We took a quick trip to New Orleans about two months ago. We had beignets, which made me happy.

They taste like zeppoles, right down to the powdered sugar, except they’re just a different shape. The first beignet place we went to was Cafe Du Monde, which okay, but I didn’t like how you had to go up to a window to order. Most of the seating was outdoors and the servers just sat around not doing anything until they saw someone sit down at a table. Then the server would go over to take the customer’s order. It reminded me of those taxi stands where the drivers just sit and wait until someone needs a cab.

The Husband checked Yelp and found another place that we tried on our second day in NOLA, Cafe Beignet. The place was adorable. The place was indoors with little cafe tables and there was a small garden area for nice weather. That’s where I got the beignets in the photo. I also saw him:

LIttle birds get into the cafe and flit around. They seem to enjoy pecking at the powdered sugar that falls from the beignets onto the floor. They were so cute that I couldn’t stop watching them. So that was actually two things that made me happy that day. 🙂

Day 15 – This made me happy. This bad boy is so adorable, I could watch him all day.

Day 16 – Adventure Time makes me happy. I was flipping through channels one day and this was playing on the Cartoon Network:

The story takes place in the futuristic Kingdom of Ooo, and I thought the main characters, Finn the Human and Jake the Dog, were pretty entertaining. It’s usually the phrases they say, like “Oh my glob!” and “Holy schram!” that get to me, because you know it’s the writers’ version of censoring themselves. The Husband tried to watch one episode with me, but he couldn’t understand the weirdness of the storyline. He said he doesn’t want me watching anymore because he’s afraid it’s going to turn me into a degenerate. (His exact words.) Unfortunately for him, if Pendleton Ward asked me to write for Adventure Time, I would be like, “Does a bear schram in the woods??”

I know I’m behind on posting. I thought it would be easy to write something almost every day, but it takes a lot of effort to come up with ideas. Since I’m so far behind, I’m going to post a few days of happiness at a time until I catch up.

Day 13 – This makes me happy:

It’s the switches in my bathroom for the light, fan, and heater. The previous owners renovated the house a few years before we bought it, and the second floor bathroom had been a new addition. For some reason, they didn’t install any type of heating system in the bathroom and the only means of ventilation was a skylight. That’s fine for late spring, summer, and early fall, but when the Husband and I spent our first winter in the house, we found out the bathroom gets cold. Of course, we can use the one on the first floor, but it’s not as convenient since our bedroom is on the second floor. We spent a lot of that winter going up and down the stairs. This past fall, we got smart and hired an electrician to install a ceiling heater/fan. I think most people use the timer for the fan, but we both agreed that it would be more useful for the heater since it would shut off by itself if we accidentally forget about it. The fan means we don’t have to open the skylight in the cold weather. I was especially grateful for the heater since the polar vortex came around and temps in our area went down to the single digits.

Day 14 – Good food makes me happy. So, so happy.

This is a cinnamon and sugar crepe from Cafe Triskell in Astoria. Every time I get one, I practically inhale that thing. I can honestly say I’ve never had a bad meal there.

We’ve been going there on a semi-regular basis for almost six years. Although the servers and the chef don’t know our names, they always recognize us and give us warm welcomes. Although the menu is limited, the food always tastes amazing. Cafe Triskell was voted #1 in New York for their onion soup (which I can testify is outstanding) and they’re known for their crepes. More and more people seem to find out about it. Every time we go, it’s packed. I once asked Phillipe, the owner, why he doesn’t expand since they’re doing so well. He said that if he did that, then he knows the quality of his food will change because they would have to cut corners to efficiently serve more people. That made me realize he does it for his love of cooking and not for the money. I respect that.

Day 11 – Exercise makes me happy. I don’t go to the gym as much as I should, but when I do, I feel like I was productive. I’m sure it’s the endorphins doing their thing, but it’s nice to know I’m doing something that not only makes me feel good, but is good for me. As Elle Woods would say:

Day 12 – Stupid jokes make me happy. My cousin posted on Facebook earlier today that he was feeling down. I commented with one of my favorite jokes:

Two muffins are baking in an oven. The first one turns to the other and says, “It sure is getting hot in here.”

The second muffin says, “Oh, crap, a talking muffin!”

The first time I heard that, I couldn’t stop laughing. 😀

Just catching up on my Challenge. Some days are easier that others to figure out what makes me happy, but it’s nice to know there’s always something!

Day 7 – I had a hard time trying to figure out what made me happy last Friday, and it didn’t come to me until the end of the day. My gym membership allows me one personal training session each month for a discounted price. I’ve had the same trainer for almost five years and, even though I haven’t had much change in my weight or shape, he never stops encouraging me. This made me realize how I have a great support system, not only in my trainer, but in my friends and family too. That’s what made me happy…knowing I have so many people I can count on. It’s nice to know so many people care.

Day 8 – Cats make me happy. We can’t have one where we live right now, but the Husband promises that he’ll get me one as soon as we move to a place that allows pets. I always imagine that I would have my cat napping beside me while I write. I even have a name picked out: Kindle. One reason I chose this one is because of the word’s relation to books and the other reason is that it also means a group of kittens. I can imagine I would get a cat that would cause as much mischief as several kittens. There’s a coffee shop near the gym that roasts their own coffee beans and they have the sweetest kitty that comes out to greet everyone. The owner of the shop jokes that everyone comes to see his cat and then they remember to buy coffee. Here she is waiting for me to scratch her behind her ears:

Day 9 – Weekend coffee with the Husband makes me happy. We sit and have coffee together on most Saturday and Sunday afternoons. This is the time we spend chatting about whatever comes up. Usually, it’s about his work, my writing, family, or just talking about what’s going on in the world. Usually when we talk, there’s always something else going on at the same time, like the TV going on in the background, my husband on the computer at the same time, or me on my iPad. But coffee time is just me and him and no other distractions. This is one of the main reasons I look forward to the weekends.

We have mismatched mugs because we got them from work for free. But it’s a good way to tell my cup apart from his, since I like sugar in my coffee and he doesn’t.

Day 10 – This is my third mention about something coffee related! Sitting in cafes and coffee shops make me happy. I love being able to take the time to sit and just drink coffee. I also feel like I get more writing done when I’m in a cafe and away from home. I guess because it’s a change of scenery and I feel like if I’m going to take the time to leave the house, then I should make it worthwhile. I also love cafes because it brings back a memory of when the Husband and I went to Paris and there was one morning where we sat at an outdoor cafe for brunch. The weather was perfect which made sitting outside even more enjoyable. I prefer the smaller coffee shops, but Starbucks will do if there are no other options.

Image courtesy of Sura Nualpradid

This song makes me happy. I’ve wanted to watch Disney’s Frozen ever since I saw this video. I love the idea about not limiting yourself just because you’re afraid of what other people may think. Idina Menzel does the voice and singing for this character, Elsa. I saw her when she performed in Wicked, and I thought she did a fantastic job. That may also explain why I like the song Defying Gravity so much; Menzel sings that one as well and it has the same idea as Let It Go. I felt it was appropriate that I saw this on my Facebook feed this morning:

Image courtesy of Pure Spa and Salon

Happy New Year! It’s hard to post on a regular basis when you don’t know what to write about. I finally found an idea that will encourage me. I read Gretchen Rubin’s The Happiness Project and I wanted to try something similar, but I wasn’t sure about a year-long project. Then I saw a post last week on Buzzfeed about the 100 Happy Days Challenge, and that seemed more appealing. Apparently, most people don’t have time to be happy, so the idea is to think of one thing each day that makes you happy and post a picture of it on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. I would normally post my pictures on Facebook, but I feel more comfortable doing this project on my blog.

I actually started this past Saturday, so I’ll put everything up to today into this post. Then I’ll try to keep updating as much as possible.

Day 1 – I’m happy that I know good people. This past summer, I received an invitation through Facebook to a barbecue from a girl I haven’t spoken to since college (which was many, many years ago). I decided on the spur of the moment that I would go, and it turned out she kept in touch with several other friends from college who also came to the barbecue. I reconnected with a lot of good people (and their husbands/wives) which led to me being invited to more events. Unlike people I knew from the past, they’re very low key and unpretentious. This past Saturday, I was invited to a birthday dinner at a seafood restaurant. My friend Ky let me take a picture of him wearing a lobster bib:

I didn’t notice until I look at the picture later that he can touch his nose with his tongue.

Day 2 – I’m happy that the Husband and I had the luxury of doing whatever we wanted on a Sunday. We don’t have kids, so that gives us some free time. I appreciate that I was able to spend the afternoon reading without interruption.

Book Cover Image Courtesy of Harper Teen.

Day 3 – I’m happy for warm weather, even if it’s only for one day. It was 56 degrees, which felt awesome! This was the day before the polar vortex and the temperature in New York was expected to drop to around 6 degrees. It also rained that day, which melted the massive piles of snow. I was happy about that too.

Day 4 – The Husband makes me happy. I can honestly say we rarely argue. I admit that we have discussions that get heated, but we never yell at each other. He tries really hard to see my point of view and I do the same. He’s under a lot of pressure right now because he knows the time to start looking for a new job is coming up soon. He tries not to bring his stress home, which I appreciate. He doesn’t like having his pictures floating around the internet, so I’ll post a picture of a cookie instead, which is my nickname for him.

Day 5 – My mother-in-law makes me happy. Whenever I see her, she’s always smiling and is in a cheerful mood. She always tries to make me eat, which she explained once is how she expresses her love. Even when I act cranky, she still smiles at me. I don’t have a picture of her on my computer, so I’m posting one with an apple instead. The apple is shiny and bright, just like my mother-in-law.

I’ll post until I get to 100 days. If anyone else is doing the 100 Happy Days Challenge, please let me know. I’d love to see what makes you happy!