Love Token 104: Sun, Surf, Yoga, Breathe, Release, Take In

Sometimes I read JM and TP's blog and it is like they pull the very thoughts out of my head and beautifully translate them onto paper via the written word or imagery.

Great couple, great essence just GREAT

As the weather warms up on the lower island, the beauty unfolds to a heightened level.

It encompasses mine and the hub's loves all in one.

Sun, Beach, Yoga, Waves, Quality of Life, Being Present, Soaking it All In.

The following excerpt and  image sum it up all up

Jason Mraz

Tristan Prettyman

I hope we all take in this summer, absorb, injest and rejuvinate the aweso-maziness of this great world we live in and the portion of it we are lucky enough to call our home.

I know this summer to-do list is something I would write!

Happiness Is

Sometimes I pinch myself to make sure this isn't a dream being surrounded by the beauty of it all, and I am happy to say I embrace the pain of the pinch, for I know this much is true and real.

Happy Monday

xo

M

Love Token 103: Weekend Love

Pinmarklet

TGIF!!!

Fridays are always a feel good wrap up to the week.

I hope everyone has a great weekend and enjoys these little gems inspired by TGIF, I know they put a smile on my face :)

Love of Friday

Inspire

Evolution of the Weekend

fun in the sun

Things to Live By

serenity

weekender

love on weekends

weekend ready

weekend hair

herb garden

XO

M

There is Beauty in the Breakdown

Amy Nalette

"There is beauty in the breakdown.

The experience is shared by many across the world

The feeling of love and loss

There is beauty in the breakdown, it will enlighten, release those bricks of self doubt on your shoulders and instil comfort.

The breakdown creates a breakthrough

To take in the experience, grow and appreciate the love shared whether long, short, healthy or toxic, there is a lesson.

To see that the breakdown while a solitude experience is alongside many other

It becomes relatable, curable and forgivable and when enough time passes understandable

You will nurture your heart and tell it that while that heartbreak hurt and over-consumed you with grief and pain there are many still waiting to cross your path.

Maybe today, maybe tomorrow or ten months from now.

To take the chance and tell your heart to expose itself once again is the vulnerability that will require strength.

It will steady you, sharpen your perception and in the end fill your heart back up

We crash and collide in this world, with much love, laughter and yet much strife and rejection

Compatibility isn’t a one stop shop, you will be compatible with many, you will love with many, but you will be compatible and in love with a few lucky ones.

Few that may stick around forever, or just for a little while, there is a reason for each that contributes to the story in your life.

And while you are in the midst of the storm, take solice in the fact...

there is beauty in the breakdown.

Your loved ones will help you put the pieces of your heart back together, first with band aids, then with stitches of love, until the pain melds into a force that was never there before.

Always release and never bottle in, always remember that this too shall pass and always remember

there is beauty in the breakdown."

-M.Keil

Here is a little musical storyline for all the people out there who have loved and lost and carried on.

Never doubt your strength and never doubt your support systems, they are your life lines.

THE BREAKUP

Joshua Radin & Patty Griffin: You Got Growin' Up To Do

THE BEAUTY

Gravity: Sara Bareilles

THE FORCE

Christina Perri: Jar of Hearts

THE UNDERSTANDING

Let Him Fly: Patty Griffin

THE BREAKTHROUGH

I Found a Boy: Adele

XO

M

Love Token 102: For Now We Are Young

Lyndsey S.

"You know, I do believe in magic.

I was born and raised in a magic time, in a magic town, among magicians.

Oh, most everybody else didn’t realize we lived in that web of magic, connected by silver filaments of chance and circumstance.

But I knew it all along.

When I was twelve years old, the world was my magic lantern, and by its green spirit glow

I saw the past, the present and into the future.

You probably did too; you just don’t recall it.

See, this is my opinion: we all start out knowing magic.

We are born with whirlwinds, forest fires, and comets inside us.

We are born able to sing to birds and read the clouds and see our destiny in grains of sand.

But then we get the magic educated right out of our souls.

We get it churched out, spanked out, washed out, and combed out.

We get put on the straight and narrow and told to be responsible.

Told to act our age. Told to grow up, for God’s sake.

And you know why we were told that?

Because the people doing the telling were afraid of our wildness and youth, and because the magic we knew made them ashamed and sad of what they’d allowed to wither in themselves.

After you go so far away from it, though, you can’t really get it back.

You can have seconds of it. Just seconds of knowing and remembering.

When people get weepy at movies, it’s because in that dark theater the golden pool of magic is touched, just briefly.

Then they come out into the hard sun of logic and reason again and it dries up, and they’re left feeling a little heartsad and not knowing why.

When a song stirs a memory, when motes of dust turning in a shaft of light takes your attention from the world, when you listen to a train passing on a track at night in the distance and wonder where it might be going, you step beyond who you are and where you are.

For the briefest of instants, you have stepped into the magic realm.

That’s what I believe.

The truth of life is that every year we get farther away from the essence that is born within us. We get shouldered with burdens, some of them good, some of them not so good.

Things happen to us.

Loved ones die.

People get in wrecks and get crippled.

People lose their way, for one reason or another.

It’s not hard to do, in this world of crazy mazes.

Life itself does its best to take that memory of magic away from us.

You don’t know it’s happening until one day you feel you’ve lost something but you’re not sure what it is.

It’s like smiling at a pretty girl and she calls you “sir.” It just happens.

These memories of who I was and where I lived are important to me.

They make up a large part of who I’m going to be when my journey winds down.

I need the memory of magic if I am ever going to conjure magic again.

I need to know and remember, and I want to tell you."


Boy’s Life – Robert McCammon

XO

M



Cut & Paste Tuesdays

Nothing like the feeling of dancing in a kitchen and being surrounded by love

Getty Images

XO
M

Love Token 101: Country Lovin

Created By Esty Artist pixelcloud

I have been getting back into full swing of some country loving music. I have phases...

Watching American Idol can do that to you I guess!

My favourite reality shows are talent ones!!

Love em Love em Love em

So You Think You Can Dance is like a happy-place drug for me...but that is a WHOLE other token :)

Back to the point, really I just like some GOOD music no matter what type!

Some country songs in heavy rotation....

Carrie Underwood: Flat on The Floor

Oldie but a Goodie!

The Band Perry: If I Die Young

This whole album has been on HEAVY rotation since I got it on Friday - sooo good!

Give In To Me

This is the Faith Hill version but the movie version from Country Strong is great too!

Thanks Robyn  for the soundtrack album suggestion - loving it!

Patty Griffin: Top of the World

Thank you Dixie Chicks for making me love and respect Patty Griffin's music as much as you all do!

I hope the weekend was kind to you and the upcoming week keeps a bounce in your step and a smile on your face

cristianeg

XO
M

Love Token 100: Etsy Treasury

My love affair with Etsy started Winter 2009.

Planning for my wedding formed this beautiful friendship

Ever since then I have been hooked and in love with the variety and talent that comes for this online portal of heavenly delights.

My latest obsession with Etsy is window shopping via their Treasury Galleries...so fun and yet so addicting!

butter-and-sage

farmhouse-antiquing

somewhere-over-the-rainbow

sugar-and-spice

xo

M

Believe in the Choice

Obtained via: Here

XO

M

Cut & Paste Tuesdays

I am starting to notice a pattern of sun, beach and ocean in my cut & pastes.

Just going to go with it!

I AM a water sign afterall ;)

Enjoy!

Obtained via: Inspire

XO
M

Love Token 99: Gold Glitter

For the long weekend I am rocking some gold glitter nails because it is just too FUN.

OPI has a polish out called "Glow Up Already"

Cup of Jo

xo

M

Love Token 98: Only Happy In The Sun

Inspire

It is no surprise that I have had a long love affair with the sun, so much so that it is forever inked on my body (way before it became "that type of tattoo").

I was reminded of this fabulous song last night in my yoga class....three of my loves colliding

Yoga

+

Ben Harper

+

Sun

I hope you all enjoy your 2011 long weekend and are able to soak up the warm and loving embrace of the sun.



TGIF!

XO

M

Love Token 97: New Love

THANK YOU Vicky for introducing me to MY NEW favourite blog Inspire.

It has the perfect combination of inspirational imagery (fashion,decor,beauty) and quotations.

Here are some of the BAZILLION posts from this tumblr blog that I really love

Love Token 96: iLoVE oLiVE iLoVE oLiVE

What is on the menu for today's lunch...umm how about a side of delicious blue cheese stuffed olives.

Whether in a martini, a caesar or just on it's own, I LOVE OLIVES.

MAC V

Michael DL Smith

PVCPVC

YUM



XO
M

Change is Good

Love this, so true.

I really wish the world and it's incumbents were less narcissistic.

What satisfies the soul doesn't always necessarily equate to satisfaction around oneself.

Obtained via: Here

XO
M

Cut & Paste Tuesdays

Sorry for the one day delay on this, but I was out of town ;)

Who wouldn't want to cut and paste themselves into this alter universe for today?

Obtained via: happiness-is

XO

M

Girl Power

Be the change you wish to see in the world. 

-Gandhi

I 

Love

This

Movement

Thanks to the hub for introducing this to me.

It is reality that we take for granted in the comfort of our homes, with hot running water, education,  and the belief in equality. 

Please watch this - don't think of it as one-sided, sexist or anything other than a contributing part of the human condition that needs ALL our help. 

Something I will invest my time and money in throughout my whole life. 

Empowerment

Helping

Loving

The Girl Effect

XO

M

The Relief That Sighed

Fate has peculiar timing

When it is deemed to be yours or another’s

In less than a moment

A life can change

What seems routine today can be oblivious tomorrow

The present is a strange paradox of how you live, how you ought to live and how change can stake a fork in the road

One brief second

In one instant

Certain uncontrollable obstacles in place

To determine your fate …or mine

What was once mine, could have been no longer

What once was, could have been a past already being written

Life is kind, life is cruel, life is real

Life will pass you by if you let it

Take comfort in the inevitable

Like sand slipping through fingers, the chips will fall where they may

One gasping breath and the uncharted destination of the exhale

Enjoy now

Take solace in the confirmations of yesterday in all its bitter sweetness and realize tomorrow is undoubtedly unknown

As this is the dice we roll in the game of life

Love Token 95: Reminiscing

A Perfect Day!

xo

M



Cut & Paste Tuesdays

In my past blogs I have uploaded photos where I would like to cut and paste myself into for the day.

I am going to try to make this a weekly update.

My photo for today - sun, beach, ocean and books - a version of my utopia for sure.

Found on MatchBookMag

xo
M

Love Token 94: Young Love

"When I was young...I met this beautiful girl by the lake"

-What Dreams May Come

Do you remember your first young love (I mean reallll young)?

Mine was when I was 3 years old, we met in kinder-gymnastics class, he was older (1 year) and his name was *sigh* Max.

Seeing young love is so cute, it brings out the fairy tale romantics in us - that you can find your soul mate when you are young, it is just a matter of how early your paths cross.

What Dreams May Come is my all time favourite movie and it touches on the themes of young love, soul mates, the quest for love,  etc.

Anywhoo, I stumbled across this feel good "young love" video via TP's blog and it reminded me of my own young love and it made me smile....even though Max dumped me a few days later by sticking his tongue at me - ah well.

But before we grow up and face all the drama, the heart ache, the break-ups the rocky roads, there is well....

This

Enjoy taking a walk down memory lane - or just ENJOY!

xo

M

The Cool Factor

XO

M

Love Token 93 - I Am Not My Hair

I have never had a personal attachment to my hair.

Do not get me wrong, I love having nice looking hair but I have never been a "one-look" or what "suits me best type of girl".

I guess what I am saying, is that for some it can be a security blanket but for me it is not.

I like to experiment, try new things out and see what could look better and sometimes worse.

Risk and all.

As young as I can remember I have been doing my own hair, which I think my mom loved, less work for her.

I loved putting my hair in different updos, braids and accessories.

I enjoyed the versatility and creativity that hair let me have.

Up until the time I was about 7 or 8, my life long goal was to:

Go to Harvard and become the best hairdresser in the entire world

I ... loved .... hair.

In my young mind whatever you wanted to excel at (no matter the profession), you went to Harvard - duh!

As I grew up, my passion for hair never ceased but became more of a hobby due to a horrible life lesson in grade 8  that unfolded - and as great as I was at perhaps styling - cutting was not, nor ever would be my ahem "forte".

I have been pretty good to my hair over the past 5 years, little to no colour and getting regular trims...but the itch has surfaced and my boredom has led me to a lighter hue (for now) and lately I feel I want to chop it all off.

I am going to wait until post 30th birthday, but the time is coming.

I am not the girl who cries when locks fall on the floor of the salon, I actually take a huge sigh of relief, it is like shedding a coat for me.

It triggers change, revitalizes my energy source and is a great rush.

Some people jump out of planes, I just change my hair.

I have NO idea how this is going to look, this could end up being a great look or a lesson learned but thankfully my hair grows SUPER fast.

Of course the style I have been mulling around is now gaining steam it seems in hollywood but I still want to hold out until summer regardless.

Who knows I might even do a drastic colour change.

It is all about having fun, still looking classy and getting a cut that shapes and compliments your features but not being afraid to take that leap.

I am headin into a new decade in my life, so now is the time.

My love token today is embracing "Letting Go"

Wish me luck, because I may need it ;)

XO
M

Get Lost

Lose yourself, let go & embrace the unknown.

By: Shaun Sundholm