Luck is with you, dear Taurus. You have Mars in your sign for the first time in two years. You will be feeling energetic, optimistic, and ready to tackle all your dearest projects. Friends will notice a new bounce in your step, and your funny sense of humor will return in a noticeable way. You will have this enormous benefit until Mars leaves on April 21, so this is the time to make appointments with VIPs and anyone who whose support you need to move forward on a desire dear to your heart. People you meet with will respect your realistic, practical, earthy approach to projects and budgets. Mars will make you more attractive and charismatic too. You will have a certain sparkle that will draw others to you, so this birthday time should be special for you.

One day I like very much for you will be April 5, when Mars in Taurus and Pluto in Capricorn collaborate. This would be an ideal day to travel to a foreign country or to conduct international business from your base. Publishing and broadcasting projects will go exceptionally well, as will anything having to do with your goal to teach or study in a university. If you need to make a legal move, this would be the time to consult with a lawyer. Pluto is a big money sign, so if the topic is finances, you’ll likely do well.

Now let’s look at the full moon of April 10, falling in Libra 22 degrees, but this full moon will be sending confusing mixed messages. On one hand, this full moon comes with a glorious alignment with Jupiter, giver of gifts and luck. It’s hard to imagine anything sweeter. This full moon will shine in your sixth house of workaday projects, so you seem to be finishing up a big assignment, and with Jupiter close to the moon, this assignment should be a lucrative one. This project may have possibly have been done with a partner because this full moon is in Libra, the sign of collaboration. Libra is also tied to the courts so you might have worked on a legal brief. You may need to travel under this full moon, and if so, the accommodations should be luxurious – check before you go to be sure all your bookings are in place.

Still, at the full moon of April 10, the planets will be acting like little Smurfs causing a ruckus as they fan out from their little village, playing tricks and games, sending you alternating red and green lights that say stop, then go at the same time. You won’t be able to tear out of the gate with a torch and put your deals in place quite yet. The problem with this full moon is that Uranus, the planet of unpredictable events, will conjunct the Sun and both will precisely oppose this full moon, and that will bring up something you didn’t see coming. A trusted worker may quit, or a client may suddenly demand the project go in another direction at the last minute. There are endless number of possible examples that could happen at the workplace, but you get the idea.

The Sun, which is involved with Uranus at the time of the full moon April 10, is the natural ruler of Taurus’ fourth house of home, bringing up the possibility that you might need to direct your attention quickly to your home or other property you might own, or to someone you work with at home, such as your landlord, housekeeper, nanny, gardener contractor, architect, decorator, or it might be news from a tenant or roommate. Your parents also are ruled by the same area of your chart, coming under your house of home, so keep an eye on your father, as the Sun, conjunct Uranus, points to unexpected news about a male relative. The Sun and Uranus are both in your twelfth house, associated with medical facilities, so perhaps you will need the advice of a doctor, on behalf of a male relative.

I don’t want to alarm you with this full moon, and at the same time I don’t want to have you feel broadsided by events either. You can handle what comes up. For example, suddenly one of my back molars started to give me a warning signal on a recent trip to Los Angeles. Sipping ice tea, the tooth reacted to the cold. My dentist told me to call him back if hot food elicited the same effect. Bingo, yes, it did. I had a root canal as soon as I got back to New York and the procedure did not hurt one bit. Dentistry has come far, so no need to be scared of a visit to the dentist – thank goodness there are kind individuals in the world that study this specialty. It’s always good to take care of things instantly before they grow more serious.

Then, too, your ruling planet, Venus, is retrograde, a trend that started March 6 and will continue retrograding until April 15. Venus doesn’t wake up and start acting normally immediately – it takes her time. Venus will be bumping into furniture, needs coffee, wants a fragrant bubble bath, needs to find her beauty supplies, and most of all, needs to check her email to see if the universe sent one that will tell her where she will be sent next.

When your ruler, Venus, is weak, as it is now, you will find everything becomes a little harder to achieve. New ventures you put in place should be done when Venus is moving direct. It’s unusual to see Venus retrograde, for this planet of love, beauty, and profit rarely goes retrograde – this happens every two years. Put off plastic surgery and new dermatological treatments and new at-home skin care lines until after Venus goes direct. Venus will normalize her orbit on April 15 but won’t be back to full power until May 18.

Planets that orbit close to earth affect us more when retrograde than when the outer planets do the same. Those close-by planets include Venus, Mercury, and Mars. Mars won’t go retrograde until NEXT YEAR, from June 26 to August 27, 2018, so that’s not a worry. Mercury is a different story.

Mercury will go retrograde this month too from April 9 until May 3 and will retrograde first in Taurus and then back into Aries halfway through the retrograde. Mercury rules communication, transportation, shipping, couriers, contracts, negotiations, and all electronic items. Back up your computer – things could go screwball this month. We become forgetful when Mercury retrogrades, so you will have to be more deliberate about just about everything. Make sure you have all your treasures with you as you move about, such as your iPad, eyeglasses, cell phone, sunglasses, or anything else you need and that is valuable to you. Don’t leave them behind on a public conveyance. Mercury rules the mail, both post office mail and email, so for example, don’t automatically hit the reply all button, for you may include someone who should not see your message.

    At the full moon of April 10, the planets will be acting like little Smurfs causing a ruckus as they fan out from their little village, playing tricks and games, sending you alternating red and green lights that say stop, then go, at the same time. They are daring you to be quick witted and responsive, and you will be that, and more.

When Mercury retrogrades, things are shifting to a new direction, but at the time of the retrograde (this month), no one will be able to see precisely which way things will go. If you use the same qualifiers that you usually use to make a decision, you are likely to be off, because the criteria you will be using will change. Mercury will be retrograde all month until May 3, so sit tight. You can use this period to polish up past projects that you have been working on, and make them the best they can be. It’s also a perfect time to reconnect with friends and business associates that you’ve not seen in a long time. Mercury will go direct May 3, but not be back to former strength until May 20. Try to time your biggest initiations for May 20, or better yet, to after that supportive financial new moon appears next month on May 25 (plus ten days).

It is interesting to note that Venus will return to former strength on May 18, and Mercury, on May 20 – very close to one another next month. There are so many signals this month that we must slow down and patiently study all the details. You are talented at doing this, dear Taurus, so you should fare far better than most.

For my comprehensive essay on Mercury retrograde, see my essay found on my homepage of AstrologyZone.com entitled All You Need to Know about Mercury Retrograde – look to near the lower left side of the page. It is very detailed, and I think it’s one of my best essays because I kept going back over it during several months to add thoughts to my piece. You can also find this article on my app, if you have the premium version (paid subscription). Go to what the app industry calls the “hamburger stack” to open the menu – the three little lines in the upper left corner on every screen. Look for Life + Love on the menu and once inside that area, look for Susan’s Essays as the top item. You will find the Mercury Retrograde article there, among other essays I have written for you.

Statistics tell me that many readers (you or your friends) are reading my monthly horoscope report for their sign and rising sign on their browser on their smart phones. There’s an easier way – get my free app, “Susan Miller’s AstrologyZone Daily Horoscope.”

The free version will give you a short daily horoscope and my full, uncut, monthly horoscope. You can try my premium version for $4.99 for one month and have fun exploring the app. We find 67 percent of my readers who have the app love having much longer daily horoscopes and all my essays at their fingertips. Also on the premium version, on the Sunday daily forecast, I write a look at the week ahead so you can plan it for maximum productivity. It’s an app chockfull of information. This year, my app was named a finalist in the Mobile Excellence Awards for best user experience, and in another category, best content. Search Susan Miller on the Apple App Store or Google Play. Your eyes will find it so much easier to read all that I write.

Now, returning to my discussion on April, if you need a day to discuss money, you have April 17 as a very favorite day, for the Sun in Taurus will be in perfect angle to Saturn, the planet of stability, now in your eighth house of other people’s money. This includes company benefits. This house covers such things as health insurance, vacation days, bonus and commissions, cash advances, royalties, licensing fees, and other such income outside of salary. It also covers venture capital and sponsorship. What you learn will be useful for the future.

Mars will move into Gemini on April 21, and from then on, your expenses will rise, but only for six weeks, until June 4. You may have been planning to send a large check for something you committed to paying for previously, such as summer camp tuition for your child. Or, you may need to do shopping for things you need, but of course, with Mercury retrograde I would rather you spend money next month, not now.

From April 21, you may be thinking about how you can find ways to make more money. On the new moon coming next month on May 25, you will get your best chance to ask for a raise or to negotiate an excellent salary for a new position you might be interviewing for now. All new moons open a portal of energy that will last ten days. In other words, new moons give you the best, prime time in which to act on goals pertaining to the house where the new moon falls, in this case, the house that’s ideal for you to act to increase your earned income.

The month closes with a new moon in Taurus, April 26 at 6 degrees. This is your annual birthday gift from a loving universe, and so think about how you’d like to direct its energy. Saturn, the planet of long range thinking, will be in wide but still in significant agreement (10 degrees orb) with this new moon, so changes you make will be ones that will stay in place a very long time. What would you like to achieve by the end of 2017 or your next birthday? This new moon will help you make that dream materialize but you must take a step – even a baby step – after the new moon arrives (not before) April 26. Don’t sign anything, though, but simply open talks and gather information to help you make your decision about how you want to move forward later.

If your birthday falls on April 26, plus or minus five days, you will benefit the most from this new moon. The same is true if you have Taurus rising, or a natal planet in Taurus, Virgo, or Capricorn, Cancer, Scorpio, or Pisces at 6 degrees, plus or minus five degrees.

Romantically, having Mars in your sign will allow you to turn heads when you enter a room, for Mars is known to bring a sexy, vibrant appearance. Still, if you are single, with Venus not yet fully regulated, it would be best to have your first dates next month. If you are attached, you both CAN have fun because you would not be starting a new relationship, but continuing one.

Mars, the energy and action planet, is now in Taurus, giving you a big advantage over competition. This trend started last month and will continue until April 21. Mars will continue to boost your courage, determination, and drive, so use that energy to plan, but not to settle talks quite yet. You will have the ear of the most important VIPs, but hold back on actually initiating actions. Venus, your ruler, will continue to be retrograde until April 15, and Mercury will retrograde from April 9 to May 3, too, so you may find projects move in slow motion. Don’t rail against delays – they are there to help you rethink your tactics.

The full moon on April 10 will bring a work project to a conclusion. It seems to be a well-paying project, but problems that will come up without warning may catch you off guard. Electric Uranus in harsh position to the full moon might keep your nerves on edge. Keep a simple, elastic agenda, and protect your health.

Your living space, other property you might own or rent, or special needs of a family member may now clash with all the career demands you are dealing with, and you may not know which to attend to first. The answer is, address home or a parent’s needs first, for that is where the full moon will fall. Full moons demand instant attention to the matter at hand, so you’ll solve things, but perhaps not permanently – there may be more to do down the road to fully fix questions regarding this private area of your life.

At some point in April, you may need to travel to distant shores, or work on settling an immigration, visa, or green card matter. Or, you may be involved in an important publishing, broadcasting, or advertising project. In any of these areas, you’ll find things will work in your favor, for Mars will receive beams from Pluto, giving you considerable clout on or near April 6.

Venus, your ruler, has been retrograde since March 4 but will go direct on April 15. When your ruler is out of phase, you may find that you have slipped into a Spartan, all business, no-nonsense mood. After Venus goes direct April 15 you will see improvement, and things will improve even more by mid-May. With Venus napping, it is not the time to make any radical changes to your looks – no plastic surgery, for sure. It’s not the time to change your hair from dark to platinum blonde, or even to choose new eyeglass frames, and this includes my male readers too. Any dramatic changes to your appearance should be shelved, but, of course, keep up regular grooming, which is always necessary to do. If you are single, most of April won’t be the best time to meet a new romantic interest either, so for that, wait until late April and May – birthday time.

The new moon at month’s end will be a big help to you. Arriving on April 26 in Taurus, it will allow you to lay the groundwork for courageous actions in May. You’ll want to jump on projects, but again, slow down and act after Mercury goes direct May 3 – and even then, leave a space of as many days as you can muster. Uranus will encourage exciting innovation, and Saturn will add stability to your new ventures. The finest benefit to this new moon will be to encourage artistic expression – work on your craft and you’ll be pleased with results. Seal things in stone in May.