I'm A Keeper

"Rejection comes in one flavor and it ain't sweet.  When you understand that someone out there wants what you have, you understand your position of being a KEEPER.  Keep looking, keep asking, keep the faith and focus on being a the KEEPER of the vision even when you are given a bitter taste of Rejection.  Some how. Some will.  Some won't. So what?  Someone's waiting for YOUR something."

~Lucinda Cross

When I saw these words, I knew they were for me. You see I've been dealing with rejection my entire life it seems.  Then again that's nothing out of the ordinary because we all have to deal with rejection on a daily basis.  However, the rejections of my life did make me like I wasn't a keeper.

My familiarity with rejection dates back to my childhood. I can't even begin to take about how watching my parents' marriage fall apart and my father choosing not to be an active part of our lives has had a huge impact on my not feeling a like keeper. They say that time heals all wounds, but I think that some wounds can't be healed.  You get either good at hiding them or you learn how to successfully manage them.

Even with starting this blog, I've had to deal with rejection.  From comments from readers to rejection emails from brands who didn't think YUMMommy was a good fit to help represent their brand.  But you know what?  I've made up my mind that contrary to what Beyonce says, I am irreplaceable!  You are irreplaceable!

No, not everyone is going to see you that way, but like Lucinda says, we have to KEEP our vision.  We have KEEP our eyes on the prize.  So, no matter what your dream or what your situation is, don't be discouraged.  You're not going to fit into every crowd or every circle.  And that's ok.  Create circle and support system you need.

Being a KEEPER means getting outside of your comfort zone.  It means keeping your head up and not taking every rejection personal.  Most importantly it means being able to dust yourself off, get back up and keep moving forward.

Romance Wednesday: Motivation

When it comes to motivation, some people are motivated by money, fame, food, etc.  But nobody motivates me harder than my husband.  He's always in my corner and has seen me through some of the darkest times in my life.  Plus, he works and hustles so hard for our family.

Likewise,I know that motivate him.  He knows my story and all that I've been through in my life. He knows that  I need safe and secure.  So, he makes sure that he is providing that in any way that he can.

When you motivate each other you become better people.  And can truly say that we are both better people.  Nothing sums it up better than this throw back from Fabolous featuring Ne-yo.

Next week, I'll post a linky so we can all link up our Romance Wednesday posts.

Stepping My Game Up

So, yesterday I turned 25 and blogged about My List of Adventures to Accomplish by my 30th birthday.  I've come to realize that I really want to make YUMMommy something special.  I want to make a name for myself.  I feel like I have the potential to be a self-made mogul.  I've always been a self-starter and a leader.

However, I'm realizing that if I'm ever going to rub elbows with the big shots then I need to seriously step my game up so that I will be prepared.  I mean I've met some basketball players, singers, stylists, etc when I worked in retail.  And I've come to realize is that all those were opportunities in which I missed out on being able to network.  Do you know I don't even have a business card?  Pitiful I know.  I mean business cards are the basics and I've slacked off on doing that.

I look at some of my friends who've gone on to chase after their dreams and I can't help but feel like I went wrong somewhere.  I mean my friend Kion is working for one of the largest PR firms in the country.  He's worked as a brand rep for Addias and had the chance to promote products with celebs like Reggie Bush.  He's successful managed to grab the attention of people like Fantasia and Tachina Arnold. Oh, did I mean he's only 24?

How did he get where he is?  He started with the basics.  He networked, exchanged numbers, read books and voiced his opinion.  I can't begin to tell you all how many great books I have here about how to get to my mogul status.  I've just procrastinated and not read any of them.  I'll start and then put it down never to return.  But what do I do? I go out and order or buy another book that pretty much tells me the same thing as the book I already have waiting on my coffee table.

Well, I'm awake and ready to take charge of my life. I want leave my legacy on this world and give my Moo and future child someone to look up to and want to be like.  I'm no longer content with just making it.  I watched my Mom just make it with us and I hated it!!!  We were always telling her that she should publish her writings, get into motivational speaking, start a business and guess what she's done none of those.  Sure, she does speaking engagements but that's only because her job as director requires her to in order to raise money for their non-profit programs.

Her writings are still collecting dust in her many notebooks she has scattered throughout the house, she still hasn't started that business she wanted either.  While I desperately want to be like my mom in so many ways, those are not some of them.  I want to be able to full my destiny and achieve the adventures on my list.  So, I've decided to brush the dust off of my self-help books and get to reading.  Also, with the help of my new found blogger bff Mommy Delicious, I ordered a lovely set of business cards from Shutterfly.

I'm even stepping the game up with my wardrobe.  I might be pregnant and a mom already, but that doesn't mean I can't look fab.  I'm hunting down new maternity clothes and even adding a little eye shadow.  I recently won some lipstick from FSL Comestics over at Silver Lips Beauty.  I am super excited to rock it to my doctor's appointment on Wednesday. I need to be prepared to run into great people.  I don't their first impression of me to be that I'm tacky or cheap.

I've even gone through the trouble of joining some great groups on Meetup.com.  It's these little changes that are going to give me the boost of confidence I need to get back in the game.  Heck just writing this post I already feel bolder and ready to take on a challenge.  Stay tuned because there is more to be continued!

5 More Days Until Christmas