☺ 10 Tips to Accept Yourself and Others ☺

It can be tough dealing with people. It can be difficult to see eye to eye, and it can be difficult not to take on the negative energy of other people. People are so complex and so amazing. When we learn to appreciate such things then we can learn to understand others and learn to all get along.  

These tips are useful tools to turn back to and keep with you throughout your day to keep calm, collected, and unfazed by people or situations you may find yourself in. It's all about balance, acceptance, and release; so that you can be happy and bad-ass all day long! 

It's okay to be Selfish. Take care of yourself first, first and foremost. If you don't take care of your own needs and happiness first then you will always be in second place in your heart and life, and that is not a happy place to live. You are awesome, and it's not only okay to think so but should also be encouraged! When you start taking care of yourself first then you will become happy with yourself, and when you become happy with yourself you become of use and help to others. So start with yourself.  

You can't please everyone. Some people are stubborn, some people are unappreciative, and some people just plain won't like you. It is not your job to please others. Your value is not based on someone else's opinion of you. As long as you are true to yourself and be the person you want to be then that is more than enough; and the people who truly matter will never ask you to compromise who you are, your values, or anything else about yourself. 

Not every person you meet is going to like you.  It doesn't matter who you are, there will always be people who absolutely adore you, and people that absolutely dislike you. Take any superhero for example; no matter how much good they did there is always someone who distrusts or dislikes them. Such is life. As already mentioned, it is not your job to please everyone around you. Let go of the notion that everyone should like you, because they won't. Just be yourself and you'll attract people into your life who love you, the rest are just shadows that don't matter in your life.  

Don't take thing personally. Most of the time people don't like others out of jealousy and unhappiness with themselves which in turn gets projected onto you. It may not be much fun sometimes being on the receiving end, but it's something that you are going to need to learn to deal with and let go of. It's not you, it's them. Keep doing your own thing and distance yourself from people who treat you poorly. 

Only you control your destiny. Your life is not dependent on others; your path is Your path and no one else's. No one can walk your path for you, though many will walk beside you, none will be the legs that make you walk. So walk your own path, seek your own destiny and don't rely on others. You control your life, your path, and therefor, your destiny! 

Let it go. Don't carry arguments or misunderstandings with you. Don't hold onto the negativity of others. Don't dwell on things that don't matter or that don't immediately affect your life. You don't need to hold the weight of others, or the world, on your shoulders, so don't. Let it go. Breathe out negativity so you can breathe in happiness and light. 

It's not always worth it to get the last word. Disagreements with others are inevitable; everyone has different perceptions, opinions, and values that will affect the way any situation or conversation is received. You are not always right. Even when you are actually right, you gain nothing from forcing it down someone else's throat, because if they don't want to hear it then they won't. It's not worth an argument, resentment, or negativity. Learn when to walk away. 

Don't waste your energy on negative people or situations. Again, you don't have to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders. So don't. You don't have to carry the negativity from others with you. You don't have to waste your time on any of it. This is something else you need to learn to walk away from. Distance yourself from negative people as much as you can, and if you are around them learn not to take on their negativity. Don't go looking for a fight or drama. 

You can only help people who are open to being helped. Trying to please everyone will not only completely exhaust you, but your efforts will not always be met with gratitude. Some people would rather stay miserable. That's not your problem. Help those who want to be helped; always have an open heart; let people know your door is always open; understand that not everyone is ready to be helped; and stop feeling the need to help everyone around you. 

Appreciate and respect differences in others. People are so multi-faceted and different and amazing. You are one of those amazing people. And so is everyone else. You are not always right, you are not always going to get along with certain people, you are not always going to have things in common with everyone. Respect and appreciate how different people are instead of feeling anything negative. The more you learn to practice this the more others will respect and appreciate your differences as well. 

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☆ Canada's Annual Seal Hunt (Infographic) ☆

Stopping Canada's Annual Seal Hunt is such a pressing subject that needs more awareness brought to it. I myself only heard about it a few years ago yet it's been going on forever.
Here is a helpful infographic for you to share and bring awareness to it. 

Thanks to the Humane Society for the infographic and all their hard work. 

Also check out ReLove's Article on the Seal Hunt: 

☆ Canada's Annual Seal Hunt ☆ 

And the fur industry:

 ☆ Fur: Mean and Not Green! ☆  

If you found this article to be helpful, please consider a small donation or visit the shop. Thank you for your love and support.

☼ Grow your own damn Food! ☼

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These weekly posts are to share the progress of our garden; sharing photos and our gardening experiments and will hopefully inspire you to grow your own garden too! :) 

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 I feel as if this week I reached ultimate hippie status; running around outside in a crazy wind storm and pouring rain with tarps and frost protection sheets trying to protect our little garden. My only hope is that our landlords could see me because I bet it was funny to watch. I actually had a blast doing it; the rain was rather refreshing and I felt dutiful to our garden while Cory was tied up at work. Everything is fine thank goodness. We just weren't sure how bad it was going to get so happy that we did cover everything. 

As for the actual gardening this week… Last week we pulled up the bolted radishes and so we planted our tobacco plants this week. The tobacco plants are to ward off aphids and other pests in the garden, mainly to protect our kale which is usually the most prone to the buggers (haha). I'm not sure if we have any other use for it but that spot at the back of the bed is perfect and out of the way and will be our lovely garden soldiers. ;) 

We planted some new orach spinach since there is only one lonely one that came up--I believe the birds took the seeds of the others that were planted. 

Everything else is growing rather nicely. 

[happy lettuce / strawberries]

[spinach, broccoli, swiss chard]

[happy peas and cukes]

[broccoli]

We're holding off planting the beans until the weather warms up a bit or at least stops raining as much--or forecast for rain rather. I swear lately they just haven't clue about the weather.

Well that's all this week, I'm back off to work some more which will be consuming most of my time as the market season approaches! Bye bye for now, hope you're having a lovely day!

[happy bumblebee]   

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☺ Motivational Mondays! ☺

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We're taking back Mondays!!!

"Motivational Mondays" are fabulous tips to get you excited and pumped for the week! 

Feeling low? Moody? Down on life? Well, that's what these posts are for! Time to feel awesome again and get some Positivity rolling! Just because it's Monday doesn't mean you can't have fun, smile, and enjoy Today! Apply these tips to your week and try to tell me that you don't start to see an improvement in your life! ;)

It's all about You! Change your perception, change your attitude, love your life! xo

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☺ Law of Attraction tip: Remember that your state of mind is what will determine what is coming into your life. It is not always an exact thought that will manifest but what frequencies you may be on; the happier you feel the more you'll attract other happy things to enter your life; if you feel frustrated or sad then you'll attract more things into your life that will make you feel frustrated or sad. This is why a good place to start is by focussing on your happiness, and then try to manifest actual things when you feel good.     

☺ Spend Time Outside! Every day! Commit yourself to spending at least 30 minutes outside each day! Even on rainy days, find some shelter outside and watch the storm, or dance in the rain, that's always fun! Just get out! Head to the park or a nature trail.  Pack a picnic or just enjoy some relaxation on a park bench.      

☺ Give Hugs!  Hugs are seriously the best things ever! Try to give and receive as many hugs as you can in a day. Hugs are good for your health and happiness and are a fantastic way to pass on goodness to others too! :) And none of those half-assed hugs, I mean real tight warm hugs!   

☺ Whoever is Happy will Make Others Happy Too.  Remember that helping others starts with helping yourself. If you're feeling helpless and unable to help someone then don't take that on; if you want to help someone then help yourself first: become happy, become a ray of sunshine in their dark world; be an inspiration for them. Being happy around others will boost their mood and pass on those positive vibes. So start with yourself and your happiness will become contagious!   

☺ Follow the three Rs: Respect for self. Respect for others. Responsibility for all your actions.      

☺ Be gentle with the earth. Don't forget about mother nature; nurture it, take care of it, do your part to leave the world a better place then when you came here. Every action counts. Don't litter, be conscious of your carbon footprint, use eco friendly products that don't harm earth. Do your part!  

☺ "Do what you love and don't look at the clock." ~ An Landers. Be in the present moment, enjoy whoever you're with right now and whatever you're doing right now. Happiness is now. Stop paying so much attention to the time or it will pass by too quickly, instead focus on having enough time to enjoy your passions, and enjoy them with all your heart and without distraction.

Create a Nice Day!! 

Much Love from me to you! 

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Ⓥ Vegan Kitchen: Best Gluten Free Quinoa PB Chocolate Chip Cookies! Ⓥ

I've tried many different gluten-free cookie recipes before, all have been good but not amaaaaazing. These were absolutely positively amaaaaazing! Hands down the best cookies I've ever made. Unlike lots of gluten-free cookies, they were moist, they rose, they had a nice fluffy consistency, and were simply divine! 

I added a few too many chocolate chips (which I didn't think was possible ~_^) the first time making these, so don't mind the photo at the bottom of the chocolate pouring onto the pan--I've adjusted the recipe. ;)

So without further ado, the best cookies ever! 

vegan / gluten free/ sugar-free

Gluten Free Quinoa PB Cookies

Dry Ingredients:

1 cup Quinoa Flour

1/4 cup Tapioca Flour

1/3 cup Buckwheat Flour

1/4 cup ground Flax Seed

1 tsp Baking Powder

1/4 Salt

1/2 cup vegan Chocolate Chips (or carob chips)

Wet Ingredients:

1/2 Banana

3/4 cup Peanut Butter

1/4 cup Oil

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

3/4 cup Hemp Milk (or other non-dairy milk)

2 tsp Stevia

1 Tbsp Agave (or other sweetener)

Preheat oven to 350℉. Lightly oil a baking pan.

In a large mixing bowl, mix all of the dry ingredients together. 

In a blender or food processor, toss in all of your wet ingredients and blend until frothy and smooth.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until evenly combined. 

Form into small balls and place on your baking sheet and flatten into cookies. 

Cook in the oven for 20 minutes -- until you can stick a toothpick in and it comes out clean. 

Allow to cool and then try not to devour them all in one sit. ;)

Enjoy!  

If you found this article to be helpful, please consider a small donation or visit the shop. Thank you for your love and support.

{this moment}

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"There are no ordinary moments." ~Way of the Peaceful Warrior

{this moment} - a Friday ritual. A photo (or few) capturing moments from the week. Simple, special, extraordinary moments. Moments I want to pause, savor and remember. 

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

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Last weekend we had a fun day checking out the Kaslo May Days. Lots of fun with friends, watching skateboarders, logger sports, and just plain having some fun in the sun. :)

If you found this article to be helpful, please consider a small donation or visit the shop. Thank you for your love and support.

♥ New in the ReLove Plan.et Etsy Shop! ♥

If you're on my Facebook page or check out my Etsy shop you already know this, but this never stops me from wanting to share my new products on the blog too. ;) 

I'm still running around with etsy orders and getting ready for markets but there are always new projects I'm throwing into the mix. I've been wanting to make a "Love" shirt for a long time now and was playing around with a few ideas before landing on this simpler design. I finally decided to do it because my husband also encouraged me to make a shirt for markets this year that tourists and locals would want to show their love and pride of this beautiful place. For those wondering (or questioning), I live in the Kootenays, which encompasses Nelson and some other rad places in these beautiful mountains. So I was able to create a shirt for locals that also encompassed my "Love" shirt, allowing me to easily print it without the "Kootenay" part so everyone could enjoy it. I personally am super stoked about it. It made sense that I made this shirt considering my company is called ReLove and because of everything it stands for. Super happy. :) 

I'm also excited because I got in my new permaset inks, with pinks and greens and oranges which means other new colour combinations will be showing up in the shop. In the mean time when placing an order you can request any of these colours--or if there's a colour of ink you want but don't see I can probably mix some colours. Magic you know. ;) 

My old screen needed redoing since it was starting to get little pinholes in it that would show up on the print, so I redesigned one of my favourite piggy designs. I think this one is cleaner than the other and extra adorable. 

Two designs were retired due to lack of sales and they just so happened to be on this same screen, but you never know when they pop up in the future. Regardless, they made room for my new "Love" print and also this seal print that I've been wanting to also do for a while since I feel so passionately about stopping Canada's Annual Seal Hunt and want to spread more awareness. 

Hope you love them! They are all available on the racerback tank tops, slouchy tees, dresses and when the hoodies and sweaters are available on those as well. 

Links: 

"Love" Shirt

"I'm Too Cute to Eat" Pig Shirt

"Save the Seals" Shirt

If you found this article to be helpful, please consider a small donation or visit the shop. Thank you for your love and support.

❀ The Good News ❀

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Stop watching the News on T.V. filled with lies, propaganda, and made to make you feel helpless and afraid.

With all the negative news in the world, it's time to give you hope and inspiration. It's time to the weekly Good News! 

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Tree Surgeon Goes Out of his Way to Save 20,000 Bees

Last week, tree surgeon John Joinson was called out to dismantle and remove a large tree that was in danger of collapsing onto a roadway in Childer Thornton, England. But as John was preparing for his work, he noticed that bees were coming and going through a crack in the tree’s trunk. So, lest he find himself the target of a bee-stinging campaign in defense of their hive homeland, the arborist wisely thought twice before revving up the chainsaw.

John tells his local paper, The Pioneer, that it would have been “easy to kill them with a can of wasp spray”, but instead he decided to save them. John called a local beekeeper who came in and found the queen to isolate her. She was put in a small ventilated box and then placed in a bigger cardboard box, so that when the bees returned, instead of going into the tree, they went into the box as she gives off a pheromone, and they could smell her. Over about four hours the majority of bees were in the box and not the nest. The bee keeper then took them to his hives in Llandegla. They saved about 20,000. 

(Read more)

Victory! Texas Bans Gas Chamber Euthanasia

On May 10, Governor Rick Perry signed a bill that immediately bans gas chamber euthanasia for homeless pets throughout the state of Texas.

The bills to ban gas chambers and require homeless pets be euthanized by sodium pentobarbital injection (EBI) were introduced by Representative Eddie Lucio III and Senator Kirk Watson earlier this year and had gained support from the public and a number of animal advocacy organizations, including the Texas Humane Legislation Network (THLN), the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) and The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS).

(Sign the petition to End Gas Chamber Euthanasia for Homeless Pets) 

Success! India Takes Progressive Stand Against Captive Dolphins

The Indian Minister of Environment and Forests, has announced that captive dolphin facilities will not be allowed in India, leaving dolphin advocates hopeful that an official ban will be put in place.

More than 23,000 people signed the petition asking the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) to help stop the continued exploitation of dolphins. In January, the AWBI acted by issuing an advisory to all state governments against granting permission for dolphinariums, citing health risks and high mortality rates among captive dolphins. The decision not to allow anyone to bring dolphins in for public or private display, performing, education or research made doing so a violation of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.

(Read more) 

A Win for Suffering Greyhounds in Florida

As of May 21st, Florida will implement its new Animal Welfare Rules for greyhound racing. They will improve life for thousands of dogs. 

The new rules require trainers to notify the state whenever a dog dies at a racetrack or kennel, Greyhound haulers will have to be licensed. Trainers must also maintain a roster identifying every dog in their kennels and listing the dog’s name, tattoo number, owner, trainer, dates of arrival and departure, and the name and license number of the hauler transporting the dog. At the racetrack, the new rules prohibit trainers from locking more than one dog in a cage.

Although this is a step in the right direction, Florida’s Greyhound Races are still cruel and unnecessary. Nothing short of abolishing greyhound racing would truly protect these dogs. Keep the fight going! 

(Read more) 

H&M signs the Bangladesh Worker Safety Agreement

After the events in Bangladesh when a garment factory burned killing many people, Avaaz.org (and other organizations) have been campaigning for stronger fire and safety agreements. After the campaign made a media storm in H&M's home country of Sweden, H&M signed the Bangladesh worker safety agreement!

There are still more companies that need to sign and of course the best thing you can do is to choose not to support unethical clothing companies. 

(Sign the petition here)

It’s Now Illegal to Deny Gay Marriages in Brazil

A 2011 Supreme Court ruling recognized the right for same-sex couples to have equal access to all marriage-like benefits. However, not all jurisdictions had chosen to allow same-sex marriage recognition, with a decision often hinging on the moral opinions of individual notary publics.

Now, a top judicial panel in Brazil has ruled that same-sex marriages must be allowed nationwide. An analysis and resolution issued Tuesday by Brazil’s 15-member National Council of Justice, the council that oversees the country’s judiciary, says that it is illegal for notary publics to refuse to perform same-sex marriages.

(Read more) 

Sweden turns Trash to Energy

Sweden has always been ahead of its neighbors when it comes to reducing its environmental impact. To make power, the country does something unique: it turns trash into power on a national scale using high-power incinerators. At first glance, it solves two problems: getting rid of trash before it piles up and generating electricity without burning dirty fossil fuels.

But now Sweden is hitting a wall. According to the country’s Environmental Protection Agency, it needs more trash to feed Sweden’s energy habit, and it’s begun importing trash—just over 881,000 tons—from nearby Norway to do it. 

Hopefully this amazing technology can be applied in North America and other trash-heavy places. 

(Read the full story) 

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Thanks for reading this week's "Good News!" Join us every week and feel inspired! 

Be sure to sign up for Care2's newsletter for some real news around the globe, to make a change, and to open up your mind to the Real World!

See that your actions count and get out there and do good! Be the Change!  

If you found this article to be helpful, please consider a small donation or visit the shop. Thank you for your love and support.

☼ Grow your own damn Food! ☼

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These weekly posts are to share the progress of our garden; sharing photos and our gardening experiments and will hopefully inspire you to grow your own garden too! :) 

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Our front garden bed is looking much more like a garden bed which is definitely exciting. 

We planted the zucchini last week and they are continuing to healthily thrive. Since our transplanted tomatoes were so terrible and we were gifted those lovely tomato plants from our landlords, we turned over the dwindling ones and planted our new happy plants instead. We also planted the pepper plants we got last week along the squash and uprooted the kale that wasn't doing much at the end of the tomatoes as well. So now everything in that bed is green and looking, well, like a garden.

[tomatoes and peppers]

[peppers and zucchini]

My sister (over at Little Mountain Haven) also gave us three of her extra tomato plants that we made room for. She also gifted us some melon plants which we also planted yesterday in the front garden bed. Exciting! We've never grown melons before and it's a good space to let them sprawl out since the soil isn't the richest in the back of that bed and we didn't want to plant too much there. 

[tomatoes and melons]

[watermelon]

We pulled up all our radishes since the plants were bolting and no radishes were actually forming beneath the soil. We think it may be because we did a hugel culture in that bed so there might not have been enough soil for the radishes to want to form in. It's all an experiment, that is for sure! Well our kale and mustard greens are still very happy in the bed and we've been harvesting kale already for smoothies in the morning. There's  nothing more amazing then just stepping out barefoot into your garden in the morning and picking fresh greens for your breakfast. Bliss!

All the other greens are still steadily growing. Lettuce is looking healthy. We actually have some random peas coming up in the third bed too and we're not quite sure if it was the birds that moved them or… well, something else, we're not sure. We moved the bean trellis from the front bed as well because it was in the back where, like I mentioned, the soil isn't the richest but also because it's under the cover of the house so wouldn't get the rain meaning more watering. 

Peas and cucumbers are still growing. The strawberries have been flowering for a while now but we've been picking off the flowers until they become a bit more root bound. I think we're at the point now where we will let them grow so hopefully we will have strawberries soon. What's interesting as well is that the strawberries in the ground look much healthier than the ones in the pot. Hmm.

We have some New Zealand spinach starts growing inside that will go in the ground in a week or so. 

That is all this week! Hope you had a lovely long weekend! 

If you found this article to be helpful, please consider a small donation or visit the shop. Thank you for your love and support.