One of my favorite magazine’s is not only celebrating women this month but also 70 years of magazine awesomeness. Check out this creative, interesting, beautifully done piece on American Women Icons in this month’s issue.

It’s much cooler in person so I stress buying the magazine (its also packed with other incredible features on women artists, women saving the planet, and good old beauty and health tips), but click the link if you don’t have five bucks to spare.

Here it is again! In honor of March being Women’s History Month, I’m posting my list of women I admire. Mostly it’s a list of public women who I find myself drawn to, either because I love what they’re doing for women or just for being the essence of awesome. Last year’s list included Laura Bush, Tina Fey, my aunt who has kicked cancer’s ass and Ruth Graham. There’s always at least one woman from my personal life who makes the cut though. And here they are, the women I admire for 2009:

The ladies I interviewed for a Vox Magazine article on Women Authors in Mid-Mo: The claws came out in the meeting when this issue’s stories were assigned. Nothing was going to stop me from writing this incredible article. Once I started interviewing these women, however, I was so bummed that I was only allowed 100 words per writer. Each of them were so amazing and so insightful. I had 1000 words easy from every interview. I just wanted to sit at these women’s feet and bask in their writing wisdom.

Meghan McCain: The more I read this girl’s writing and listen to her during TV interviews the more I like her. Some people say she’s just a rich valley girl who knows nothing, but I disagree. She’s an intelligent normal person who has the guts to say what needs to be say. I love that she’s trying to save her party and make them more relevant. I love that she stands up to those who bring up her body and encourages women to love their bodies the way they are.  I am definitely following her on Twitter.

Kristen Wiig: She is by far my favorite cast member on SNL right now. She. is. hilarious. She dominates every sketch she’s in. I love her as Nancy Pelosi and Penelope the One-Upper. If you aren’t watching SNL right now, watch it to see what I’m talking about.

Elizabeth Banks: This gorgeous actress has an incredible range of acting ability. After seeing her on Scrubs as the mother of J.D.’s son at the end of last season and Definitely, Maybe, I was blown away when I just randomly watched Seabiscuit for the first time in years and realized that she plays Seabiscuit’s owners wife! After that serious role, to find out she’s also The Daily Bugle secretary in all three Spidermans, a sex-maniac in The 40-year-old Virgin, one of the leads in Zack and Miri, and Laura Bush in Oliver Stone’s W. blew my mind. Yes, some of her choices in movies are raunchy (just look at the plot of Zack and Miri), but this woman is hilarious, talented and very down-to-earth. She joins Keira Knightely and Natalie Portman as one of my favorite young actresses that I wish I could be friends with.

My Mom: As always, she has to be on this list. I try to live my life like she lives hers. She’s so smart and so cool, and she always seems to react the right way during life’s tough situations and knows what to do. I miss her and wish we could hang out all the time.

One of my BFFs Ashley Geiger: I’ve been struggling a lot on the spiritual front, and Ashley is an inspiration to me. When she talks about God, whether she’s struggling or on top of the world, it always sounds sincere and genuinine. When she says things that would make me gag coming from myself or someone else, it’s the most beautiful thing ever because I know she means it. She’s not trying to impress; she’s being honest. Wish I could be that way, but I always feel like I’m trying to “sound spiritual.”

Lady I’m Keeping an Eye on: Rachel Maddow: She has recently grabbed my attention after seeing her on The Colbert Report and actually watching her show when Meghan McCain was on it. I appreciate her style from what I’ve seen so far. She definitely has me intrigued and will possibly be full-fledged woman-i-admire status next year.

Last year, on International Women’s History Day (March 8th) I posted on my personal blog a list of the women I admire. I wanted to do it again this year because I have discovered some more pretty awesome chicks! I figured it was appropriate to post here even though it’s not really biblical, but it definitely has to do with women, and I think it is important to have role models like this. Last year’s list is in no way replaced by this year’s list but think of this 2008 list as an addition to last year’s. Last year’s women I admire consisted of Reese Witherspoon (but this year she got taken down a notch), Sandra Bullock (still awesome), Condi Rice, Queen Elizabeth 1, Esther, Grandma Carter, Mom

Without further ado here is the 2008 list:

Laura Bush: She seems to have mastered the whole being delicate and feminine while remaining strong. I mean she has to withstand being married to a very unpopular president, and she not only puts minimal effort, she is faithful. Plus she is all over children’s literacy and helping Africa. She’s just one of those beautiful, strong women I would love to be like when I grow older.

Tina Fey: While I don’t always agree with her politics, I love her writing and her acting. I started watching Saturday Night Live when she was hosting Weekend Update with Jimmy Fallon, and I was instantly drawn to her ability to be such a beautiful nerd. She’s probably the most successful female comedy writer who manages to write and perform her own show (30 Rock, way funny), still be married and be a mother to her toddler. Plus she gets bonus points for starring in what looks like to be the first movie comedy starring women not playing ditzes (“Baby Mama” also starring Amy Poehler). I mean I even love this girl’s American Express commercial. She’s just so awesome!

Meghan McCain: Mostly I’m just jealous of her because she has found an incredible way to campaign for her father. She has this ridiculously awesome blog (www.mccainbloggette.com) where she allows voters an inside look at her family’s experience on the campaign trail. She’s an impressive writer and just seems like a really cool girl.

Ruth Graham: I am so sad that I never took the time to really discover who this woman was until she was gone. I received the August 20, 2007 issue of TIME magazine to find Billy Graham on the cover, and an insert article commemorated his wife, who I immediately fell in love with. The quote from the article that caught my attention: “She was a fierce warrior for Jesus, the kind of woman who once tried to hide a broken arm from Billy because she didn’t want him to know she had gone hang gliding and who referred to her chosen burial place as her ‘launching pad.’” I mean that is awesome! I love her! You can read the rest of the article here (but get tissues because you will cry): http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1651237,00.html

My Aunt: My aunt is so cool. I love all of my aunts very much, but this one has been through so much in life. With being a single mother with a high school diploma and little boy (who isn’t so little anymore), she seemed to finally have life going great with an awesome church, a wonderful boyfriend, and her first house last year! Dreams were coming true, and she had worked so hard she deserved every bit of it when she discovered that she had breast cancer. I was so angry that God had blessed her so much only to mar it with such a horrible curse for a woman, but she has been so amazing throughout her fight, faithfully following God and being able to laugh at even the darkest situation. I am happy to say that she is kicking cancer butt, and she and her boyfriend got married last June just before the chemo took her hair. Through this experience, her faith and attitude has made her a role model for my life and the trials and troubles I will face.

My mom: Again I know, but she deserves it. Here is what I wrote last year:“My mom is the greatest mom ever! When people talk about her they say she is the perfect example of a “gentle and quiet spirit.” And yet my mom is as strong as her mother, maybe even more so. She is classy by definition. She picks her battles wisely and will fight them with that same wisdom. She incredibly intelligent and a great servant. She works, raised my brother and me, and supports my dad in everything. And through all of this hard work and gentleness, she has a crazy fun side too! I can’t wait until I’m 21 so my mom and I can go out for margaritas. Nothing makes me prouder than when people say I remind them of her. She is my hero more than any of these others and I hope that one day I can be just like her. “ And here is what I would like to add: She was doing yard work today on her own because dad was working, and they’ve been wanting cut down a tree that is growing too close to the house. She said if she wasn’t worried about damaging the house she would have gotten a ladder and saw and cut it down herself. My 5 foot 4, practically petite mother chopping down a tree! How awesome is that!

I hope you found this list encouraging, and I hope you find the time to make lists of your own.

Much love-Char

March was the perfect month to launch this new blog because it’s Women’s History Month! After doing a little searching, I found that this year’s official Women’s History Month theme is “Women’s Art: Women’s Vision” so I thought I would use this post to brag about my three favorite female artists: my wonderful friends Ashley Geiger, Grace Jeoung, and Lindsay Neumann.

I don’t claim to know much about art. I’m not very familiar with the greats in the art world other than the obvious (which sadly are men) so I am focusing three student artists that I do know and respect.

Ashley is one of my best friends from high school, and she is studying art and graphic design at her university. She is amazing at what she does, which mostly includes painting, photography, and graphic design but most recently has been light sculptures that she is currently selling. We used to sit in Calculus class in high school, and while we were bored, she would draw these amazing sketches in her notebook. I was just consistently amazed at her ability to imagine a person, a scene, an idea and then transfer it onto paper. Her drawings made college-ruled paper look good. What I love so much about Ashley though is that she is incredibly talented, yet she is humble. She is not one to get sucked into the diva culture so often associated with artists. Christ is at the center of all that Ashley does, and He is reflected in her artwork. Creating is often how she worships and grows in Him. Her website is currently down, but as soon as it is up and running again, I will post a link so you can check out her awesomeness.

I met Grace this year managing the student newspaper. She is our photo editor and works hard taking pictures, editing pictures, and creating graphics. She also recently won the design contest for our university’s production of “Fiddler on the Roof,” and she got the great opportunity to design the show’s poster. This semester I also have had the pleasure of working alongside her in the marketing office of our university, seeing her create amazing ads in minutes. You just have to tell her your message, and it seems she just pulls something out of her sleeve that fits perfectly. I honestly have no idea how she does it so well and so fast. Every time she designs something new I stand in awe, and she laughs at me because she doesn’t see what the big deal is. Grace’s goal in life she recently told me was to use her skills and talent in graphic design to bring Christ’s joy to the world and be a witness for Him.

Lindsay I had the funky pleasure of meeting online before realizing that we both went to the same university. Weird. We ended up on the same mission team together, and she basically rocks. Art for her is a form of worship, expressing her heart to God. She says that she loves mediums (specifically for her chalk and paint) that allow her to make a mess while she’s creating and knowing Lindsay, this doesn’t surprise me. She is such a colorful person, it’s no wonder some of her creation ends up all over the place in the process. Lindsay also loves to make collages, using mixed media to produce a work of art. This also doesn’t surprise me about Lindsay because she herself is a collage, being an artist in practically every way you can be an artist: actress, writer, painter. This girl has got way too much talent and creativity, but I know that she will also use it for the glory of God.

These women are so talented, and I love how each one of them is using their gift to glorify God whether it’s through communing with Him through art, ministering to the world, or working out faith through art.

Much love–Char

P.S. More Women’s History Month stuff to come next week!