Life Adventures

Mothers Womb Necklace

I love to find purpose in all aspects of life. I also love to add meaning in the detail of my designs. I frequently use the Moon Over Mountains trademark in my jewelry. It is an “O” (the moon), rising above an “M’” (the mountains.) The word mom is hallowed to me.  Mom is also an… Continue reading Mothers Womb Necklace

Adoption, Gallery of Diamonds, Jewelry, Life Adventures

Thirty Years and a Tiny Dream

Thirty years ago my wife, Carmen, and I opened a small jewelry boutique that was half the size of our tiny one-room apartment. We started slow. It was all we could afford. After a few newspaper ads, customers trickled inside. Looking back, it is amazing the amount of jewelry one could buy for only a… Continue reading Thirty Years and a Tiny Dream

Why Mom Deserves A Diamond

2020 Why Mom Deserves a Diamond Award Ceremony

Gallery of Diamonds awarded two Orange County students with a quarter-carat diamond valued at $600 each to give to their mothers in the 28th annual Why Mom Deserves a Diamond® writing contest. Beginning in 1993 in honor of Diamond Mike Watson’s adoptive mother the birth mother he had never known, this year’s contest inspired 12,000… Continue reading 2020 Why Mom Deserves a Diamond Award Ceremony

Life Adventures, Society, Why Mom Deserves A Diamond

The Future of Physical Affection

Even in these days of uncertainty, as long as I am able-bodied, I cannot imagine any tragedy that would prevent my effort in expanding the Why Mom Deserves a Diamond contest to the ends of the earth. When families and their kids know they are loved there is no doubt how our world benefits. Imagine… Continue reading The Future of Physical Affection

Gallery of Diamonds, Jewelry, Life Adventures, Why Mom Deserves A Diamond

A Beautiful Experience

The following testimonial is from Heidi Tecklenburg, a winning mom from the 2019 Why Mom Deserves a Diamond contest. Thank you Heidi, for sharing your experience. Rewind to May 2012, when I was 45 years old, I never imagined that I would ever have a child call me MOM other than my 4-legged fur babies.… Continue reading A Beautiful Experience

Adoption, FlyUp!, Gallery of Diamonds, Jewelry, Life Adventures, Philosophy, Why Mom Deserves A Diamond

The Power of Intention

I have proof that if you intensely hold a thought in your head for a long period of time it will become true. In 1993, shortly after I opened Gallery of Diamonds jewelers which now resides in Santa Ana, CA, I began a writing contest for school kids. Since I was adopted as a child… Continue reading The Power of Intention

Amazing Today, Gallery of Diamonds, Jewelry, Life Adventures, Philosophy, Why Mom Deserves A Diamond

The Reflection of your Eye

This is my eye. Upon close inspection, you can see the reflection of Gallery of Diamonds in my iris. If the camera was angled differently, some essays of our mother's contest would be detected. You might see my new mothers jewelry designs. During the last twenty-five years it has been a challenge to separate two… Continue reading The Reflection of your Eye

FlyUp!, Why Mom Deserves A Diamond

Why the Umbrella?

People ask why I bring umbrellas to schools. It is because sometimes one must be dramatic to illustrate a point. When students raise the canopies above their heads, they know it is a symbol they are loved and that they can accomplish anything in life. As the founder of the Why Mom Deserves a Diamond… Continue reading Why the Umbrella?

Amazing Today, FlyUp!, Life Adventures, Philosophy, Why Mom Deserves A Diamond

Time Traveler

I'm also a time traveler! Yes. I can show you how to be that, too. When you go out at night and see a beautiful star, did you know that you're looking into the past? Because the star is so far away that it takes million of years for the light of the star to… Continue reading Time Traveler

Adoption, Amazing Today, Why Mom Deserves A Diamond

To those Who Love Us

Inside the womb, the outside arguments of anger and despair were muffled. I didn't see the pain my birthmother must have experienced while I was protected inside her. During non-violent times, I know she sang to me through the walls of flesh that separated us. In the hospital, the sounds were replaced by the shuffling… Continue reading To those Who Love Us

Gallery of Diamonds, Why Mom Deserves A Diamond

Thank you, Team

  To everyone who works for me at Gallery of Diamonds and Why Mom Deserves a Diamond, Inc. Happy 2016! After years of planning, we built our new and larger jewelry store headquarters in Santa Ana. Most of you painted, hauled, swept, and wired the devices together. We were on KCAL9 news twice. We were… Continue reading Thank you, Team

Amazing Today, FlyUp!, Gallery of Diamonds, Life Adventures

Imagination

When we admire life from its smallest building block, we see the sum of our hopes, fears, desires, dreams and imagination. That is why it is important to choose our thoughts wisely.  

Why Mom Deserves A Diamond

What Single Word Describes Mom?

In 2006, we began to compile an archive of every winning submission (also called entry or essay) since 1993. Since the essays had previously been key typed into a word processing application, none of the submissions could be used in any type of calculation. This required the tedious process of copying and pasting each individual… Continue reading What Single Word Describes Mom?

Why Mom Deserves A Diamond

The Culture and Movement of Why Mom Deserves a Diamond

A viral video from a Washington music festival in 2009 showed a shirtless man dancing amongst a crowd of festival-goers lounging on the grass. The man looked like a maniac even when a second dancer joined him. The first man even seemed to give the other pointers of how to dance. Later, a third and… Continue reading The Culture and Movement of Why Mom Deserves a Diamond