How does it feel to be the king or queen of the zodiac, dear Leo? Last month, Jupiter, the giver of gifts and luck, crowned you the celestial favorite when Jupiter moved into Leo for the first time since mid-2002 to mid-2003. This is the start of a glorious year that will extend to August 11, 2015. A darling Leo friend asked me, "Do I turn into a pumpkin on August 11, 2015 next year when Jupiter exits Leo?" "No, no, that will not happen," I replied.

Here's what is coming up next year. Beginning August 11, 2015 and extending to September 9, 2016 will become your most rewarding financial year ever, and certainly your best in the decade. That year will expand and build upon all you started during your present time with Jupiter in Leo.

The seeds that you plant for new projects and relationships will start to grow wildly, like Jack and the Beanstalk beans, but not now - next year. This year, you won't quite know which projects or relationships you are starting will turn out to be the winners. You will have to wait to see which of those fledgling seeds will start to poke their little faces up through your soil in your garden. While not all of the seeds you will plant will grow to reach the sky, one or more will. Those healthy projects will continue to pay you dividends throughout the coming decade, and possibly forever. Be out and about, showing your ideas to the world. This is no time to keep your ideas hidden! If you say you are not ready to show your ideas, write up a short description or treatment of what you are working on doing, and show that first. You will generate interest and can follow up later. Timing is everything!

While you will have a long time - twelve months - of great opportunity, this month will be among the best months of the year, because you will still be under the protective influence of the new moon that occurred July 26 in Leo 4 degrees. That new moon was spectacular because the new moon arrived arm-in-arm with Jupiter. This is extraordinary, for this will give every Leo an edge of extra luck.

In the year to come, you will enjoy many career opportunities (stay tuned for the date this month that may make you jump for joy), better money (more on that too), the ability to travel overseas to a city you've never been (you may go this month), and better health. If single, you can now enter into a breathtaking, stable romance with someone who is truly right for you. Married Leo may welcome a baby, and if that describes you, the coming period will be the very best ever to summon the stork.

Is July 26 the date of your birthday or were you born close to that date (within four days)? Your entire year will be showered in liquid gold. The same is true if you have Leo rising 2 degrees or a natal planet in Leo, Aries, or Sagittarius 2 degrees (all, plus or minus five degrees).

This is why during this year, from July 16, 2014 to August 11, 2015, you should endeavor to see every influential person you can get your foot in the door to see, for those VIPs will help you get to the next level. This is the year, starting now, that you can take steps to see a dream that is important to you take flight. Among the faces you meet will be great new contacts, and some friendly people you may want to get to know and possibly cultivate as close friends. This is also the year you have a dazzling chance to meet your one true love. Having Jupiter, giver of gifts and luck, in Leo is considered the best aspect a Leo can have for finding true love.

Travel may be a surprising, happy event on or very near August 25, when Venus in Leo receives a brilliant vibration form Uranus in Aries from your ninth house of long distance travel. You may not have planned this trip, but suddenly you'll be heading to the airport! Or, it's equally possible that you will get sudden good news from a variety of sources - people based abroad, or good news from your university or concerning a story or segment you completed regarding a publishing or broadcasting project.

The weekend of August 9-10 might become a milestone weekend. (Allow a plus or minus of five days from this date.) On August 10, the full moon will appear in Aquarius 18 degrees, in your house of commitment and marriage. Some Leos will get engaged or married, and others will move their relationship to the next level, perhaps by promising exclusivity. This full moon will receive a very friendly, electric signal from Uranus, indicating that you will find news to come up in an exciting, unexpected way.

The only little glitch might have to do with either finding suitable housing for the two of you, or making sure the two families (yours and your soon-to-be mate's) are on board and happy about your union. (I will return to the topic of home and family in a moment, as it forms a large theme in your chart.) If you are already married, you may now draw up new goals to do together, and with Uranus so positive and active, things will happen rapidly and put a big smile on your face.

If you have no one in your life that you'd even consider marrying, this same full moon August 10 will be a superb time for making any kind of collaboration official, say, with a business partner, writing partner (if you are writing a book or screenplay, for example) agent, manager, publicist, stylist, lawyer, accountant, medical specialist, or other expert that you would work closely with in the future. When two people come together and are both committed to the success of the same endeavor, that's a solar seventh house matter, and that's where your full moon will fall on August 10. Something is reaching culmination, dear Leo.

All month, Mars, the action planet, will remain in Scorpio, a place Mars entered last month on July 26, to stay until September 13. Mars is now in your home sector, so no doubt you are getting very interested in making your home comfortable and very stylish. All month, you will be very determined to fix or improve a home or housing situation that has been on your mind for months, possibly since Saturn entered this area in October 2012. Saturn often sets up long-range themes, for Saturn's job is to mature you and to show you that you are capable of doing more than you ever assumed you could do. Saturn never gives easy-to-accomplish goals or challenges - Saturn wants to see that you are determined to stick with your goals no matter what obstacles come up. We all learn resourcefulness through Saturn's teachings.

Saturn often asks for sacrifice, so you may have been giving up dinners out in favor of saving up for a down payment on a house or condo. This area of your chart also rules your family, and most frequently points to mother and father, so alternatively, you may have given up some of your income to help your parent or other family member get through a difficult patch, perhaps to pay for medical bills. If you already own your own house or condo, then it may be that you may be ready to go through your first renovation.

Some Leo may have purchased a house that required months, possibly years, of work, with the idea of selling the property after the construction work was finished. In this case, the house purchased may have been a "fixer-upper" that you plan to flip later for profit. It appears you will not be as focused on real estate and home after December 23, 2014, the date Saturn will leave Scorpio. It is very possible you will find a solution to all your home and family questions even earlier, by the solar eclipse, October 23, 2014, or in November 2014. Mars will certainly give you the energy and motivation now to dig in and get going, rather than let this goal linger.

If you don't finish off things off in regard to home and family goals by the end of 2014, you will get a second chance to do so in the summer of 2015. (Here I am referring to north hemisphere countries - my Brazilian readers, for example, would be experiencing "winter.")

Here is some interesting news. Saturn, the taskmaster planet, will be back to Scorpio for a very brief three-month stay in 2015, from June 14 to September 17, 2015, a time you will have another chance to direct your attention to home, property, and family goals. The second half of 2015 is when your financial rewards will start to roll in, so there is no rush - you can take your time. Sell your fixer-upper after Jupiter goes into Virgo August 11, 2015 to September 9, 2016, and you'll have a good chance of walking away with a large bounty. The April 22, 2016 full moon would be an ideal time to sell property, if you can wait that long - almost two years away. It looks as though you'd sell for a high price. Your fixer-upper might take time to finish, which is why I include this information here.

In the meantime, this month you will have help from Mars and Pluto on August 15, when Mars in Scorpio - in your fourth house of home - will reach out to Pluto in Capricorn. Pluto has financial connotations, and Capricorn is a big money sign. Any home or family action should bring you good news, from putting a bid on a house, to browsing shops to locate the ideal piece of furniture for your living room. You may want to see your banker on this day to become preapproved for a mortgage or home improvement loan. If your application is accurate, and you are credit worthy, you will be successful.

On August 25, Mars will conjoin Saturn, which may have you of two minds about a financial or home-related matter. Mars will urge you to move ahead quickly but Saturn will ask for caution, and urge you to proceed slowly. Saturn is the slower moving planet, so Saturn will win this conflict. Have your lawyer look at anything you are about to sign. There is never harm in going slowly when it comes to legal documents. Furthermore, Neptune will oppose the Sun and moon, another reason you will have to clarify all the financial elements of any expenditure, deal, or agreement you make at this time.

August 25 also happens to be the new moon in Virgo, lighting your house of earned income. (This day has a lot of aspects going on at once.) Neptune's heavy presence is troubling because having Neptune (fog, water, confusion, and deleted or obfuscated facts) in a house of joint finances can be difficult. Neptune's presence would be positive if you are in the creative arts - art and painting, cinematography, photography, documentaries, music, poetry, dance, or other cultural arts - for in terms of an artistic profession, Neptune would actually be helpful. Neptune is the patron of the arts, and suggests at this time you would make money from the sale of the work you present in the days that follow.

Still, no matter what field you work within, Neptune's position opposite the Sun, your ruling star, means someone might try to pull the wool over your eyes. Follow your instincts, and if you need more information or backup, demand to see it. If you buy a house, make sure you have flood and water-oriented insurance from day one. Most insurance policies do not cover for water damage unless you request a rider - you will need one.

You will be catnip to potential romantic interests, for Venus will be Leo from August 11 to September 4 for the first and only time this year, and so you'll have charm and charisma to spare. You will have a magnetism you may not be aware of, but others will certainly notice! Venus and Mars, the two cosmic lovers, have very different ways of working. When Venus is in Leo, Venus teaches the value of sitting back and using your natural magnetism to draw others to you. That is how some astrologers started to call Venus the lazy planet.

Mars (which now is in Scorpio, so not helpful to you now) teaches the need to be assertive and competitive, even in matters of the heart. Mars represents male energy and Venus more passive female energy, but we hold both types within each of us. So the lesson is, this month, let others come to you - no need to exert yourself. You simply need to go out and show your face to the world. Staying home accomplishes nothing!

August would be ideal for browsing the shops and picking up beautiful new clothes for the coming season. I have always found shopping early means you will never be disappointed with sizes being sold out. Besides, you will only get Venus in Leo once a year, and if you look now, you will find exciting options to add to your wardrobe. You will garner lots of compliments when you wear your new stylish fashions too - and I am including both my female and male readers. There is one more element to consider: October will bring Mercury in retrograde, October 4 to 25 and two major eclipses, October 8 and 23, making October not the best time to shop. Start after August 12 and you will be glad you did.

Your most romantic weekend of the month will be August 16 and 17, so be sure to plan something special for those days. It's a weekend sure to be brimming with surprises, and as I mentioned earlier, it would be ideal for spontaneous distant travel. Have you ever wanted to drive to the airport and simply pick a city and fly off? Me too. This would be the weekend to go.

Overall, keep in mind that you are the ONLY sign that has Jupiter in your sign, dear Leo, protecting all your interests. You will be energetic, enthusiastic, and optimistic, and your bouncy, breezy, gregarious temperament will be irresistible. As the planet of good fortune, Jupiter can give you more of anything you could ever desire. If Jupiter had an office, he would have a nameplate with the word "More" on his desk. Jupiter expands everything he touches - and he will expand anything you ask of him, too. Take time to decide what you want to accomplish in the coming twelve months. You stand at the threshold of your golden age, dear Leo. Time goes by fast, so get busy! Happy Birthday!

It's birthday month, and this year, you have every reason to be deliciously happy. Doors are now going to swing open for you, and you will start to widen your circle of friends and contacts significantly. You may not yet be aware that you are starting a vitally new and important twelve-year cycle - the arrival of Jupiter to Leo last month for a nearly thirteen month stay attests to this truth. Jupiter is the great planet of good fortune that only rarely makes a visit to your sign, but is now here and starting to spin his magic. (The last visit from Jupiter to Leo was from mid-2002 to 2003. Each sign gets one year with Jupiter, every twelve years, and it always turns out to be a wonder year.)

To make tracks and see progress, you would first need a new moon in Leo, which is precisely what occurred late last month July 26. That moon will continue to be strong and helpful to you in early August. Make it a point to mix socially and be open to new people who can add a new twist to your personal and professional life. Life will be lively, and each step you take toward a goal will advance you and make you excited about the next step.

Meanwhile, Mars is now in your home and family sector for the first time in two years, and because this area appears to have been a source of meditation for months, Mars may help you find solutions. The reason things have been hard to resolve involving home or other property matters is that you are also currently hosting Saturn, the great teacher planet, in that same area of your chart. Saturn is known to bring maturity and to show you that you can tackle big goals, so some Leos may have been saving for a first house.

Overall, your thinking may have focused on either finding a better, more suitable physical space or fixing up the space you have now. Or, you may have focused on a relationship, such as finding the right roommate, or the right contractor. If you are responsible for the care of a parent or other relative, it is clear you have been very dedicated to your beloved relative. Go slowly and be methodical. Rushing won't cause you find a better solution, only an expedient one. Go slowly and turn over every stone. Now that you have Jupiter's help, you can find solutions.

If you have been saving for a house or condo, you may be ready to view spaces now. Saturn often asks for sacrifice, so some Leos may decide, after viewing availabilities, that the locations you like are more expensive than you expected, and that it might be worth delaying your choice while you build up more savings. Others will be ready to buy next year or in 2016. Have a talk with your banker too about mortgages and refinancing plans, for with Neptune in a long tour of your financial house, you may be unclear about how quickly you can get pre-qualified for a mortgage or home improvement plan.

Your relationship will be your big focus within days of the full moon, August 10. You may make a commitment to the one you love, and if so, the question would pop suddenly. Saturn will be in hard angle, so again, the topic of housing may have to be solved first, before you set a date for your wedding. If you are already attached, you may now draw up new plans together, such as to buy or renovate property, or to take an exotic trip overseas together.

Your career is due for some sensational news near August 17-18 when Venus and Jupiter will combine forces. You may now land a breakthrough promotion, new offer, or sensational publicity! Look the part!

If you do take a vacation this month, plan to be back by the new moon August 25, which will open financial opportunities. This is the best point of the year for you to ask for a raise, or negotiate a solid salary for a new position. You can start to seed financial ideas, and if they are practical and realistic, you will have a superb chance of seeing your best ideas approved and funded. With Neptune standing in the wings, enlist a lawyer to be sure every clause is clear, and nothing has been left out of papers you sign.

The full moon on August 10 will bring your attention to your long-term relationship. You may feel it is a joyous time to take the relationship to another level, possibly through engagement or marriage, or simply by promising to be exclusive.

August 17-18 Venus will align with Jupiter in Leo, making this a five-star day, not only for love, but for your career too. Days this golden come by only once a decade. Born near July 30? You get double the benefits.

The new moon, on August 25, will focus you on your money. It's the best time of the year to ask for a raise or to make a presentation to bring in more business. You will have a week after the new moon in which to act.