Ever since I was about 11 or so, I've kept a journal. In addition to documenting the mundane, one of the things I've always liked to do is to make lists. I'd make lists of favorite names and words, or of things I wanted to do before I turned 30, or my particular favorite: lists of things that make me happy.
In the spirit of my pen-and-paper journal habits, I thought I'd list my top 50 things that make me happy at this moment, and share my top 10 happy outfits.
10 Happy Outfits
The tomato-print Chelsea dress from Bernie Dexter is an obvious choice for this list. In addition to being the cutest print ever (well, except for all the others I adore!), it reminds me of the kindness I was shown by the woman who helped me track it down!
Not only is this one of my all-time favorite Trashy Diva prints, this dress is super comfortable and petticoats like a dream. (Yes, I just used 'petticoat' as a verb.) I wore it for a super-fun day at the aquarium during my honeymoon staycation, so it has sentimental as well as aesthetic value. But seriously: just look at the gorgeous colors!
Do you see the face I'm making in this photo? That is the face of someone who really, really loves everything about what they're doing in that moment. The tiki Jenny was my #1 most-wanted skirt for ages, and I finally got my hands on this one owing to the wonderful Jessica of Warning: Curves Ahead. It's another one of those garments that reminds me of how kind people can be! Bonus: my friend Melanie now has it, too!
There's no story behind this Trashy Diva dress: it makes me happy because when I wear it, I feel beautiful. Well, that and the way it twirls!
Way back in the mists of time, I saw this skirt for the first time and instantly fell in love. I then discovered that literally everyone had the same reaction, and thus my chances of finding one were rather slim. I tried to move on, and convince myself that I'd survive without it, to moderate success. BUT THEN! My friend decided to sell hers and the angels sang! It's everything I dreamed it would be and looking at it makes my eyes happy.
The Kelly from Bernie Dexter is the perfect shirtdress, and as much as I love the kitchen-print version, the mums print puts an extra swing in my step every time I wear it!
The purple Hawaiian Hideaway is so pretty that it kind of hurts, the way that icing sometimes hurts your tongue a little. It's another one of those dresses that just makes me feel good when I put it on.
There are many reasons that this dress is a happy dress. First, it's a wonderful shade of olive green, which instantly makes it a win. Second, the Harley dress makes my shoulders look buff AF, which makes me feel confident. Third, I wore it to my photoshoot with Ellie Cupquakes, which was one of the most fun days I've had in ages!
Are you beginning to sense a theme? So many of the outfits that make me happy have long, ramble backstories, and this one is no exception. This print will forever remind me of one of the happiest days of my life.
It is a truth universally acknowledged that watermelon is my favorite fruit, and fruit prints are somewhat of an obsession for me. Add in a leopard-print top and a matching skirt for my sister, and I'm in heaven!
50 Things that Make Me Happy
In the spirit of my pen-and-paper journal habits, I thought I'd list my top 50 things that make me happy at this moment, and share my top 10 happy outfits.
10 Happy Outfits
The tomato-print Chelsea dress from Bernie Dexter is an obvious choice for this list. In addition to being the cutest print ever (well, except for all the others I adore!), it reminds me of the kindness I was shown by the woman who helped me track it down!
Not only is this one of my all-time favorite Trashy Diva prints, this dress is super comfortable and petticoats like a dream. (Yes, I just used 'petticoat' as a verb.) I wore it for a super-fun day at the aquarium during my honeymoon staycation, so it has sentimental as well as aesthetic value. But seriously: just look at the gorgeous colors!
Do you see the face I'm making in this photo? That is the face of someone who really, really loves everything about what they're doing in that moment. The tiki Jenny was my #1 most-wanted skirt for ages, and I finally got my hands on this one owing to the wonderful Jessica of Warning: Curves Ahead. It's another one of those garments that reminds me of how kind people can be! Bonus: my friend Melanie now has it, too!
There's no story behind this Trashy Diva dress: it makes me happy because when I wear it, I feel beautiful. Well, that and the way it twirls!
Way back in the mists of time, I saw this skirt for the first time and instantly fell in love. I then discovered that literally everyone had the same reaction, and thus my chances of finding one were rather slim. I tried to move on, and convince myself that I'd survive without it, to moderate success. BUT THEN! My friend decided to sell hers and the angels sang! It's everything I dreamed it would be and looking at it makes my eyes happy.
The Kelly from Bernie Dexter is the perfect shirtdress, and as much as I love the kitchen-print version, the mums print puts an extra swing in my step every time I wear it!
The purple Hawaiian Hideaway is so pretty that it kind of hurts, the way that icing sometimes hurts your tongue a little. It's another one of those dresses that just makes me feel good when I put it on.
There are many reasons that this dress is a happy dress. First, it's a wonderful shade of olive green, which instantly makes it a win. Second, the Harley dress makes my shoulders look buff AF, which makes me feel confident. Third, I wore it to my photoshoot with Ellie Cupquakes, which was one of the most fun days I've had in ages!
It is a truth universally acknowledged that watermelon is my favorite fruit, and fruit prints are somewhat of an obsession for me. Add in a leopard-print top and a matching skirt for my sister, and I'm in heaven!
50 Things that Make Me Happy
- Well-organized notes in outline format (a holdover from my grad-school days!)
- Deep dish pizza!
- Regular (i.e. New York) pizza.
- The way that the air smells when it snows.
- Cooking holiday dinners for my extended family.
- Seeing photos of my IG friend Rebecca's bunny!
- When songs in a minor key resolve into a major key in the last chord (e.g. 'And I Love Her' by the Beatles)
- Songs with excellent harmonies
- Listening to 'Veridis Quo' by Daft Punk whilst headed east on the Long Island Expressway or the Sunrise Highway.
- Mark Hamill's Instagram. Seriously, that man is a national treasure.
- Every scene in Mary Poppins with Dick Van Dyke in it.
- Julie Andrews.
- That interrupting-cow knock-knock joke.
- Twirling, obviously!
- When Very Important People have strong New York accents. (Except for Trump. He's the literal worst New Yorker ever.)
- Planetariums (planetaria?)
- Looking at old family photos and watching home movies
- Rereading the following books: Pride and Prejudice, any Harry Potter (but especially Prisoner of Azkaban), A Song of Ice and Fire, and most of all, Lord of the Rings
- Listening to Jeff talk about things he really likes
- Watching Jeopardy!
- Talking about movies with Jeff
- STAR WARS!
- Visiting home
- Tacos
- Walking through the Museum before/after closing time
- Dresses and skirts with pockets
- Looking at boats
- Bread and Cheese Night
- Those frozen Spanikopita from Trader Joe's
- Getting on the Shelter Island ferry
- Accelerating quickly in a stick-shift car
- Self-created routines
- Going places, even if I am tagging along on a trip to the supermarket when I don't actually need any groceries
- Succeeding. At anything, as long as I chose to try it.
- Going out in long sleeves on a summer night
- Hauling my clothes out and trying them all on
- KARAOKE
- Dressing up
- Reading the marginalia from my undergrad editions of canonical texts in the history of political thought
- Cellos
- Homestarrunner.com
- When Jeff gives me a surprise hug while I'm cooking
- Crossing things off of my to-do list
- Weekly pan au chocolate
- Political theory jokes
- The way that my rings reflect light
- Leaves changing colors/fall in general
- Watching classic Simpsons episodes
- Watching It's a Wonderful Life on Christmas Eve with my dad
- Landing in New York
So that's my list! What makes you happy?
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I loved reading this!! Bob LOVES doing #31, ha! (I don't even know how to drive stick, and he won't own a car that ISN'T a stick).
ReplyDelete#3, #24, #32,#34, #36, #38 and 49 are loves of mines as well; except, #49: except not on Christmas Eve, and with either my parents and sister, or Bob. :)
Oh my goodness, we need to hang out and eat All The Things, haha! Has Bob ever offered to teach you to drive stick? I've offered on numerous occasions to teach Jeff, but he always turns me down.
DeleteI cry SO MUCH whenever I watch It's a Wonderful Life!
D'awwwwww this was so sweet - first because every outfit you picked it one I would have picked for you too! Maybe it's because you can totally tell you're loving yourself in each photo.
ReplyDeleteThis makes me want to write up my own list! I love the ones that include Jeff - it's so fun to get little inside looks at other couples and the things they do. Cody likes to hug me from behind randomly, too, when I am cooking or doing anything really. I think he likes that since he's taller, he can come up and rest his chin on my head hahahahah
Awww, thank you so very much! I have zero poker face, so it's always readily apparent when I'm pleased/displeased about anything.
DeleteI'd love to see you write a list like this -- I like hearing about the little/unusual things that people find valuable. Zombieland was totally right: it really IS the little things! Surprise hugs are definitely the best.
Hope you're well on your way to having a fantastic time in Europe!
#28 is EVERYTHING :p
ReplyDeleteYESSSSSS! It totally is. Zero cooking, minimal cleanup, and delicious things? Sign me up!
Deletecute outfits and very good list! inspirational. i'm sorry if i missed it, but was "making noise (general)" included? :P
ReplyDeletei hope we can do #37 soon!!!
HI ROON!!!!
DeleteThankum! Also, I can't believe I forgot "Making noise (general)!" Maybe I should make another post specifically listing all of my favorite ways to make noise.
Without even scrolling up, I'm guessing that #37 is karaoke, amirite?