding yourself accountable (especially in a public forum) it makes you really evaluate what you do and how your actions impact your goals - both long and short-term.  My intent with these weekly check-ins is to keep my goals front and center within my daily tasks and encourage and motivate myself and others along the way.

What was my driving force this week?
Another busy week of rushing, zipping and zooming. My lack of energy has become somewhat of an issue and I need to focus more on my diet and exercise.  By Friday evening, my kids were literally running circles around me as I tried not to crash out on the couch by 7 PM.  I wasn't too successful.

This week my personal focus was finalizing the plans for my community-based sorority's networking event and celebrating five years of work and sisterhood.  Look for an interview and recap of that event in the coming weeks!

What/who inspired me? Who did I inspire?My daughter basically says one word "Mama".  It's the first word I hear each morning as her "Good Morning".  She says it as she reaches for me to pick her up.  She says it when she's frustrated and needs me to come to her rescue.  It's a humbling reminder of the role I play in my children's lives as their protector, nurturer, and care-taker.

Did I walk in victory?
Sigh! This question right here! It's a doozy. My faith and personal beliefs play a huge role in my life.  To me walking in victory means that I keep my head up and a positive attitude throughout the storms I may encounter in my daily walk. I don 't know about y'all but that is HARD to do sometimes.  There are times when it seems the more I focus on the positive, the more negativity is thrown at me.  My goal is to continue to encourage myself and others by focusing on the blessings I have.  When I think of how others are suffering and grieving, the "problems" I may have don't seem that bad.

What specifically did I do that impacted my goals for 2013? What did I do to help someone else?
Honestly, overall, this was not a good week for me when I reflect on what I did to impact my goals for this year.  I did well with my spending (or lack of spending) but still need to finalize a budget. I have tested a few apps on my phone to track my spending and balance my accounts and came to the conclusion that I'm an old-fashioned diva when it comes to my finances - I prefer to right out my daily expenditures and budget in a ledger book.  I do, however, track my debt balances with an Excel spreadsheet. There's something about seeing that figure auto-calculate that brings out my inner-nerd :)

What aspects of DIVATUDE did you focus on this week?

#EndTrafficking : Saving Our Children

Worldwide millions and millions of children are victims of child trafficking and forced labor - bought and sold, made to work in grueling, dangerous conditions with little or no pay, and, often, forced into prostitution. 

Think it doesn't impact you? Think again! The food we eat, the coffee, wine or tea we drink, the cotton we wear - are all items that are the "worst offenders" that are most commonly produced by child labor or forced labor.  There are 128 items on the list and include gold, sugarcane, coal, cotton, rice, tobacco,  cocoa, diamonds, garments, coffee, bricks, carpets.

January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month and the US Fund for UNICEF has launched The End Trafficking project to raise awareness and mobilize communities to take meaningful action to protect children.  Human trafficking cases have been reported in EVERY state in the US and are particularly high in California, Texas, New York and Florida (Trafficking in Persons Report, 2011).

How can YOU make a difference?

Connect with UNICEF's End Trafficking Project on Twitter to stay up-to-date and informed. Use the hashtag #EndTrafficking to help spread awareness amongst your Twitter community.

Reach out and influence the life of a young girl or boy in your community by volunteering as a tutor or mentor. Get connected to an organization near you at mentoring.org.

Change the conversation by working within your social circles. A “pimp” is not a cool guy, but someone who abuses and exploits women. A “prostitute” is often a victim of sexual exploitation. Help your friends rethink their choice of language. For tips on how to talk about these issues, visit againstourwill.org/how-to-talkabout-it.

Switch to Fair Trade brands, and/or host a Fair Trade Party. Fair Trade-certified products are produced without slave or child labor. Profits from Fair Trade products support farmers and laborers involved in production and ensure that they are paid fairly and work under safe conditions. To learn more, visit fairtradeusa.org.

Advocate for state laws addressing human trafficking. Visit polarisproject.org/what-we-do/policy-advocacy/state-policy. Advocate for victims by visiting change.org’s human trafficking petition page.

The National Human Trafficking Hotline number is 1-888-373-7888. 
Callers can report potential cases, get help, or request information and training. This 24/7 toll-free hotline is 100% confidential.

Traffickers have been reported targeting their minor victims through telephone chat-lines, clubs, on the street, through friends, and at malls, as well as using girls to recruit other girls at schools and after-school programs. With the rise of social media use by our children, it is essential that parents, guardians, and concerned adults be vigilant in their lives. Ask questions, have conversations, and be active!






This post is brought to you as part of my involvement with The Global Team of 200 - a highly specialized group of Mom Bloggers for Social Good members who focus on maternal health, children, hunger, and women and girls. Meet the team. See our press. Contact us to get involved.

Divatude Spotlight on Kita B.

Hello Divas!!! I'm excited to bring you all a follow-up from a diva first introduced to DWP earlier this summer.  When we last spoke with Kita, she was preparing to for the online debut of Kokoa Magazine.  Since it's debut, the magazine has been seen by approximately 20,000 people!!!! What an accomplishment in 4 short months! Many thanks to Kita for taking the time to chat with us again and discuss how she's embracing her Divatude in 2013 and beyond!

When you hear DIVATUDE what immediately comes to mind?

When I think of Divatude the first thing that comes to mind is strong willed. Someone who knows where they are in life and/or know where they are going. An attitude that has confidence in it.

How do you embrace the aspects of DIVATUDE in your personal and professional life (being driven, inspiring, victorious and called-to-action)?

I have it with my magazine because I like things done a certain way. People call it something else but I call it know what direction I want to go in and being driven by something that I feel is needed. It has taken me a long time to get to the point where if I have to do it alone I will because no one can represent YOUR dream but yourself.

You blog over at Saywhatuwanna.com - where you pretty much give it to us straight, no chaser and keep your readers laughing with your perspective on everything from politics to marriage and friendship. Are you that outspoken face-to-face? Have you always been that way?

Lol, yes I have always been that way. Face to face interaction with people has cost me some friends and acquaintances but I believe in telling it like it is especially if I am asked my opinion. I don’t sugarcoat it just because others may. I always tell people it’s just my opinion take it or leave it because when I give it to you straight I like to come from a different angle of thinking and I am fair. I have always been that way ever since a child I use to be a bit more outspoken when I was younger as I have gotten older I have learned to curb it ……some.  Most people who know me would say I give my honest opinion straight on and if you don’t want to know the truth don’t ask me.

Kokoa Magazine is your newest venture. Can you tell us a little about it and the inspiration behind it?

I was in the line at Wal-Mart one day and I saw some young girls probably around 12 or 13 pick up a magazine and say I want to be like Beyoncé or I want to be like Rihanna or Lady Gaga. I thought to myself why can’t our young girls pick up a magazine and read about people like themselves. I want my kids to look up to people like them whom they can relate too.  Some celebrities do come from backgrounds like us but there are many regular people who get their story told. No one asks them how they helped a man on the street, or how they donated clothes to needy children, or how they feed a family of 4 on 75 dollars a week. I want adults who struggle from paycheck to paycheck to read about themselves and relate. I want to inspire people that although we sometimes don’t know how we are going to put food on the table we can read about someone who does and become inspired to dream big. I tell people to think of this magazine like it’s essence but for regular folks no one rich and famous will be in this magazine.

What was your biggest accomplishment in 2012?

Starting Kokoa Magazine I was sitting on the idea for over a year but was afraid to start because I knew that a lot of work would be needed to done as far as PR, Social Media, Design, etc. I just put in my head one day that I needed to start it because nothing will be accomplished if I don’t at least start.

What's your focus for 2013 - both personally and professionally?

My focus is to start bringing in some money with Kokoa in some type of form via advertisement so that I can start getting more klout. I also want to hire someone to do social media for me so it will take some of the work off of me. If I can’t do both I would like to accomplish at least 1 thing.  I want to get Kokoa spread around a bit more and get the word out. 

 Thank you again, Kita, for taking the time to chat and share with the Divas With A Purpose community! Your drive and determination are truly inspiring and we wish you success in all your endeavors! 

Helping another person with the resources, time and talent that you've been blessed with is an an awesome feeling. We all know someone who fits this description, including ourselves! 

If you or someone you know is an example of a driven, inspiring, victorious and/or action-based woman, please click here for more information on how to be spotlighted as part of the