Some books are meant to entertain. Others are meant to strengthen you. 52 Weeks of Victorious Aging does both—and that’s exactly what makes it such a meaningful Mother’s Day gift. Written by Dr. Martha Lucas, this book offers 52 practical, achievable actions designed to help readers create a healthier, happier life as the years advance. Each week focuses on one simple step—no overwhelm, no drastic overhauls—just consistent, sustainable choices rooted in real clinical experience and wisdom.

Simple Guidance That Actually Sticks

Let’s be honest—most wellness advice is either too complicated or too unrealistic to maintain. This book takes a different approach. One week. One idea. One small shift that builds into something bigger over time. It’s approachable, encouraging, and designed for real life—especially for women who have spent years taking care of everyone else and are finally ready to put some of that energy back into themselves.

Illustrations That Reinforce the Message

One of the most special parts of this project is the artwork woven throughout the book. I had the privilege of illustrating it, and the goal was simple: create visuals that feel warm, inviting, and easy to connect with. Two of my favorites capture the heart of the book beautifully.

Love Yourself (Yes, Really.)

The hugging heart illustration—also featured on the cover—represents one of the most important (and often ignored) ideas in the entire book: Yes, like yourself or how about this crazy idea—love yourself. Loving yourself means having regard for your own well-being and happiness. It means acting in ways that support your physical, emotional, and spiritual growth. It means knowing how to say no, taking care of your own needs, and not sacrificing your well-being in the process. It’s about focusing on what is good within you and building a relationship with yourself that is supportive, not critical. In other words—treat yourself like someone you actually care about.

Bake the Cookies

And then there’s the cookies. Simple. Familiar. A little nostalgic. This illustration taps into something just as important: joy. Not everything about health needs to be rigid or restrictive. Sometimes it’s about allowing yourself moments of comfort, creativity, and connection—whether that’s baking, sharing, or simply enjoying something small that makes you happy. Because a healthy life isn’t just about discipline. It’s also about living.

Why This Book Makes a Perfect Mother’s Day Gift

Mother’s Day gifts often land in the same category: flowers, candles, maybe a brunch reservation. Those are lovely—but temporary. This book offers something that continues long after the day is over:

• encouragement
• practical guidance
• weekly moments of reflection
• a gentle push toward better health and balance

It’s a gift that says, “I want you to feel good. Not just today—but all year.” Whether it’s for your mom, grandmother, aunt, or even yourself, 52 Weeks of Victorious Aging is a thoughtful, lasting choice.

Available Now

The book is available in eBook, paperback, and hardcover through your favorite retailers. It’s a beautiful addition to a bedside table or coffee table—and even better when it becomes part of a weekly routine. And yes—I’m especially proud to have illustrated it.

Available in the store of your choice in eBook, paperback, and hardcover.

Some books are meant to entertain. Others are meant to strengthen you. 52 Weeks of Victorious Aging does both.

Written by Dr. Martha Lucas, this book offers 52 practical, achievable actions designed to help readers create a healthier, happier life as the years advance. Each week focuses on one manageable step—no overwhelm, no extreme overhauls—just consistent, sustainable choices rooted in experience and wisdom.

I had the privilege of illustrating this book, bringing visual warmth and personality to Dr. Martha’s practical guidance. The illustrations are simple, approachable, and designed to reinforce the encouraging tone of the book.

Dr. Martha is a seasoned Chinese Medical Doctor and acupuncturist with decades of clinical experience. Her advice isn’t trendy internet wellness chatter—it’s grounded in real-world practice, long-term patient care, and a deep understanding of how the body changes with age.

Here are two examples from the book that readers especially love:

Week Spotlight: Vitamin D and Sunshine

Dr. Martha writes:

I can’t say enough about vitamin D. In my practice, I recommend taking 10,000IU a day. In fact, during flu season, when everyone seems to be sick with some sort of virus, I take 20,000IU a day.

Vitamin D boosts your immune system, increases muscle mass, and builds strong bones. Wait… isn’t that the saying for milk?

You get vitamin D from some foods: fish, dairy, and fortified food products.

The most common source of vitamin D is the sun. Being out in the sunshine for 15 - 30 minutes a few times a week gives you adequate vitamin D. But after 15 minutes, you need sunscreen.

You can ask your doctor for a blood test if you are unsure whether you are getting enough vitamin D.

Simple. Practical. Actionable.

Week Spotlight: Coffee Without Guilt

Good news for coffee lovers:

It’s okay to drink coffee.

Some research has found that coffee may even reduce your chances of developing Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, and heart disease.

Dr. Martha’s approach is realistic. She isn’t trying to remove every joy from your life—she’s helping readers make informed choices that support longevity and quality of life.

Why This Book Makes a Perfect Mother’s Day Gift

Mother’s Day gifts often focus on flowers or candles. Those are lovely—but this book offers something deeper: encouragement, empowerment, and weekly reminders that health is something we can actively nurture. Whether it’s for your mom, grandmother, aunt, or even yourself, 52 Weeks of Victorious Aging is a thoughtful, practical gift that keeps giving all year long.

Available in the store of your choice in eBook, paperback, and hardcover.

It’s a beautiful addition to any bedside table or coffee table—especially for women who value wisdom, health, and graceful strength as they move forward in life. If you’re looking for a meaningful Mother’s Day gift that blends medical expertise, encouragement, and approachable design, this one delivers.

And yes—I’m especially proud to have illustrated it.

Forgive my pathetic use of ellipsis and em dashes while you take a look at the punctuation in red. See the em dash after "mood?" Now look at the em dash between "him" and "as." I've seen many manuscripts with this inconsistency throughout, or there's a mix of en dashes (shorter) with em dashes (longer). The best and proper punctuation format is the longer em dash that is after "mood." Now look at the quotation marks and notice they are not the same type. We all know you should always use the pretty slanted symbol before "Mitchel," but the straight quotation marks somehow seem to sneak their way in. The final example is the ellipsis. For formatting purposes, always use the one that displays as one punctuation mark and not 3 periods. The reason for this is that 3 periods in an eBook will separate, so you could have one period on one line and start the next line with the remaining periods. An ellipsis will stay with the preceding text.

Once again, you can simply use Find/Replace to fix these issues in a blink of an eye. Here's how.

1. Open your manuscript in MS Word.

2. Open Find and Replace with CTRL+H. Or locate the Editing section on the Home tab and hit the down arrow on the Find option on the upper-right side, and choose the Advanced Find… option.

NOTE: In some cases you can copy a symbol from your manuscript such as straight quotes, or you can use a carat code (^), or use the Special pull down at the bottom of the Find and Replace dialog box. Note that not all punctuation has a caret code, so the process below is a bit inconsistent.

3. Find straight double quotes ( " ) using ^034 and Replace by typing in the fancy double quotation mark ( “ ). The correct left or right will insert where needed. Rarely, a quotation mark inserts backward, but the only way to find it is by reading through the text.

4. Find straight single quotes ( ' ) using ^039 and Replace with fancy single quotation mark ( ‘ ). Again, the correct left or right style will insert, but they too can insert backward on rare occasions.

5. Find em dashes with 2 dashes ( -- ) and Replace with actual em dashes (—) or ^+ or select it from the Special characters pulldown at the bottom of the Find window.

6. Find ellipses with three separate periods ( ... ) and Replace with the ellipsis character (…) or ^0133. Note there is no ellipsis option under Special Characters.

7. And don't forget to save your changes.

More About Caret Codes

At this point you might be wondering how to find other caret codes for other forms of punctuation. Here's the easiest way to find them in MS Word. This is so much easier than doing a Google search, which I did countless times to no avail. Please let me know if you find a decent list of them. I couldn't even find these instructions anywhere, so I had to figure it out myself.

1. Click on the Insert tab, then go to the far right, to the Symbols section.

2. Click on Symbol, then More Symbols. A box of symbols will pop up.

3. In the top box, find the punctuation or symbol you need and click on it.

4. At the bottom right, find the Character Code and From fields. Click on the from option and choose ASCII (decimal).

5. Make note of the character code for use in Find/Replace. Enter it there with a preceding caret (^) and a zero (0). For example, if you looked up the ellipsis in the symbols, you'll find the character code 133, so you’d enter ^0133 in the Find field.

Now go spit shine that manuscript and impress agents. If you're self publishing, you'll save yourself A LOT of time.

Conclusion

You can fix other issues as you find them. If you come across something you don't know how to fix, go to Services > Ask a Book Formatting Question in the menu and let me know how I can help.

Or you can purchase Wendy Spurlin's Polished Pages: A Comprehensive Checklist for Cleaning Up Your MS Word Manuscript for additional help cleaning up your manuscript. It's available on Amazon and in many other stores. Whether you're submitting to an agent, preparing for self-publishing, or handing off your work to a book formatter, a clean, professional manuscript makes all the difference. Polished Pages walks you through a step-by-step checklist to tidy up your MS Word document—removing hidden formatting, fixing punctuation inconsistencies, standardizing styles, and resolving the quirks that build up over years of writing.