"It's the little things in life..."

I can think of several pretty significant things that make me happy. Among the highest on that list are spending time with my loved ones, travelling and seeing more of God's wonderful creation, and most importantly, being a Christian.  These blessings are the building blocks of my overall foundation of happiness.  Then there are the little things that bring a smile to my face just from day to day.

The Book of Awesome by Neil Pasricha is dedicated to these little things that make us happy. If you're like me, the smallest of things can go a long way to increasing your mood. In fact, that must be true for a lot of people, because the quote by Gretchen Rubin (author of The Happiness Project) on the front of the book says, "Little things, as it turns out, are extremely important to happiness, and The Book of Awesome will remind you of a thousand little things that will make you happier."

Here are my favorites from the book:

• The other side of the pillow
• Popping bubble wrap
• Fixing electronics by smacking them
• Hitting a bunch of green lights in a row
• Tripping and realizing no one saw you
• The sound of scissors cutting construction paper
• Waking up before your alarm clock and realizing you've got lots of sleep time left
• The smell of crayons
• Licking the batter off the beaters of a cake mixer
• The thank-you wave when you let someone merge in front of you
• The smell of rain on a hot sidewalk
• Old folks who sit on their porch and wave as you walk/drive by
• The smell of coffee
• Staring out at calm water
• Finally remembering a word or thought that's been on the tip of your tongue for so long
• Putting potato chips on a sandwich
• The smell of freshly cut grass
• A long hug when you really need it (or a hug anytime!)
• Laughing so hard you make no sound at all
• The smell and sound of a campfire
• The smell of books
• Snow falling on Christmas Eve
• The smell of gasoline
• Your pillow
• Getting something handwritten in the mail
• The laugh echo-when you laugh out loud after suddenly remembering something that happened a while ago
• Remembering how fortunate we are to be here right now

Are there any of these that you especially agree with? Any more that you think should make the list? If you'd like to read more, you can also visit the website 1000awesomethings.com.
I hope just reading these will bring a smile to your face as they did for me! :)

Welcome!

Hi all!  Thanks for visiting my blog! Thought I'd give this a try... I'm a pretty reflective person, but I don't generally take the time to write my thoughts down anywhere. We'll see if I can keep this up!  I used to keep a diary when I was younger, and I wrote in it faithfully for about a week. Then I'd pull it out every month or so to write in it, then maybe once a year... I'm actually not too sure where it is at the moment...

Anyway, here's to hoping I can put more effort into blog writing! I'm thinking this will work out better for me because I can write for a wider audience than just myself--much more beneficial overall.  My motivation for starting a blog came after reading some others.  I love the idea of keeping up with my friends and family, but I also appreciate the fact that some of the blogs I've read can be very helpful and encouraging; that's mainly what I've set out to do here.  My blog will probably be a little of this and that at times, but for the most part, it's about being happy and sharing an encouraging word. If you're willing (and if I can stick with it), then stick with me! I hope I can bring a smile to your face and joy to your heart--and then you can pay it forward! :)

Have a fantastic day!