A Message From Kim

Good Afternoon Everyone,

I just want to let each and every one of you know how much I appreciate your support of me and LadyRomp. I wake up every morning looking forward to all of your great comments and support everyday. I just want to say, at the risk of sounding corny, I feel so much responsibility to you to make sure that you are reading quality material about women who are really making an impact in world. Thank you so much for being there and I appreciate you more than I could ever express.

Blessing,

Kim

A Message From The Creator

“People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar.” 
― Thich Nhat Hanh

Inspirational Woman Of The Day

Queen Latifah

Rapper, record producer, and actress Dana Owens aka Queen Latifah was born on March 18,1970 in Newark, New Jersey. Her first album All Hail to the Queen sold over a million copies and the single “U.N.I.T.Y” earned Latifah her first Grammy Award. Latifah’s acting received strong reviews where she earned her first Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress in the blockbuster musical Chicago.

Early Life

Rapper, record producer, actress. Born Dana Owens, on March 18, 1970, in Newark, New Jersey. The second child of Lance and Rita Owens, she is best known for her social politics as well as her gift for rhyme. When she was 8 years old, a Muslim cousin gave her the nickname Latifah, meaning “delicate and sensitive” in Arabic. Latifah began singing in the choir of Shiloh Baptist Church in Bloomfield, New Jersey, and had her first public performance when she sang a version of “Home” as one of the two Dorothys in a production of The Wizard of Oz at St. Anne’s parochial school.

In her first year of high school, Latifah began informal singing and rapping in the restrooms and locker rooms. In her junior year, she formed a rap group, Ladies Fresh, with her friends Tangy B and Landy D in response to the formation of another young women’s group. Soon the group was making appearances wherever they could. Latifah’s mother was a catalyst; she was in touch with the students and the music. She invited Mark James, a local disc jockey known as D.J. Mark the 45 King, to appear at a school dance. The basement of James’ parent’s house in East Orange, which was equipped with electronic and recording equipment, became the hangout of Latifah and her friends. They began to call themselves Flavor Unit.

Breakthrough Album

James was beginning a career as a producer and made a demo record of Queen Latifah’s rap Princess of the Posse. He gave the demo to the host of Yo! MTV Raps, Fred Braithwaite (professionally known as Fab 5 Freddy). The recording captured the attention of Tommy Boy Music employee Dante Ross, who immediately signed Latifah, and in 1988 issued her first single, “Wrath of My Madness.” The track met with a positive response and afforded her the opportunity to launch a European tour, and to perform at the Harlem’s famed Apollo Theater. The next year Latifah released her first album, All Hail to the Queen, which sold over one million copies.

Business Acumen

As she began to earn money, Latifah displayed an interest in investment, putting money into a delicatessen and a video store on the ground floor of the apartment in which she was living. She came to realize that she had a knack for business, and realized that there was an opening for her in record production. In 1991, she organized and became chief executive officer of Flavor Unit Records and Management Company headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey. By late 1993, the company had signed 17 rap groups, including the very successful Naughty by Nature. In 1993, Latifah recorded a jazz and reggae influenced album titled Black Reign. While the album sold over 500,000 copies, the single “U.N.I.T.Y.” earned Latifahh her first Grammy Award in 1995.

Acting Success

Shortly after, Latifah’s fame translated into film appearances, including roles in Juice, Spike Lee‘s Jungle Fever (both 1991),House Party II (1992), and Set It Off (1996), in which she starred as a lesbian bank robber. She also found success in television work, most notably starring on the Fox sitcom, Living Single.

In 1999, Latifah appeared with Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie in The Bone Collector. Three years later, she earned an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Mama Morton in the blockbuster musical Chicago. She also received strong reviews for 2003’s romantic comedy Bringing Down the House opposite Steve Martin and 2006’s Last Holiday.

In 2007, Queen Latifah appeared as Motormouth Maybelle in a remake of the musical movie Hairspray with John Travolta. The year 2008 also found Queen Latifah busy with multiple projects, including Mad Money, What Happens In Vegas, and The Secret Life of Bees. Additionally, she lent her voice to the character Ellie in Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (2009).

Queen Latifah is also a spokesperson for Covergirl cosmetics where she represents her own line, The Queen Collection.

Inspiration Of A Life Changed

By NICK SHIFFRIN ABC News

Paralyzed Woman Finishes London Marathon

For five years, Claire Lomas hasn’t been able to walk, hasn’t been able to feel her legs. But that hasn’t stopped her.

She was once a professional horse rider, her blond hair flowing underneath her white riding cap. But in 2007, a freak accident paralyzed her from the chest down.

She spent all her time in a wheelchair, at least until January. That’s when she started walking again, thanks to a $75,000 bionic suit.

“It’s amazing after five years of sitting down to be back on my feet,” she said earlier this year, “and it’s fully weight-bearing and I can walk in it as well.”

Each time she steps forward, her suit hisses a sound not dissimilar to Robocop. The ReWalk and two canes support her, and the suit senses when she wants to walk and shifts her weight for her. But it’s not easy. Each day, when she started, she could take only 30 steps. Every moment was a chore, and because she couldn’t feel where she standing, she always feared falling over.

But that didn’t stop her, either. Loman set out to walk 55,000 steps – or 26.2 miles. She set out to run the London Marathon.

She started, alongside 35,000 runners, 16 days ago. Today, in the shadow of Buckingham Palace, she finished — to the screams of thousands of fans who came out to support her.

“It’s a moment I’m going to treasure for the rest of my life,” she said in a nationally televised, live interview with the BBC after she crossed. “The support here has been – I didn’t expect it here like this. I couldn’t believe it when I turned up this morning in the taxi to start, and I thought it was just a busy day in London. Someone told me they’re all there for me. I was like, no!”

But they all were there for her, inspired by her determination to finish the race, inspired by her becoming the first woman in a robotic suit to complete a marathon, inspired by her ability to, as she told ABC News today, “just keep persevering.”

Thanks to all her fans, Loman raised more than $100,000 for spinal cord research. In the interview with ABC News, she said she felt lucky — despite her accident.

“After my accident, for a few days, you think, why, why has this happened? But it has. And that’s that. You just need to find new things to do,” she said while on her way to a party in her honor. “Of course I have bad days and difficult times. But I just get through them, and gradually, things get better.”

A lot better. And that is, perhaps, the most extraordinary part of the story. Today is not the most important day of Lomas’ life. It’s not even the most important day since the accident.

In the last three years, Claire Lomas has gotten married and given birth to a healthy baby girl. Mazie is 15 months old, and was right there as Lomas crossed the finish line.

“We’re having a bit of a competition to see who can walk first,” she joked with the BBC in February. “We’re about level at the moment. But young veins learn quicker, so I’m not sure whether she’s going to overtake me soon!”

And her husband Dan was there every step of the way, helping support the suit – and her.

“Some days were more difficult than others. Yesterday particularly was tough. Felt really tired. I didn’t have a great yesterday, and I knew if I stopped, I wouldn’t want to get going again,” she told ABC News. “But with all the support, it just helped me carry on.”

And in many ways, Lomas was carrying on, even from the days before her accident. She’s always thrived on difficult tasks. The last 16 days, she suggested, was just what she loves to do.

“Before my accident, I’d always had a lot of challenges,” she said. “I’m that type of person. It doesn’t change who you are, when you have a spinal injury and you still want to push yourself.”

Inspiration Of Motherhood

 

Moms rule! I’m a great mom because…

By Rebecca Dube

What makes you an awesome mother?

In the daily slog of motherhood, it’s often easy to see where we fall short: The messy house, the microwaved meals, the raised voices, the undone homework. And our good days, we laugh about it and remind each other that Super Mom is a myth and we’re all doing the best we can. 

But Mother’s Day is no time for modesty. Even in this self-deprecating age, sometimes you just have to brag: Moms rule. You rule. We all rule. Say it loud and proud!

All week, we’re celebrating mom heroes on TODAY Moms. We’ll start publishing the winners of our Mom Hero contest later this week (once I finish crying from reading all the amazing entries). Stay tuned for those winners, starting Wednesday.

In the meantime, check out our Mother’s Day e-cards atwww.momsruletoday.com, and send one to your favorite rockin’ mom. For inspiration, here are some of the many ways in which TODAY Moms on Facebook told us they rule. We asked, what makes you a great mom?

 

Unconditional love

Christy Kemp Caasi: Because i give them my whole heart with every ounce of love it holds!!!

Darla Haines Mills: When he asks why he is an only child, I tell him I got perfection on my first try. I also tell him every night just as he falls asleep that no one and I mean no one loves you more than your mommy.

Aida Ramirez: My mom (RIP) made me a great mom. My unconditional love night and day. Just the simple fact that everything I do is with my children in mind and to benefit them in every way that I can.

Gina Nierenhausen: I’m not Mother Teresa but I love those who allow me to be a part of their life. I also listen, give the best advice I can from my experiences and most importantly, I love unconditionally because that’s how I was loved by my mother. Happy Mother’s day to All Women who take on the position as a mother.

Katie Gill: What makes me a great mom is dedication to my sons and desire to make their lives the best possible. I have a special needs son who is now 4. Since his birth he has had 8 surgeries, was on a feeding tube for 2 1/2 years and after countless doctors and therapy visits, he is now starting to catch up with those his own age. I love my boys more than anything in the world and they make me a very proud Momma!

 

Nathalie Ratliff: Discovering that the purest joy I can experience is the genuine and pure joy of my baby girl. Then doing everything I can to nurture that in her to make her a loved, confident, happy woman one day. Remembering that I’m raising a future adult, not a baby.

Sense of humor

Nora Walsh Katzenberger: I try to have a sense of humor about the ups and downs that occur on almost a minute-by-minute basis, and I’m always open to new ideas about how I could be doing a better job.

Nicole Powers Sakaitis:I tell people God must have a sense of humor or how else would I have had a child. I remember an anecdote I read in Reader’s Digest one time, “My kids are God’s children, I just have them on loan for awhile.” I also seriously laugh when somebody says they can raise children because they have this or that degree or babysat alot. Kids don’t care about that stuff at all.

Freedom to be you and me

Tami Garcia: Allowing my children to think outside the box, and not conform. Wanting them to be happy in whatever they chose to do.

Shea Jacobs: Allowing my kids the freedom of speech and expression…without yelling of course;)

 

Limits and love

Jolene Redd-Lakey: I love my two daughters very much and that is why I am not afraid to tell them “no.” I refuse to raise spoiled children that will/may grow up to be spoiled adults that believe the world owes them. Don’t get me wrong, my girls have what they need to survive… and then some. But if they want a $100 pair of jeans they will have to earn it. Does that make me a hero to my girls? Maybe not right now, but I pray they will understand when they’re older that saying “no” isn’t always a bad thing.

Fighting to overcome

Alison Parson: I have a 4-yr-old son and a 5-yr-old daughter. With both of their births, I suffered from postpartum mood disorders. Depression with my first, psychosis with my second. It was very hard to deal with two babies while going through depression and psychosis, even having to be hospitalized for a period of time. But, I fought hard and fought tough so that I could overcome my mental illnesses so that I could give my children the love they deserve, and the love we all needed. It took a while to get to the point I am at now, but I love my children and couldn’t imagine not being a mother to them. They are my buddies, as I often refer to them.