What really matters? It’s the small things in your life. The seemingly insignificant, everyday, ordinary moments. It’s those little things in life are the things that make ME happy and simple things that can make YOU happy, too.
Things That Make Me Happy
What is it that makes you happy in life?
Having lots of “stuff”?
Or a big house?
A long vacation?
These things can add to your happiness… maybe.
Studies have shown that these big things don’t really matter in the long run.
They don’t contribute to long-lasting happiness. But what really matters?
The small things in your life. Seemingly insignificant, everyday, ordinary things.
It’s the little things in life that make ME happy and simple things that can make YOU happy, too.
Take a look and see if you agree.
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Simple things that make me happy
1.) The full moon
2.) The smell of cookies baking.
3.) and eating those (chocolate chip, of course) cookies while they’re still hot.
4.) Peppermint mocha creamer in my coffee
5.) Watching the birds and squirrels come to the feeder
6.) A good night’s sleep
7.) My puppy, Sparky
8.) Petting a kitty and hearing her purr, even if the kitty isn’t real. (Have you seen this one?)
9.) Rain, especially with thunder and lightning
10.) Movie theater popcorn
11.) Playing with bubble wrap
12.) A fresh haircut (and a good hair day)
13.) Putting something on right out of the dryer
14.) Clean sheets on my bed
15.) A long, hot shower
16.) A clean house
17.) Reading a good book
18.) A new tube of mascara
19.) A warm bath
20.) Meeting friends or family for dinner
21.) Babies
22.) Writing
23.) Flowers in bloom
24.) Sand between my toes
25.) A trip to the car wash
25 more things that make me happy
26.) The Grand Canyon (I know, that’s not so little…)
27.) Scary movies
28.) A soft tissue
29.) Good music
30.) Dark Chocolate
31.) A very soft throw or blanket
32.) A barely pink, mostly done steak with A1
33.) Pizza, especially homemade with french fries (also homemade) That’s a family tradition I’ll have to share with you one day.
34.) Bread. Any kind. French, garlic, bagels, dinner rolls, you name it.
35.) Netflix
36.) Ice cold soft drinks
37.) A glass of white wine
38.) Watching old cartoons – Wile E. Coyote and the Roadrunner, Elmer Fudd, and Foghorn Leghorn, too
39.) Skipping rocks across the pond
40.) A brand new pair of underwear
41.) Dropping my phone and not breaking the screen
42.) An evening without a call from someone wanting to sell me something
43.) Returning an item to the store with no questions asked (and no waiting)
44.) Finding a five-dollar bill in the pocket of the coat I haven’t worn in ages
45.) Yoga
46.) Buying a tube of lipstick that’s actually the right color
47.) Frixon pens and my new planner from Living Well Spending Less
48.) Planning our retirement travels
49.) Fresh strawberries
50.) Being a woman, wife, mom, grandma, daughter, sister, aunt, cousin, and friend with an incredible network of people that love and support me.
Things that make me happy about SUMMER
Do you know the movie, Elf? He says smiling is his favorite.
Well, I like summer. Summer is MY favorite.
51.) It is summer. So it’s usually warm.
52.) Visiting the lake frequently
53.) Camping
54.) Being outside
55.) Sunshine on my shoulders
56.) Swimming or just floating on a noodle in the lake
57.) Going on a boat ride
58.) Seeing friends I don’t see during the winter.
59.) Picnics
60.) Road trips
61.) Wearing flip-flops
62.) Getting a pedicure at a salon instead of a winter “do-it-yourself” job.
63.) Longer daylight hours
64.) A BBQ or fish fry
65.) Fresh, red, ripe, juicy tomatoes
Things that make me happy about WINTER
This list was a little harder to create since summer is my very favorite. (Did I already tell you that?)
I wouldn’t care if winter skipped a year…
But if it has to be winter, I really DO like these things:
66.) A warm fire
67.) A hot cup of cocoa with marshmallows
68.) Being indoors and warm (do you see a pattern here?)
69.) Watching the big, white snowflakes fall and not having to go anywhere
70.) Working from home so I don’t have to navigate snowy roads
71.) Seeing friends I don’t see in the summer
72.) Wearing jeans, sweaters, and boots
73.) Christmas lights
74.) Watching the Christmas Vacation and Elf movies over & over again
75.) Making Christmas cookies with the girls
76.) Soup. Hot. With Oyster crackers or cornbread.
77.) A chance to start again with a new year
78.) Hosting our annual Daytona 500 watch party
79.) Binge watching the Hallmark Channel
80.) Spring is coming soon
Things that make me happy as a Grandma
81.) It started when I found out I was going to BE a Grandma
82.) Cuddling that newborn baby for the first time
83.) That clean baby smell
84.) Baby soft skin
85.) When she held my finger
86.) Buying baby things for a girl (since I had sons and my first grandbaby is a girl)
87.) Seeing them walk for the first time
88.) A big hug around the neck
89.) “I love you, Grandma”
90.) Snuggling up to read a good book together
91.) Watching them sleep
92.) Teaching them things and learning from them, too!
93.) Hearing the giggles when they tell me a joke.
94.) Singing “The littlest worm. I ever saw.” or the real version, “The other day, I met a bear.” and hearing them giggle and sing along
94A.) My son called me later to say the kids were singing that song and he remembered when I sang it to him…
95.) Blowing bubbles
96.) Taking them on outings to see and do things
97.) Watching them check for new snacks in the refrigerator when they come to visit
98.) The surprised and happy look on their faces when I get to pick them up from school
99.) Getting to do all the things again – coloring, playing with play-doh, a good game of hide-and-seek but being able to send them home when we’re done.
100.) The thing that makes me most happy about being a Grandma really, is being a part of their lives!
Other things that make me happy
101.) The beauty in the world
102.) Waking up every day
103.) Friendships
104.) Love
105.) My wonderful 80+-year-old parents
106.) Having a husband, kids, and Grandkids that love me
107.) An extended family that finds ways to stay in touch and remain close
108.) I’ve lived long enough to enjoy these little things in life
109.) I have a ton of things that make me happy
110.) People visiting me here at PassingDownTheLove.com
111.) and sharing my articles on Facebook and Pinterest (you can do that at the top or bottom of this post)
All these are things that make me happy.
What are the things that make you happy?
Do you think to yourself “I want to be happy”, but you don’t know how to get there?
Try seeing the little things.
Take note of the times you feel content.
Notice what makes you smile.
It’s the little things in life that truly make us happy.
Share with me.
Tell me in the comments below – What is it that makes you happy?
In the meantime,
Keep Passing Down the Love,
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