☺ You Deserve to Be Happy! ☺

I have some good news for you: You Deserve to Be Happy! Yes, You! 

The bad (and sad) news is that most of us don't actually believe we deserve to be happy.

Our lack of this good feeling of deserving to be happy stops us from living life to it's fullest potential. When we feel like we don't deserve to be happy, we place barriers around ourselves that stop the good things from coming in. It makes us cause our relationships and any possible good things that do manage to sneak through to fall apart rather instantly. We start to look for things to go wrong, seeking them out, drawing them out, making them magically appear out of nowhere. It makes us pick fights and get into disagreements with the people we care about. It makes us feel depressed. It keeps us trapped in this terrible bubble that circles over and over until we can actually learn to love ourselves and accept that we do indeed deserve to be happy. 

The reason that most of us don't believe we deserve to be happy is thanks to our insecurities and our general lack of liking and loving ourselves. Society teaches us that to love ourselves is a show of vanity, of being conceded, and this is a bad attitude that needs to halt. Love starts with yourself, you must must must love yourself in order to be happy and in order to love the people and things around you. So, you don't just deserve to be happy, you also deeply greatly do deserve to be loved.

Happiness and love are really one in the same, and both of them start with You. You can't expect to have an abundance, or much at all, of either of these wonderful things if you can't work on yourself and place yourself into a mentality and openness to let them in. 

I don't care what you have been through in your life, I don't care what shitty circumstances might be going on around you, I don't care how badly another person has made you feel about yourself, because, you know what? You are awesome! Despite anything that has happened or will happen in your life, you are awesome! Yes, you! And the more that you believe that, the more you will love life, love yourself, and welcome goods things into your life. You will become an inspiration to those around you and you can fill others up with that same joy because that energy will become so contagious and spill over onto others.  

[photo courtesy: JessicaRoman]

The feeling of not deserving to be happy also comes from being entirely too hard on ourselves for past mistakes and for things that were quite often out of our control, but that we have taken the blame deeply upon ourselves. 

The past is the past, you can't change anything that happened, and the more you try to deny that the longer you will remain in this state of lovelessness. Things happen. To everyone! Taking on the blame doesn't change anything. Carrying that blame around with you will only serve as the chains to your depression and it makes things worse for the ones you love as well. If you want to help others, if you want to help yourself, then choose to be happy, and you do that by making changes and letting go of the past.    

What you need to realize is that almost everyone has gone through some shitty things in their lives. Everyone has done things that they regret, things that they don't feel so good about, things that they deem as "awful" and "unforgivable." So is that where we should stop? Just sit there and wallow in that negativity and just accept that we've done some shitty things, that "god" or the universe, or some holy power has deemed us unfixeable? Or, is it not better to get back up and try again? If you don't like who you are, change it! You get to choose who you are. You get to choose how you are going to live your life. You get to choose whether or not good things can enter your life or not. 

You deserve happiness. Maybe, sometimes life makes you feel like you don't. Maybe sometimes your headspace makes you feel like a bad person, and therefor undeserving of good things. That mentality is the only thing stopping those good things from coming into your life. If you don't open the door, they can't get in! You have to let them in! The door is your bad attitude, so learn to love yourself and then you'll be able to open the door again. Happiness IS within your reach. 

Okay, so maybe it's not as easy as waving a magic wand and going, "Tadaaaa! I love myself! I deserve happiness! Woot woot!" Because, maybe, you just can't let go of that nagging awful mentality that you simply don't deserve good things and that you're not a good person. I've been there, so I know the feeling. Here's the thing; I used to hate myself, I mean utterly despise myself. I was a suicidal, depressed, self-loathing mess for a long portion of my life. You know what changed? I woke up. I started working on myself every single day. I started getting help, reading books, and looking at myself differently. I realized that I could be a person that I was proud of and liked--and loved.  

If you don't feel good about yourself then that's something you must work on everyday. And I mean every day! Every day until life gets easier and you fall in love with your wonderful self (and even after that) you should be doing gratitude practices for yourself. A simple and amazing practice that I still do when life feels rough, and when I may not be feeling so good about myself, is this… get a pen and paper (or I highly recommend having a Happy Diary) and write down a list of all the things you love about yourself. Write down small things, big things, things that you want to be and write them down as if that's who you are already. Write and write until you feel that energy shift within yourself and you genuinely feel better about yourself. Again, you Do get to choose who you are, and if you want to change then this is a good practice to become the greatest version of yourself. Do this practice every morning and every night, or at the very least, once a day. 

You don't have to be miserable forever. You don't have to hate yourself. You have such amazing wonderful unlimited potential inside of yourself and your lack of self love is holding you back from living your life to the fullest and being the amazing person that, deep down inside, you always truly are. It's time to let go of those restricting thoughts and allow that wonderful person inside of yourself to come out and play and smile and be happy.  

So, one more time: You Deserve to Be Happy! 

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☆ The Importance of the Rainforests ☆

This infographic is full of information about the importance of rainforests and their current condition around the world.  It also provides advice on how rainforests can be saved.

Courtesy of Oak Furniture UK

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☺ Depression: You Don't Have to Stay There ☺

Ah life. It truly truly truly is a beautiful thing, it's just such a shame that we've been conditioned to believe that life is suffering, that life is hard work, that life sucks. Think about how many brain patterns we have formed during our upbringing, to make us feel badly about ourselves, to make us feel that life is no fun, to make us believe that materialism and money are the only forms of happiness, to make us believe that our happiness depends on things outside of ourselves, and to make us believe that happiness is a farfetched myth that is always just around the corner and just out of our reach. 

People seem to accept misery as if it is their only option. People seem to just accept that they are depressed as if there are no solutions or ways out. People seem to accept that life is suffering. Life can be tough, I won't deny that, I don't think anyone can deny that, but the more you conscientiously work on yourself, your happiness, your life, and most importantly, your attitude, then life becomes funner, happier, and easier. But we accept misery and I do believe this is our biggest downfall. 

Now, this next part I ask you to keep reading before you get offended--because this may be your initial reaction, that is not the purpose of this article but to empower you, so please keep reading--I'm here to at least try to help. 

Depression is not a choice--but staying there is. 

The truth is that depression comes to so many of us, and that part isn't much of a choice (especially due to the society we live in that pretty much tells us to be depressed), but the choice does lie in staying there. It can be hella difficult to climb out of the depths of depression--again I don't think anyone can deny that--it's not as easy as waking up one day and declaring that you are no longer depressed. As awesome as that would be, it's just not really possible. We have created so many brain habits and thought patterns that got us into the state of depression, therefor it takes a conscious amount of work to reprogram your brain out of it. But it is possible and anyone can do it. It takes work, it takes time, it takes some real turbulent ups and downs, but anyone can do it. And those turbulent ups and downs are worth it when you realize that you're going to get better. But you have to want to get better. If you don't truly put your heart into wanting and trying then you'll never get motivated enough to reprogram that brain. Enthusiasm, even if it's faked at first, is extremely viable. You can choose to wake up in the morning and stay depressed and not change. Or you can wake up in the morning and pretend to smile, you can force yourself into enthusiasm. The more you wake up trying the more you'll start to feel the changes emerge in your attitude and in your life. No one said it would be easy, but it is the most worthwhile trying and fighting you'll ever do. Because life is about being happy. And if we give up on trying to be happy, if we give up on fighting our way out of depression or misery, then it's like we've given up on life. There is never a reason to give up. Ever. Because if you reach that point where you feel like giving up, guess what? You have nothing left to lose! You can take the boldest chances of your life, and you can make the biggest leaps. Choose to change, no matter how small it may feel but never just give up. 

Now, this topic has been on my mind a lot lately because, with ReLove Plan.et, I truly want to try to help people and when some people are unreachable then it teaches me to take a step back, to put myself back in the suicidal depressed shoes I once lived in and reflect on the feelings, emotions, and bumps that I struggled with; so that I may find new approaches or advise that may reach people. Because I think everyone can and should be happy and if I can change one person's life then I know it will ripple.

Do what you Can.

Again, people accept depression as if they have no other options, as if happiness simply is not and will never be feasible for them. But it is. People complain about being unhappy, or just accept that they are unhappy and are silently more and more depressed about it. But they don't DO anything about it! This is the part that bothers me. Maybe because I have been there, maybe because I see people do it far too often, maybe because a part of me just can't stand to see others depressed when they don't have to be, and maybe because it's just plain hard to watch people continually self-destruct, but I want to shake people and tell them they can do better, that they Can be happy. This is why this blog started in the first place; because I know what trying can accomplish, because I've been into the depths of hell, pain, misery, self-loathing, and suicidal thoughts, and I never ever thought I would climb out of it but I did. Because I got up and decided to try and not accept that depression was my only option in life. 

Trying doesn't mean you have to make drastic changes with the snap of your fingers, trying means you're going to start, it means taking that first step forward. When I say that it bothers me to see people not trying, I'm not talking about people's inability to just "think positive" and change their attitudes in an instant--that stuff takes time and is not usually a beginners step if you have severe depression. That being said, you can always try and start to change your attitude--but I'll get to that later. These are the steps that I'm talking about that people fail to work on: diet and exercise. 

People turn to anti-depressants before they even try. It's not that I don't get it, I mean everyone wants to feel better, but from what I've seen antidepressants don't help anyone--I still have yet to meet someone on antidepressants who actually feels happy, good, or even not a zombie. Get off that shit! It's making you numb and it won't make you better, and in the meantime you're becoming hella dependent on chemicals that will make it even harder to actually get better. Not only that, but antidepressants are prescribed like giving out candy to kids on halloween. I once had a friend in high school who was having a hard time with her parents and was acting out a little. She was brought to the doctor who prescribed her prozac. My mind was blown! This girl was my best friend, we talked to each other about everything, and she wasn't depressed, not by a long shot. Hormonal, sure, frustrated, maybe; depressed, no! I talked to her about not going on them and she admitted to not being depressed and that she just wanted to make her parents happy. I am so glad, and I know that she is too, that she never went on them.

What I'm getting at is that antidepressants are a bandaid, and while that bandaid remains, the problems beneath are festering and building and will never heal until they are allowed to surface, be worked through, and released.  

Okay, so get off antidepressants and don't turn to them in the first place if that is something you've been contemplating. 

Getting back to those steps people can take to get better but don't do… 

Exercise has been proven to be just as effective as antidepressants when it comes to relieving depression. How many depressed people actually exercise? If you're depressed, start exercising! Go for a run, get an elliptical or stationary bike, go to the gym, get a bike, go hiking. Hell, you can just WALK for 30 minutes a day and that's all you need! I know that you probably won't feel motivated to exercise. I know that at first you won't feel like it's doing anything. Do it anyway. Because it absolutely does help. 

Eat properly! People complain about being depressed yet have you taken a look at your diet? How many foods are you eating that are diminishing your health? Your brain--therefor happiness--depends on a healthy body! How many foods are you eating that are depressants? Do you consume alcohol or do drugs? Do you drink coffee regularly or other highly caffeinated beverages? Do you eat sugar like most people do? Do you eat processed packaged foods? Again, I know that you won't feel motivated to eat right because when you're depressed one of the last things you really care about is yourself, therefor your health. Do it anyway. Sugar alone is one of the most potent depressants you can put into your body, yet people consume sugar as if it's nothing. When I give into a sugar craving, I go crazy, bonkers, like I want to throw my fist into a wall. Sugar is crazy! I mean really really crazy and it'll make you even crazier. Alcohol as well, terrible depressant on the body. It's not rocket science, it's just common sense. Eat more veggies, eat more fruits, eat REAL food, and stop eating foods that are making you depressed! 

So, if you're telling people that you can't help but be depressed, if you are telling people that you can't change, that happiness is simply not for you, and that trying is really hard, well… yeah, trying may be hard, it may be challenging, it may be hard to get motivated at first, but you CAN get better, you CAN get happy, and there are steps you can start taking to get better. 

Start with that 30 minutes of exercise a day, and start by really disciplining yourself with your eating habits. I promise you that once you start doing these things alone then you'll start to feel a difference; and then you'll be able to focus more on changing your attitude, reading helpful books that you'll be able to apply to your life, and the journey will just get easier and easier from there. 

You can also take natural remedies to help boost your serotonin and get your brain working the way it should--because years of depression take a real toll on your body's natural ability to produce serotonin. I highly recommend doing this. Some suggestions are: St.John's Wort, 5-HTP, sam-E, or rhodiola. Make sure you're getting your balanced omegas and DHA as well, these will help and are easy ways to boost your brain power. Make sure you're getting enough B-12, B-6 and other B vitamins. And make sure you're getting enough vitamin D.

These are all steps. You are not helpless. You CAN change. But you have to want to and you have to try. Take it in steps and don't beat yourself up if the change is slow, it does take time! But trying and struggling with that trying is better than just struggling without improvement. If you really need help then I do recommend seeing a therapist or councillor as well. If you can't afford one, lots of places have free councillors available through social services--take advantage if you have them around you because they are amazing people who are there to help you. 

It's never too late to try, it's never too late to start again. You can be happy, trust me. So please start taking steps. 

Much much love! 

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☺ Motivational Mondays! ☺

. . . . . . . . . .

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

. . . . . . . . . .

☺ Law of Attraction tip: When you think to yourself "I don't have enough" then you will continually attract that reality into your life and you will never have enough of whatever it is you feel that way about. When you focus your thoughts on 'lack of' you block abundance from coming to you. Shift your mind onto thinking you have an abundance, even if you don't. Emit those thoughts and they will magnetically attract more than enough of everything to you. 

☺ Tackle Procrastination! I am the worst procrastinator The worst! I swear it runs in my family or something… anyways, it feels pretty awesome when you do finally tackle something you've been avoiding or keep forgetting about, so instead of putting things off any longer go ahead and tackle all those procrastinations this week! Go productivity! You'll feel better without it weighing in the back of your mind anymore too! 

☺ Look for the positive in your daily experiences.  I am always astounded at how many people seem to look for things to complain about with even the most positive of things. Stop looking for the negative. If that's where you mind is going then retrain that brain! Catch yourself and see the positive instead. It will change your life! 

☺ Give something up for the week! I love this practice because it teaches self-control which is something many of us struggle with, especially when it comes to bad habits or food. So, whether you choose a food (meat, dairy, sugar, junk food, coffee, alcohol etc.), video games, makeup, cigarettes, TV, or anything at all, try giving up something for the week that you think you need (but don't!). Who knows, this may be the beginning of kicking some bad habits too! 

☺ When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.  Life holds so many very dear and valuable lessons. When we fall that is when the biggest lessons are usually presented for us. This is why losing is a tremendous gift, it's just not always easy to see that in the heat of the moment. Always take a step back and remember to keep the lesson, don't lose yourself to self-defeat.  

☺ Everything happens for a reason. Sometimes we hate to hear this little mantra, but it's absolutely true--so long as you stay positive and keep faith. The second you dwell on negative self-defeating thoughts and emotions then you place yourself in a position of stalemate with life in which you can't move forwards. Life brings to us what we need, even if we don't like it in that moment, but it is absolutely up to us to see that and have faith in that. Have faith and don't stay in stalemate.        

☺ Learn new words. Keep your mind fresh and full of new information and learn new words every day! Exercise that brain! How often do we hear or read a word and don't actually know what it means and instead of looking it up we simply accept that we don't know it (or pretend we do)? Stop! Admit ignorance (for no one knows all words!) and look up the word or ask. Learning is fun, and exercising your brain increases mental alertness and response. Plus, who doesn't want to know more words? ;)     

☺  "In my life, I've had thousands of failures, hundreds of wrong decisions, and countless stupid mistakes. But if given the chance to change it?! I'd rather not...Because somehow, my past made me what I am right now. Not hard as a diamond, but strong enough to win my fight." ~Justice Cabral.

Create a Nice Day!! 

Much Love from me to you! 

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

☺ Motivational Mondays! ☺

. . . . . . . . . .

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

. . . . . . . . . .

☺ Thoughts are Things: Thoughts have a frequency, they are real energy, and they have Power. Make sure the thoughts you are emitting are positive! 

☺ Jealousy is an ugly look on anyone. Learn to be happy for other people's triumphs instead of turning to negative jealous or envy. It's a terrible thing to down play another's successes simply because it is not you in their place. Just be happy for them. And be the best that you can be instead of acting upon or feeling jealousy or envy. Success will come your way if you can learn to be praise another's success instead of becoming jealous--remember there is enough for everyone. 

☺ Make someone Happy Today! There is nothing that fills the heart more than the ability to brighten someone's day and to make them smile. Go out of your way this week, every day, to put a smile on another's face. :)

☺ Things always have a way of working out.  So never underestimate the power of faith, positivity, and good thoughts. Look back on any difficult or stressful moments in your life and look at them now; chances are they've been resolved and long forgotten; and if they haven't chances are that they are leading to something amazing. So have faith and stay positive and resolve will come to you faster. 

☺ Follow your Passions! Follow your passions, your dreams, and the things you enjoy, and then the right opportunities will come to you. If you don't know what you want to do in life for work, then start with your passions. Don't tell yourself that your passions cannot become your life, there are endless possibilities and when you become true to your heart then those opportunities will present themselves and you will live the life of your dreams.      

☺ Become a Team Player! While this particularly applies to your relationship with your significant other, it can be applied to any relationship… Be a team player! Instead of fighting, getting on each other's nerves, and constantly pitting yourselves against one another, learn to compromise, to talk things out, to find resolve, and to overall be on each other's side. Your relationships will become much more harmonized, respectful, and happy when you do this.   

☺ "It is Your task to nurture your soul with kindness, love, respect, tolerance, forgiveness, and confidence. For a balance and hearty meal of awesomeness creates a life of happiness." ~ Dodinsky. 

Create a Nice Day!! 

Much Love from me to you! 

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

☺ Motivational Mondays! ☺

. . . . . . . . . .

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

. . . . . . . . . .

☺ 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! 

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

☺ Motivational Mondays! ☺

. . . . . . . . . .

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

. . . . . . . . . .

☺ Start your Morning with Positivity! The best way to start loving your life is to start your day off right! And that means with Positivity! Even if you're dragging yourself out of bed in the morning and you feel all "blah," you have the opportunity to turn it around. Go to your bathroom mirror and look at yourself and announce that it's going to be an awesome day. Do a little dance or jump up and down and Smile! FEEL excited! Get pumped! Hoorah hoorah!      

☺ This Too Shall Pass…  It's easy to get stuck and to feel down when something bad happens in life. One thing that will help is to remember that this too shall pass. Remember that things won't always be this way so take one day at a time. Likewise, cherish the good moments and fully enjoy them, because those will pass too. Nothing in life is permanent. So make the most of it and learn to enjoy the ride.  

☺ Stop Self-Sabotaging Yourself! We work so hard to become happy, yet most of us are guilty of self-sabotage. We create problems in our minds that don't exist. We fall into old negative habits because they're comfortable. We discourage ourselves by focussing on the negative. We talk badly about ourselves and others. All of these are spirals that sabotage our happiness, and we do this ourselves. Switch your focus onto the positive so that you are longer your own downfall. 

☺ Change your Surroundings…  and you'll change your world. With so much media around us, and increasingly so, it's time for a shift. Most media is self-defeating and made to make you feel badly about yourself. Image is a huge part of that--both looks and personality. Well, you can surround yourself with that media garbage, or you can change that. With social media sites (like Facebook, tumblr, Pinterest, etc.) You choose what shows up on your pages. So you can either choose to have the one body-type show up all over your page or you can choose to follow body-positive pages and inspiration. Choose to surround yourself with what's good for your soul!   

☺ Take your Time and Smell the Flowers!  Stop rushing about and take a moment to breathe and enjoy yourself. Life is meant to be enjoyed, and you are meant to be still sometimes instead of racing around through life. Stop, take in your surroundings. Smell the flowers. Admire the trees, the clouds, the birds fluttering through the skies. And breathe! 

☺ You have all the time in the world!  We like to stress out us humans we do, and about how much time we have is definitely one of them. I'm guilty of it, oh yes am I ever. But the funny thing is that when you stop worrying, take a step back, and tell yourself that you have all the time to do all the things you want, things magically make it so. This is a basic Law of Attraction trick; ask and you shall receive. And it works! So stop tripping over your own flustered feet, stop worrying about time and know that you have enough of it to accomplish all the things you want and need to.  

☺ "To acquire love… fill yourself up with it until you become a magnet." ~Charles Haanel. We all want love in our lives. So how do we do so? It really is as simple as making love your answer. Be Love. Be Loving. Love Yourself! Love yourself and your life and you will attract more and more of it in every aspect of your life. 

Create a Nice Day!! 

Much Love from me to you! 

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

☆ Ways to Help your Local Animal Shelter! ☆

I know, we all live busy busy lives. We want to help and volunteer but sometimes we just don't the time for helping out at our local animal shelters. However, because Animal Shelters depend on donations to save lives, there are always things you can do to help, things that require very little time and effort on your part. 

If you haven't started your spring cleaning, or if you haven't gotten around to the disposal part of your spring cleaning, then you use it to get rid of old things you’re not using any more and donate these items to animal shelters to help them not only save lives, but make the lives of those animals a little softer, warmer and more comfortable.

Things you can Donate:

Used pet toys or new eco ones

Used dog and cat sweaters and clothes or new eco ones

Used bedding or new eco bedding

Used towels or new, eco towels

Recycled paper and plastic bags

Dog food and cat food

Newspaper

Office supplies

Dog & cat beds (used or new and eco)

Kennels & crates (used or new and eco)

And then of course there's your time if you have it. These animals need love and attention and don't always get enough, so be sure to get in there and play and help out volunteering when you can. 

Other ways you can help Shelter Animals: 

Spay/Neuter!

A big thing you can do to help out animal shelters is by making sure more aren't going to end up there. How do you do this? By spaying or neutering your companions animals. This is honestly my biggest pet peeve, because people too often Don't do it when it is so so so important. I see people posting cute new photos all the time on Facebook of their cat or dog's new litter. Yes they're cute but do you have any idea how many animals are in shelters that will never ever have a family thanks to you introducing more and more puppies and kittens into the world when others are on death row waiting for their families. Seriously maddening. Please spread the word and get your friends and family to spay and neuter their pets. Please! 

Adopt don't Shop!

Exactly as I said above, there are so many animals in shelters that need homes that get neglected so please do not support breeders or buy from that fresh new litter your friend has. Please support your local animal shelters and give those animals a chance, you won't be sorry! 

Support Programs That Spay/Neuter at Low or No Cost

Some families don’t spay or neuter their cats because they can’t afford to. If you adopt from a shelter, they may spay or neuter the cat before you take her or him home. If your cat comes from some other source, look for programs that offer spay/neuter operations at low or no cost. You can find these services at the Humane Society’s handy webpage.

Cat lovers who can afford it can donate to these programs to help reduce the homeless cat population.

Support Programs that Trap-Neuter-Return Feral Cats

Many homeless cats are feral, meaning they are not tame and cannot be adopted. Feral cats can produce a whole lot of kittens who, if caught early enough and depending on their luck, will go either to a shelter or a foster or forever home.

There is another solution: Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR). Cat rescuers trap feral cats, neuter them, clip off a corner of one ear to let others know that this cat has already been spayed or neutered, and then release them back into the colony of feral cats they live in. Colony caretakers bring the cats food and water and make sure they have adequate shelter from the weather. TNR has been proven to be the best method of reducing the feral cat population because it prevents colonies from reproducing.

So do what you can and, one last time, please spay and neuter and tell others to do the same. Adopt don't shop. Spread the love! :) 

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

☺ Motivational Mondays! ☺

. . . . . . . . . .

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

. . . . . . . . . .

☺ Believe and know that nothing is impossible! Create a world where Miracles are every day occurrences. The Law of Attraction can create this world for you, if you realize and Choose to create your own world and use manifesting to your advantage. Anything and everything is possible, it is only our minds that refuse to believe. Start believing, start reading up on the Law of Attraction, start practicing gratitude every day.  

☺ Play Compliment Ping Pong! Sit down with a friend, in person or online, and pass compliments back and forth to each other. This isn't an ego boost exercise, it's a genuine love and mood-booster exercise. Self love too often gets put aside or dismissed as egoism, but people with the biggest egos are the ones in need of actual self love. Practice putting people up instead of down.       

☺ Remember to create your own sunshine!  It is in your power to create your own happiness, to create a beautiful day. All you have to do is wake up and smile, be grateful, focus on the positive, and maintain that positive attitude all day. Magical things will happen in your life and you won't be able to stop smiling and feeling like you're walking on rainbows. Yes, rainbows! 

☺ Try Veganism with the 1-Day Kickstart! I know, vegan diet, intimidating stuff. It's not as hard as you think and now there are even apps to help you out! This one is supposed to be fabulous and it's Free! This is a great app from PCRM for anyone who is new to a vegan diet. It gives you 21 days of recipes, making it super easy to plan your plant-based meals. 

☺ Make Love your only answer. Love is the answer to everything. Approach everyone and every situation from a point of love. Don't hold grudges, don't bad-mouth, don't be a little brat, just be loving. It'll get you much further in life.

☺ Stop talking behind people's backs… Once we learn to come from a place of love at all times this bad habit fades all by itself. However, until it does, catch yourself if you start saying something negative about another person. It's too easy to do, especially in this world. Just remember for every 1 bad thing you say about a person, you should replace that with 10 positive things about the person or else the relationship will end.    

☺ "Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen." — Winston Churchill. Learn when to speak and when to listen. Balance is everything, and both are equally important.  

Create the Best Damn Day ever, it is up to You to Create a Beautiful Life!!! ;)

Much Love from me to you! 

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

☆ International Polar Bear Day! (and how you can help) ☆

That's right, February 27th is International Polar Bear Day! Why is this so important? Well because there are fewer than Polar Bears left in the wild and their numbers are dwindling thanks to global climate change, and pollution. 

Take Part in the Thermostat Challenge! 

This Challenge is thanks to Polar Bears Internatonal! Take part by simply adjusting your thermostat up or down a few degrees (depending on where in the world you live) to lower carbon emissions and help save polar bears. Share a photo and inspire others with their "My Planet. My Part" actions to help save polar bears and improve the health of the planet. Even better: make every day a polar bear day by installing a programmable thermostat, insulating your home, or taking other steps to save energy. It's all part of PBI's SOS campaign!

Tips from Scientists to Help Polar Bears:

The polar bear's survival is linked to the arctic sea ice, a habitat greatly affected by climate change. Research shows, however, that it's not too late to take action to save sea ice and polar bears by greatly reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

"PBI scientists have put together a list of which individual actions have the most impact. We suggest you look through these tips, find out what you're already doing—and then challenge yourself to add two or three more to help the bears. These simple steps will soon become habits and, eventually, part of a stewardship ethic that guides your daily choices and informs your everyday decisions."

Social Interactions

• Vote for political representatives who recognize that our carbon-based society isn't sustainable and who will work to establish an appropriate price for carbon
• Interpret the facts about global warming to your friends and relatives
• Encourage members of your social circles to adopt sustainable lifestyles—and lead by example
• To help create a stewardship ethic in your community and raise awareness of how lifestyle changes can make a difference, take part in local green initiatives like planting trees, recycling drives, or ride-your-bike to work days—or start your own.

Transportation

• Walk or ride a bike
• Use public transportation
• Drive the most fuel-efficient vehicle for your needed task and drive at the most efficient speed for your vehicle
• Avoid drive-through businesses; don't idle for more than 30 seconds
• Keep your car tuned up and maintain proper tire inflation

Home & Work

• Insulate buildings and heat/cool with efficient systems (e.g., rated by Energy Star)
• Generate your own power with wind and solar
• Let your utility company know that you want to subscribe to green power
• Use energy-efficient (e.g. Energy Star) appliances and equipment. Turn appliances off when not in use. Use low-tech methods when possible (e.g., line-dry clothes)
• Replace light bulbs with compact fluorescent or other energy-efficient bulbs (see Energy Star)
• Use no more water than needed 

Dining Table

• Buy and cook only what you'll eat. Don't waste food.
• Consume foods that are minimally processed and packaged (e.g., potatoes vs. potato chips)
• Purchase fruits and vegetables grown locally on small-scale farms
• Avoid products that result from tropical deforestation (e.g., palm oil, coffee that isn't shade-grown, South American beef)
• Consume less meat and animal products. Eat three meatless meals per week. (or even better go vegetarian and/or vegan)
• (And if you are going to consume meat then choose products like pasture-fed beef, free-range poultry, and wild salmon rather than CAFO (concentrated animal feeding operations) meats.) 

Marketplace

• Minimize consumption: reduce, reuse, and recycle
• Research vendors and buy from those with sustainable business models
• Avoid products with excess packaging
• Buy products created closer to home: for example, if you live in the U.S. or Canada, purchase goods made in North America instead of those shipped from far away.

Support Conservation

Another tip I will suggest today is to donate to organizations working to help Polar Bears and climate change, such as Polar Bears International, WWF. 

You can also "adopt" a Polar Bear from either of these organizations:

https://www.polarbearsinternational.org/adopt

http://www.wwf.ca/conservation/species/polarbears/

Lastly...

ReLove Plan.et is having a sale on the Polar Bear Necklaces (ending Friday). I already donate every month to WWF, but all proceeds of the Polar Bear Necklace will be going towards a Polar Bear adoption! :)  

Also, remember that no action is too small. Every step, every action accounts to the bigger picture. Your actions also inspire others, so always do what you can no matter how small it may seem! 

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

☺ Motivational Mondays! ☺

. . . . . . . . . .

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

. . . . . . . . . .

☺ Put Manifesting in Motion…  One of the most vital parts of the Law of Attraction is Believing that whatever you want is already yours. But this is where most of us fail because we don't Act as if what we want we already have. Put your plans into action. If you want to find a new place to live, or want to move, then start packing! If you want your dream partner then make sure your life and home has room for that person as if they are already there. Whatever it is that you want Make-Believe and Know that it's on its way, Act like it's already there! If you don't, then it will never come or take much longer to come.   

☺ Learn to Laugh at Yourself! There is no need to feel embarrassed or silly any time ever. We've all done things we're ashamed of, things we're embarrassed by. If you haven't then you're magical or not being honest. But it's much easier to laugh at yourself then get all embarrassed over something. Own up to things. Take them on and learn to laugh instead of getting flustered. Stop taking yourself so seriously. We're all human after all.     

☺ Do a Sugar Cleanse. Cut out refined and processed sugars for a week, and then see if you can go longer. And try to tell me you don't feel better. Fruit sugars are still good and so is stevia-- agave can be used in moderation. The main ones you want to be cutting out are the super processed highly bad for you ones--like table sugars (cane, white, sucrose, etc.), corn syrups and sugars, sugars ending in “ol” or “ose”--and pleeeeaaase do not opt for splenda or those crap replacements, they're even worse for you than regular sugars ;p. 

Check out Lifeologia's "Sugar Detox Challenge" for the 146 reasons why sugar is bad for you, and if you want more info and motivation in general--it's awesomely thorough! ;)  

☺ Stop being afraid of Failure! Failures are a part of life. If we don't fail, we don't learn. If we don't learn, you'll never change. And if you don't change you don't grow. Any successful person first failed many many times before they reached success. Failures are steps. So don't get defeated, remember that it's just another step towards success.  

☺ Don't let Grudges get in the way of what you Want. First I'm going to say that this rule applies to your life while also maintaining the upmost respect and love for Yourself first. Okay, that's out of the way… this tip was inspired by an episode of Friends, watching the dynamics of Ross and Rachel's relationship (sorry if you've never seen the show, I'll expand, don't worry). Basically, they love each other, but they continually let one detail, one grudge, get in the way of actually ever getting back together. They let one grudging detail get in the way instead of cherishing what they actually Feel and Being Together. So I'm here to tell to you to remember to Forgive, Let Go, and not hold grudges. Instead, respect your own feelings, trust your heart, and don't get tangled up in the messes of the Mind. You always have a choice to move forwards instead of dwelling on the past. And the Present Moment is what it's important. So how do you Feel right Now? What do you Want?   

☺ "If you never tasted a bad apple, you would not appreciate a good apple. You have to experience life to understand life." ~ Leon Brown. Life's experiences are invaluable, you Need them. "Bad" things will happen and "good" things will happen, it is up to you whether or not you will allow those experience to enrich or darken your life. 

☺ Lastly, when you're  upset…  imagine a t-rex making a bed ;) Surround yourself with silly humour at all times! Making yourself smile and laugh is so important and you should be doing it every single day! This video was another laugh for my week, hopefully it makes you laugh too. ;) 

Create the Best Damn Day ever, it is up to You to Create a Beautiful Life!!! ;)

Much Love from me to you!

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