Battling the Bullies One Dress at a Time! iVoice Beth Engelman takes us to the stage at the Chicago Children's Theatre, where a hit musical featuring mean girls and an immigrant student who wears the same dress every day provides a timely message about what kids -- and parents -- can do to fight bullying and keep other children happy and safe.
And what about all of you ... have you dealt with the bullying issue in your own family?
More about Beth: Beth Engelman currently writes a column for the Pioneer Press Called “Mommy on a Shoestring” and is a regular on WCIU-TV Chicago, sharing great family tips and tricks for living large on a shoestring budget. She has written multiple articles on the subject of having fun while being frugal for a several high-profile websites including sheknows.com, cafemom.com, and thefatherlife.com.
A great Hawaiian saying is “Imua!” which means to move forward with confidence and courage. It’s a great word for the upcoming new year as we explore new opportunities and perhaps face fears.
This week, I put into practice “imua” by facing my fear of ziplining. Yes, I stepped off a wooden platform to soar across 1800 feet of the world’s fifth largest caldera located in Kauai. Encouraged by my teenage daughters, I faced my fear of not being in control of my destiny and took a leap of faith.
The excellent guides, Mitch and Chris of Outfitters Kauai prepared us well for our ultimate “black diamond” zipline adventure. We did several practice runs on what I thought were “big ziplines” but little did I know what was really awaiting. The guides constantly reminded us that the most important lesson we all needed to learn to be safe was to “trust our gear.”
True wisdom that I needed to hear. For too long in life, I have “held on tightly” when what I should have done was to “let go and let God.” He provides “the gear” that we need to sustain us through the difficult moments of life as we soar across jungles.
So I guess my advice would be this: “Face your fear and trust God’s gear.” IMUA!!
What fear do you need to face this year? What have you been holding on too tightly? What does “imua” mean to you?
Wow. I would like to extend a quick, heartfelt THANK YOU to all who hosted the 12 Pearl of Christmas series on their blog this year. The author's posts were terrific and as I traveled across the webosphere, I was touched time and time again by several of your blog readers' comments.
Nearly 2900 people signed up to win the Pearl Set (Necklace, earrings & bracelet). The winner was chosen randomly at Random.org.
And the winner is:
Here are your random numbers:
226
Timestamp: 2010-12-31 22:31:07 UTC
Number 226 is Karen Medin!
Congrats Karen. Please send my assistant Amy (amy@pearlgirls.info) your mailing address!
