How to Be Romantic

No one is born romantic.  But like most things in life, being romantic is something that can be learned.  Although romantic gestures may seem like they come easily to some people that is only because they’ve had lots of practice and because they are in tune with what motivates the opposite sex.  Because that’s all that is involved.  Being romantic involves finding out what your partner wants (not what they need!), and then finding a unique way to meet those wants.  Pretty simple, huh?

Let’s get one thing cleared up first.  Being romantic isn’t about some grand extravagant gesture like flying first class to Paris for a 2 week romantic blitz.  It’s about the little things.  Little things are simple things that you do for your loved one. Despite the fact that they are "little" they can mean a lot because it illustrates that you took time out of your busy life just to show them how much you care.

One thing that most people want, male and female, is to feel special and loved.  It’s how you show them that you love them, where the challenge comes in.  Some people feel loved when they are told repeatedly that they are loved.  Others feel loved when they are touched frequently.  And others see love in gestures and everyday kindnesses.  Of course, there are others that may need all three of the above to really feel loved and secure but usually there is one need that dominates.  You need to find out what your partner needs and then you can begin working out what method you will use to romance them.

Not sure what your loved one prefers?  Do an experiment or three and see how they respond?  You’ll very quickly work it out.

What can you do if your loved one wants to hear how much you love them?  You need to tell them.  But don’t just tell them and have it coming off like some kind of rote response to hello or goodbye or please pass the pepper.  Think about different ways you can get your message across.  You could:
. Post them a good old fashioned love letter
. Send a romantic email
. Text them a love message
. Place a love note somewhere it will be found easily, in their car or lunch bag or under their pillow or taped to the phone receiver or their computer
. For the kid in all of us!  Use multi-colored, sidewalk chalk to draw a BIG heart in red and write “I love you" in the middle of the heart.  Do this someplace prominent like your driveway so that when your partner comes home they will see it right away.
. Make a long list of the many reasons why you love your partner and have the list framed and present it to them.
. If you don’t live together, call your loved one just to say goodnight and recite a favorite love poem over the phone.
. Give your loved one a compliment, about how great they look or what their smile does to you


If your loved one needs regular physical contact to feel loved you can:
. Give them a massage – backs and feet at the end of a work week is always well received!
. Keep in physical contact as often as you can, for example, when watching TV together, eating dinner (it doesn’t just have to be hands, you can make sure your feet or legs are touching)
. Give them random hugs
. Put your arm around your loved one in public
. Hold hands as you walk side by side
. Cuddle up in your pj’s and watch a romantic movie together
. Make sure you kiss them when you get home and kiss before you leave

If your actions speak louder than words for your loved one then you’ll want to focus on gestures that express your feelings.  You can try:
. While your partner showers, heat up his or her towel in the dryer.
. Have flowers delivered to partner at work.
. Surprise your partner by arriving home with their favorite drink, snack, or ice-cream.
. Arrange for an intimate lunch date with your partner.  Then afterward, send a virtual card. Tell them how much you enjoyed lunch together.
. Call your partner in the middle of the day to discuss your romantic plans for that evening.
. Write your own love coupon offering an hour of your time as their personal love slave.
. Cook a favorite meal for your partner and then eat it, slowly, by candlelight.
. Pick a bouquet of wild flowers and present them with a kiss.
. Call spontaneously at their work to say “I am thinking of you.”

If they like all of the above then you can really go wild and mix it all up together.  The only limit is your own imagination and the desire to make it happen.

Yoga for mothers

I am not a Yoga teacher. I’ve only attended about 3 Yoga classes although my gym offers Yoga classes. So, why am I writing about Yoga when I know nothing about it? I am curious – that’s my nature. And through the years, this curiosity has helped me develop a career as a freelance graphic designer and writer. And it is through a very weird type of Yoga (my own type, or whatever I thought was Yoga at that point in time) that helped me swim ashore when I was teetering between drowning in the sea of depression after giving birth to my sons.

Both times, I was hit badly and constantly turned to the bottle for a solution. The bottle never will be a solution and yet, I hoped it would be.

Yoga and the soon-to-be-mother
There’s all this hype about Yoga that I didn’t fully understand before – what’s all this clamor about Yoga for pregnancy?? What’s the big deal? You have a big belly, retch half the time, have a sudden liking for pickle and have to wear your husband’s clothing….you need Yoga to help you deal with all that?

But of course, I only began the understand the benefits of Yoga as a mother when I started going for the classes, read about them in books, magazines and websites. This amazing method can help mothers regain their physical strength and sends them into a journey of self-discovery and improvement. Instead of helping you deal with others, in Yoga, everything starts from within. Therefore, to solve a problem, you have to go inside.

And inside a mother, it’s always a battle zone…and it’s tumultuous half the time. Pizza or no pizza? Sex or no sex tonight? What kind of mother will I be? Will I sprain my own child’s fingers when I try to put his/her clothes on? With the kind of bizarre thinking (and hormones) going on inside our mind and our body, mothers often have a  difficulty finding peace. Your doctor will tell you time and time again that although nutrition is important, finding peace, quiet and calm in yourself and in your life is just important for an expectant mother.

Yoga for the regular mother
Considering the fact that Yoga can help bring calm into calamity, it’s obviously a good choice for you to try out Yoga if you’re thinking of starting an exercise program. Better yet, join a gym…which is what I did. I used to scoff at people who join gyms and judging from the loud dance music, I remember thinking to myself… “Yikes…gym is just a sorry excuse for a disco. Instead of serving peanuts, they serve fruit mixes. Instead of alcohol, they serve bottled water. But everyone’s trying to get into a social thing in the gym. It’s a social club!”

And as a mother, I don’t have the time to join a social club.

But I was wrong. As soon as I gave the 10-day free classes trial, I was hooked. No makeup, no dressup (oh, the younger gym-goers still dress up to the nines and apply mascara for gym) and no pretense. I go to the gym and attend the Yoga class to sweat – to end up looking ugly but feeling damn good!

Mothers can open up their minds and free up their hearts after Yoga
Yoga has this tranquilizing effect on people that can hardly be explained with words. It has to be felt. It’s like you’re striking those poses, stretching those muscles and bending over backwards…and all this while, your mind is opening up and all impure thoughts are just flying out of it.

Yoga can be like ‘taking out the trash’.

And this can be good for the whole family, especially the kids, as well. After a session of uninterrupted Yoga, you’ll feel renewed. Even a grumpy, sleeping, tired and beaten-out mother will have more energy to spend time with the kids. Instead of feeling disgruntled and trapped, a mother can use Yoga to actually find an opening, a release that helps relax, not only the body, but the mind as well.

I don’t know about you…but I am going for more classes because I have seen the benefits. Yoga can do a whole lot for the ordinary non-married kidless people….imagine what it can do for a mother.

Diamond Certificates

A diamond certificate is also known as a 

Diamond Grading Report. This report comes 

from the Gemological Institute of America 

(GIA), and you should require this report 

when you are purchasing a diamond.

With a diamond certificate, you can verify 

the color, cut, carat, weight, and clarity of the 

diamond. You don’t have to worry about a 

diamond dealer telling you anything less than 

the truth, because the certificate comes 

from the GIA – not the dealer. You may be 

required to pay for the certificate, but the 

cost is usually low, and in many cases, it 

will help you negotiate a better price on the 

diamond – or keep you from purchasing a 

lower quality diamond altogether.

If you buy a high quality diamond, and then 

later decide to sell the diamond, you will 

need to have the certificate, or you will have 

a hard time selling it to someone else. 

Furthermore, you can use the Diamond 

Grading Report to look up the wholesale 

value of the diamond in question. Use the 

guide that is used by the diamond cutting 

industry.

With the Certificate, or Diamond Grading 

Report, there won’t be any doubts when you 

are trying to purchase a diamond. You can 

easily find out what the diamond is worth. 

This will prevent you from overpaying, and it 

can prevent a seller from under-charging as 

well. 

A copy of the Diamond Grading Report 

should be given to your insurance company 

as well, when you insure the diamond. This 

provides absolute, unquestionable proof of 

the value of the diamond should it be stolen 

in the future. Insurance companies cannot 

argue with the report.

Avoid diamond dealers who seem reluctant

to provide a certificate! Also avoid sellers 

who tell you that a certificate diamond will 

cost you more – the only additional cost 

should be the cost of the certificate, which 

is low. If the dealer doesn’t want to provide 

a certificate, then you don’t want to do 

business with that dealer.

Don’t accept certificates from Gemological 

Laboratories other than GIA. There are many 

fly-by-night Gemological labs these days, but 

in the end, GIA has been established as the 

most respectable and trustworthy – not to 

mention oldest – of the lot. So avoid dealers 

who don’t want to use GIA for certification 

purposes as well.

Don’t buy an expensive diamond without 

paying the extra cost of the certificate. If a 

dealer tries to convince you to make the 

purchase without the certificate, or if they 

want to use a company other than GIA, you 

can be sure that the dealer has probably 

greatly inflated the price of the diamond – 

they have something that they are hiding 

from you.

Why Do Stretch Marks Form?

Inevitably, no matter how beautiful your skin may be today, you will develop stretch marks. Although painless, stretch marks are both unsightly and a potential source of embarrassment. For the most part, you are stuck with stretch marks unless you opt for expensive laser therapy or perhaps dermabrasion. But why exactly do stretch marks form in the first place?

Your skin is made up of 3 layers. The outer layer is known as the epidermis and its main purpose is to prevent foreign agents from invading your body. The second layer is the dermis and it is comprised of collagen and elastic fibers which combine to give your skin its smooth appearance. The last layer is called the hypodermis and it is mostly made up of fat and various tissues.

Stretch marks, also known as stria atrophica, form in the dermis layer of your skin. In fact, stretch marks are literally tears in the dermis. Now stretch marks should not be confused with scars, although they do appear quite similar when looking at them. Scars are made of fibrotic tissue which is simply not present in stretch marks.

As stated earlier, the dermis produces elastic fibers. These special fibers are what allows your skin to stretch—basically, they give the skin its elasticity. Stretch marks form when the skin grows faster than the elastic fibers can handle. Rapid growth weakens a skin’s elasticity and can actually break the connective fibers holding it together.

Now it is possible for stretch marks to form even when rapid growth is not present. This happens generally because of poor diet. Improper nutrition will deprive the body of the raw materials it needs to maintain healthy, elastic skin. Smoking is another factor that may cause stretch marks because it will also cause the skin’s elasticity to weaken. However, some growth will be necessary for stretch marks to form even when poor nutrition or smoking are factors.

Stretch marks are very common problems associated with pregnancy because this is a period of rapid growth for women. Any period of rapid weight gain will most likely be accompanied by stretch marks and they are common factors in obesity. However, it is possible for heredity to be a factor as some people have proven more prone to stretch marks than others.

The discoloring present with new stretch marks will eventually fade. Eventually, a stretch mark will appear almost identical to a scar. However, as stated earlier, stretch marks and scars are very different phenomena and caused by very different factors.

So, while stretch marks can be embarrassing and unsightly at first, the fact remains that they are painless. Many of us acquire these unsightly stretch marks as we lose our baby fat and enter into puberty and a period of rapid growth. Therefore, they are nothing to be overly self-conscious about because we all end up with them at some point. The best defense against stretch marks is eating a healthy, well-balanced diet which should keep the skin healthy and prevent periods of rapid weight gain.

Amy Winehouse adds weirdest tattoo

Amy Winehouse's already had enough tattoos to put a heavy metal rocker to shame, but Amy Winehouse's latest body etching appears to be her strangest yet.

Amy Winehouse ditches traditional poolside glamour for a display of tatty shorts and black lacy bra top, tattoos and scars from a period of self-harming

Early Signs Of Menopause

Developing menopause symptoms before the age of forty are early signs of menopause. Such early menopause could be due to surgical removal of ovaries, chemotherapy treatment for cancer, or due to early failure of ovaries. You therefore experience early signs of menopause much before other women experience normal menopause symptoms.

Menopause symptoms remain the same in cases of early menopause or normal menopause. The most common and early signs of menopause is hot flushes with excessive sweating in the middle of the night. Few other early signs of menopause include:

 Disturbed sleep, irritability and associated tiredness
 Headaches and body aches
 Memory loss and depression
Vaginal dryness and infections in urinary tract
Lack of sexual urge and arousal

These early signs of menopause occur due to hormonal imbalances. Although you cannot fight against such early signs of menopause, you can minimize the inherent risks due to such hormonal imbalances. Common fall out of lack of hormones is decreased bone density leading to thinning of bones or osteoporosis. You are therefore at a greater risk of fractures due to early signs of menopause. Sometimes it also increases chances of heart attacks.

How to combat Early Signs of Menopause

You can reduce or sometimes nullify early signs of menopause by adopting a healthier life style. Include many whole grains, fresh vegetables like leafy greens, carrots, broccoli, cucumber, etc., variety of fruits like citrus fruits, apples, berries, plums, etc. in your daily diet. Consume low fat diary products with high calcium content to compensate for the loss of calcium due to onset of the early signs of menopause.

Phytoestrogens are the estrogens available in plant food. Include more of soybeans, tofu, linseed bread, and legumes as these phytoestrogen rich foods can replenish your depleting estrogen levels due to early signs of menopause. Drink around eight glasses of water every day and reduce intake of caffeine products like coffee, tea, etc. to negate the effects of early signs of menopause. Limited consumption of alcohol, less than a glass each day, proves very helpful in maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Eating small portions of lean meat, fish, or chicken many times in a week supplies more iron to your body, as early signs of menopause are often the result of lack of sufficient iron levels in your body. Vegetarians can substitute these with increased consumption of leafy vegetables and fruits to keep early signs of menopause at bay.

Another major factor helping in the smooth transition through your early signs of menopause is daily physical exercises for a minimum of half an hour. Brisk walking, dancing, and other simple exercises keep your bones healthy, prevent bone loss, reduce weight gain, improve your heart condition, and develop your overall health. A positive and optimistic approach towards life also helps maintain your balance.

Change your LifeStyle

Perhaps one of the most difficult problems when it comes to obesity is to confront and to realize intellectually that this is reachable objective. People who do not reach this level of motivation before starting a healthy plan to lose weight, perhaps it is way more difficult to achieve the healthy goals to those that it aspires.

For Instance, motivation took place through the reading of a concise article published in a local newspaper. In this article they offered a description of the dynamics wrapped in the treatment of the control of weight, which rests about three simultaneously supervised factors: the input of daily calories, the habits development and the practice of some appropriate exercises to facilitate burning fatty superfluous stored and, a narrow supervision of the prospective changes by means of periodic medical exams.

For that reason, the interested user's intellectual-emotional aspect is, to e, the key of the success or the failure of the Program. In order to understand and to accept reason is indispensable the substitution of the glucose and the reduction of the input of fats saturated in the daily diet without falling in the produced stress because this decision implies doing without eating, perhaps the favorite foods until then, they are the factors without which the organic bad habit could not be overcome.

Once I began this Program of control of weight, I could notice of how the glucose acts in my organism like an addictive element that it precipitates the desire to continue eating: as much the flours as the candies maintain alive appetite and, consequently, one never experiences the sensation of being satisfied, without caring quantity of ingested food.

For this reason it was so important to eliminate the glucose of my diet so that the Program could have appropriate results. It was quite a surprise when I verified that by concluding the first day under this Plan that that sensation of permanent hunger had disappeared! Bigger still was the interior joy while observing how it lowered four pounds in a monthly basis schedule.

5 Simple Ways To Lose Weight

Losing unwanted body weight does not have to involve prolonged workout sessions at the gym or self-defeating fad diet regimens. In fact, most people find that without a sustained lifestyle change, any weight that is lost during a period of diet or extreme exercise is gained back once the activity is no longer practiced.

If you would like to lose pounds and keep them off, then you need to invest in a lifestyle adjustment. By altering only a few important patterns in your diet and exercise routine, you can literally lose weight without much effort. Here are some tips to help you quickly drop those extra pounds:

1. Walk for 30 minutes each day. Walking is not only a stress-reducer, but it is also more effective in inducing fat loss than a 30-minute jog. Here’s why: running helps you burn calories and quickly tone leg muscles because of the repeated flexing and force exerted on the leg muscles. However, because running increases the heart rate to aerobic levels, the heart rate also drops quickly once the activity has been stopped.

Walking, however, increases the heart rate to the fat-burning level. Any activity performed at the fat-burning level will have a longer-lasting impact. Thus, while you might flex and strain your muscles less during a 30-minute period of walking, the heart rate will stay elevated for a longer period of time.

2. Cut the portion in half. Whether you are eating a cheeseburger or plate of fries, divide the dish in half. If you are tempted to nibble on more than half, then give it away to a friend or have it wrapped up to take home (if you are dining out). Cutting your meal in half will not only decrease your calorie and fat in take dramatically, but it will help your body to become accustomed to smaller portions of food.

3. Get a full night’s rest. Many people find, and most doctors know, that getting a full night of undisturbed sleep not only leaves you feeling energized for a new day, but it helps your body metabolize your food much more efficiently. When they body is in the resting state during sleep, it actually works much harder to process energy than if you were to sit on the sofa watching the television.

Furthermore, if you are fully rested, you will be more likely to take on projects with more vigor and energy the next day (which will help you burn more calories.) So go on – get those zzzz’s.

4. Call your mother. And take care of other items on your to-do list before they pile up. Undue stress has a very negative physiological effect on the body and contributes to fat storage in the cells. By reducing small amounts of stress in your life, you can quickly and simply reduce fatty deposits on your body, especially in the stomach area. So go ahead: call your loved ones!

5. Drink plenty of liquid. Liquid hydrates your cells and helps them push harmful toxins through your body more efficiently. By drinking plenty of liquid, such as water, juice and even tea, you will help your cells function at their best without much effort at all.

If you drink tea and coffee, be aware that they contain caffeine, which can increase your metabolism while it is in your system, but tends to slow your body down once it leaves. Caffeinated beverages should always be consumed with an extra glass of water to ensure that you do not end up depleting your body of necessary liquids.

To ensure that your lifestyle alterations become lasting, practice them with friends and loved ones. Adjusting to any changes can be easier if you have a friend with whom you can share the journey and help to keep each other on track.