Wednesday, August 20, 2014

Lenny's back!

He's back... 

Looking for something to do on November 13th?  Well, Lenny Kravitz will be back in Prague performing at the O2 Arena.  He hasn't performed in Prague since 2011... catch him this year.  With a new album entitled Strut out this month, it's bound to be an amazing show!

Check out his new song, The Chamber 

For more info & to purchase tickets, please visit LiveNation



Monday, August 18, 2014

Babička

Czechmate Diary has a great post today that made my heart ache for my Babička.  The fond memories I have of growing up with Babička always there warm my heart.  I miss you, Babi!

The article states that according to a recent poll the role of a classic Czech grandma, who sees her meaning of life in an unconditional care for her grandchildren, is gone in a not-so-distant past.  Read more at The sad evolution of Czech grandmas

There is a great book entitled Babička ... you can get the English version on Amazon


Friday, August 8, 2014

Honoring the name AVA

Today I wish to post about a name in honor of my new niece, Ava Polina.  My heart melts whenever I see her!

Teta te miluje!
xoxo


The name Ava means "Like a Bird"...Nelly Furtado's song comes to mind...

A little history...
The medieval name Ava is an abbreviation of a Germanic name.  Saint Ava was a 9th-century princess, daughter of Pepin II of Aquitaine. She was cured of blindness by Saint Rainfredis, became a Benedictine nun at Dinart, Hainault, and later was elected Abbess. Her feast day is April 29th, thus the name Ava is is celebrated on this day.

As evidence for the name is lacking between the later medieval and the modern period, the Oxford Dictionary of First Names supposes that it was coined anew as a modern innovation, presumably as a variant of Eva or (like Eva) used as an anglicization of the Irish name Aoife.  Ava is also a feminine given name in Persian, meaning "voice, sound".

Ava has worldwide meanings, making it difficult to pinpoint its true etymology and origin. From the German roots, Ava means "bird or birdlike". From the Latin, Ava means "pretty" or "Living One". Ava is the Afghan word for "voice" and the Akposso word for "sky" or "heaven". It also comes from the Old English for "Breath of Life". Some believe that the name Ava came from the Hebrew name "Chava," which means "life" or "serpent," while others point out the place-name "Ivah" appearing in the Bible.

The name was popularized in the United States by socialite Ava Lowle Willing (1868-1958) who married John Jacob Astor IV, and their daughter, socialite and heiress Ava Alive Muriel Astor (1902–1956).
Socialite Ava Lowle Willing

John Jacob Astor IV

Ava Alice Muriel Astor 


And who could forget the beautiful Ava Gardner

Ava has become quite popular and here is a link to celebrity daughters named Ava

The name Polina is a Russian feminine given name.  It is sometimes a short form of the name Appolinaria, a feminine form of the ancient Greek name Appollinaris, a name derived from the god Apollo. Appollinaris is the name of several ancient Christian saints.
Polina could also be seen as a variant spelling of the name Paulina, a feminine form of the name Paul. Polina was the second most popular name given to baby girls born in Moscow, Russia in 2007.