tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34367369496168434172024-03-12T19:47:02.761-04:00Amazing League of Fabulous WomenThis is the beginning of the place where amazing women meet.
Grab your sword, spear and magic helmet!
This is the LEAGUE of Amazing Women!Anniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16199218854741671126noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3436736949616843417.post-32789591338892588312009-04-13T14:37:00.015-04:002010-09-01T19:46:07.414-04:00MY Superhero at Big Green Earth Store<span style="font-family: arial;"><strong>I've learned that I cannot discriminate here...</strong></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_DLM_uDsWSBww7g-t64hKqYPNv2qlch2j0obvkZ64mDC0bMLw2anCxIvPcDx2O9zVdLB4MUSwctL5yqu1AWI7Avtm7h9iVAQ4zKmPqHuIFnZrdOgS2NxBkTGtvOVuxpfAYgcslkBW0TM/s1600-h/Ant"><span style="font-family: arial;"><strong></strong></span></a><br />
<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLolJ5OS2i0xCxUHgrR_Eyj66aeoQfD_ZHM_iVE_C3C-U7jEX3YYr4xja2tsTc86mUogHqV3pp388TPCvzzF-INZzM5uBh1uW4963_i7RzAxannj5ID4pUDZo9TFU42Qnc8zwrNzuPK-A/s1600/Tony.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLolJ5OS2i0xCxUHgrR_Eyj66aeoQfD_ZHM_iVE_C3C-U7jEX3YYr4xja2tsTc86mUogHqV3pp388TPCvzzF-INZzM5uBh1uW4963_i7RzAxannj5ID4pUDZo9TFU42Qnc8zwrNzuPK-A/s320/Tony.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">So I have a new friend, named Tony. OK - he's clearly NOT a "woman"...but he's amazing and fabulous, so he's allowed in the club...</span></div></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">Tony is remarkable for soooo many reasons. Just look at him. There are the adorable little dogs he has, the adorableness of his personality, the kindness in his demeanor, he's a cutie-patootie, adorable, adorable, fabulous, wonderful, amazing</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><em>....yadda, yadda, yadda....</em></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">BUT. The most wonderful and remarkable thing about my friend, Tony, is that he had this fabulous little idea. His idea was to take a retail shop, use it to sell only eco-friendly products, and call it "</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #009900;"><a href="http://www.biggreenearthstore.com/"><span style="color: #009900;"><strong><span style="font-size: 130%;">Big</span> Green <span style="font-size: 180%;">Earth</span> Store</strong></span></a></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">". Great idea, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><em>right?!</em></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><strong>BUT. </strong></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">Tony took it one step farther. He decided to </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><strong><span style="color: #009900;">collect recycleable goods</span></strong></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"> inside his shop, to make things a bit easier for his customers and the locals, who really appreciate it, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><em>right...??</em></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><strong>BUT, wait...it gets better.</strong></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"> He took it even one step farther. He collects stuff that some people don't even realize we can recycle, like bottle caps....</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><em>who knew...??</em></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><strong>BUT.</strong></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"> It gets even better...</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Tony took the time and invested the funds to develop a way-cool refilling station for his customers. You can actually <strong><span style="color: #009900;">REFILL</span></strong> <strong><span style="color: #ff6600;">"<a href="http://www.sunandearth.com/"><span style="color: #ff6600;">Sun & Earth</span></a>"</span></strong> <strong><span style="color: #ff6600;">products</span></strong> at <strong>Big Green Earth Store</strong>, and <strong><em><span style="color: #33cc00;">receive a discounted price</span></em></strong> for your committment to the environment by doing so. WOW.</span></div><div></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><strong>Get a load of all of these fabulous "buts"! ...go to </strong></span><a href="http://www.biggreenearthstore.com/"><span style="font-family: arial;"><strong>www.biggreenearthstore.com</strong></span></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><strong> </strong>or<strong> visit the store </strong><em>and</em><strong> the Liberty Bell</strong> all in the same day!</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></div><div align="center"><span style="font-family: arial;"><strong><span style="color: #009900;">Big Green Earth Store</span></strong> is located at <strong>934 South St. in Philadelphia.</strong></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></div><div><br />
</div><div align="center"><span style="color: #33cc00; font-family: Arial; font-size: 180%;"><strong>>>BIG GREEN FUN EVENT<<</strong></span></div><div></div><div align="center"><span style="font-family: arial;">Join Big Green Earth Store, Whole Foods, Sun & Earth, Grid Magazine and a </span></div><div align="center"><span style="font-family: arial;">host of other local “green” businesses and nonprofit organizations as we celebrate </span></div><div align="center"><span style="font-family: arial;">EARTH SaturDAY on April 25, 2009.<br />
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The Block Party will be between 9th and 10th Streets on South Street from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and will feature giveaways, live music from local musicians, and free face painting for the kids!<br />
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Bring your own bottles (laundry detergent, hand soap, dishwashing liquid) to refill with <strong>Sun & Earth</strong>.</span></div>Anniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16199218854741671126noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3436736949616843417.post-73263212565058290082009-03-12T10:55:00.000-04:002009-03-12T11:13:38.874-04:00Cherry Danish<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz3XK5aABNH6_G1mnDu4RgGXfHaQ8sdbpf8_621xFqJnzpWiBIYvG4gk3JrRsq8h2JCpPNhFMLf3isA1eysG2t8dodtXaT_M3_8-2bOMk9Go-APNlOHE233j3KOOINZwRyewLYTJhxMsY/s1600-h/cherry-danish.jpg"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312315543853836962" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz3XK5aABNH6_G1mnDu4RgGXfHaQ8sdbpf8_621xFqJnzpWiBIYvG4gk3JrRsq8h2JCpPNhFMLf3isA1eysG2t8dodtXaT_M3_8-2bOMk9Go-APNlOHE233j3KOOINZwRyewLYTJhxMsY/s320/cherry-danish.jpg" border="0" /></span></a><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Last night was my first training session for small group facilitation at </span><a href="http://www.supportingkidds.org/"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong>Supporting KIDDS</strong></span></a><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"> in Hockessin, DE.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">The program that I’ll be facilitating is called “</span><a href="http://www.supportingkidds.org/9.html"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Healing Pathways</span></a>"<span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">. Due to my own life experiences with grief, this is where I’ve been compelled to be for a while now. I know that I <strong>lived through</strong> my own grief so that one day I might be able to help someone else.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">In many ways I see this experience as a kind of group therapy for all of us who are volunteering in this program together. Each one of us has a story to tell: A story of pain and victory, a story of a desire to help others, a story of a longing to give back because someone somewhere along the way might’ve helped us when we needed it. Whatever our individual stories might be, we all share the common goal to “be present” for the kids who need us.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Our training will be 4 sessions (4 weeks) long, and in those sessions we will learn many things about how to do the work ahead of us. But mostly, I believe we’re also learning about ourselves and how we can either personally heal from our own wounds, or how we can help those we love to heal from their wounds. Either way, I know in my heart that we are there for greater reasons – for healing.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Only one session into the program, and I’m already motivated and enlightened. The Clinical Director, </span><a href="http://www.supportingkidds.org/10.html"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Valarie Molaison</span></a><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">, Ph.D., F.Th. Licensed Psychologist (is not only FAB-u-LOUSSSS!!) but she did a guided relaxation/visualization for us to break some barriers at the beginning of the session. This was an amazing exercise for all of us. She specifically tasked us to recall one adult who made a difference in our lives as children. At first I wondered, <em>“Oh, man! Who would that be? I don’t know who that would be!”</em> But then as my mind wandered, I remembered someone. I remembered <strong>Jean MacGuinness</strong>. My mom was a librarian in our school library, and Mrs. MacGuinness was the head librarian. Close to 80 years old at the time, she appeared to me as an extremely shy 4 year old as a prim and proper, stogy, elderly woman. Too young to go to school, I would spend my days by her side at the library, looking through picture books and learning the </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dewey_Decimal_Classification"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Dewey Decimal System </span></a><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">so that I could help put the returned books away. I remembered her red suit and hat atop her silvery gray hair. I remembered her perfume – powdery and clean, and I remembered how much I loved it, and then I remembered the day that she lifted my shy chin up toward Heaven, and holding it there, she told me to stop walking with my chin down. She told me how valuable and beautiful I was, and that I would miss the world if I never looked at it. I remembered how she would bring all the librarians danish in the mornings, and she’d always give me first choice, and how I would always choose the cherry danish.<br />...And then my thought stream broke - it dawned on me: <em>“Hey, wait! I don’t love cherries…<strong>Why DID I always choose the cherry danish</strong>?”</em> I guess because they were red…hhmm…wait, Jean Macuinness’s suit was red on the day that she touched me and informed me of my value….hhmmmm….<em>maaaaybeeee…</em> the <span style="color:#cc0000;">red</span> <span style="color:#cc0000;">cherry danish</span> reminded me that I was valuable to some person other than the ones in my own family. WOW! What a crazy revelation!! <span style="color:#cc0000;"><strong>CHERRY DANISH = LOVE!</strong></span><br /><strong><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">So this story begs the question:</span></strong> <em>“Can you recall an adult who made a difference in your life when you were a child? …who is that person?”</em> </span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="font-size:130%;"> - REMEMBER</span> HOW YOU FELT. </span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="font-size:130%;"> - REMEMBER </span>what it was that they did (no matter how small) to make a difference in your world….what did you hear, what did you smell, what did you see? Were they your “Cherry Danish”? </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">…and farther still:</span></strong> <span style="color:#cc0000;">Are <strong>YOU</strong> a <em>“Cherry Danish”</em> for someone in <strong>your</strong> life? </span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#cc0000;"></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#cc0000;">I love you, Jean MacGuinness! <3</span>Anniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16199218854741671126noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3436736949616843417.post-1541215767246238512009-03-02T20:10:00.000-05:002009-03-02T20:51:16.345-05:00"COMMITMENT"<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJKFReVOJ-3-MKjxgE61rhkHlRUDCH1AunwrbB_fOT3O2C3fsrZ_tzi1M_Qdd4mS0TGFaL84cWfI_R_TOG3-aj3JDYcplYgI4WUaIY1GM2-lwelPAkS2JUQeb2e_yKn9h4kGly8_Ehsds/s1600-h/screamingkid.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308766671808305730" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 130px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 118px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJKFReVOJ-3-MKjxgE61rhkHlRUDCH1AunwrbB_fOT3O2C3fsrZ_tzi1M_Qdd4mS0TGFaL84cWfI_R_TOG3-aj3JDYcplYgI4WUaIY1GM2-lwelPAkS2JUQeb2e_yKn9h4kGly8_Ehsds/s320/screamingkid.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#ff0000;">"COMMITMENT" ...</span></strong></div><br /><div>...that word has been popping up left and right for me lately, and when that happens I ALWAYS think, "OK, God. You got my attention....sledgehammer, please...what is it that you're trying to drill into my head, now?"</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>So I'm kinda nervous. Today I did something that I haven't done in a very long time....I actually made a <span style="color:#ff0000;">>>COMMITMENT<<</span> to do something for 10 weeks STRAIGHT! <span style="font-size:78%;">BIG</span>, <span style="font-size:85%;">FAT</span>, HUGE, <span style="font-size:130%;">HAIRY</span> step for me....<span style="font-size:180%;">BIG!</span> The worst part about this is that it's invloving other people. Not just "other" people, but CHILDREN....<strong>OTHER PEOPLE'S CHILDREN</strong>.....WHO ARE GRIEVING!</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>You guessed it - I made the committment to start my training to become a small group facilitator for grief counseling at <a href="http://www.supportingkidds.org/"><span style="color:#993399;">Supporting KIDDS</span> </a>in Hockessin, DE. This invloves 4 Wednesday nights of training, and then the fun begins with the actual 6-weeks of Wednesday nights' counseling.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Now, it's at this particular point that I start to hyperventilate and wonder...."WHY AM I DOING THIS?!?!?! I won't be good at this! What if I do more damage to some little innocent kid?!?! <em><span style="font-size:85%;">...what if I suck at this?!?!? ...WHAT IF I'm NOT perfect?!?!?"</span></em></div><br /><div></div><br /><div>When I sit back and I become my own guidance counselor (which I tend to do at least 10 times daily these days), I realize that these thoughts are perfectly natural, and honestly, the fact that I'm even thinking them is a good sign that I CARE....which will in turn probably make me a good counselor....so there! I talked myself down off of that little ledge. WHEW! ...WOW! </div><div>...<strong><span style="font-size:130%;">I AM GOOD!</span></strong> </div><div></div><div> </div><div>I'll keep you all posted on how well I do here....(stay tuned! "Same BAT TIME, Same BAT CHANNEL!") <strong>Ka-<span style="font-size:180%;"><em>POW!</em></span></strong></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div>Anniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16199218854741671126noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3436736949616843417.post-37623570662001317062009-02-06T14:55:00.001-05:002009-02-06T15:11:00.083-05:00Supporting KIDDSI attended an event on Monday, February 2, 2009 called "WINE4Women", which is sponsored by <a href="http://www.news4women.org/">NEWS4Women</a>, founded by my friend, Carol Arnott (President, Greenville Financial).<br />These events occur once per month, and this time the event was to benefit "<a href="http://www.supportingkidds.org/">Supporting KIDDS</a>" of Hockessin, DE.<br /><br />I love the concept Carol has created for these fund/awareness-raisers: "Sip to Support"! ...AWESOME! Who wouldn't want to do that?!?<br /><br />After a nice conversation with Patti Tillotson, the Executive Director for Supporting KIDDS, I have decided to attend their "small group facilitator's training", so that I may volunteer going forward as a facilitator. <br /><br />If you're interested in learning more, or even in this program, please contact Patti or Lynn at Supporting KIDDS: 302-235-5544 .Anniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16199218854741671126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3436736949616843417.post-53853964044183213902009-01-30T14:51:00.000-05:002009-01-30T14:55:41.570-05:00Welcome To The Amazing League of Fabulous Women!<span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Everyone has a story to tell. <em>...What's yours?</em></span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">They say that, "That which doesn't kill us only makes us stronger". </span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Have you overcome adversity of any kind? If you have, how did you pull yourself back up? What did you learn from it? ...and most importantly, are you willing and able to share that with the world in an effort to help someone else one day? <em>...even a stranger?</em></span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><strong>The Amazing League of Fabulous Women</strong> is a supercalifragalisticexpealidocious gang (panel) of <em>uber-</em>women who are committed to health and well-being, as well as inspiring the betterment of all life. </span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">We are committed defenders of the universe! </span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">The intention of this group is to provide a forum for support and connections to services, as well as chats, information sharing, and charitable cause or event support.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Original Concept was created by Christa Scalies and Annie DiMattia, but it's generated and energized by all members. </span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Grab your "sword, spear and magic helmet"! </span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">...OUR MISSION IS TO <strong>POSITIVELY</strong> EXPLODE GLOBALLY!<br /></span><a name=""></a>Anniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16199218854741671126noreply@blogger.com3