A new kindness idea... for books!

I have been reading prolifically. I’ve been purchasing about 10 books a fortnight from charity shops. I must admit that most of them are Romance. I like to think part of it is research. I love writing and have for years and have been reading and writing romance for years. None of it is publishable yet, but I love to read them to see what types of stories I want to write. What I enjoy and how different people tell their stories. I am blessed to have a few family friends who are prolific and published Romance authors and Life lit writers. They are very successful at it too.

So I read Romance stories a lot. Which leads me to think about what to do with these books once I’ve finished with them. 

In the past I’ve been giving those books to a friend for her to read. My friend just got herself a new job and is moving to London in a few days! 😭😭😭 I’m going to miss that girl. 

But it leaves me with a question as what to do now with my large collection of romance novels. Not many other people have the same taste in books as I do. So finding someone else to read them has been harder. 

I no longer feel the need to keep all the ones I’ve read however I have kept a couple that I really enjoyed as inspiration. 

So, I decided to do something with a lot of the books I’ve been getting. I’m leaving them for people on public transport. Like this one.

“I’m in no mood for love” by Rachel Gibson was a sweet story of a woman getting over the heat break of discovering her fiancé in bed with another person, the washing machine repair man. 

I liked this book because it was set over a longer period of time. Not a couple days like a lot of the other books I have read recently. It is still a fast paced story with the two protagonists being writers in different genres. And it’s a lot of fun. It’s kind of a sweet romance rather than hot an steamy. 

I left a little note for someone to find. I was visiting a friend in London. For me to get from Reading to London it takes a 30 minute train ride to get there ( I don’t know why I don’t go to Reading more often). 

So fun to leave the book on the train on my way to London. :) 

I must admit I did wait till almost everyone else was off the train to leave it there.  

Here is a great kindness idea for you to enjoy! 

Love Daena x 

Questions to ponder

And the winner goes too.... 

The Copy of the book: goes too... Eva D! I have your address so I will send it off in the next few days. Thanks for liking the FB page. Thanks to those who liked and shared the link. It was greatly appreciated. 

There were very few people who participated in the give away. Which is sad because I think it is not only an awesome giveaway but a great kindness workbook. 

To be honest, it has me really pondering what should become of 365days of Kindness. I would be keen for some input from those who actually read this blog (if there are any of you out there?) 

What should this blog look like? 

What would you like to see here? 

Would you like more created content? 

Would you like more interviews with people? 

Would you like more experiences of kindness from others? Or me? 

Would you like to see more of a particular type of kindness? 

Where should we go from here? 

Would you like more videos? 

Would you like more YouTube clips from other Kindness groups?

Would you like a podcast? 

Would you like to see an Instagram account? 

Would you like less? 

These aren’t easy questions for me. For a girl who has been doing a kind deed a day for years now I really want to inspire people to be kinder. 

But honestly, I don’t know how to do that. So...Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. 

Please let me know what you think. 

Love Daena x

Give away... 100 Days of Kindness

Kindness week has just passed us by and so did the international day of Random Acts of Kindness (it was yesterday).

 I wanted to mark the occasion some how and seeing as I somehow let the day slip by completely unnoticed I thought I would do my Random Act of Kindness today instead. I thought a give away would be wonderful. 

I decided that my Random Act of Kindness would be to give a book to a random follower of this blog and the Facebook page. 

The book I chose is actually a kindness workbook. It’s called “100 Days of Kindness” and I bought it from Paperchase (a stationary company here in the UK for those who don’t know it). 

It’s beautiful. There are two ways to use it too. One you can work through the work book in chronological order 1-100. 

Or you can do a kindness a day that you choose randomly from the book and when you fill in the pages you include the date you did it. Kind of like a random act of kindness lucky dip! 

I will happily send this book to someone at the end of next week. I’ll contact you here or Facebook for your postal address if you are the one who will receive this Random Act of Kindness*. I’ll draw a name out of a hat on Sunday.  

The only request I ask is you like the Facebook Page and/or leave a comment below for your chance to be the lucky recipient

Not sure what to say? How about letting me know what kindness you have done for someone else? I always love to hear that! 

I hope you had a great kind week! 

Much love to you all, 

Daena 

*I will not use your address for any other purpose than sending the package to you. I don’t sell or pass on any personal information. I just want you to know I will treat your information kindly. 👍☺️👍

Looking after yourself: how to fill and empty cup

I wanted to start a new year positively with a kindness post a week. So here is to week 2! How fast has this last few weeks gone? Seriously?! 

This last week has been interesting work wise and exciting in my private life. 

I’ve been working on a couple of different archaeological sites this week. Plus I’ve helping another “new to the company” woman learn the ropes. Which has been both fulfilling and encouraging because I’m still relatively new myself so I find myself learning right along side this lovely lady. 

As for my personal life... well my boyfriend and I today celebrated the fact we survived 6 months together as a couple. Miracles happen. Lol. Whilst I make jokes, he has really looked after me and welcomed me into his family. I spent all of my time with him and his family over Christmas. They all welcomed me in with open arms which is nice because I was so far away from my own family. He has had to learn the hard way how to care for me when I’m not well and how to deal with me when I’m tired, grumpy and inevitably emotional. He’s also had to deal with my quirks and weird sense of humour. I really appreciate this man and his support and encouragement! Thanks G!

Kindness wise I’ve been doing all kinds of things. For instance I brought cheap (reduced to £0.05 per pack of 6) Fruit mince pies to work. I can’t eat them (they are neither Celiac friendly OR AIP friendly) but I thought they would bring a smile to the faces of my colleagues. It did. 

I’ve also smiled at people, complimented some, expressed gratitude for people and things that came my way, baked goodies to share, did a couple odd jobs for people, even made some much needed hot beverages for those I’ve spent time with. I even bought a mate a drink at the pub on Friday night. 

I also did some things to look after myself. Or alternatively put...Be Kind to myself!!!

I had a bath, Meditated (I love the Insight Timer App), Read a book (one of many I got for Christmas), Made a yummy meal and Baked yummy food even I can enjoy. 

I have a list now of things I like to do to help me improve my mood and be kind to myself. After all they do say you cannot give from an empty cup. 

Maybe you can take some “Sunday Ideas” from this list above. Or you could make your own! I keep this list in my journal which I have with me all the time.

What do you like doing that fills your cup up? 

What thing do you do that helps you to be kind to others? 

Wishing you all a great weekend. 

Love Daena x

The first post of 2019 - A Call to Kindness

I bet you have been wondering what has taken me so long? Or if I’ve forgotten what kindness is? No! Absolutely Not! 

The truth is that would be impossible. 

This past year I’ve been working full time and I decided to be thoughtful about what I wanted to share on my blog.

There are a few things that I’ve stuck to in recent years that may continue this year like Sustainable September (but also may not depending on what this year actually brings). 

I am acknowledging my inconsistency with blogging too. I’m not perfect but I’m constantly improving.  Kindness is still so important to me that I keep coming back to it again and again. 

2018 brought with it some HUGE changes for me.  I moved between 3 countries, from Australia to Wales to England. I got 2 jobs (one which I had to leave in order to pursue the other). I moved to 2 new houses in two different counties. I also got myself a new boyfriend (well he’s not so new now... but the first I’ve had in a long time). It brought with it a change in my life circumstances all of which has made my life both easier and harder to bring kindness to peoples lives. 

It’s easier now as I am exposed to a diverse range of people on a daily basis, not many of whom know much about my kindness mission. This makes it quite fun to surprise people with thoughtfulness. 

It can be harder because Archaeology as a career is more often than not back-breaking manual labour. Even though I love it, it wears me out a lot and I come home exhausted regularly. 

However that hasn’t stopped me being kind... 

2019 had already brought with it kindness and encouragement from others for me. 

I’ve continued to joyfully worked to bring a smile to the faces of people I work with, live with and know. 

I wanted to start this year by reminding you that kindness is easy!  AND you can start a year of kindness at any time (even 5 days after New Year like today). If you want to do it don’t let anything stop you, least of all the date. 

So this is a call to kindness if you want to join me. It doesn’t have to be hard. 

For example: 

If you break it down to a weekly kindness schedule : 

Monday’s: smile at a stranger/compliment someone. A compliment could be about their outfit, their adorable pet, their lovely smile, or their ability to keep coming to work everyday when you know they have stuff going on at home or when they are dealing with chronic pain/illness (I have a few friends whose lives are crazy and yet they still show up for me when I need them). 

Tuesday’s: make or buy a hot/cold beverage for someone. it can be offering to get someone a glass of water or remembering and buying them that Double Dirty Chai latte with Coconut Milk they drink on a regular basis. The price or effort is up to you. 

Wednesday’s: take a treat into work to share... it’s hump day on Wednesday and everyone will appreciate a mid-week pick me up (I have been doing this at work - and mostly involved me baking yummy treated on a Tuesday night but this week I took some fruit mince pies in to work (I can’t eat them but they had a packet of 6 fruit mince pies on reduction for £0.05 per back so I grabbed two to make the day more enjoyable for everyone. I got to be kind they got to eat yummy things). If you don’t work regular days etc, make or do something special for your family or friends on a Wednesday if you want to stick to this plan. 

Thursday’s: write a thank you to someone for something good they have done for you. This can be as public as a Facebook post acknowledging their gifts and why you love them so. Or as private as writing them an anonymous hand written note to thank them for generally being a good person. 

Friday’s: do a job or chore for someone else. This can be offering to empty the bin at work or emptying the dishwasher when it’s your housemates/partners turn. It could be raking the leaves for your neighbour, helping them move snow in winter, watering gardens/plants in summer or just checking on an elderly family member/friend/neighbour. 

Saturday’s: Connect with someone you’ve been meaning to contact but keep forgetting to/putting it off. Simply sending a message to a friend or family member that says “I’ve been thinking of you recently, how are things? Hope you are well!” Or writing a letter or email to catch a friend or family member up on all they have been missing in your life. It could be calling someone for a coffee date or organising to go to the movies together. Or it could be sending a care package to a friend in another country (this has made a huge and amazing kindness for me when family and friends have sent stuff my way! 😊). 

Sunday’s: do something to be kind to yourself! This can be having a bath, Reading a book you’ve been wanting to read or even making your favourite tea/coffee/ chocolate/hot Carob drink and taking 5 minutes to sit and enjoy it in silence (yes parents - I know that’s a lot to ask but I hope for your sake you kids sleep sometime!). 

Other things you can do to spice up your kindnesses: 

When it’s someone birthday just send them a message to let them know you know they were born on this day and how special that is to you. If it’s YOUR birthday send a message to your mother (after all she did all the work of growing you inside her for up to 9 months) or a person who has been a mum/parent figure to you to thank them for helping you and keeping you alive this long! Or for teaching you the resilience you needed to stay alive on your own! 

Anytime it’s a special holiday (E.g.  Christmas just gone, Valentine’s, Easter, Hanukkah, Diwali, any festive card giving holiday etc) when you are sending a card, write one thing you are grateful for about that person. It can be hard sometimes but if you think about it, there is a reason you are going to the effort of sending/giving them a card why not make it extra special. 

Do you love books? Do you have a couple extra dollars to make someone’s day? Put some cash (I recommend notes as coins can cause damage to a book) with a post-it note in your favourite book/s at a book shop to contribute to the next person, who opens the book, to purchase it! 

Appreciate the work of those around you like Posties (postmen and women), ambulance workers, Firey’s (fire department workers), nurses, doctors, managers, street cleaners, cleaners in general, garbage men/women, service men and women, retail staff, regular delivery drivers etc. you could always thank them for their work by writing to their work places/ managers to compliment their work or contact these people directly by giving them a thank you note/card. Gratitude is by far one of the nicest and simplest kindnesses around and you can do it verbally or in written form. 

One idea for office workers: 

I like leaving one of our staff little compliments and encouragements at random places in her Post-It Note pad. She knows who does it, but if you were less obvious than I am... You could make it anonymous! Note: I do try to be sneaky but she’s very clever! 

Extra info: 

There are so many ideas if the weekly kindness plan doesn’t work for you! You can check out FB, Instagram, Pinterest, Google and so many places for kindness ideas. 

I am not the first and I won’t be the last to choose to do a kind deed a day. I REALLY WANT people to take this on... it really has changed MY life for the better. And I hope it works for you too! :) 

Here is to another year of kindness. 

Much love to you all, 

Daena x

The little book of Kindness

I am reading "The Little Book of Kindness" by Burnaderte Russell at the moment. I am just over half way through this easy to read book. 

I must admit it's taken me a bit of time because I had dropped it in a bag and then couldn't find it again for about 3 weeks. But I have it Back now! Yay! 

Im reading it to myself and had to share this little gem from the section about kindness in the workplace... 

"Don't underestimate the power of a nice smile. Or if you can't smile, the glower with a certain enigmatic allure." 

I found this hilarious! I have had days when I'm not in the smiling mood. But the funny thing about a smile is it is contagious! I remember a poem we used to have glued to the back of the toilet door. 

"Smiling is contagious 

you catch it like the flu, 

Someone smiled at me today, 

I started smiling too. 

I walked around the Corner 

and someone saw my grin 

When they smiled back I realised 

I had passed it on to him. 

I thought about the smile 

and then realised it worth 

A single smile, just like mine, 

can travel around the earth. 

So if you feel a smile begin 

don't leave it undetected 

Let's start an epidemic quick 

and get the world infected." 

-Anon

I hope you have a wonderful day. Make your aim today to smile at 3 people on your travels. Let's get the world infected with smiles! 

Love Daena x

Kindness Podcast

Last year there was a Kindness Podcast released that my sister Vandra and I have been thoroughly enjoying. Seeing as how we are both relatively new to podcasts we can get pretty passionate and excited about all the stuff we are learning.

I am so grateful to my sister who decided to share her most recent favouite Kindness podcast on the 365days of Kindness Facebook Page, because we were sent a reply from the Kindness Podcast! It feels like we have just gotten a message from Kindness Royalty! So funny how excited we both got! It made my day for sure.

Because we shared their podcast they  have offered to send us a copy of the book, Live Kinder By Barbara Hirsh, which is such a blessing.

I am so grateful to other people who support a kinder world. I love to support others as best I can when i find out they are giving this Kinder way of life a go. I've met a few brave souls doing 365 (or 366) days of kind deeds and I am so proud of their effors.

I am even reading a kindness book at the moment from someone else who did 366Days of Kindness a lady by the name of Burnadette Russell. Her book 'The Little Book of Kindness: Every day actions to change your life and the world around you' feels like a book I could have written.

Then she also deals so beautifully with things I would never have thought about.

I guess even after 6 years of kindnesses I still have so much to learn! That is why I support those I can to live a kinder life! I am always learning, growing, changing. I am blessed to have more and more inspiration, because when I was starting out there werent many people promoting kindness as a way of life... but now... I am continually blown away by the kind deeds done for others. YouTube, Facebook, Podcasts, Pinterests are all filled with Kindnesses and ideas if you just know where to look!

If you want to find us on Facebook just touch the link above. I am also on Pinterest with a massive board of kindness inspiration and kindness ideas.

Also, This year my big sister also organised some gorgeous Random Acts of Kindness Cards for me to give out, as a Christmas present!

So if anyone wants some I am happy to send them to you! As always I would love to hear your kindnesses or your own kindness inspiration!

Let me know,
Much love
Daena

Lent gifting day 31

Today I'm donating a book. 

 

A tiny book but a book nonetheless. It took me an hour to read so I recorded it on Litsy. I have a Litsy account which is basically an online booklist crossed with twitter. I wanted to record the books I've read and to create a wish list of books to read in the future. So many books to read. 

I wrote a short review so I'd remember what it was about. So now I can pass the book on. Books are something that give wisdom, transport you to other worlds, open your mind & can bring hope. So giving them to other people is really good.  Or at least it is in my opinion. 

I hope this finds you well & with lots of books to read! 

Much love, 

Daena 

Ps. What is your favourite book of all time? And do you have any to recommend here? X

Sustainable September 2016 - Day Sixteen

Hi everyone, 

So I thought I had successfully posted yesterday's blog at 9 last night but it turns out it didn't post properly. I am so sorry. 

I've been working hard to make sure all of the posts are written, finished off and posted before midnight. Usually earlier if possible. But I am using a new app so sometimes things haven't been going quite to plan. I am getting used to it though. 

Today was all about drying your washing outside. 

 

But it also had the side note of looking after birds. 

The weirdest thing today was that I was in a shopping centre and a pigeon had got itself suck inside. It was super distressed so I did my best to help calm it down and catch it. Even if the last bit failed, when I left the bird was calmer and not flying into Windows. He had found a perch where I couldn't reach even if I wanted to. And nothing I did could have got it down to get it outside. I ended up having to leave it. 

Today is an idea that actually came in the mail today. 

Sustainable Septmeber Day Sixteen: go paperless for bills and statements. 

After receiving a whole bunch of stuff in the mail today I was thinking how silly it was that we are using paper when we can deal with these things online. 

"Paper production is a process that has not changed in over 2000 years. In today’s measures it takes 24 trees to produce one tonne of virgin printer paper but only 25% of each tree is used to produce the paper product. The paper industry is a greedy resource consumer that uses more water to produce a tonne of its product than any other industry. It uses a staggering 90,000 litres of water per tonne of virgin paper." Australian Science 2016 

Each year companies spend billions of dollars sending out bills, newsletters and special offers to its customers on paper. Not only are trees cut down to help make enough paper but there is so much money spent on postage and travel for that letter to end up in your letter box. 

"Everyone must play their part in creating sustainable futures for the world’s commodities. Paper is a huge commodity and is consumed at exorbitant rates as outlined by Forest Ethics‘ recent research. They reported that across the world North America used on average 229kg of paper per capita annually, Western Europe got through 178.7 kilograms, Latin America 43.02, Asia 41 and Africa 7.51 kilograms per person. In Australia we use on average 230kg per person per year. It is clear that the paper industry demands exponential resources to continue to fulfill the demand and if Australia would like to achieve sustainability we must rethink our consumerist ways." Australian Science 2016 

If we can reduce the amount of paper we consume we give our forests and trees a break 

Front Lines: this is a video by the website PayItGreen.org. The video helps to illistrate exactly why you should change to using electronic instead of paper bills, newsletters and statements. 

Kindness idea: place some money in or near a book for them to buy it, take it home and read it. 

 

I love this idea because it's about books and also about paper. To be more environmentally friendly you could do this at a second hand book store or even at an opshop. 

I hope this finds you all well. 

Love Daena X

Sustainable September 2016 - Day Three

Hello lovely people,

So I made it safely to Canberra and had a pretty good trip to get here. No big dramas or issues really. A bit of turbulance. I took my reusable water bottle and my KeepCup too. They were both lifesavers. I find that my KeepCup is so good for flights because I have a lid for it, unlike the ones the airlines actually supply, which makes turbulence a breeze. The water bottle I have with me is only 500ml but fits perfectly in my handbag. Here is is below just so you could see that this is me at the airport living the dream.

My waterbottle getting a trip on an Aeroplane

A view over Adelaide (I had to stop there before going on to Canberra). 

Getting ready to fly on to Canberra from Adelaide. Should have photographed my KeepCup and WaterBottle in the pouch on the back of the chair. 

It was really rough turbulence just before landing in Canberra and my KeepCup was literally a life saver. As turbulance hit 5minutes after the cabin crew had come around with cups of hot tea and coffee. So no spills or burns for me! YAY! Thankfully a lot of people had juice today or it could have been a lot worse.

Whilst I am in Canberra I am staying with an amazing friend here and we had a wonderful meal out tonigh before i got taken back to his house, where im staying this week, and we got to put the last of my bed together. He bought a bed for me so i could come stay with him! Talk about kindness!

I will have to keep it fairly quick tonight as I am already exhausted and want to get into the new time zone as quickly as I can.  So here goes... lets look briefly at paper.

Sustainable September day 3: Say NO to Receipts.

Saying No to receipts is about reducing the wasteful consumption of wood and paper. If you don’t need a receipt say no when asked (preferably before they print it off).  I understand many people need receipts for tax purposes. But if you don't need to keep receipts then don't. This way you can easily reduce your paper waste.

 “Paper products are crucial to society, as they have enabled literacy and cultural development. However, without changing current paper production and consumption practices, growing demand for paper adds pressure on the Earth’s last remaining natural forests and endangered wildlife.

WWF advocates reducing wasteful consumption of wood and paper. But even with more frugal use and greater efficiencies, net demand is likely to grow with rising population and incomes in developing countries. So how can we produce more paper without destroying or degrading forests, in a world where competition for land and water is increasing ?

This challenge spans the whole supply chain, from where and how wood is grown and harvested to how wisely and efficiently it is processed, used and reused. It also involves changes to consumption patterns – such as eliminating excessive and wasteful use of paper in rich societies, while improving access for the poor to paper products that can improve education, hygiene and food safety.” (http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/deforestation/forest_sector_transformation/pulp_and_paper/)

Paper waste is a large issue because of the sheer amount of trees that are used to create the paper in the first place. Often the trees being cut down to make paper have come from naturally occurring forests and rainforrests. This destruction og the natural environment in not sustainable, whilst destroying natural habitats for animals and birds. This is not good for the environment.

I love paper as much as the next person. I really love books and notebooks. I am a bibliophile, so reducing the amount of paper in my house is hard. Like the statement says above, Paper is crucial to society and education. However, reducing the amount of useless paper waste is not that hard to do.

For the last few years I have been looking at the work by the Bea Johnson. She wrote the book “The Zero Waste Home” and has inspired me to reduce the amount of waste I, personally, put into the world. I know I have written about it a lot in the past so I will leave this light but she talks about simple ways to reduce waste. The first is to say NO to it. If you don’t need, it don’t take it. This includes freebies, samples, pamphlets and business cards. This can be very hard to do but I often end up chucking out so much stuff that I don’t need just because it didn’t cost me anything to aquire. Feel free to adopt the practice of saying no to all these ‘free things’ too. However, the easiest way to start is to say No to receipts. And build up these habits.

Kindness Idea: Learn how to make your own paper from your waste paper and turn it into a beautiful card or wrapping paper.

Often i will send off a card or letter to someone who just needs to know i am thinking of them, is having a hard time, or is away from home. This just makes a person feel special. Making things for another person is a complimentary way to show you care for someone. You also care for the environment by reusing a resource you already have lying around. You can use old news papers, wrapping paper, used printing paper, old study notes, and even the backs of cards (i like to keep the pretty fronts of cards and reuse them too).

On the front lines: The Zero Waste movement.

Here is a TED talk by the amazing Bea Johnson. I hope you like it.

or this one my Manuela Baron...

Hahaha.. so much for a short post. I do love to type. The hard thing sharing this stuff is knowing when to stop. Like I should have done a while back. hahha.

I hope this finds you all well.
Love to you all,
Daena xx

Sustainable September 2015 - Twenty Six

Hey my lovelies,

What do you think about your new batteries? Are they working for you? Sometimes the charging can take a bit of time, however, now i keep two bags of reusable batteries. One bag is for batteries that have been charged, and the other is for the batteries that need to be charged. Its a pretty good system. It does mean that I need more than two lots of batteries though.

Tomorrow is another fun and easy Sustainable September idea.

September 26: Go Op-shopping. 

I have already talked about capsule wardrobes, and the ability to get good quality clothes second hand from Op-shops. This is one of the reasons to go to your local op-shop/thrift shop/charity shop.

Then there is the money side of it. You can often get second hand clothing from thriftshops SO MUCH CHEAPER than your average stores. Plus there is a huge range of items for sale.

Also you can look at the environmental impact. The best way to reduce waste is to buy products that already exist, ie. Second hand products. You can do this from eBay, op shops, thrift shops, second hand shops, or even the vintage section of Etsy. Clothing is an awesome way to support the enviornment, charities (Op-shops are called so because they are "opportunity shops" run by charities), and your own hip pocket. Plus they are just fun to explore! :)

You don't just have to buy clothes either. Books, of course, are my favourite thrift shop buy. But you can buy kitchen wares, furniture, jewellery, knicknacks, shoes, toys, and so much more! :)

KINDNESS IDEA: Support a local charity. One of the simplest kindnesses you can do is support a charity with your time or money or become a patron of a charity that resonates with you. I support Telethon, a charity that helps kids and their families when they are dealing with serieous health issues, and illnesses. I support Alzheimers Australia because that is the closest charity we have to a dementia based charity in Australia. Dad had a form of dementia and he and my mum were supported by the Alzheimers Association so I like to support them while I can. There are so many charitites that are awesome and need support. From animal support funds, sports based charities, kids charities, health charities, and SO SO much more!!!! Find what works for you!


I hope you have a great day. 
Love,
Daena x

New Years resolutions... blogging

Hello my beautiful followers, friends and family!

Every year for the last 5 years, I have been striving to do a kindness a day. So far so good. 5 x 365 (+1 day for a leap year) and all in all... Well... that's a pretty kind start (I'm just starting the 6th year of kindnesses). 

I start each year with such enthusiasm for kindness and for blogging. Each year I drop one, and every time it's been the blogging. I endeavour to blog regularly. But like almost every other New Years resolution, I start strong and then it doesn't always continue like I mean it to. This year I didn't even start strong. So far this year I've only posted once but trust me when I say... The kindness continues! 

My aim with this blog has always been to encourage you. To inspire you to be passionate, like I am, about kindness. To show just how easy kindness can be! So that we, together, can change the world by becoming the best versions of ourselves. 

I want to share my adventures with you through this life. How I've read books about kindness ideas, or how I've been challenged by others perspectives. I want to be the best person I can be.

This last year has shown me how strong, how loving, how kind and how generous, I can be in the face of tragedy. It was a tough year, loosing my father to his illness, having mum have both her breasts removed because of cancer, and the persistent and lingering complications. And then to have my own health issues and personal struggles on top, that I bravely continue through even today. Often I've kept this so tightly in my grip that I've closed off the hurt and sadness to be numb to almost everything. It is amazing how someone else's kindness is enough to reach me, and remind me why I do what I do.

One blessing, through the darkest times, has been this project. With everything I've been through I was forced to think of kind things to do for myself and others. It was a small joy in a dark time. And I am grateful I was stubborn enough to stick it out. 

I want to be the best person that I can be. And whilst that makes me kind, I admit it doesn't make me a reliable blogger. So for that I apologise. But please know, I will endeavour to do the best I can, to keep you posted on my exploits in kindnesses, and the things in life I think you might appreciate or understand the most. If through blogging I can help one person in some way to be kinder to another or even themselves, I'll take it! :) 

But thank you for reading this. You took time out of your day to read my words and that is invaluable to me. I cherish your comments, secret kindnesses and enthusiasm for kindness, no matter when, how or why you do it! I appreciate you and your own possibility of becoming the best version of yourself! 

So I will keep doing my kindnesses through everything. Because I'm learning kindness is not a weakness, it requires the greatest strength. I'm learning how to be kind to myself, because that is often harder than being kind to others. And I'm learning how much is still left to be done! 

I wish you all the best of luck in your own kindness endeavours. For those that are doing one of the kindness challenges... Bravo!  I'm so proud of you! Keep up the awesome work. If anyone is interested in starting any of the following, #365DaysOfKindness #52WeeksOfKindness or #12MonthsOf Kindness I'd love to hear from you. You can start at any time! If you need help just comment below on the blog, or follow me on Facebook or Twitter (@DaenaGuest). I'm not always on social media, but I'm still attempting to keep you posted, and I will always try to help as much as possible. :) 

If you want simple ideas check out my Pinterest page under "kindness ideas". I scour the pins for some awesome ideas, stories and motivation and have collated them all there! Hope you find them useful.

Much love to you.

Luv Daena x

Sustainable September Day Twenty-Nine kindness

Hey my lovelies,

So tomorrow is my mums birthday! 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MUM!!!! :D 

Today I went to the Farmers Market and bought a whole lot of fresh fruit and veggies to make yummy food for my mum and I. Yesterday I bought a new-to-me Thermomix. I bought it second hand, which is another way of saving the environment because there is less waste in landfill!!

I took this whilst hiding from the rain under the coffee stand tent! :) Mmmm... Soy Chai Latte... Any excuse will do! ;)

I have to say I am a little bit of a Thermomix convert! In 24 hours of having owned it I made chocolate dairy free custard, hummus, two batches of strawberry jam, vegetable stock, zucchini slice, and strawberry sorbet! So I think it's been a good investment! And something I can tick off my goals list! :) Which is awesome! I always feel so blessed when I can tick something off that list! :)

My first ever time using the Thermomix I made Chocolate Custard for mum to go with some home made Jaffa Cake (To use up some of the excess oranges we had in the house! So YUMMY!!!

5 jars of Strawberry Jam and 2 Jars of Home-made Vegetable Stock! Lots of the stuff from the stock came from my own garden!!! How awesome is that! :)

Literally straight out of the oven, my Zucchini Slice - looked more like a loaf here because I over blended it! (Accidental Thermomix accident, that actually turned out alright!).

Made fresh Strawberry Sorbet for my mum and niece tonight! Turned out alright! Yay! :) Learning! lol

Anyway, back to Sustainable September!

Did you borrow a book from the library? Was your library even open today?

I may have not planned the library day very well! As some are only open on weekdays and occasionally a Saturday! But If you DID manage to get to the library, what book did you borrow? 

I saw this one in the library and was keen to read it! :)

Me undertaking my favorite pass time - READING! Not Selfies! lol! You all know how much I love BOOKS!!!!!

So, tomorrow is the second last day of Sustainable September! Time has been flying right? So tomorrow's Sustainable September kindness idea is...

Monday – 29 September – Plant a tree to offset carbon emissions.

You can use a carbon calculator to figure out how much carbon you are emitting into the atmosphere. You can do that here through Carbon Neutral. You can then also plant trees to offset that amount of carbon you emit each year through the same website... check out the specific link.

Or join a group like Men Of the Trees. The plant seedlings to “prevent the spread of deserts, erosion and salinity.” They have made a huge difference when it comes to planting trees in Western Australia specifically. To read more follow the link here. 

I hope this finds you all well. Only one more Sustainable September Kindness to go! And Its my favourite one of all!!!! 

Much Love, 

Daena x

Sustainable September Day Twenty Eight kindness

Hello my wonderful friends!

Did you know yesterday was the 150th post for this blog? Well you do now! 

Did you know that yesterday also saw the Facebook page reach it's 200th follower? Well you know that now too! ;)

To mark the two milestones yesterday... 200 Facebook followers and 150 blog posts I wanted to do a little give away!

Recently My sister, Vandra, and I have been giving little cards (3"x3") to strangers! For example: to amazingly friendly waiters, to the lady who sold me her old Thermomix, the lady at the cemetery who helped us finalise dads plaque and placement, someone looking sad on the bus, etc.

And so I decided that to mark the milestones I would like to give away 4 sets (of 8) of the little hand made cards. They are for you to use, as a way to do a kind deed for strangers or friends! I made them for you myself! :) They all, also, come with envelopes that my awesome mum helped me make!!!:) thanks Mum!!!!

So I'm going to post the 4 sets (pictures of them) in the next few hours on Facebook. And if you like them and want them, Like the page, comment and like the picture and I will chose someone at random from the list of people who want that set! And I will send them to you after that! :)

Sound fair? I hope so! It's the first time I've ever done a give away like this! but it's my way to say thank you for all your support over the years!!!!

SET ONE is here on the link to Facebook. Let me know what you think! 

 

Anyway, back to Sustainable September. Today's kindness was one asked for by mum. About turning old wool into blankets for people who need them. I have talked about blankets for Wheelchairs for Kids many times before in posts. But we have just started making blankets for people who live on the streets. Of course kids need smaller blankets... and so the bigger ones are taking longer, but we know that they (either one) will be appreciated greatly! :)

These are the Blankets mum did for Wheel Chairs for Kids in January. (most of the other photos are on her camera... these ones just happened to be on mine!).

And on to tomorrows Sustainable September Kindness idea.

Sunday – 28 September – Borrow books from your local library instead of buying them. You not only save yourself a lot of money but you also help the environment by reducing shipping and transport impacts (and you are saving trees from paper production) because several people read the same copy of the book .

Photo taken from Local Government Website

 

 

You can also donate books to the library and local schools if you no longer need or want them. This is a photo of my local Library. I have only recently discovered the benefits of this particular library! :) Its like Daena Heaven!!!! SO MANY BOOKS!!!!! hehehhe!

Anyways, I hope this finds you all well! 

So much love & Kindness, 

Daena Xx

Sustainable September Day Thirteen Kindness

G'day mates,

So have you got yourself a new water bottle? Or did you have one already? Did you take it to work? Uni? School? Or on your errands? Or do you even use them at home, like I do?

Me and one of my Water bottles when we went on a walk together.

So tomorrows Sustainable September Kindness idea is one of the best & most entertaining: 

 

Saturday - 13 September – Go Op-Shopping/Thrift Shopping/2nd Hand Store Shopping! 

Buy pre-loved clothes, accessories, home wares and BOOKS!!! okay so I usually go shopping for books at Thrift shops but I also love collecting interesting crockery and items for costumes. I'm currently in the market for some new Jeans so this is my next port of call. My mum mainly goes for the wool! But I also love that I can get CDs for like $1AUD instead of $20-$30AUD. 

Op-shopping can be lots of fun!!! :) 

This is the photo of the Op-Shop at the top of the hill from where I live! :) I often take my old clothing and accessories there for others to use when I have finished with them. Usually because I've gained or lost weight and they don't fit any more! :)

 

 

And who can go to an Op-shop/Thrift-shop/2nd-Hand-Shop without hearing the anthem for shopping in one of these stores... Ryan Lewis & Macklemore's "Thrift Store". It's an awesome and clean version by the Pentatonix... I love these guys! For those who have never heard these guys (& girl) before, the Pentatonix are an American a cappella group of five vocalists originating from Arlington, Texas.



(Thanks Tanya and Isaac for getting me onto these guys! :)

Hope you have fun tomorrow visiting op-shops/thrift stores/2nd hand stores.

Let me know what awesome bargains you get! :)
Luv Daena x

January 28, 2012

Hello hello, 

Well the 28th was an amazing day for me! I got so much done! Most of my work was related to the upcoming Kitchen Tea party for my best friend! 

I went to 3 second hand shops looking for tea pots, cups & saucers, sugar bowls, milk jugs, and pretty plates for the "English garden party morning tea in the high tea style" that I have been preparing for in two weeks time (or there abouts)! 

So I went to the 3 charity op-shops & bought something at each one! Ending up with an amazing array of kitchen tea party wares for $50... Check this out.... 

Or in more detail...

Mum taught me how to stack & pack four cups & saucers into each other so they don't take up as much space! Very grateful for that lesson! Thanks mum!!! 

I also donated a box of books to the first charity shop we went to because they had been sitting in the boot of the car for about a week! :) 

There is still so much to do for these parties... But I just love having the ability to share something! Sadly I can't share much of my preparation about the hens party because I want all those details to be a surprise for my best friend! After all I know she reads this blog from time to time! Hi TJ! :) xxx 

What is the most exciting thing you have found at an op-shop/thrift store/2nd hand shop? 

Luv Daena