Manifesting Cupcakes

For at least two weeks now I have wanted a cupcake- not just any cupcake but a good homemade style treat
I had been thinking about it but let it go, because I knew I would get one eventually..

Well today, while visiting with my friend and her fiance I was able to try 8 yes 8! different cupcakes in order to help them pick their wedding cake flavor

I could not have thought of a better tasting and the fact that the Universe brought that to me is amazing..

It may seem simple but really to bring that faith of a cupcake into everything I do, knowing that what I desire, is on it's way. My job is to surrender, say YES, and then.. enjoy

And so it is my loves I share with you

My faith in cupcakes
xxooxoxoox

Words Are Prayers

As seen on Your Bella Life

If you were certain that every word you spoke was literally going to manifest in your life, what would you start saying and what would you stop?

What if you were certain that every word you spoke could either make you feel happy or crappy? How would your conversations shift?

What if you were certain that every time you spoke about what you didn’t want in your life, you increased the chances of that very thing to coming into fruition?

This is actually exactly how life works. Perhaps, not every word that we speak manifests physically in our life, however most do. We speak about never being able to lose weight, find single men, or our annoying jobs. Then we wonder why we never lose the weight, aren’t dating and our job keeps sucking.

As women we speak often and not about very important things. We complain and gossip. The scary thing is we don’t even realize it. If you are already offended, I can tell you, its because deep down you know its true. It used to be (and sometimes still is) true for me, too. I recently searched through my sent emails, looking back to emails from 2005! I have deleted them all since. But, when reading those emails, I couldn’t believe the words and stories I typed and shared.

Now that I am working on my awareness of the words I speak, I without judgment (I promise) notice the tone, the words and the stories we, as women, share. On the streets or on our cells phones, I so often see more scowls rather then smiles and hear angry tones rather then laughter. And, it’s not serving us.

With every word we speak, we are making a choice to feel a certain way. Why retell a story about a person who upset you, to friends, sometimes three different times! It made you feel bad the first time it happened? Isn’t once enough? Let it go and talk about something that makes you feel good.

Women are good at telling each other what we don’t want. But when asked what we do want, sometimes coming up with a list of ten is a struggle and often a “don’t want” is thrown into the mix just out of habit. We talk about what we don’t want, as if it will make the very thing go away. However, it does the exact opposite. Not only does talking about that which we do not want to happen in our lives make us feel annoyed, frustrated or mad, but it energizes that which we do not desire. That which we energize is often what the universe brings to us. Not to hurt us, but because it doesn’t understand the word don’t.

No one has ever complained their way into a great relationship, gossiped towards a loving friendship, or worried themselves into a promotion. Months or weeks of life taken up by irritation or worry for one fleeting moment of excitement, are not worth it.

Want to see just how it works? Try this exercise:

Call up a friend and talk to her about all the qualities you do want in a man or job, apartment or for yourself. Beware not to mention anything you do not want. When you end the call, write a few adjectives describing how you feel.

Call up another friend (or the same one) and tell her what you do not want in a man, job, apartment or in your life. While you’re on the call and after, notice how you feel. Write adjectives that describe that feeling.

Recently, I heard that our words are prayers. Think about what your asking for and keep in mind, God doesn’t hear the word don’t.

10 Steps to Feel Sexier Now

As first seen on The Beauty Bean

Ah “Sexy.” Just the word alone is intriguing. Admit it or not, it’s almost always the way we want to look and definitely one of ways we want to feel. As women, it’s in our energy. While some women certainly exude sex more then others; as females, we all have the power to own – and enhance – our innate sexiness. It’s in our every bone; it’s in our lips, eyes, curves and aura. And while sexy certainly looks nice, it feels even better.

If you not feeling sexy enough, or just want to amp up the intensity, follow these tips to feel red hot. Beware: these tips may increase confidence, dating options and maybe even physical contact.

High Heels. The higher the better. Put them on and strut around, even if only for yourself. We’re not sure of the science behind it, but there is something about an extra few inches that always similarly lifts our mood.


Juice. No, we don’t mean not to eat! But when we aren’t feeling sexy, we tend to feel heavy, thick, bulky; anything but hot. Just a single green juice can bring you back into awareness of your body and mind, increase mental clarity and give a feeling of lightness.

Ambiance. Set it. Don’t wait for “him” to light the candles, dim the lights and get under clean soft sheets. Extra credit if you wear lingerie.

Pamper. Whether at a spa or at home, bring pleasure into your world. Maybe give yourself a manicure, take a bath or give yourself a massage. Treat your sexy self as you want to be treated.


Move. You want to feel sexy, then do that which makes you sexy. Sometimes we feel hottest in our gym clothes, with a light glistening of post-workout sweat. We know, it sounds crazy, and maybe even a bit gross, but movement will get you out of your thoughts and back into your body, which is, believe us, inherently sexy.

Mantra. When you just aren’t feelin’ it, no matter how much make-up you have on or how hot your outfit is, you need to change that feeling – and feelings come from our thoughts. So, flip your thought by repeating a mantra to yourself. Try, “I am a sexy red hot woman” (or something of that nature). Fake it till you make it, say it till you feel it.

Dance. This tip shows up a lot, but that’s because it works!! It gets you moving, puts you back in your body and you can do it in heels. Just be sure to stay away from the mirror. If it feels good, it looks good, so don’t judge yourself. Put on the sexiest song you know and seduce yourself.


Laugh. Pull up YouTube, screen some hysterical videos and just take a few minutes to laugh. There is something sexy about a funny man and something sexier about a funny woman. Chelsea Handler anyone? Laughter is hot!

Go the extra mile. So often when women dress up it’s for a reason: a date, an event, a night out with the girls. How about you dress up for you. Make-up, sexy undies and a favorite dress from your closet can make all the difference. It doesn’t need to be a tight little dress. Put on your favorite jeans if they make you feel sexiest, it will show in your energy.

Switch it up. Being stuck in a routine can become dull and make us feel equally lackluster. Add some color, buy a new outfit or pull out an old piece you love wearing but just haven’t thought to in a while. Change is bold, change is sexy, and so are you!

Spring for Love

As first seen on Your Bella Life

It’s Spring time in New York City. After a cold winter you can imagine my excitement for lighter clothes, warmer weather and iced Starbucks. City residents come out of their tiny apartments and move from the sidewalks and stores to the parks and piers. As they say about spring, the season linked to procreation, love is in the air. You can literally feel the shift if you pay attention. Notice more smiles, relaxed bodies and a whole lot of love.

This Spring I decided to practice a new way of living I call Spring for Love. I started this practice this season but I can use it, and it will help me, all year long. When I say spring for love I am not talking about the season but rather the conscious action of noticing love. When I speak of love it can range from enjoying an ice latte to being loving in your own relationships. Love is not limited to romantic relationships and family but can be found in a friendship, in a relaxing afternoon alone, even in a flower.

For example today walking down my street I practiced springing for love. I first looked up at the sky and noticed how blue it was. I took a deep breath and noticed to my right a window with a beautiful pink flower in it. I then passed a building with a door, a bright blue color that I love. This all was within about 10 steps; imagine if I have been springing the whole block.

After taking time to notice just three simple expressions of love in my own life, I felt better and that is the purpose of this exercise. Noticing love, aka that which brings you joy, will lift you up to feeling better then you could imagine. It can become so easy to get wrapped up in all the drama and lack in our lives. Whatever it may be, the more we notice the bad in our lives, the more bad we will see. Luckily this works both ways, as the more love we see in our lives, the more love shows up for us to take notice of.

I urge you to spring for love from the moment you wake, to the moment you go to sleep noticing in every area of your life, that which brings you joy. You will notice a shift in the way you feel and the people around you will most likely notice this shift too.

Start Springing:

1. Set the intention. Every morning and throughout your day state out loud your intention. For 21 days speak your intention to Spring for love, all day long. When you do this you put yourself in the mental mindset of accomplishing your goal. Saying it aloud reinforces this idea to yourself and also allows you to indirectly ask the universe for its support in your intention.

2. Be relaxed. We tend to run from one thing to the next rather then taking in our experience. Make sure to notice this beautiful world and let nature show. Melt over the adorableness of babies and puppies, or the beauty of other people. Remember the more love you appreciate, the more of it you will see.

3. Enjoy. The concept behind this exercise is to fill you with feelings of love and joy, have fun with this, notice what you notice, take it in and move on. Far too often, I am guilty myself, we allow ideas that are supposed to be good for us, become a hassle and a source of stress. Bring yourself back to the core message behind Springing for Love, restate your intention, breathe and relax.

As Editor in Chief and Bella Life Founder Nitika Chopra says “love is possible in every moment” and Ill add “if you’re aware of its presence.” Tis the season to Spring For Love!

10 Steps to Ease Your Woes

As first seen in The Beauty Bean

By Kelsea Brennan

We all stress. It’s part of the human experience and sometimes even an adaptive coping mechanism for when you need your adrenaline to start pumping in order to get your out of a potentially dangerous situation. Stressing over your taxes, though, is not one of those situations in which a fight or flight response is beneficial – you can neither fight The IRS for flee from it, well, not without serious legal consequences anyway.

Rather, stressing out over your taxes, is bound to hurt you more than help you. Plus, stress can have serious health consequences (including not-so-pretty costs to your skin and hair). Even worse, though, is the fact that stress is often a self-perpetuating cycle: the more you stress, the more you’re stressed. To curb this counterproductive cycle and have you feeling better in no time (or until the check to IRS clears, anyway), follow these 10 quick steps for a stress-free tax day.

Meditate. It is the number one, scientifically supported tool to reduce stress. Don’t say you can’t, don’t know how, or that your mind won’t shut off. Just sit, be still and breathe. Do it at least 5 minutes in the morning and, if you can, for additional brief moments throughout the day.


Don’t Over-Think. Thinking “I have so much to do, it will never get all done, I can’t deal” will only energize stress and worse the situation. Acknowledge your negative thoughts, remind yourself that it’s ok to feel a bit stressed and move on.

Exercise. Have you ever worked out and felt worse after? Didn’t think so! Exercise not only boosts your self-esteem but also releases feel-good brain chemicals that immediately makes us feel better. Plus, it helps us release our rage, healthfully. Deepak Chopra recently – and need we say brilliantly – tweeted, “exercise is the best exercise.” So, as often as possible, get moving to let the stress melt away.


Steer clear of negativity. Make sure your friends and the people you surround yourself with are positive people who make you feel better and energized rather then drained.. Negative coworkers? Remind yourself that no one can take from you anything you are not willing to give, including your peace of mind.

Treat yourself. Be nice to you! If a friend was stressed you would comfort her with an offer for dinner, a movie or a mani/pedi. Do the same for yourself, you are so worth it.


Be Present. We tend to stress either because we are either feeling upset about the past or anxious for the future. If you are in the moment, the past becomes just a memory and the future an idea that does not yet exist. Practice being present by really paying attention to what you are doing, rather than your thoughts.

Sleep. The average woman needs 7 to 8 hour of restful sleep each night Make sure you are getting enough sleep. Everything is harder and seems worse when you’re tired.


Identify your stressors. When you are aware of what stresses you, you can prepare. You will quickly notice old habitual thought patterns and actions you usually take. Once you take notice, you can create new habits that reduce stress rather then enhance it.

Get outside. Fresh air revitalizes, clarifies and has a beautiful way of creating calm. Try to get outside as often as possible during the week and pay attention to the natural order of nature.


Make time to relax. This does not include the moments you lie in bed as you try to fall asleep. Rather, read a book, do yoga or simply sit on your couch and relax.

A Professional Doer

Earlier this week I was with my nutrition coach and awesome friend Sarah Jenks when another one of her clients walked by. When she saw us she stopped to make it known that she was taking care and time for her self. After just getting a manicure and massage she was headed home for a bubble bath. As she determinedly made her declaration I could sense the uneasiness in her energy.

I forgot about the incident that happened on Monday until about an hour ago. 5 pm on Thursday. I had gotten my work done and was leaving when I noticed something. I now felt that same uneasy energy. Was it so awful I was going straight home after work? What would I do? This was not the norm for me and perhaps it’s not for many of you.

I fear we have all gotten a little too comfortable with always doing something. My days usually start with me leaving my apartment at 8:30 am and not returning till 10:30 pm or later, almost every night of the week. I, Kelsea, have become a professional doer.
Whether it’s a class or dinner, the gym or a coaching session, I am always doing something.

I love my life and all that I fill it with, however something has become quite off balance, and I am starting to feel the consequences. Too much of anything is a bad thing. So no matter how much I love my post work activities, I need to love me more.

It’s been several months now of “doing” and by the end of each week I am drained. I have a hard time getting up in the morning, am having trouble falling asleep and my bedroom, is a mess. Constantly eating on the go, or not at all and putting some of my important priorities on the back burner, has become the result of spreading myself too thin. I have no “me” time anymore and I am the only person that can fix that. No class, dinner or even a life coach, can help

We tend to wear our busyness like a designer handbag. As a symbol of status and pride, when so often the truth is it costs us too much. We think the more we do, the more important we will feel. Our self sabotaging thoughts tell us if we are not constantly on the go, then we’re lazy, anti social and other lies our mind creates.

After unrecognizably participating in this experiment, I can tell you that is not the truth. It is doing too much has made me lazy (and flakey) two adjectives I normally would not use to describe myself. I wish I spent more time at the gym, I have a tower of books I am dying to dive into and my living space resembles my chaotic schedule. Nothing I am proud to write. As a life coach I should know better, but perhaps I had to experience this first hand to remember how not to live.

My favorite author and spiritual activist Marianne Williamson says that our mind tells us that when we are doing nothing, we are nothing. However, quite the opposite is true, when we are doing nothing, we are everything. In these “nothing” moments is when we can take time to reconnect to ourselves, and in that reconnection we begin to connect to everything that matters most.

Its 6:30 on a Thursday and I am home, and when someone asks me what I did tonight, Ill proudly say, “nothing.”

How to be Happy: 10 Simple Steps to Turn Your Day Around

As first seen in The Beauty Bean

Whether you woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning or are in the midst of a midday break down, your bad mood doesn’t have to stick until daybreak tomorrow. The bottom line: feeling badly feels, well, bad. So don’t wait for the negative feelings to pass and, instead, take control of your thoughts and adjust your feelings for a better end to the day with these ten simple steps to happy.


Breathe. This is perhaps the simplest tip of them all, yet one of the hardest to remember to do. When we get upset, our muscles tighten and tense while our breath becomes more shallow and frequent. Instead of hyperventilating, though, take 3 deep breaths (taking 10 seconds for each inhale and an additional 10 seconds for each exhale). This simple act will help bring new energy into your body and help you reconnect with your body, mind and soul.

Walk Away. Step away from whatever it is your doing, even if it’s supposed to be helping, and walk away, literally. In the office? Take a bathroom break. Inside? Go out. A change of scenery will force you to pay more attention to what you are doing rather than what you are feeling and will help you gain a new perspective so you can return to the task with a sense of calm.

Music. Compile a playlist of your favorite “feel good” songs and, whenever you’re feeling in a funk, pop in your earphones. Music releases dopamine, the feel good chemical in our brain; so, whenever you’re feeling down, give yourself a few minutes to turn the volume up.



Move. Even better then just listening to your favorite song, is moving to it. Get to the gym, go outside for a walk or just do some jumping jacks. Together, music and movement will increase your dopamine production and have you feeling happier in no time!

Phone. Calling a friend can often be one of the best ways to overcome a negative attitude, feeling or mood. Don’t, however, call a friend to complain – trust us, it won’t help. Rather, tell your friend both how you feel and (here’s the important part:) how you would like to feel. Placing the focus on how you want to feel, rather than how you currently feel, will quickly precipitate a positive shift in both your thoughts and feelings.

Smile! We know it sounds silly (and, we admit, it is), but smile, even if you’re not feeling it and even if no one’s around. Who knows, the silliness of it all may just make you laugh.



Google. Pick the word that best describes the way want to feel and do a google search for quotes on your word of choice. Whether you search for “quotes on happy” or “calm quotes,” countless results will appear. Take time to find one you love, write it down and read it throughout your day.

Reach out. Call a friend or family member and see how they are, help a stranger or smile at someone you don’t know. Being of service to others benefits us all.

Mantra. Pick the word that describes how you want to feel (perhaps the one you’ve already googled) and recite it in your mind. Focusing with intent on that which we desire brings it to us that much faster.

Stop. So often resisting our feelings, rather then just accepting them, causes our suffering. If you have tried the 9 tips above and nothing is working, surrender. Accept that you need to feel the way you do right now for some reason and that it’s okay – that you’re okay.