Tag Archives: Mama Sling
15 Dec

JAMIE’S BLOG – YEAR 9
bows – 16 days to go
{trust}  

There are 16 days left of The Promise 365!

I love Sunday afternoons. Today, I spent the day wrapping presents, watching the Hallmark Channel and watching the New England Patriots win. Brady sat next to me the entire time, tuckered out from all the activity.  While watching was the easy part, doing is always harder.

I can watch my share of Hallmark Christmas specials, and I can cheer on Patriots touchdowns, but I cannot wrap a present as my mother. I’m not knocking my own skills. I am a wrapping paper expert. I know all the secrets to making a present pop, including creasing the corners and lining up the design on the papers just perfectly. Alas, I cannot make a bow like Mama Sling.

I tried. Many times. I started over many times too. I used tape (it snapped) and yarn (it broke) and wire (it slipped). 

So much of this blog has been dedicated to the fond memories I have of Mama Sling. There are so many amazing memories and moments, and there are so many incredible things she taught me. But she didn’t teach me how to make her famous bows. 

The bows that she spent hours on, the bows that she wouldn’t let us smoosh under the tree. We had to Tetris all the presents under the tree to specifically make sure no bow would touch another bow. There was no bow smooshing allowed. This won’t be a problem this Christmas since I cannot replicate the Mama Sling bow.

But that’s not really the point, is it? I still have the memories of her laughter and her love and her magical Christmas bows. Even though I do not have her or her bow making talent, I have her in my heart, which keeps her by my side.   

The best part of Christmas is not the gifts we buy, but the moments we give each other that last long beyond the time we are together. Thank you, Mama Sling, for being by my side throughout these past nine years, and these past nine promises, and every Christmas in between.

Even if I can’t make a bow to save my life!  

Trust me!
More tomorrow.Jamie

{trust}
#lovemore

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JAMIE’S BLOG – YEAR 9 let it snow – 30 days to go

1 Dec

{trust}  

There are 30 days left of The Promise 365!

It’s the first day of December and the first day of Christmas and the first snow of the season! The back patio is already covered with a blanket of snow which makes the twinkling lights inside shine even brighter. It already feels like Christmas.

There is something special about the holiday season, despite all the loved ones it makes me miss. Over the years, the last nine years, I have written many times about my dear Mama Sling and it is always her that I miss the most.

The holidays are synonymous with Mama Sling, still. So many years later and it is always her that ties the holiday bow in my heart. The rest of my holidays will also be without her but not without her love. So I say, bring it on. Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Here’s to a beautiful holiday season. 
Trust me!
More tomorrow.Jamie

{trust}
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JAMIE’S BLOG – YEAR 9 memories – 33 days to go

28 Nov

{trust}  

There are 33 days left of The Promise 365!

Happy Thanksgiving. Today is a time of memories, old and new. The food, the family, the many, many, many gatherings over all the years. This is the ninth and final Thanksgiving for ThePromise365.com. Over the years if there is one thing that rings true, it is this: I still cannot perfect my mother’s rolls. 

Once again, another Thanksgiving has passed and my attempt at her rolls is still subpar. Justin even made me use all the same brands of ingredients that she used. I followed the recipe exactly. And, somehow… they are just not the same.

It makes me think that Mama Sling put something special and possibly a secret ingredient into her roll dough. Quite possibly it was just love. The secret ingredient for me is just pure memories. Maybe I will never perfect that recipe but the memory of my mom will always be with me, each Thanksgiving and every day in between.   

Here’s to the memories! 

Trust me!
More tomorrow.Jamie

{trust}
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JAMIE’S BLOG – YEAR 9 – DAY 278 :: unstoppable

7 Oct

{trust}  

I had the most amazing surprise weekend in New Orleans, and the more I reflect on it, the more I am reminded about my dear, sweet Mama Sling. Reuniting with my cousins this weekend, randomly because we were in the same place at the same time and staying in two hotels across the street from each other unbeknownst to us, was a wonderful surprise and a massive touchstone to my mother.

We shared stories about our memories of her, her sweetness and her strength. Her hugs and love, her ability to take care of others even when she was sick. She was such a beautiful blend of those two things. Sweet as pie, stronger than life itself. This is probably why she is so present with me today, and with my dear cousins too. They called her Aunt Wee, I called her Mama Sling. But really, what she was is called unstoppable.

Which brings me to this… 

If there was any message she could have shared with us girls, I think it would be this:  “Be sweet, be strong, be unstoppable.” That is what makes you unforgettable. 

Trust me!
More tomorrow.
Jamie

{trust}
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JAMIE’S BLOG – YEAR 9 – DAY 138 :: trust in the seasons

19 May

{trust}  

Nine years ago I started this blog. Five years ago I discovered my love of flowers. Today, I saw the first blossom on our rhododendron plant. It’s like falling in love all over again.

The rhodies are about to bloom and they make my heart soar. 

I discovered my love of flowers when they were my only hope. I was in my head waiting for surgery and they were in the yard waiting to bloom. Both of us were looking up to the sky every day praying for life. As I waited, they slowly unfolded, each petal gently reminding me of the faith it takes to live and the beauty that comes with it.

It’s five years later and today I discovered that the rhododendron plant in front of our new home on a new coast in a new year and a new life is blooming the color purple. It was Mama Sling’s favorite color. It’s also a good reminder that spring is the best time to bloom and summer is the best time to fly. 

Trust me!
More tomorrow.

Lovemore,
Jamie

{trust}
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JAMIE’S BLOG – YEAR 9 – DAY 131 :: trust is a mother’s language

12 May


{trust}  

Mother’s Day always brings me memories of Mama Sling. In this year of Trust, it is no different. If love is the sacred language of a mother, trust is the sacred bond of a child.  

  Even though with each year it gets easier, Mother’s Day will always have a small tidbit of a sting of loss for me. And even though Mama Sling is no longer walking next to me she is always with me, in my heart, my memories, and my love. 

She is in the air all around me. That’s what mother’s do. So even though Mother’s Day is slotted into one day on the calendar Mama Sling is slotted into my life in a way only a mother can be. Always, unconditionally, fully present and full of love. That is the language of a mother. 

Trust me!
More tomorrow.

Lovemore,
Jamie

{trust}
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JAMIE’S BLOG – YEAR 8 – DAY 282 :: joy is old photos

18 Oct

{and pie} 

We sorted through Justin’s baby photos tonight. The adorable firstborn pics to the young soccer days. We even found his report card from high school. But the best find of the night was a letter my Mama Sling sent to Justin for his 21st birthday.

He must have been in college at the time, and we were no longer a couple. But Mama Sling sent him a coupon for a homemade pie that she would make him at his request. It was a folded note in her handwriting that brought me so much joy tonight. I didn’t know she sent it to him at the time because we were broken up and no one was allowed to mention his name to me. 

But now, looking back, I have to think my mother would have been pleased to know I would eventually find her note twenty years later. It’s just a simple note with a promise in it for homemade pie. But it brings a smile to my face and warms my heart to know my now husband won over the heart of my mama way back then.  

More tomorrow… Lovemore,
Jamie

{joyful}
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JAMIE’S BLOG – YEAR 8 – DAY 144 :: breathing joy

22 May
{joy breaks}

For my Joy Break today, I went to the beach.

For just a few minutes, but they were well worth it. Feet in the sand (and butt in the sand) it was a good reminder to sit firmly on the ground and breathe in fresh air. 

When I finally left the hot sandy beach and put myself back into my car, I had a sudden urge. I wanted to call my mom. I almost reached for the phone to dial her up before I stopped myself and shook my head.

I haven’t felt that urge in so many years. I mean, of course, I think of my dear Mama Sling all the time. But I haven’t actually had a brain to muscle reaction to actually pick up the phone and dial her number in so, so long.

It was a familiar feeling. I used to call her at her office …like every single day. I’m sure my calls were annoying and interrupting, and yet, also eagerly anticipated. These days, I wouldn’t even know what number to call to reach her.

But today, I had a physical reaction to reach out to her. As if she was right there next to me and I just wanted to talk to her or hug her tightly.

I guess that is what happens when you breathe in fresh air. It goes straight to the brain. And then everything else falls away until you are only left with what matters most. What joy.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

More tomorrow…

Lovemore,
Jamie

{joy breaks}
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JAMIE’S BLOG – YEAR 8 – DAY 134 :: you are loved

12 May
{mothers day}

Happy Mother’s Day.

As I sit here tonight reflecting on my dear Mama Sling, I know that no matter where she is, heaven, earth, universe or beyond, she is sending me her love. And I am sending it right back to her.

And that brings me so much joy.

We went on a whale watch today – something my mother loved – and even though it was not for her, I certainly felt her presence. I usually do, especially during key moments in time like the night before Mother’s Day.

I know not everyone has a sweet relationship with their mother in this lifetime. And I know what I had with my Mama Sling was very special. But I also know this – a mothers love lasts beyond space and time.

If Mama Sling were around today, we probably would have had more fights, and more eye rolls, and more conflict that comes in the human form of being a mother and daughter. We certainly would have racked up more hours on the phone, with more tears and more laughter too.

There would have been so much more. More joy I am sure.

Even still, I feel a deep sense of joy inside my soul that we will always have a connection. The older I get, the more it changes, morphs, and maneuver around. But it is always there.

Today we saw a humpback whale on our boat ride. It moved through the water with ease and grace, and each time right before it dove deep into the ocean and flipped its tail high into the air in slow motion, I felt my mother’s whisper over the waves of water below.

“You are loved. You are loved. You are loved.”

Happy Mother’s Day.
You are loved.  And always remembered.

More tomorrow…

Lovemore,
Jamie

{love and joy}
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JAMIE’S BLOG – YEAR 7 – KINDNESS  DAY 346 :: christmas kindness

13 Dec
{creating}

Today I continue the month of Christmas Kindness!

And guess what?

I created a hat. All by myself! I’m so shocked and proud of this little warm and fuzzy. I feel like a little kid, bouncing up and down, screaming “I made it all by myself!”

Of course, I didn’t do it all by myself. There were a few other hands at play. My dear Mama Sling who so many years ago taught me how to crochet with my tiny fingers. And then, of course, my lovely friend Lauren who bought me the yarn and needle as a Christmas gift, and reminded me how to weave together the yarn.

It reminds me that we never really do anything alone. There are so many hands at play, for our higher good and happiness.

And that seems pretty kind to me.

More tomorrow…

Lovemore,
Jamie

{creating}
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