Revitalize Your Soul - Let It Go!

This message was emailed to me recently and really hit home in many ways. I had to share it with all of you today in hopes that it truly means something special to you as it did for me. Sooooo profound! Letting go can bring true freedom. :)

L E T T I N G G O By T.D. Jakes
There are people who can walk away from you. And hear me when I tell you this! When people can walk away from you: let them walk. I don't want you to try to talk another person into staying with you, loving you, calling you, caring about you, coming to see you, staying attached to you. I mean hang up the phone.

When people can walk away from you let them walk. Your destiny is never tied to anybody that left.

The bible said that, they came out from us that it might be made manifest that they were not for us. For had they been of us, no doubt they would have continued with us. [1 John 2:19]

People leave you because they are not joined to you. And if they are not joined to you, you can't make them stay.....Let them go.

And it doesn't mean that they are a bad person it just means that their part in the story is over. And you've got to know when people's part in your story is over so that you don't keep trying to raise the dead.. You've got to know when it's dead.

You've got to know when it's over. Let me tell you something.. I've got the gift of good-bye. It's the tenth spiritual gift, I believe in good-bye.. It's not that I'm hateful, it's that I'm faithful, and I know whatever God means for me to have He'll give it to me. And if it takes too much sweat I don't need it. Stop begging people to stay....Let them go!!

If you are holding on to something that doesn't belong to you and was never intended for your life, then you need to......LET IT GO!!!

If you are holding on to past hurts and pains .......LET IT GO!!!

If someone can't treat you right, love you back, and see your worth......LET IT GO!!!

If someone has angered you. LET IT GO!!!

If you are holding on to some thoughts of evil and revenge..... LET IT GO!!!

If you are involved in a wrong relationship or addiction... .. LET IT GO!!!

If someone broke your heart and brought you pain... LET THEM GO!!!

If you are holding on to a job that no longer meets your needs or talents.. LET IT GO!!!

If you have a bad attitude.... ... LET IT GO!!!

If you keep judging others to make yourself feel better...... LET IT GO!!!

If you're stuck in the past and God is trying to take you to a new level in Him.... LET IT GO!!!

If you are struggling with the healing of a broken relationship. .... LET IT GO!!!

If you keep trying to help someone who won't even try to help themselves.. .... LET IT GO!!!

If you're feeling depressed and stressed ............ LET IT GO!!!

If there is a particular situation that you are so used to handling yourself and God is saying 'take your hands off of it,' then you need to...... LET IT GO!!!

The Gratitude Project by Thankasoldier.net

We are so honored to share with you the information on The Gratitude Project brought to us by Thankasoldier.net.

As we all live our every day lives, our brave soldiers are far away from home and often feel forgotten by us. The Gratitude Project has been created as a effort to let our troops know how much we love them and how thankful we are for what they do and what they sacrifice for us.

Thankasoldier.net has come up with this great idea to make a YouTube video that will be send to soldiers serving in various locations around the world. The video will be a collection of photos with people from everywhere (not just their home town), who want to let our soldiers know that they are NOT forgotten. This is an opportunity to come together and express our gratitude. The video will be a filmstrip of photos that will warm their hearts and remind them that they are in our thoughts and prayers…and that we love them.

Here’s how you can be a part The Gratitude Project:
1. Snap a photo of yourself with the word “Thank You” in it somewhere. It can be on your hand, on a sign, spelled out with people it doesn’t matter. PLEASE INCLUDE YOUR LOCATION in the photo somewhere e.g. “Thank You from Boston, MA”
2. Email it to ThankYou@thankasoldier.net
3. If you’d like, you can also include a suggestion for what song should be playing in the background of the YouTube video.
4. Share the YouTube Video with friends to get the word out.
**The deadline for the photo submission is February 28, 2010

Get Revitalized! We are so excited to join this awesome project and submit our photo!

Peace, Love and Light!
~Ami

Revitalize Your Soul - Gratitude Series

It's so uplifting and life changing to take time to be thankful each day of our lives. You can surprise yourself by how many blessings surround you, when you take the time to recognize and reflect on each one. I am beginning a series on our blog that will be dedicated to expressing my deep gratitude to each blessing in my life. I am so excited to share this part of my heart with all of you...my old friends, my new friends, my future friends, my family, my angels. I hope that this will awaken your soul to see all the blessings in your life and will inspire you to meditate in gratitude.

Peace, Love and Light!
~Ami

Our troops .... Our heroes!

This commercial really pulled on my heart strings. Our troops are our heroes and they deserve to be acknowledged, loved and appreciated. May God bless our soldiers and bring them comfort on a daily basis. As we all enjoy the conveniences and joy of being home, lets always remember to keep them in our hearts, thoughts and prayers.

With the warmest wishes + deepest love,
Ami

The Shift - A movie being made by a movement

Check it out!

Revitalize Your Soul

Forgive quickly. Love without boundaries or fear. Laugh without control. Never stop smiling. Be thankful for all your blessings. Live with hope and positivity. Embrace every moment.

xoxo,
Lovebug

God and Dog

This is so beautiful! Made me appreciate and love my Hannah even more. Can't wait to take my morning walk ... and my walks are also my pray time. This video really touched my heart :)

Red Fridays - Support our troops

Wear your red on Fridays as a sign of support and love for our troops. Lets no longer be silent and voice our gratitude and warm wishes to all our brave soldiers away from home. They need to know that they are not forgotten …that we have them in our hearts and prayers.

By word of mouth, press, TV – we can all come together in making the United States a sea of red on Fridays …. much like a homecoming football game in the bleachers. If every one of us who loves our troops will share this with acquaintances, coworkers, friends, and family, it will not be long before the USA is covered in RED and it will let our troops know that we are all on their side more than ever.

So don’t forget to wear your reds this Friday to be a part of showing the solidarity and support for our troops with dignity and respect -- and continue each and every Friday until our troops all come home!

The first thing a soldier says when asked "What can we do to make things better for you?" is. "We need your support and your prayers." Please help to spread the word….

Revitalize Your Soul!

Good morning! And what a beautiful morning it is! Remember to smile today and take time to be thankful for all your blessings. Stop and smell the flowers or (depending where you live) stop and breath in the crisp air and take in the beautiful colors of the falling leaves. Do something nice for a stranger. Tell someone special in your life that you love them or how beautiful/handsome they are. Brush off your challenges...they are probably smaller than you think and soon they will be in the past. For those of you going through any real tragedies, may you be surrounded by love and comfort that will heal your heart and bring you peace.

Sending my warmest wishes to you all!
~Lovebug

Revitalize Your Soul - Change

There will always be something going on in our lives or around us that we wish were different or wish it would just go away. Although somethings are completed out of our control, we need to focus on the areas that we do have control over. Instead of complaining about it and dwelling on the negative, lets take the time to figure out what we can change - what we need to change, in order to improve the situation. Usually the change has to be within ourselves. We have full power over our actions, reactions, emotions and decisions, how we treat ourselves and how we treat others...even every word we speak has an outcome. So if something is picking at you and you want it to go away - sit back, take a deep breath and figure out what you can do to set that change in motion. Don't just think about it - BE the CHANGE!

“If you always do what you’ve always done, you will always get what you’ve always gotten”.
-unknown

Peace & Blessings to all!
Lovebug

Revitalize Your Soul! - Life according to Mister Rogers

A friend of Jessica's posted this on facebook and we wanted to share this wonderful message with everyone:

"If you could only sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to the people you may never even dream of. There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person." Mister Rogers

Every encounter we have leaves a lasting effect; even when we don't realize. And the ripple effects are limitless. We should always present the best, most real version of who we are in all we do.

"Won't you be ....my neighbor?"

Revitalize Your Soul!

Jessica sent this to me in an email today and I wanted to share it with all of you :)

Happiness keeps You Sweet,
Trials keep You Strong,
Sorrows keep You Human,
Failures keeps You Humble,
Success keeps You Glowing,
But Only God keeps You Going

God does keep me going and as I read this today, I started to remember how He is everywhere and in everything. The beauty of nature, the blue endless sky, the things that make me smile and laugh and inside every person that I love...all my angels. It all equals God to me .... it's what keeps me going, living and loving.

xoxo
~Ami

Revitalize Your Soul - Emotional Health

Recently, my mom shared this with me. She was studying about stress and emotional health, and there are some fundamental points that she broke down for me and my brother to read and remember. These resolutions helped her a lot and they are also a big part of how I want to live my life.

It’s about taking control of your emotions and how you react to everyday situations and experiences. It’s a reminder that we all have a choice. This year has been very challenging for me and almost everyone that I know. I have felt completely lost and trapped within my own emotions, creating claustrophobia in my own skin. I have also seen my own friends and family drowning and indulging in their own pain, losing complete control of the life around them and choosing to be a victim of them selves. It doesn’t have to be this way….we DO have control. It takes a lot of work and practice, but in the end it’s all worth the happiness and peace you can feel inside and out.

Please take the time to read this…I hope it somehow helps you with whatever you struggle with and that it lifts your spirit knowing there is hope and that you can make a change in your own life.

1. Never say bad things about yourself. Look for sources of your unhappiness in elements that can be modified by future actions. Give yourself constructive criticism - what can you do differently next time to get what you want?

2. Compare your reactions, thoughts and feelings with those of friends, family, co-workers and others so you can gauge the appropriateness and relevance of your responses against a suitable norm.

3. Have several close friends with whom you can share feelings, joys and worries. Work at developing, maintaining and expanding your social support networks.

4. Develop a sense of balanced time perspective - be future oriented when there is work to be done, present oriented when the goal is achieved and past oriented to keep in touch with your roots.

5. ALWAYS TAKE FULL CREDIT FOR YOUR SUCCESSES AND HAPPINESS and share positive feelings with other people. Keep an inventory of the qualities that make you feel special and unique - those qualities that you can offer others. Even a shy person can provide a talkative person with the gift of listening. Know your sources of personal strength and available coping resources.

6. When you feel you are losing control over your emotions (emotions can be controlled), DISTANCE yourself from the situation or conflict, projecting your image into the future to gain perspective on what seems to be overwhelming now. Allow yourself to feel and express your emotions, but remember that you are in control.

7. Remember that failure and disappointment are sometimes a blessing in disguise. They tell you that your goal was not right for you, and save you from bigger letdowns later on. LEARN FROM EVERY FAILURE. Acknowledge setbacks by saying "I MADE A MISTAKE" AND MOVE ON. Every accident, misfortune, or violation of your expectations is potentially an opportunity in disguise.

8. IF YOU FEEL YOU CANNOT HELP YOURSELF OR ANOTHER PERSON IN DISTRESS, SEEK THE COUNSEL OF A TRAINED SPECIALIST. In some cases, the problem that appears to be emotional can be physical and vice versa. Remember hwlp I always available.

9. Cultivate healthy pleasures. Take time out and relax, meditate, fly a kite, enjoy hobbies, listen to music that brings you to good places, and pleasurable activities you can do alone and by which you can get in touch with and better yourself.


Much Love and Peace!
~Lovebug

Revitalize Your Soul - Stop and smell the roses

Each day passes by so quickly. We go through our daily routines and then start all over again the next day. It’s so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of everything that we forget to take a moment to stop and smell the roses. Something as simple as stopping whatever you are doing and concentrating on your breathing, can be so therapeutic sometimes. Or sitting back for a moment an enjoying the silence, the stillness, the peace. Or just taking a 5-10 minute walk around your neighborhood to let your blood flow and take in the beauty that is our earth. It’s always nice to even call up a loved one that you haven’t spoken to in a while to catch up on each other’s lives.

Whatever it might be, lets try to take more time for ourselves. Stop in the middle of all the madness that can sometimes be our daily lives and remember that it’s the little things that we ignore or often forget about, that actually brings us the most joy and bliss. Lately, I have been trying to make an effort to take a few minutes each day and do something that just feels good for my heart, mind and soul. Every time I do, I am never disappointed with the result of continuing my day with a bigger smile and a delightful vibe. And you know what? Sometimes the day even feels longer because of it.

Remember…..in the mist of it all….we have everything we need inside ourselves and surrounding us constantly that can bring us pleasure and contentment. We just have to decide to make the time to enjoy them.


Peace and Light,
Lovebug

Revitalize Your Soul - In Search of Insperado...

My brain's creative side has suffered a major fart.

And I am in now in search of insperado (aka INSPIRATION!).

This typically doesn't happen to me, but with all of the recent changes in my life, I've been searching, grounding, thinking (perhaps too much) and reaching for inspiration.

Of course Revitalize and our wedding business is inspirational to me, but I'm in search for more...
...more creativity to decorate my new pad.
...more motivation to finish a painting I started.
...more drive to work even harder on our businesses.

I suppose I just need to continue to go with the flow (one of my favorite new phrases) and let inspiration flutter my way. If I believe that it's out there, it will find me....and you. Just try not to look too hard.

In search of insperado (if you can connect this to Tenacious D, you rock),
Jess

Revitalize Your Soul – One more birthday message

Do you remember your previous birthdays as a child? I do and a lot has changed since then. It’s all different now. Mommy doesn’t bake me a cake and throw me a birthday party anymore and family members no longer send me cards in the mail full of cash, even though it is now that I need it the most. Haha! Actually, once you become a full grown adult, birthdays just don’t seem to be much fun anymore. They can become just another day. A lot of us stress about becoming older and some of us feel forgotten and/or alone. What happened to the excitement and anticipation to celebrate the day we were brought into this world? Many of us have forgotten what it means and how special our birthday really is.

This year, I have decided to enjoy my birthday in a whole new way. It is the day I celebrate LIFE! It’s another year that I am absolutely blessed to be alive, another year to cherish each lesson I have learned and every amazing experience that I have been carried through that has lead be to become the person I am today. It is a fresh start, a new beginning, a whole new year of being me! I have been given a gift to continue this amazing journey of becoming who I want to be, to fulfilling my purpose in life, to finding the peace and bliss that comes from expressing unconditional love for myself and everyone around me. It is a chance to accomplish the goals and dreams I hold dear to my heart and the opportunity to be grateful for every moment I have been given and to look forward to continuing this magnificent voyage. Every birthday is most definitely a cause for celebration!!! I pray to always remember how important it truly is….

Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to me! Happy Birthday to everyone!

Have a beautiful day!
~Lovebug xoxo

Our first volunteering experience - It warmed our hearts!!!

This past Saturday, Ami and I had the opportunity to take part in a Second Harvest Food Bank event - Corn Gleaning in Zellwood. Gleaning was a new term to us so we weren't quite sure what to expect! It turned out to be an amazing way to help the homeless.

We arrived to the farm early that morning. Armed in our overalls, bandana and straw cap, we grabbed two buckets and jumped in the back of a pick up. From there we were driven through the muddy terrain and into the corn field. Eagerly we jumped off the back and went into the field. Basically, we were picking after the machines had already gone through the field. These "leftovers" are then taken to different homeless shelters within Central Florida.

Ami with her first pick of the day:


Some of the other volunteers. According to Amy (one of the head volunteers from Society of St. Andrew) we picked 12,000 lbs that day!!!:


It was so amazing to see all of the kids that were involved!!! It was very empowering. Lugging those buckets full of corn wasn't an easy task, but anytime the going got tough, we smiled and laughed, knowing what we were doing was so important and helpful.

Me with my bucket:


Working together to help the community is one of the things we are all about. It felt so amazing to be up at such an early hour on a Saturday to help. We left feeling accomplished that by giving our time, we are adding hope to someone's life.

Be on the lookout for our next opportunity to help make our world a better place! Next time we hope to see you there. You'll definately get a big high five from us!



With lots of love,
Jess

Revitalize Your Soul

...Speak with Integrity...

It is so easy to fall into the trap of gossip at work, in our different circles, and within our families. Often, we do not realize the power of these words. As we circulate them within the universe, we are contributing with negativity. Instead of using words to gossip, speak positively, or try not to indulge in gossip at all.

Not only does the integrity of our word matter with others, but it affects us as well. The more we speak down of ourselves even by joking and saying things like, Wow, that was stupid of me, we are creating a negative connotation and making this true. I used to specifically have the issue of saying, Im sorry, instead of Excuse me, when I bumped into someone. I realized that the more I said Im sorry, the sorrier I felt about myself. Although in the moments, I did not mean this to be a negative statement about me, my psyche heard, Im sorry over and over, my subconscious began to believe that as truth.

Remember, say only what you mean. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love!

Much love,
Jessica

Fighting the Green-Eyed Monster

I don't think a lot of people would look to the Beastie Boys for insight, but today I found it in their song Pass the Mic:

"I give thanks for inspiration
It guides my mind along the way
A lot of people get jealous, they're talking about me
But that's just 'cause they haven't got a thing to say
Everybody's rappin' like it's a commercial
Acting like life is a big commercial
So this is what I've got to say to you all
Be true to yourself and you will never fall"

This past weekend, a friend and I were discussing jealousy. When someone achieves something great, it seems there is always another person who is jealous of the accomplishment. This envy can breed contempt and low self-esteem, which can lead one to gossip in an effort to feel like a bigger person.

But we're all human and it's virtually impossible to avoid the feeling of jealousy. So the next time you feel jealous, ask yourself why. Figure out what you need to change about your own circumstances to get yourself where you want to be. Focus on yourself and your own goals, rather than the person who ignited the envious feelings. Because if you have time to talk shit about what someone else is doing, you're probably not busy enough working toward your own objectives.

Be true to yourself and you will never fall. Thanks, M.I.K.E. to the D.

-Becky