Happiness

For those of you that know me, I'm sure you're well aware that it really doesn't take a whole lot to make me happy. I tend to get very excited about "the little things" in life. This post is all about 5 little things that make me smile. There are many, many more on my list... 

Packages

A special package was delivered to me this weekend - brought all the way from California. It was a package I have been looking forward to receiving and I'm so happy with what was inside. The items pictured below are family heirlooms and my Aunt Stephanie is a gem for passing them on to me. Thank you, Steph. I appreciate them more than you could ever know. 

Memories

Family

My dad came to visit me this weekend. I can honestly say that I can't remember the last time I spent that much one-on-one time with him and it was fantastic. We had a wonderful time exploring restaurants around Oshkosh that I haven't been to yet. Mexican food = our favorite! :) We did some quick thrift shopping and checked out a retro furniture shop downtown. Saturday we attempted to stay awake for a movie, but after a long day we both ended up passed out on the futon. Quite the pair! 

"New" Cookbooks

The start of my cookbook collection

I've acquired a few new cookbooks over the past few weeks that I'm pretty excited about. I love old cookbooks. I like to try to imagine the people who used them before they were passed down or given away. I look at thrift shops to see if there is anything that catches my eye. My mom also got a few from my Grandma that she thought I would enjoy. One dates back to 1974.  

Pressed flowers that my mom put in this cookbook when she gave it to my Grandma

How To Use Chopsticks Illustration and a handwritten recipe found in a thrift store cookbook

Running

After what felt like quite a long winter, spring is starting to come through. I shouldn't complain too much. Wisconsin had quite a mild winter compared to years past...but to a girl who loves heat, it still was cold! Now that the weather is nice, I've started running again. I say again because it seems I fall into these strange summer running patterns that don't continue through the winter.  

Breaking out the Nikes

Maybe at one point I'll be a year-round runner, but for now I'm just happy that I've started again. I'm using an application on my phone called Map My Run and I've found the perfect workout Pandora playlist called AHA Fitness by the American Heart Association. 

Spring 

Spring is really fun to watch. All of the flowers start to bloom, you can hear all the little birds chirping in the trees again, and everything gets green. I love green. I'm excited to say that my herbs are growing up! They're two weeks old today. Another fun thing: I talked with my neighbor Jim and he's going to save a little space for me in the backyard garden. Yay! I'm also looking forward to the day I can take the pesky plastic off my windows... soon! 

SMILE!