Things That Make Me Happy...

Just when I've been feeling a bit down in the dumps lately, Melissa from Root and Sprout, tagged me with the Things That Make Me Happy meme. Just the kick in the pants I needed to focus on something positive.

In no particular order, 10 things that make me happy:

1. Being a mom. It's my favorite thing in the world. I can't imagine my life without my kids, they truly are my pride and joy. They're good people, it's fun to watch them all spread out in all their different stages of development, and I'm blessed to have a loving relationship with each of them. I enjoy them immensely.

2. Pedicures. Love them. Very, very rare treat, they are expensive after all, but they feel wonderful, and I love having my toes all bright and shiny.

3. Fish. Fish tanks to be more specific. I don't enjoy cleaning them out, but I do enjoy sitting back and watching them in an aquarium. There are aquariums in both kid's rooms and it's very peaceful to just sit and watch them once in a while.

4. The time after my youngest two go to bed and before I do. I truly do love my kids, but it's so peaceful and renewing to have that time to recharge.

5. My kitchen cabinets. When we redid our kitchen a lifetime couple of years ago, we got a quote from Lowes. I was horrified by how much it was, and we decided to check with a local, fancy, kitchen remodelling company. Well, they were awesome to work with. Not only was their quote significantly less for the exact same product, than Lowes, they also asked lots of questions and were wonderful about pointing out options we hadn't known to consider. We ended up with beautiful cabinets, with several significant upgrades that still kept us under Lowe's price, but greatly enhanced the functionality of our kitchen. I love that we upgraded to deluxe drawers, with gentle glides and that are self-closing. It's the little things, but in our tiny kitchen, little things add up to big differences.

6. A clean house. Doesn't happy often enough because cleaning does not make me happy, but a clean house does make me happy. :)

7. Zoos. I love to visit zoos with my kids. We've been to the Miami zoo (before hurricane Andrew heavily damaged it), the National zoo (definitely a favorite), the Cincinnati zoo, the Cleveland zoo and the Columbus zoo.

8. New bulbs peeking out of the earth. Such a reminder that life goes on, good things are coming. Actually, I'll throw in here, just because it's my list, spring in general. Definitely my favorite season.

9. Reading. I love to read. Lately, I'm double blessed because my mom's been giving me lots of good books that she's enjoyed and it's always fun to have something else to share with her. I just finished Tending Roses by Lisa Wingate. I enjoyed it a lot. Bittersweet because it's never fun to think about someone you love dying, but definitely a good book.

10. The Good Wife. I LOVE this show. Smart television that's very compelling. I look forward to it all week.

Rules of the meme are to tag 10 people for them to do this. I'm just going to leave it open. If you'd like to take the opportunity to focus on the positive and post about it, tell me in your comment so I'll be sure not to miss it. Have fun.

PS--I've worked on this post for a few days and have changed my list several times. It's good to be reminded there are so very many things that make me happy. Thanks Melissa.