The Happy Stuff

 I took a little break to clean up the blog, host some visitors and nurse some sickies back to health (one of which was myself). We were having such a healthy January and February, but it seemed as though a couple of cold viruses wanted the last word before Spring gets here.

It has also been during these last couple of weeks my emotions have been on a bit of a roller coaster ride. Now, we're not talking "Colossus" size of roller coaster...more like "Puff the Little Fire Dragon" size of roller coaster. It was as though a mild case of the winter blues had been slowly building until it one day it hit me like a sack of bricks and I felt so agitated all the time. In the past I haven't found going off by myself isn't usually this monumentally beneficial thing for me--but this time it was! Thank goodness for a sweet, supportive husband, who let me have a few hours to myself over the last couple of Saturdays.

(Hazel Ane after her bath the other day.)

I wasn't a fan of how the whole thing snuck up on me. And so it was around this time, I was thinking more about what makes me happy. Which sounds simple enough, I mean there's the obvious things like my family, The Gospel... and shopping. But I was trying to be more specific. Like when I go to bed at the end of the day--what things have I done that day that make me feel fulfilled, productive and hopeful--because, by golly, staying in and watching my shows sometimes just doesn't cut it! 

So here are a few things I've noted:

-Going on walks. More specifically a walk to the park to let me kids play so we can all benefit from the sunshine and exercise.
-Reading. More specifically reading my scriptures, reading conference talks and good books that make me feel smarter.
-Doing small unexpected deeds of service. Something I need to be better at.
-Listening to talks from BYU Womens Conference while I'm getting ready.
-Vacuuming. I find it very relaxing and it requires me to clean my house. Although, I have to be careful with this one because Hazel has a tendency to get into some mischief while I'm vacuuming which isn't necessarily worth the trade for theraputic cleaning.
-Exercising. More specifically, exercising to be healthy. Exercising for any other reason actually has the opposite effect on me.
-Playing with my babies. I'm always feeling like if they're happy and entertained I should be cleaning the house or crossing things off my to-do list, but maybe all those Pinterest quotes have a point.
-Staying inside my budget. Painful, but true.
-Play dates! My favorites are the ones include the moms too.

via

After writing this, I know it all seems so obvious, but I can't help but feel like there's something to be said for conscientiously and specifically noting what makes us happy and fulfilled, because I never seem to have a hard time accounting for what makes me sad. And I'd much rather focus on actions that keep those blues at bay. Hopefully, I can master these and keep adding to the list.

What specific things make you feel fulfilled and happy or things you do to keep your blues at bay?