Guest Blogger III Debrief and Links

Well my dear Yankee Doodle Paddy Friends, we made it! Yes February, the Month of LOVE, has come and gone. 28 days and 29 posts and I for one feel more inspired, more energized and more connected. And connected is an important aspect of this Guest Blogger Series. We may come into this world alone and leave it alone, but it is utterly and truly about the connections we make along the way. To see these guest bloggers connect with each other, support and encourage each other has been amazing. And it is doubly awesome to see readers connect too, offering words of kindness through comments on here and social media. I’m in awe and blown away!

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Guest Blogger Month III: Post #29

I had the pleasure of meeting Guest Blogger Amber last summer in Lincoln, Nebraska, my Hubby’s home town. We had met through Snapchat the year prior and planned our meet up for months before the big day.  We had a blast on our Foodie Fieldtrip Friday afternoon together. In all the years I have traveled to Lincoln, I actually never had a tour as thorough as that one! From the top of the Capital building for the awesome views to the Haymarket for Ice cream it was non stop chats.   And while I didn’t get to meet Amber’s daughter Chloe, I felt I had. You see, Amber loves her daughter so dearly that even when they aren’t in the same physical space, Chloe still holds a place in her mom’s heart. When you read this LOVE story, you’ll understand why…

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Guest Blogger Month III: Post 27

Today is the penultimate day of the Guest Blogger Month of LOVE series. And it is great to have Ashley back on the blog for a second year. Her story last year is still a popular one as she is 100% honest, a true virtue in this day and age! This bubbly lady from Hawaii is a wonderful mommy and wife who takes her social media followers along with her on all her world travels. So I wasn’t surprised to see what this year’s LOVE story was about, as she has nearly every page in her passport stamped!

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Guest Blogger Month III: Post #11

As I begin to introduce Guest Blogger Post #11,  I am also introducing a first on Yankee Doodle Paddy. For reasons you will understand once you read this LOVE story, the author asked to remain anonymous. It is a gut wrenching story and I need to say that in case there are any triggers or if you feel you have to be in the right space and place to read it. It isn’t graphic or anything, just that if you are like me, empathetic, you’ll want to reach through your screen and hug this person and comfort them. But here is the good news; by the grace of God and the writer’s angels (some of whom may even be reading this), there is a silver lining. And as I always say, our highest purpose often comes from our deepest pain. That is in fact how my purpose to spread LOVE was born. So thank you to the angels that helped this person! May we all be grateful to our angels, even if they are unaware of just what they did to help us! Our hearts know and are blessed because of it. And thank you to this guest blogger for trusting me with this sensitive and powerful piece….. Continue reading

Guest Blogger Month III: Post #8

I hope you are all enjoying this Month of LOVE Guest Blogger series as much as I am! I look forward to putting these posts together each day. No matter if I have had a 16 hour work day, I run to my laptop with joy! Just as the prior two years, this February punctuates the calendar with positivity. I believe, even in a small way, this cumulative conversation on my favorite topic, can and will reveal the intricacies and nuances of LOVE. Trust me, we will end the month learning from this commUNITY of writers that there is more to love than what card companies, RomComs, and society in general dictates. LOVE is indeed multi-faceted, multi-layered and multi-dimensional. It is universal and personal simultaneously! So let’s hear from today’s fabulous blogger Diane on how love has manifested in her own life. Continue reading

Guest Blogger Month III: Post #7

Before I introduce today’s amazing Guest Blogger, I just want to take this time to thank you for your support. Not just for this Yankee Doodle Paddy blog but specifically for the Month of Love series, now in its third year (click here and here for links to the last two years). But most importantly I want to thank YOU for being a huge source of love and encouragement to these awesome people who have the courage to open up and share their hearts with all of us! Trust me, it is harder than it looks! My lovely friend Kelly, from my soul home of Ireland, is well acquainted with sharing her heart, cuz like me she wears her heart on her sleeve! But to be honest with you, that actually makes it more courageous to split open the soul to enlighten others. Continue reading