10 Things That Have Made Me Happy

To kick-start this year off right, I'm going to share 10 things that have made me happy throughout the past few months and into the New Year! I feel like this type of post is a great way to look back at what I'm grateful for and what I is great in my life. In general, this type of post just gives me the warm fuzzies! Sometimes you just need some warm fuzzies ;)

This has been a new school year of first for me--my first new job in 10 years, new students, finding the "me time" that I've been needing, and getting back to my old self. I have loved starting a new professional journey, meeting new people and students, and challenging myself to make a change. I have also been working on losing weight to feel like my old self. I've done some new, fun things for myself, and have taken some more time for me lately. I even started eating as a vegan. So many things have happened these past few months!

Overall, I'd say these past few months have been successful. Here are a few of my favorite happy moments:

1. Eating (mostly) Vegan

This new journey of mine has been a fun one. I am completely enjoying eating (mostly) vegan. Most of the time, I am eating plant-based, whole foods. I feel AMAZING! I have not eaten meat since the beginning of October. I have had some cheese (hence the mostly vegan); I ate pizza once or twice. I also ate honey sometimes.

In the last month, however, I have been not using honey and have been eating mostly vegan cheese. I have decided that I will still enjoy the occasional seafood or fish dish if Bjorn and I got out to dinner. I have also decided that I DO NOT want to eat meat. I just can't do it. I don't want to do it. I haven't craved it at all. And I think, right now, it's a good decision for me. I have always been a person who questioned eating meat and was never a huge meat lover. I am very set in my decision not to eat animals for their meat, and I feel really good about it.

I've been loving fresh veggies, beans, and fruit. I crave them when I am hungry and they are what really satisfy me. And that's me and my (mostly) vegan, sometimes vegetarian, sometimes pescetarian diet.

Strawberry Nice-Cream

Eggs with Zucchini and Onion

2. Taking Time for Me

It's been a long time since I have been able to come home, relax, and do something that I want to do. A lot of things just piled on top of each other needing to be finished (and never got done), which only perpetuated the problem. 

This fall has been a time that I focused on reducing my own stress and taking more time to find the things I love again--and do them! I have thoroughly enjoyed reading a lot of books, watching movies with Bjorn, playing with my pups, and taking a nap if I feel like it. And it has been wonderful.

I even took my first dance class in a long time, and it felt amazing! It's such a great mental and physical workout. It keeps my heart healthy and my anxiety in check. I've felt brave going to new classes on my own and just being. It's been one of the my favorite things I've done in the past few months.

My current read

3. Spending Time with my Family

If one of my sisters, my sister-in-laws, or my mom calls and asks to do something, I have loved just having more time to just say "yes" on a whim and do something. Last Saturday, my sisters, my niece, and I spent an impromptu day at Target, Max and Erma's, and Old Navy. It was so much fun!

Hanging out with Rach on my birthday

Girls Day with my sisters and my niece!

4. My Niece and Nephew

Look at these faces...

Need I say more? <3

5. Learning New Things

I have the longest list of things I want to learn more about or learn to do. I want to learn Japanese, learn more about aromatherapy, to tile my bathroom, refinish my cabinets, and the list could go on. 

This fall I taught myself how to arm knit. I made my sister-in-laws and mother-in-law scarves for Christmas and am currently making boot cuffs! It has been such a long time since I've learned something new!

Arm knitting scarves!

Making mugs for gifts and a giveaway in the bookshop

6. My Health

Over the past year and a half, I found my way through depression. My anxiety is currently is check. I'm working on the migraines (as always), and I decided it was time to seriously do something about the weight I gained over the past year and a half. I don't feel like myself, and I want to again. I've had fun going to Zumba, dance class, and recently, barre. I feel motivated, and I'm excited about getting back to my old self. 

7. Planning Fun, New Adventures

I recently found out that I can get a professional discount on some local classes offered, so I have decided to take Japanese this spring! Yay! I'm so excited! I also plan on learning more about photography--need to figure out a plan for that one. And I also want to continue writing. And I'm finally going to have Bjorn teach me how to play ukulele. 

8. Helping Myself Naturally

I have been using essential oils for the last 14 months and loving every minute. I especially love finding new, natural ways to use them in my life. I recently made myself some homemade dryer balls. This way I don't have to use dryer sheets with yucky chemicals in my laundry anymore! I'm going to add a few drops of one of my favorite blends, Purification, before I add them to the dryer. Purification is a fresh, clean scent. It will make my clothes smell awesome!

9. Being Myself

As a new person in a new place, it's hard for me to open up and be myself. I am a truly shy person by nature. My anxiety also keeps me from feeling comfortable around new people and in social situations. I am starting to feel comfortable being myself and starting to find my place in my new job. I've made some new friends at work. I also am getting to know my students and really care for them and their families. My students, as always, show me that it's okay to start anew and create new relationships. 

Paperweight on of my students made me out of clay :)

10. Love

I have so much love in my life: my husband, my family, my friends, and my puppies. The last few years, it has been hard to love myself being in a depression and having so many changes happen to my body. I don't look like my old self and that has been extremely hard for me. I've never had trouble with my weight, but I just can't seem to shed the extra pounds this time. I am continuously working on it and working on loving myself for the me I am at this moment in time. 

Loving my hair blow dried. I usually wake up to late to blow dry it! Ha!

I may be a few sizes bigger. My stomach may not be as flat, 

but I am embracing who I am at this moment. 

To read my last "10 Things That Make Me Happy" Post, click here. 

To read my 32 Things That Make Me Happy Link Up, click here. 

What has been making you happy lately?

Ten Things That Have Made Me Happy

The past few weeks have been full of state testing at my school--my ELL students feeling overwhelmed, wanting to give up. It's been a rough three weeks, but I wanted to post about things that have made me happy these past few months because there has been a lot of long days, exhaustion, and struggles. It's nice to look back at the things that have made me smile and remember to continue to find little things to make me smile every day. 

Here are 10 things that made me happy over the past few months:


1.  Sending book love to my IG book friends :) A little over seven months ago, I started my Instagram bookshop (@hollysbooknook), and I am loving every minute of it! I have met so many new, bookish friends. They are so sweet. It is fun to share your love for something with people who have similar interests. Read on bookish friends! Love you all :)

Packages sent out from the shop.

2. Back in the Fall, I started using Young Living Essential Oils. I love them and believe in them so much that I became a Young Living Independent Distributor and a Lemon Dropper. 

One essential oil combination that I love so much is frankincense, lavender, and lemon. I use frankincense and lavender in my face moisturizer in the morning. At night I do the same, but add lemon. My skin has never been clearer! I have always suffered from acne as a teen and throughout my 20's and into my 30's. After starting this skin regiment, my skin is smoother, clearer, and my pores look smaller.

I love this combo so much that I ran out for two weeks while waiting to put my monthly order in. Let me tell you, I will never run out again! After those two weeks, my face started breaking out again! I'm finally back to using my oils everyday and my skin is starting to clear up again :) Thank you essential oils!

3. This winter weather has been crazy, but the snow is still beautiful. We had one whole week off from school because of snow and cold temperatures. It was craziness! But I do love the icicles that form on my carport and the front porch of my house. They sure are beautiful.

4. For Bjorn's birthday this year, we decided to try a mail order food service called Blue Apron. They send a box to your door each week complete with ingredients and recipes to cook healthy, delicious meals. My favorite part is that we get the shipment on Wednesday, and Thursday and Fridays are the days that Bjorn and I usually are so tired that we give in and order a pizza or get take out from somewhere. Well, not anymore! We get two amazing meals delivered to our door each week. They have not disappointed yet! Every week since, we have ordered two meals and plan the rest of our week as we normally do.

I have a few free meal codes that I can send to friends, so let me know if you would like to try one :) 

A salad combo Bjorn and I never created before. It's one of our new staples!

Cauliflower roasted in the oven with spices (your choice), arugula, almonds, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper.

5. Visiting Some of My Favorite People

I love when I get to see one of my very best friends since high school and her boys. I love them all to death. They are my family. It is so good to hang out with them and visit, catch up, and get lots of hugs and playtime in!

6. I started back to working out more regularly. 

I still go to Zumba when I can make it and when I don't have a migraine. I also started doing some of the 21 Day Fix Workouts for Strength Training on days when I don't do cardio.

7. I Re-Found My Childhood Love of Cross-Stitching

Downtown there is this amazing cross-stitching shop with fabulous, modern patterns and just a cool vibe in general. I found this pattern recently and just had to get it to make and hang in Bjorn's office. I'm a little rusty, so this may take me awhile. But I'm going to finish it!

The other side has a huge Viking ship!

8. New Tattoos

I'm always thinking of new ideas for new tattoos. So many ideas, but which one do I get first? I really want to add on to the Sugar Skull that my friend and I got together on Day of the Dead last year. I'm thinking of getting some sort of hummingbird with its skeleton visible around the skull and some big flowers. 

9. I Felt Pretty

On Valentine's Day I went to my sweet friend's wedding. It was beautiful. She was gorgeous. I felt pretty good too about my make-up and hair. Over the past year taking different medications trying to control my migraines, I have gained some weight. I have felt less confident about myself, and this night, I felt really great. 

10. My Nieces!! (Yes, I know one is a dog!!)

I love my nieces! Miss Olivia is so adorable and sweet. I want to see her, squeeze her little cheeks, give her kisses, and rock her to sleep so badly! I can't wait to go to Utah to visit Olivia and my sister, Ashley! Until then, Facetime will have to do.

My other sister, Rachael, recently got a new puppy, Scarlet. She's a big baby! On our week off from school, I took Scarlet out for Rachael a few times at lunch while she was at work. Scarlet loves when her Auntie comes over!

So many things have made my life full of happiness these past few months. 

What has made you happy?



Love and happiness <3 Holly

Tried It Tuesday...is Back!!!

Guess what?!? Tried It Tuesday's back!

Since I haven't posted a Tried It Tuesday in awhile, here's the "Tried It Tuesday deal:"

On Tuesdays I typically post random items that I have tried {or found out about} and enjoyed in hopes that you will find something in my list that you may enjoy too! 

Here are some things I've tried recently and enjoyed:

App

I  am seriously in LOVE with the App Word Wall! I got my sister Rachael to play with me too! I love a good brain challenge. Word Wall is a FREE App that challenges you to take a wall of words and find all the pairs of words that are associated with one another until there are no words left to be matched. For example, words can be matched as synonyms, antonyms, sayings/phrases, or parts/whole, just to name a few. 

Here's a picture of an example screen you get when you open the App:

Once you read through the words, you tap two words that you believe fit together in some way, or can be associated together, and they turn dark gray {as shown below}:

My first match was entertainment and film.

And then...

Film -- Entertainment

Crap -- Poo

Animal -- Dog

Drink -- Wine

Once you get towards the end and there are only a few words left, you start to realize that some of your matches may not be "the best" matches/choices, so you end up having to do some rematching. The game will alert you that you can no long make matches with your leftover words. 

I ended up rematching "column" with "support."

Then "dependent" became free, so I could match "baby" with "dependent."

I kept going until all matches were made {I stopped taking pictures after this screen :) }.

At first the timer bothered me, but it only counts up. You get stars if you complete the puzzle within so many seconds, but I've never not made it to the next level. {I think you can take as long as you want.}

So fun!!! You have to try it, and exercise your brain!!

Sweets

My dad was always a caramel fan. He loved butterscotch too. I never had a huge taste for them {I think because of their chewiness}, but I recently found some silky smooth, soft caramels that are delish!

I picked these up at Target. They lasted me a few months; I'm not a huge candy eater. 

They were on sale at the time for $2, but are normally $3.99 for a package of 16 pieces. They are also Gluten Free! They are not too chewy, not too sweet, and have a nice, subtle buttery taste. 

Book

I recently read a few books that I've had stacked waiting to be read, and I have to mention the one I just finished. It was FANTASTIC!

Mockingbird follows Caitlin, a young girl living with Asperger's. Her world is very black and white. Everything around her seems confusing, but her older brother Devon, was always there to help her throughout her life. After Devon was killed in a school shooting, Caitlin's life became even more confusing: her brother is no longer there and her dad is not able to give her his full attention because he is so distraught. Caitlin wants her life to go back to normal, but she doesn't know how to do that. She thinks that understanding how to find "closure" can help her, but she's not sure how to go about it. On her search for closure, she realizes a lot about herself and her new life. 

For My Teacher Friends:

F & P Level: W

DRA: 60

Grade Level Eqivalent: 3.5

Lexile: 630

I absolutely LOVE this book. Caitlin is a character you will fall in love with!

Art

For Christmas, I got silhouettes made for my mom of me and my sisters. They are beautiful! I found a shop on Instagram @missthistleshop also at www.missthistleshop.com that makes custom silhouettes of people, animals, and houses! The owner sends you digital copies that you can get printed in any size you like. Here are what ours look like:

 

I found the gold frames at TJ Maxx. Love them!! Thanks, Meiska!! <3

Music

Does anyone else love Ed Sheeran? I <3 his music, but I have never seen his music video for "Thinking Out Loud" {love this song btw!}. Holy poo, he dances in it!! I watched this like four times Sunday night. Love it!!

Oh! And have you seen OK Go's newest music video? Amazing! They did it in one take! So cool. This makes me smile!! And they count in Japanese :)

Drink

I love Bigelow tea. My all-time favorite is Cinnamon Stick, but my local Kroger and Target DO NOT sell it anymore! It makes me want to loose my mind! (It's the little things that make me happy! I want my tea back, damn it!) However, I did find a delicious new Bigelow tea that I am really digging right now. It does have more caffeine than normal tea, so I have to only drink a cup now and then because of my headaches.

I really enjoy the creaminess of the tea from the honey. I also haven't noticed that the tea gets bitter if you steep it a little longer than you'd like. 

That's it for this week's Tried It Tuesday!

What have you tried, found, or enjoyed anything new this week?

Love and happiness <3 Holly

My Winter Break is Over!!!! :0

Aaaggghhh! Tomorrow is my first day back to work after a two week break. Thank god it's a teacher workday. I put my grades in this weekend so that I can talk to some teachers that I work with about grades, work on some paperwork, and get ready for this week. I AM NOT ready to go back. It's hard after two weeks off to get back into the swing of things. 

I really want to be enjoying myself on the couch like this little guy instead of getting ready for my state ESL testing and so forth. Blech!

I had some great things happen over break! And I'm going to try to think of those things to get me through this {I'm predicting} long week. For one, my niece was born on January 2nd. She is super adorable, of course! Ashley, my sister, is doing well. My niece's name is Olivia Noelle. I really want to squeeze her cute, little cheeks, but she lives in Utah. :( Pictures and videos will have to do for now. 

I also got off to a great start on break by organizing my walk-in-pantry. I've been wanting to do this for a long time, but I just haven't had the time to take everything out, deal with the mess, and reorganize everything. Now I just have to slap some labels on everything, and it will be good to go!

Please ignore the crate that needs to go to school minus the small plate 

and vintage cake pan. Gotta stick that crate in my car :)

Most of the bins, the hanging tray, the lazy Susan, and other organizational tools for this project, I picked up at the thrift store. There's a post on that one coming! You can find some great, inexpensive, organizational finds there! They don't always match color-wise, but hey, they get the job done!

Bjorn also got me some super cool attachments for my iPhone for Christmas, since I'm such a picture-taker. They're different lenses that attach by magnets over the lens of your phone that achieve different photo effects. Here's me testing out the fisheye lens. So cool! You can check out these lenses at Phtojojo.

This is mid-walk-in pantry organization. Boy, that was a crazy mess!

And let's just talk about a guilty pleasure that I've been dabbling in while I've been driving to and from the post office mailing clothes and books from my Instagram shops,: teeny-bopper music! Does anyone else love either of these two songs right now? I know, Bjorn is probably poo-pooing me and rolling his eyes {or shoving his fingers in his ears}, but these songs make me want to turn up the radio, sing really loud, and dance :) Evan, I know you're laughing at me too! ;)

I already know the words to this first one:

5 Seconds of Summer, "Perfect"

MKTO, "American Dream"

I mean, seriously, my 6th graders love 5 Seconds of Summer ;)

Overall, I had a really enjoyable break. Now I just have to find ways, with the stress of work and everyday life, to find ways to continue to relax, enjoy myself, and be happy throughout the rest of the school year. I think I'm off to a great start so far! 

To all my teacher friends, happy first day back to work!

Love and happiness <3 Holly

Finding My Happy in the New Year

This year I am not writing about New Year's Resolutions. I don't want to feel the pressure of one looming over my head. For some reason, when I hold myself to a resolution, I feel anxiety about it; I feel this mounting pressure as time goes on to always live up to my resolution. Then if I fall behind, I feel down on myself, like I'm not good enough at anything, because I can't keep a damn New Year's Resolution. And I don't think that's the point of having a New Year's Resolution. 

There are a lot of things that I want to do this year, and I don't want to feel the pressure to do them. I just want to want to do them. And I know, from past experience, that giving myself goals just leads to failure. With my anxiety, I know that would be setting myself up for failure. 

So this year I decided to make a list of things that I'd love to do this year that will make me happy. This past year was a roller coaster of emotions--finding my way through depression, dealing with new treatments for my headaches, and feeling stagnant on my happiness journey. 

I am writing this list in hopes to remind me of the things that make me happy and to remind myself to in all honesty, do them more often. 


Here's my Happy List for 2015:

1. Read

This fall I definitely did not read as much as I usually do. A lot of my energy this year was spent just making it through the day, so I didn't spend a lot of time doing the things I love. Look for an upcoming post on my to-be-read list for the new year!

Here's a preview of a few books that I would like to read this year:

2. Blog

I miss writing and want to write more. Expect more blog posts coming soon! And because I love writing, this note from Jacqueline Woodson means so much to me:

I look at it when I need to spark my motivation. It makes me happy. 

3. Move More

Over the last year, I haven't been as active as I usually am. I haven't been going to Zumba. I haven't been dancing. Changing medications, feeling tired, and feeling depressed have taken a toll on me. I've gained some weight, and I don't feel like myself. I want to feel like myself again. 

4. Laugh

It's funny the things that you take for granted when you feel depressed. I never laughed--about anything. It took so much energy to laugh, smile, try to feel any kind of happiness. This past month, I remember two times--one on the phone with my sister and one watching TV with my husband--when I just uncontrollably laughed, non-stop until tears formed in my eyes. It felt nice to feel happiness again--genuine bliss. It's funny how going through such a dark time made me distinctly aware of laughing. Afterwards, it was like I had a moment with myself--I just laughed out loud. I can't remember the last time I did that.

5. Learn to Meditate

One thing that I've learned through my headache journey is that pain creates pain {and stress creates pain which creates more stress and pain}, so I have decided that I would like to start meditating. There has to be some kind of link between mind over matter and nerves signalling pain. I've tried a website for biofeedback--a way to try to promote self-soothing and calming of your mind and body. It involves deep breathing and guided imagery. I like it, but I feel like I need some more heavy duty mind-over matter practice when it comes to my migraines. I've got it down {most of the time} for my OCD, but intense pain is a different beast. I do well when my migraines are not severe, but it's hard to focus when you can't see straight, you feel like vomiting, and you're sensitive to sounds. Sometimes in those instances, it literally hurts to think. I started a Pinterest board called Meditation. I am going to keep adding to it as I find new meditation ideas. 

6. Relax

In talking about meditation, I think relaxing fits in nicely here. I've been much better at this lately. I've learned with time, especially with my migraines, not to push myself. If I have a migraine, I need to lie down and rest. I don't need to spend the evening cleaning the house. It will be there tomorrow. If my house isn't pristine, so be it. If I'm planning on working out and I feel a migraine coming on, I won't push myself. I'll work out another day. It sucks, for sure, but I've learned that I'd rather feel better than almost pass out or throw up on the dance floor. And driving home with a migraine is horrible! I've learned my limits; it's time to acknowledge them and take a deep breath. I don't have to be perfect. 

7. Have Fun

This one is a biggie for me. When I was depressed, I didn't do anything fun. I didn't want to. I want to have movie marathons, read books, blog, play with my dogs, go out to dinner, cross stitch, and learn how to play the ukulele! 

8. Don't Sweat It

This is a big one for me and my anxiety/OCD. I have always and still do {to certain extents} worry about other people and whether I'm doing the right thing to keep them happy instead of whether it's the right decision for me and my life. I've always been this way, and this is probably going to be an ongoing struggle. I always feel like when I say "no" to something, that I owe an explanation. I feel that I need to keep other people happy and I worry that something I did wasn't the right thing to do in a certain instance. 

I used to worry and dwell about different things that I said or different situations that happened on given days. Over time, I've gotten better about spending less time thinking about them after the fact, but this year I'd like to dwell even less. The choices I make need to be what's best for me and that's not being selfish. I need to take care of myself. 



These are the things that I want for myself in the new year. I'm going to work on them, but not set myself to a certain timeline or make myself feel like I have to do them by a certain point in the year. After all, finding happiness is an ongoing journey. In my personal life, I do much better without deadlines hanging over my head. So here's to the new year. I hope everyone is looking forward to 2015 like I am! I'm ready for a happy year :)


What do you plan on doing this year to find happiness?


Love and happiness <3 Holly