It’s one of those moments that stick in your brain forever. The kind that makes you laugh every single time you think of it. The one that you share with people, over and over and over.
The one that you can’t imagine your life without and had you not been paying attention or willing to grab onto it – you would have totally forgotten about it and your life would seem emptier and you’d never know why.
I was at a Spanish Honors camp, I was about 16 and for whatever reason, I was wearing a Violet Femmes t-shirt. It was one of those with “old-time” photos, where the three guys were dressed up and it looked all vintage. I was wearing this – why anyone didn’t stop me, I don’t know, either way … if someone had stopped me, well, my life would be different. And not in a good way.
This skinny, long haired beauty approached me at a welcome picnic, she looked at my shirt and said “is that your family?”
Dear God. Three men on my shirt, two of them dressed as women, the words VIOLENT FEMMES etched across the top and this girl thinks they’re my family?
“um, no, they’re the Violent Femmes.” Her name was Jennifer (but we call her Jennifer Helen, got that?) and that began an amazing relationship that continues to this day. We are both 33 years old, we’ve been together through everything; engagements, marriage, careers, job loss, births, cancer…death.

If you and I were sitting in a room together, drinking coffee and eating a dessert, I’d tell you ALL about my Soul Sister except that’s not the point of this post.
The point of this post is to share with you how I’ve watched this person, this person with the biggest dreams, the biggest heart, the biggest smile, so full of life, how I watched a dream of hers hatch from her heart and soul and watched it evolve and turn into REALITY.
She’s a workaholic. She’s a loveaholic. She’s a funaholic and she’s an amazing Mom to three kids, a wife to an awesome (and totally handsome) guy, she’s full of life and wants to do it all. Over the years I have watched her struggle with time and how to manage all of the different facets of her life.
Then one day an idea popped into her head as to what she needed to do to create this path of peace and inspiration, as a wife, Mom, friend, daughter, career-woman, sister, aunt. She created it and now she’s expanding it to share with women everywhere because we, as women take on too much. We, as women, want to do it all except we can’t and so this idea, like a butterfly flying off a branch, gracefully took off from her mind and landed in Chicago.

Triple W was created. For Jennifer Helen. For me. For you. For her, over there.
I’m telling you this as YOUR friend. If you can make it Chicago on September 10 and 11th, you need to attend this conference. Last year, I was at the “beta” launch of TWF, it was small and I walked out to completely inspired to LIVE as a working Mom, a wife, a Mom. I left with tools to help me live my best life.
And that was just the “beta” version of TWF.
So, now, TWF is just two weeks away and I feel like it’s my job to tell you about it because I know you struggle with the very same things – trying to accomplish it all and when you can’t, you feel you have failed. IT’S TIME TO TAKE CARE OF YOU. This is what Triple W is all about.
I’m sure there are 15 reason why you feel you can’t attend, I even gave myself the same reasons; money, sitter; travel. But after sitting with my husband and discussing this, we agreed that this purchase would probably be the purchase of a lifetime. And not just for me but for everyone that surrounds me.
So, I am going.
and I am so proud of her.
and I hope you go, too.





























Short of selling my body, I am doing everything I can to budget and get myself there. We all need this.
Oh, and even though I already knew the story of how you and Jennifer Helen met? I still laughed so hard. I saw the Violent Femmes in concert in high school and to think that they were someone’s family? AWESOME.
Soul Sister Beth Helen… beautiful… magical… *you* are. I am deeply touched by this post and by your soulful way of living and loving. You are a masterful writer, storyteller, woman and friend. I am going to be thinking about your “butterfly” that landed in Chicago line ALL day, ALL year, ALWAYS… Thank you for being you and for being such a loving gift to this world. Wow. HUGS and SQUEEZES and LOVE, Your Soul Sister, Jennifer Helen
p.s. Erin, I know… I am such an idiot. Cracks me UP every time I think of how I did that… I love that you were at their concert.
this is beautiful. i, too, laughed out loud at this scene even though had pictured it already. awesome.
this is so inspiring and wonderful. so proud of your soul sister & seriously walk away inspired every time she’s around. i can’t imagine how awesome it will be. i love that you realize and value how it will affect you & that brian totally backs you!
ummm, and ridiculous pics. make me look that beautiful, k?!
p.s. And when I say “short of selling my body,” I mean, I’ll make out with you for $250.
Oh my gosh, this is beautiful. Your story, you two.
I can’t wait to hear alllll about triple W!
Steph
I hope this happens again in 2011 because right now I cannot be there for obvious reasons. But it sounds SO amazing!
Beautiful post and gorgeous picture of Jennifer!
I can’t go to this year’s conference because of Jack, but am hoping to attend the next. I KNOW there will be another!
Wow what a great story! I have tears streaming down my cheeks… I lost my soul sister, my very bestfriend, the love of my life in 2003 and she was a lot like your friend, she was the beat to my heart!
I would love to come check it out… Maybe! I will have to talk to hubz!
She sounds amazing. I wish I could attend.
Isn’t it weird how the world pulls two people together?
Wish I could attend…
Spanish honors camp? That’s it. Your next post should be in Spanish.
Beautiful post, Beth. It tells so much about Jennifer Helen and her sweet, loving, positive soul. If the forum is as inspiring as this post, I know that it’s something every woman should experience. There’s too much pressure these days on women to do too much and a lot of it is put there by themselves. Maybe this forum will show them how to appreciate the wondrous things they do on a daily basis.
Amazing post … I lost my best friend three years ago to breast cancer and she was my soul sister. BTW, just left an award for you over on my blog … since thought after how you have inspired me, you deserve some bloggy love
Go pick it up sistah!
Awesome post about your soul sister and her dream becoming reality…thank you for sharing about it. But, I have the same comment as thefarmerfiles, Spanish honors camp in high school? What the heck? I have no recollection of this opportunity and we were in the same classes. You must have been Sr. Hakim’s estudiante favorita. I don’t even know if I said that right…no wonder I didn’t know about no Spanish honors camp
Where was it? Not that I would have wanted to go…..
great blog! love the pictures you take. can’t believe your little one is getting a tooth already, my baby is 8 months and there’s still none in sight
adorable pics, loved the lil’ one’s smiles..