It’s my birthday!

I’m 37 today, and grateful for every moment of this life. I feel like I was 16 two seconds ago. Isn’t that strange? And while I’m older, I don’t know that I’m necessarily all that wise. I do think I’m wiser than years past, though, and this year, I think the most important thing I’ve learned – which I already knew, but man, has it been a lesson learned and relearned this year – is that you can choose to be happy.

My mom always told me that happiness is a state of mind, but I don’t think I ever really understood it until this last year, when I’ve had to choose to keep going, to smile, to find the good things, over and over. And choosing to be happy this year doesn’t mean I haven’t been sad, because I certainly have. But there’s so much in my life to be thankful for, so much that makes me happy, and I know, even in the darkest moments, that in my life, there is light.

All of that to say, in honor of my birthday this year, here are 37 things that make me happy.

1. Annie and Merlin. I love those crazy animals, and they make my life brighter just by existing and sneezing on me.
2. Graham. Of course Graham. All these years we’ve been together, and he is still my guiding star.
3. My family and friends. And now we’ve covered the big three. But seriously, I’m surrounded by kind, loving, creative, wonderful people. They inspire me every day.
4. The dewy green smell of fresh cut grass in summer.
5. Fresh brownies right out of the oven with a cold glass of milk.
6. Cake. Any kind of cake.
7. Going on adventures. Big adventures and small adventures. I just like exploring.
8. Learning something new.  
9. Picking out a new book to read.
10. That bittersweet feeling when I’ve just finished a really good book.
11. Candy. I love candy the way a kid loves candy. I could, in fact, eat it for dinner. But my 37-year-old body disagrees.
12. Doing something that scares me. I’m not good at this, but I do always feel proud of myself when I’ve been really afraid to do something and then I’ve done it anyway.
13. Old trees.
14. Pretty flowers.
15. A rainy Saturday with a cup of tea.
16. A sunny Saturday on the patio with friends.
17. Playing music with people who love to share their music with me.
18. Playing trivia. Even when my team loses.
19. Mayonnaise. On fries. With some hot sauce mixed in.
20. Apparently, just food. Lots of food on this list. But not ketchup. Ketchup is trash.
21. Getting up early enough to watch the sunrise.
22. Sleeping in with Graham and the animals on a Sunday morning.
23. That musty, familiar smell that somehow exists in every antique shop ever.
24. Christmas decorations. I put them up earlier and earlier every year. We’ll see what happens this year, though, with Baby Girl due right around early December.
25. People who laugh at stupid jokes. No need to be serious all the time, right?
26. Howl’s Moving Castle. The book and the movie. They both just make me smile, every time.
27. Clean laundry. Especially if someone else puts it away for me.
28. That moment when I’m writing and I know the story’s done. You know that moment? That’s such a cool moment.
29. The Blue Ridge Mountains. My home. No matter where I go in this world.
30. Really good craft hard cider, especially if it’s made with heritage Virginia apples. If you’ve never had cider made with Virginia Hewes crab apples, you’re missing out.
31. Driving down country roads in the fall. No better way to see those beautiful autumn leaves.
32. Wood fires.
33. Looking up at the stars in winter.
34. And while I’m thinking about winter, snow.
35. Our pokey, cozy old house in this wonderful little village. I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else.
36. Collecting weird knick-knacks. Bonus points if I have no idea what they’re meant to do.
37. Just being alive. I know it sounds cliché, but I’m here. Right now. I wake up every day and I can make things and do things and meet people. It’s amazing!

I hope that 37 is good to me. I hope that this year is full of laughs and fun and good memories. I know I can’t control everything that happens, but I can control how I choose to live. And I choose to live happy.

*A quick note – I won’t be posting on Monday. Taking a small break for my birthday weekend. 🙂 But I’ll be back on Wednesday, August 16th, hopefully with an exciting kitchen update!*