May’s Book To Live By

This month’s Books To Live By selection highlights our May membership program theme: A Mother’s Day Appreciation.

From a celebrated American author and poet, hailed as one of the most influential voices of our time, comes this highly anticipated autobiography, a story of loss, love and discovery.

Our May selection is….

Women on Fire Book To Live By- MAY- Mom & Me & Mom by Maya Angelou

Mom & Me & Mom (amazon link), by Maya Angelou

New York Times best-seller Mom & Me & Mom is a whole-hearted, honest recollection of Angelou’s complicated relationship with her mother. It offers a glimpse into the inspiration and backstory behind one of her most-loved titles, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.

Angelou takes us to Stamps, Arkansas, where at three years old she was sent away by her mother, Vivian, to live with her grandmother. It was nearly a decade before Angelou would finally reconnect with her mother.

Angelou divulges the raw feelings of abandonment that pushed her to dark depths, and examines the delicate reconciliation that slowly took place to rebuild the broken relationship.

Mom & Me & Mom is one of the most authentic narratives that I’ve ever read. Angelou captures the complexities of the mother-daughter relationship so spot-on that it leaves you reflecting on your own experiences.

Angelou’s signature optimism and wit bring hope, healing and love to the story. It is a thoughtful reminder of the power of forgiveness, no matter how much time has elapsed.

I hope you enjoy Maya Angelou’s beautiful memoir as much as I did. Women on Fire book co-author Sarah Elizabeth Greer surprised me with my own copy – personally signed by Ms. Maya Angelou herself!

It remains one of my most precious treasures – and I believe you will really love this book, too.

Happy Mother’s Day weekend ahead. I encourage you to share with me here on the blog: What is your most powerful memory of being a daughter or mother? I look forward to reading your response! 🙂

With lots of love,

Debbie-Signature-

Links That Light Us Up

25th Edition

Hello Woman on Fire!

Welcome to 2014 and a brand new year of links. Here we go…

Best Treat– We could literally eat this coconut crepe cake every day for the rest of the year.

Coconut Crepe Cake by Michelle from Hummingbird High blog Hummingbird High

Best Tote- Nothing makes grocery shopping more enjoyable than a ‘punny’ tote bag.

Oh Kale Yeah tote bag by West Elm West Elm

Best Snow Tracks- This is not your average snow shoe expedition.

Simon Beck snow artSimon Beck

Best Travel Buddy- 16 books to devour from cover to cover on your next big trip.

16 Little Books To Read by Arianna Rebolini_ Image by Chris Ritter via BuzzfeedArianna Rebolini, Image Chris Ritter

 Best 8min. Documentary- Answer the question #BeautyIs ? HERE

p.s. We also want to congratulate member Linda Neff for her great #selfieadventure2014 where she posts a new #selfieforacause every day!

Best Boost- If you still feel like you’re stuck in 2013, tune into one of these TED talks to kickstart the new year.

6 Ted Talks to make 2014 your best year yet

Best ‘Fakeout’- Meet the 21st century’s version of a private chef Plated.

Plated food delivery servicePlated

Best Intimate Apparel-  The idea of innerwear for women sounds absolutely genius!! (Thanks Alessandra Chiareli for the heads up)

autrepeau innerwear for womenautrepeau

Have a fantastic weekend and let us know if anything is lighting you up!

xox

The Women on Fire team

P.S. Did you miss our last Links That Light Us Up?

January Book Of The Month

Welcome to a brand-new year of exciting, popular Books To Live By to inspire your amazing life!

Our selection this month highlights Women on Fire’s January membership program theme of “Stepping Powerfully into the New Year,” and I can’t think of a better person or guide to help us set our souls on fire in 2014.

My dear, long-time friend, Marianne Williamson, has released a daily devotional to inspire and ignite your whole heart for the next 365 days.

A Year of Miracles by Marianne Williamson- Women on Fire January Book To Live By

A Year of Miracles, Daily Devotions and Reflections (amazon link) is Marianne’s latest and greatest work.

Marianne is an author, speaker, spiritual teacher and now California congressional candidate, and she is also a powerful voice for women everywhere looking to reconnect with their hearts and higher selves.

I’ve mentioned her work many times here before. A Return to Love and Illuminata of two of my very favorites, and A Year of Miracles falls in line as another perfect companion to any of her books.

It’s a collection of Marianne’s teachings that remind you of your inner power as a miracle worker, change maker, and love generator.

Marianne says, “Anyone can be a miracle worker—anyone who chooses to be.” This book shows you how to do just that. It encourages you to embrace the momentous shift your life can take when you let love in and let go of fear.

Each day’s reading is packed with loving, down-to-earth insights. It’s my new favorite way to start the day—with a cup of coffee, as I sit down at my desk in the mornings, and sometimes even before I make it out of bed.

Here are a few gems from this latest book:

  • It’s not enough to wash yesterday’s dirt off your body. Wash yesterday’s stress off your mind.
  • Exercise your attitudinal muscles like you exercise your physical muscles, and you’ll have more than a new body — you’ll have a new life.
  • There’s enough love in the world to create peace on earth. What’s lacking is the collective conviction that we should.
  • There can be no darkness where I provide the light.

I started my copy on the first day of the new year, and the beauty of this devotional, unlike many others, is that it isn’t organized around actual dates, so you can start Day 1 whenever you are ready. Or better yet, just open it to a new page everyday.

A Year of Miracles truly is one of those books that every woman should own—every man, too :)—and I hope you treat yourself in this new year, to kindle your goals and discover the miracles, by purchasing your copy today!

And as always, let me know as the love and insights unfold.

Links That Light Us Up

16th Edition

Hello Woman on Fire!

We hope you are enjoying your week so far, here are some brand new links to make it that much better 🙂

Best Scrapbook 2.0- Digital cameras make it too easy to take pictures and forget about them. Try using one of these fantastic photo book services collected by Brit.Co to bring your memories back in print.

5 best ways to turn your photos into books via Brit.Co

Best Creative Juice- Do you ever notice that you work better in a coffee shop? There’s something about the calm commotion that makes it easier to stay on task and inspired. Coffitivity is a digital download of ‘coffee shop white noise’. Now you can feel like you’re in the midst of a bustling cafe no matter where you are.

Coffitivity- Background Coffee Shop Noise

Best Budget Wardrobe- We breezed through this amazing list of 100+ fall fashion items under $100 from Vogue. Leather, and jewel tones, and booties, OH MY!

100+ Fall Fashion Items under $100 from VOGUEVogue

Best Word Play- Over at Women on Fire we are HUGE fans of watching TEDTalks, and many of our women have even participated over the years. We stumbled across this one just yesterday from Sarah Kay, titled “If I Should Have A Daughter.” It’s absolutely beautiful and so is the mission for her education based non-profit, Project V.O.I.C.E!

Best Break- Need a break, a breath, a minute to just stop everything around you? Huffington Post created a list of 10 apps to help you relax your body and mind.

10 Apps to relax your body and mind via Huffington Post

Best Fall Photo- Our resident ‘Man on Fire’, Mr. Rob Berkley is a phenomenal photographer who never fails to capture the perfect shot. We’ve seen a lot of fall photos on Pinterest in the past couple weeks but nothing compares to the serenity of this photo. Check out his other work here, or follow him on google+ to keep track of his latest photo updates!

Fall from Rob BerkleyRob Berkley

Best Treat Without Bulge– Food allergies seem to be the new thing, and many of our Women on Fire team members swear by the Paleo Diet. One of our favorite websites Nom Nom Paleo has crafted a delicious treat that eliminates gluten and dairy, from Kelly Brozyna’s unreal cookbook– The Paleo Chocolate Lover’s Cookbook: 80 Gluten Free Treats for Breakfast & Dessert. Food allergies or not, we highly recommend you take a look.

Kelly Brozyna's Chocolate Pie + Raw Graham Cracker Crust from NomNom Paleo

Best New Books- We are always on the hunt for new books to cuddle up with. If you haven’t checked out our Book To Live By for October yet you can do that here 🙂 If you have, follow us over here for a list 12 new books for fall from Mashable.

12 new books to cozy up with this Fall from Mashable

 

We hope you continue to enjoy your week and don’t forget to let us know what’s lighting you up online!

xox

The Women on Fire Team

 

Links That Light Us Up

9th Edition

Hi, Woman on Fire!

It’s that time again…are you ready for some amazing links?

Best Animal Ever- Did you know that immediately after elephant mothers give birth they appoint other babysitters in the herd to look after their baby?  Learn more about these amazing creatures in this article from The Huffington Post.

The Amazing Elephant- image via ShutterstockShutterstock

Best Party Planner Cheat Sheet- Never worry about not having enough food at your party again. Thank you Chickabug for this party planning lifesaver!

Party Portions from ChickabugChickabug

Best Inspiring Read- You already know that we are HUGE Anne Lamott fans, and we’ve raved about her books before! We’re serious now … if haven’t read this book yet, please buy it today!

Help Thanks Wow by Anne LamottAnne Lamott

Best Bite- This pizza screams end of summer, and looks absolutely delicious. Tracy of Shutterbean has created this amazing Peach Arugula Corn Pizza, and we couldn’t be more excited to try it out.Peach Arugula Corn Pizza- Tracy of ShutterbeanShutterbean

Best Slumber Strategies– Need help sleeping? Look no further than this article about 9 surprising reasons you can’t fall asleep from The Huffington Post.

9 reasons you can't fall asleep via Huffington Post- Getty ImageGetty Image

Best Workout Playlists- Doesn’t it always feel like you’re working out to the same songs? Spice up your exercise routine with some new tunes. Run Hundred curates the best workout playlists and delivers them to your inbox every month!

Run Hundred- amazing workout playlistsRun Hundred

Best Equal Pay PSA- Just press play on this one 🙂

Best Print- Nobody does it better than our best girl Coco. We love this classic print for an office or vanity area! Buy here from MadeByGirl.

Chanel No 5 print by MadeByGirlMadeByGirl

We hope this served as a pleasant break for you in your busy week! We’ll be back with more next week. Until then, let us know what you liked and what’s lighting you up 🙂

xox

Women on Fire