This is probably the most difficult thing I'll ever write.  I've been M.I.A. pretty much since the last week of September.  I haven't answered letters and I haven't kept up with the site.  For that, I humbly apologize.  Perhaps, if you know why, you will pardon my absence.

There's no easy way to tell someone my mother passed away October 1, 2011 nor to explain the impact of her sudden loss on our family.  I still cringe when I have to say "the words" because my mind still won't accept them.  I'm still waiting for some comfortable way to say it yet there is none.  

Mom was the first person I spoke to each morning and my day wasn't complete without her.  She lived next door, so we had coffee together daily.  If it was raining, we might have our coffee clutch over the phone, but we'd still wave to each other across the driveway.  We talked about everything under the rising sun and there were always giggles to share no matter what was going on in our lives.  

We'd kill time until Dave got home from work and then my brother would come ambling up from his place.  Once in a blue moon even my nephew would pop in on his way to work and grab a biscuit and/or some gas money.  We all conglomerated at Mom's table, usually goading my brother into cooking breakfast.  DewMan makes the best bicuits on the planet and we got them "hot and ready" now.  We'd eat, we'd talk, we shared, we loved and we were a happy family.  Each day we'd leave with a smile to go our own merry ways about our own merry days.  Because of Mom they were always a little wiser, a bit more cheerful and a whole lot blessed for our morning gathering.  My husband works the graveyard shift, so Mom's "good night" was also the last thing heard when I called to "tuck her in."   What can I say?  I was a spoiled Momma's girl and proud of it.

For a while, each day was torture because she was my very best friend.  We talked to each other a zillion times a day.  Without her, everything in life seems to be "still."  Too still!  I've gone through each of the "7 Stages of Grief"... about a hundred times daily.  I could go on and on but I'll do that later in another article.  It's been a terrible time, but it's also been a time of miracles and healing between many in our family.  The love of family and friends has gotten me through this time, if you can ever actually "get through" losing your Mother.  I don't think you can, but only time will tell.  For the moment, I'm at least back in the saddle, but I will need to get back to work soon if Empowermom  is to survive.

With that I leave you with the following:  Please forgive my absence and probably a few more in the coming weeks.  Know I am working to breathe life back into Empowermom.  If I'm a little slow, realize that my muse is gone and I'm seeking out other inspirations.  While I've had to draw on other resources there are still plenty to keep me busy so we aren't doomed quite yet.

The site is now officially "upgraded" to Joomla! 2.5.  The new framework gave me an opportunity to reorganize and clean up the site PLUS I found some killer features I'll be unveiling soon.  Soooooo... it may take a little while to get everything sorted out but we're almost there.   I'm developing a new format and I'll be posting blogs on my adventures very soon.  Enjoy your stay as you wonder through the halls of Empowermom and stay tuned as Empowermom morphs daily into something fun, exciting and... well, PASSIONATE!