I hope you had a joy-filled January. I find it quite a tough month after all the busyness and excitement of the festive season. It’s pretty much guaranteed that I have a CFS symptom flare-up and am grateful I can cosy up and hibernate in order to rest, recuperate and recharge.
I’m so thankful for the growing longer hours of daylight! I’m definitely not a winter girl, and am ready to start seeing signs of spring. I’ll be keeping a beady eye out for snowdrops, daffodils and crocuses over the next few weeks!
Without further ado, here’s my loved-up Kindness Calendar for February 2018:
To download your free copy, please click on this link:
(Please note if you subscribe to my blog and are receiving this post by email, please click here to come through to the main site and you can download it easily from there.)
Have a fun+fabulous February; it’s Random Acts of Kindness Week starting on the 11th, culminating in Random Acts of Kindness Day on Saturday 17th February – so the perfect opportunity to spread the word and go kindness crazy!!
And let’s not forget to be kind to ourselves too, we are definitely worth it!
Love+hugs, Helen Xxx
As always, I try to make the acts on my Kindness Calendars quick, easy and cheap (well, mostly free actually). So anyone and everyone can join in.You may want to mix it up and swap the acts around, adapt the acts to suit you, or even create your own kindness acts. And don’t worry if you can’t do an act of kindness every single day, sometimes it’s just not possible as I know too well with the nature of my CFS flare ups. But even if every one of us manages to do just one kindness act on one day this month - imagine how amazing that would be!Again, it would be really brilliant and deeply appreciated if you could share this with family, friends, work colleagues, classmates… and share all over social media.😊Every single extra act of kindness counts, and together we are making the world a kinder place. So let’s get as many people as we can involved.And don’t forget to join me on my kindness community page on Facebook, and if you post about your kindness act, please use the hashtag #KindnessCalendar so we can all keep track of all the wonderful kindness we are sharing.Thank you so much for spreading a little more kindness.☆♡☆
(Please note if you subscribe to my blog and are receiving this post by email, please click here to come through to the main site and you can download it easily from there.)
As always, I try to make the acts on my Kindness Calendars quick, easy and cheap (well, mostly free actually). So anyone and everyone can join in.
You may want to mix it up and swap the acts around, adapt the acts to suit you, or even create your own kindness acts. And don’t worry if you can’t do an act of kindness every single day, sometimes it’s just not possible as I know too well with the nature of my CFS flare ups.
But even if every one of us manages to do just one kindness act on one day this month – imagine how amazing that would be!
Again, it would be really brilliant and deeply appreciated if you could share this with family, friends, work colleagues, classmates… and share all over social media. 🙂
Every single extra act of kindness counts, together we are making the world a kinder place. So let’s get as many people as we can involved.
And don’t forget to join me on my kindness community page on Facebook, and if you post about your kindness act, please use the hashtag #KindnessCalendar so we can all keep track of all the wonderful kindness we are sharing.
Have a joy-filled January, and let’s remember to be kinder to ourselves as well, we are definitely worth it!
Speaking of which, I’m having a break from social media in January, so I’ll see you in February.
Thank you so much for spreading a little more kindness.
☆♡☆
I’m so excited to be launching this year’s Kindness Advent Calendar on World Kindness Day(Monday 13th November).
I have to be admit, I’m still amazed at the incredible response to last year’s Kindness Advent Calendar, which has been downloaded over 500,000 times.
Please forgive me for repeating, but that’s an astonishing HALF A MILLION TIMES!!
WOW!
I’m hugely grateful and excited at the thought of all the extra kindness being spread all over the world.
And it’s all thanks to lovely you, the kind folk who shared the calendar with friends, family, colleagues, on social media, and who joined in all the kindness act advent fun.
This is absolutely proof of the ripple effect of kindness and it really couldn’t have happened without you so THANK YOU.
☆ You really are amazing ☆
I know your acts of kindness make a huge difference and help to brighten others’ day. I also think that particularly during these times of trouble and turmoil, it’s a beautiful way to show there is still good in the world.
So I’d like to invite lovely you and yours to join me spreading a little kindness again this year.
For anyone new to my Kindness Advent Calendars, they work just like a normal advent calendar but instead of the usual chocolate countdown, we are embracing the true spirit of Christmas by doing 24 random acts of festive kindness.
(Please note if you subscribe to my blog and are receiving this post by email, please click here to come through to the main site and you can download it easily from there.)
NEW Kindness Advent Calendar for KIDS
This year, I wanted to add something a little extra, and after receiving lots of requests from parents and teachers alike, and seeing how much my young nephews enjoy helping me with my kindness acts, I’ve created a special Kindness Advent Calendar for KIDS to follow.
WooHooo!
It’s such a fun and easy way for teachers and parents to get children involved in spreading a little kindness in the lead up to Christmas, and a lovely way of showing children what a positive impact they can have on the world.
I ran my calendar past a brilliantly talented teacher (thank you lovely Michelle) who gave me some helpful feedback. And I’m very excited to be teaming up with my nephews’ primary school, which should be oodles of fun.
Here’s my Kindness Advent Calendar for KIDS for 2017:
If you work with children and need a non-Christmas themed Kindness Calendar, I’ve created a generic Kindness Advent Calendar for KIDS. Please click here to download.
(Please note if you subscribe to my blog and are receiving this post by email, please click here to come through to the main site and you can download it easily from there.)
I know December is an extra busy month for most of us, and we can find ourselves rushing around trying to get everything ready in time for the Christmas holiday, so I’ve made the acts on my Kindness Calendars quick, easy and cheap (well, mostly free actually). So anyone and everyone can join in.
You may want to mix it up and swap the acts around, adapt the acts to suit you, or even create your own kindness acts. And don’t worry if you can’t do an act of kindness every single day, sometimes it’s just not possible as I know too well with the nature of my Chronic Fatigue Syndrome flare ups.
But even if every one of us manages to do just one kindness act on one day this month – imagine how amazing that would be!
Again, it would be really brilliant and deeply appreciated if you could share this with family, friends, work colleagues, classmates… and share all over social media. 🙂
Every single extra act of kindness counts, together we are making the world a kinder place. So let’s get as many people as we can involved.
And don’t forget to join me on my kindness community page ‘Spreading A Little Kindness’ on Facebook, and if you post about your kindness act, please use the hashtag #KindnessCalendar so we can all keep track of all the wonderful kindness we are sharing.
Wishing you a dazzling December and a fun festive season, and let’s remember to be kinder to ourselves as well, we are definitely worth it!
Thank you so much for spreading a little more kindness.
Love, Helen
☆♡☆
p.s. I’d love to hear about your kindness experiences in the comments below…
Media Support for my Kindness Advent Calendars:
☆ My local newspaper featured a teaser for my Kindness Advent Calendars. You can read about it here.
☆ On World Kindness Day, I spoke to the very lovely Mark Dennison live on BBC Radio Nottingham about kindness. I was a little nervous and rambled a little bit, but you can listen to it here:
☆ Fellow acts of kindness enthusiast, Travis Mayfield featured my Kindness Advent Calendar on his Seattle’s Morning TV Show Q13 Fox. You can watch the brilliant clip by clicking here.
☆♡☆
IF YOU’D PREFER A NON-CHRISTMAS VERSION, I’VE ADAPTED MY KINDNESS CALENDAR AND YOU CAN DOWNLOAD IT HERE:
Kindness Calendar December 2017 – non-Christmas version
I’ve received quite a few requests from people who work with children and want to share my Kindness Advent Calendar for KIDS – but aren’t allowed to feature it because of the use of the words ‘Advent’ and ‘Christmas’.
Hello lovelies and a huge shiny welcome to November ♡
I hope October overflowed with kindness for you, and you are ready to greet this brand new month and all that it brings.
I hope for those of you in the southern hemisphere you’re enjoying the warmer days of spring, and in the northern hemisphere you’re enjoying Mother Nature’s stunning display of autumnal colours, here’s a few snaps I took at my favourite Japanese Garden last week:
Onto some fun and interesting facts about our new month ahead:
The name derives from the latin ‘novem’ which means nine, as November was the ninth month of the year in the ancient Roman calendar.
November is the only month used to represent a letter in the phonetic alphabet.
In 1863, US President Abraham Lincoln, declared the last Thursday of November to be a National Day of Thanksgiving.
This month has two birthstones: Topaz comes in many colours, but it is the orange-yellow topaz that is the traditional birthstone for November. Topaz is a symbol of friendship. Citrine is also a November birthstone. Named after the French word for ‘lemon’, citrine is also yellow-orange in colour and is known to awaken imagination and creativity.
The flower of November is the chrysanthemum. The word comes from the Greek words chrys, meaning golden, the original colour of the chrysanthemum, and anthemum, which means flower. As you can see, the chrysanthemum symbolises optimism and joy:
November’s astrological signs are Scorpio, from 23rd October to 21st November, and Sagittarius which runs from 22nd November to 21st December.
If you were born in November you may share a birthday with: 2nd Marie Antoinette; 5th Vivien Leigh; 7th Marie Curie; 11th Leonardo DiCaprio; 12th Grace Kelly; 14th Claude Monet; 17th Martin Scorsese; 18th Mickey Mouse’; 22nd George Eliot and Billie Jean King; 26th Tina Turner; 27th Jimi Hendrix; 30th Mark Twain and Sir Winston Churchill. Sources: www.express.co.uk, thoughtco.com, popculturemadness.com, ducksters.com, holidayinsights.com, crystalvaults.com
(Please note if you subscribe to my blog and are receiving this post by email, please click here to come through to the main site and you can download it easily from there.)
As always, I try to make the acts on my Kindness Calendars quick, easy and cheap (well, mostly free actually). So anyone and everyone can join in.
You may want to mix it up and swap the acts around, adapt the acts to suit you, or even create your own kindness acts. And don’t worry if you can’t do an act of kindness every single day, sometimes it’s just not possible as I know too well with the nature of my CFS flare ups.
But even if every one of us manages to do just one kindness act on one day this month – imagine how amazing that would be!
Every single extra act of kindness counts, as together we are making the world a kinder place. So let’s get as many people as we can involved.. please share this with family, friends, work colleagues, classmates… and share all over social media. 🙂
And don’t forget to join me on my kindness community page on Facebook, and if you post about your kindness act, please use the hashtag #KindnessCalendar so we can all keep track of all the wonderful kindness we are sharing.
Wishing you a nourishing November, and let’s remember to be kinder to ourselves as well as to others… we are definitely worth it!
Thank you so much for spreading a little more kindness. Love+hugs, Helen ☆♡☆
I hope you had a Sensational September, sparkling with kindness.
My month was pretty much a washout due to a flare up of CFS symptoms, but after a month of almost complete rest, I’m feeling a little more recharged and hopeful for this brand new month ahead.
For those of us in the northern hemisphere, we’ve welcomed autumn in and Mother Nature has already started to put on her spectacular art show…
I’m such a sunshine summer girl, but seeing all the stunning colours of autumn softens the blow a little of summer ending, and I couldn’t help but choose a pretty autumnal leaf design for this month’s kindness calendar.
Here are some interesting facts about the new month ahead:
October received it’s name from the Latin numeral ‘octo’ which means number eight, as in the Roman calendar it was the eighth month.
The Anglo-Saxons named it Winterfylleth, which means ‘fullness of winter’ because it had the first full moon of the winter season.
This month’s gemstones are the semi-precious stone Opal, known as the Queen of Gems as it encompasses the colours of all the other gems, and Tourmaline which comes in a rainbow of colours – my favourite is Paraiba Tourmaline, a relatively new discovery with striking ocean-like blues and greens.
October’s flower is the Calendula, the common marigold, and symbolises comfort, gratitude, grace and good luck. It’s known for its medicinal and healing properties.
Astrologically October starts in Libra (23rd Sept – 22nd Oct) and ends in Scorpio (23rd Oct – 21st Nov)
Oktoberfest, which features live music, games, amusement rides, beer tents, and a traditional Bavarian fair, is a 16 day festival which starts late September and ends early October. It began in 1810 when Prince Ludwig of Bavaria invited his people to celebrate his marriage to Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen. Believe it or not, the largest beer drinking festival in the world was originally alcohol-free!
Halloween began as a Celtic pagan festival of Samhain, which means ‘the end of summer’ . It was part of the ancient Celtic religion in Britain and other parts of Europe. On All Hallows’ Eve – the night before All Saints’ Day on 1st November – the Celts had a big party, which was all about scaring away the ghosts and spirits. The holiday became popular in the United States when Irish immigrants arrived during the 19th century.
More US presidents have been born in October than in any other month: Jimmy Carter, 1st October 1924; Rutherford B. Hayes, 4th October 1822; Chester A. Arthur, 5th October 1829; Dwight D. Eisenhower, 14th October 1890; Theodore Roosevelt, 27th October 1858; and John Adams, 30th October 1735
Famous October birthdays include: 2nd Gandhi, 1869; 7th Desmond Tutu, 1931; 8th Jesse Jackson 1941; 9th John Lennon, 1940; 11th Eleanor Roosevelt, 1884; 13th Margaret Thatcher, 1925; 16th Oscar Wilde, 1854; 25th Pablo Picasso, 1881; Hilary Clinton, 1947; 27th Captain James Cook, 1728; and 28th Bill Gates, 1955
sources: bbc.co.uk, express.co.uk, wixonjewelers.com, list-of-birthstones.com, paraibadealers.com, opal by Rob Lavinsky, iRocks.com, rhsplants.co.uk
(Please note if you subscribe to my blog and are receiving this post by email, please click here to come through to the main site and you can download it easily from there.)
As always, I try to make the acts on my Kindness Calendars quick, easy and cheap (well, mostly free actually). So anyone and everyone can join in.
You may want to mix it up and swap the acts around, adapt the acts to suit you, or even create your own kindness acts. And don’t worry if you can’t do an act of kindness every single day, sometimes it’s just not possible as I know too well with the nature of my CFS flare ups.
But even if every one of us manages to do just one kindness act on one day this month – imagine how amazing that would be!
Again, it would be really brilliant and deeply appreciated if you could share this with family, friends, work colleagues, classmates… and share all over social media. 🙂
Every single extra act of kindness counts, together we are making the world a kinder place. So let’s get as many people as we can involved.
And don’t forget to join me on my kindness community page on Facebook, and if you post about your kindness act, please use the hashtag #KindnessCalendar so we can all keep track of all the wonderful kindness we are sharing.
Kindness Advent Calendar 2017
One final note: as my thoughts start turning towards this year’s Kindness Advent Calendar, I’d love to hear your favourite kindness acts. Which kindness acts would you like to see on this year’s Advent Calendar? Let me know and I’ll do my best to include them. I’m also thinking of including an optional donation of £1/$1 to a charity which promotes kindness – I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Let’s have a fun month, and let’s remember to be kinder to ourselves as well, we are definitely worth it!
Have an OUTSTANDING OCTOBER and thank you so much for spreading a little more kindness.
☆♡☆
Hello lovelies and Hello to Sensational September ♡
I really hope your August was truly amazing and was brimming with kindness.
It’s been a busy but fun-filled month here with having my nephews during the school holidays. My energy levels have taken quite a battering and I’m having a little relapse, but I’ve had some lovely times and precious memories to hold dear in my heart.
After such positive feedback about August’s fun facts, I thought I’d find some about September:
Its name comes from ‘septum’, the Latin for seven, as it was the seventh month in the Roman calendar, and originally had only 29 days.
September is the only month with the same number of letters in its name as the number of the month: it is the ninth month and has nine letters.
The sacred sapphire is this month’s birth stone and is known for its wisdom and royal connections. A symbol of power and strength, wise judgment and kindness (yay!), this gorgeous blue gem – which also comes in green, pink, purple, clear, and even black – is believed to bring protection, good fortune and spiritual insight.
This month has passionate birth flowers: the daisy-like Aster, a symbol of powerful love and once burned to ward off serpents; the trumpet-shaped Morning Glory, a symbol of affection but you have to be early in the day to catch them bloom; and Forget-Me-Notswhich represent love and memories, and a gift of these pretty little flowers symbolises true love.
In this month in 1900 the Wizard of Oz was first published; in 1928 Alexander Fleming discovered the drug Penicillin, while Disney favourite Mickey Mouse made his first debut; and in 1948, The United Nation’s World Health Organisation was founded.
September marks the beginning of autumn in the Northern hemisphere and the start of spring in the Southern hemisphere.
In the UK, September 26 is the most common birthday for people born in the last 20 years, and on an average September day more babies are born in the US than on a day in any other month.
This month’s zodiac signs are earth-sign Virgo(August 23-September 22) and air-sign Libra(September 23-October 22) and those born in September share a birth month with: 4th Beyonce Knowles; 7th Queen Elizabeth I; 9th Michael Bublé; 10th Karl Lagerfeld; 13th Roald Dahl; 15th Agatha Christie; 16th Lauren Bacall; 18th Greta Garbo; 21st Stephen King, Leonard Cohen; 22nd Andrea Bocelli; 23rd Bruce Springsteen; 24th F. Scott Fitzgerald; 26th Ivan Pavlov, T. S. Eliot; 28th Brigitte Bardot, Confucius; 30th Truman Capote; and many many more.
(Please note if you subscribe to my blog and are receiving this post by email, please click here to come through to the main site and you can download it easily from there.)
This month’s kindness quote comes from the inspirational Louise Hay, who sadly passed away this week. Louise has had a profoundly positive impact on my life, and I thought it would be a lovely tribute to make her part of this month’s calendar ♡
As always, I try to make the acts on my Kindness Calendars quick, easy and cheap (well, mostly free actually). So anyone and everyone can join in.
You may want to mix it up and swap the acts around, adapt the acts to suit you, or even create your own kindness acts. And don’t worry if you can’t do an act of kindness every single day, sometimes it’s just not possible as I know too well with the nature of my CFS flare ups.
But even if every one of us manages to do just one kindness act on one day this month – imagine how amazing that would be!
Again, it would be really brilliant and deeply appreciated if you could share this with family, friends, work colleagues, classmates… and share all over social media. 🙂
Every single extra act of kindness counts, together we are making the world a kinder place. So let’s get as many people as we can involved.
And don’t forget to join me on my kindness community page on Facebook, and if you post about your kindness act, please use the hashtag #KindnessCalendar so we can all keep track of all the wonderful kindness we are sharing.
Let’s have fun, and let’s remember to be kinder to ourselves as well, we are definitely worth it!
Have an SENSATIONAL SEPTEMBER and thank you so much for spreading a little more kindness.
☆♡☆
I’m still struggling with a CFS symptom flare-up, and am thanking my past self for creating this month’s Kindness Calendar in advance, making the most of those short snippets of time whenever I had some energy.
Here are some fun facts about our new month ahead:
In the early Roman calendar August was the 6th month and was called Sextilis. When it became the 8th month of the year, it was renamed August after Augustus Caesar in honour of the founder of the Roman Empire
August never starts on the same day as any other month except on a leap year, when it starts on the same day as February
This month’s flowers are the poppy and the gladioulus (gladioli) – whose name derives from the Latin ‘gladius’ which means sword after its sword-shaped leaves
August has two birthstones: one of the oldest known gemstones the olive/lime peridot is associated with prosperity and good fortune, and said to possess healing properties, and the reddish zebra-striped sardonyx which is used for courage, happiness, and clear communication, and can provide strength and protection
One of the most popular months for birthdays, those born in August fall under the sun zodiac signs of dramatic, creative and outgoing Leo, and loyal, hardworking and analytical Virgo. Famous birthdays include: Mother Teresa; Alfred Tennyson; Enid Blyton; Dorothy Parker; US Presidents – Bill Clinton, Benjamin Harrison, Herbert Hoover, Lyndon Johnson and Barack Obama; Tony Bennet; Madonna; Louis Armstrong; Sean Connery; Robert Redford; Coco Chanel; and Usain Bolt
It was during the month of August that women won the right to vote, India became independent, Hawaii became a state, and World War II ended
Martin Luther King, Jr.’s famous “I have a dream” speech was delivered on August 28, 1963
In the Northern Hemisphere it’s said that: “If the first week in August is unusually warm, the coming Winter will be snowy and long.” – unknown. And in the Southern Hemisphere, August is the seasonal equivalent of February in the Northern Hemisphere
There will be a Full Moon Lunar Eclipse on 7th August which may highlight emotions, home life and partners, and a New Moon Solar Eclipse on 21st August, an ideal time for a fresh start.
(Please note if you subscribe to my blog and are receiving post this by email, please click here to come through to the main site and you can download it easily from there.)
As always, I try to make the acts on my Kindness Calendars quick, easy and cheap (well, mostly free actually). So anyone and everyone can join in.
You may want to mix it up and swap the acts around, adapt the acts to suit you, or even create your own kindness acts. And don’t worry if you can’t do an act of kindness every single day, sometimes it’s just not possible as I know too well with the nature of my CFS flare ups.
But even if every one of us manages to do just one kindness act on one day this month – imagine how amazing that would be!
Again, it would be really brilliant and deeply appreciated if you could share this with family, friends, work colleagues, classmates… and share all over social media. 🙂
Every single extra act of kindness counts, together we are making the world a kinder place. So let’s get as many people as we can involved.
And don’t forget to join me on my kindness community page on Facebook, or Twitter and if you post about your kindness act, please use the hashtag #KindnessCalendar so we can all keep track of all the wonderful kindness we are sharing.
Let’s have fun, and let’s remember to be kinder to ourselves as well, we are definitely worth it!
Have an AMAZING AUGUST and thank you so much for spreading a little more kindness.
First of all I’d like to say a big warm THANK YOU for all your wonderful well wishes and kind words.
I’m so sorry I haven’t been able to respond to every lovely message – I’m still having to keep my screen time down to an absolute minimum, but please know that each and every message is warmly received and deeply appreciated.
Hearing from you really does brighten my day, especially when I’m having to spend the day lying in a dark, quiet room as I journey through these new debilitating symptoms of vertigo and headaches.
Unfortunately, I still have the symptoms. Although I did enjoy a short respite when my GP gave me some temporary medication to see if it would help.
Although I prefer not to take this kind of medication if I can help it – I’ll always choose to explore natural healing methods first – I was persuaded to give it a go as I so desperately wanted the dizziness to stop.
I was given a week’s supply, and it seemed to work… but when I finished the packet, the symptoms soon came back.
So I’m currently exploring possible causes (eye strain, inner ear imbalance, trapped/damaged nerve), but I’ve also read that vertigo and headaches are common symptoms of CFS. So I may have to simply accept them and gracefully ride this wave.
During my symptom-free week, I felt well enough to gently and slowly create July’s Kindness Calendar, being mindful of keeping screen time short and sweet.
And so without further ado, here it is… my Kindness Calendar for July 2017:
(Please note if you subscribe to my blog and are receiving post this by email, please click to come through to the main site and you can download it easily from there.)
As always, I try to make the acts on my Kindness Calendars quick, easy and cheap (well, mostly free actually). So anyone and everyone can join in.
You may want to mix it up and swap the acts around, adapt the acts to suit you, or even create your own kindness acts. And don’t worry if you can’t do an act of kindness every single day, sometimes it’s just not possible as I know too well with the nature of my CFS flare ups.
But even if every one of us manages to do just one kindness act on one day this month – imagine how amazing that would be!
Again, it would be really brilliant and deeply appreciated if you could share this with family, friends, work colleagues, classmates… and share all over social media. 🙂
Every single extra act of kindness counts, together we are making the world a kinder place. So let’s get as many people as we can involved.
And don’t forget to join me on my kindness community page on Facebook, or Twitter and if you post about your kindness act, please use the hashtag #KindnessCalendar so we can all keep track of all the wonderful kindness we are sharing.
Let’s have fun, and let’s remember to be kinder to ourselves as well, we are definitely worth it!
Have an JOY-FILLED JULY and thank you so much for spreading a little more kindness.
