Happiness Is Being With Family

I am not particularly close to my siblings anymore, although we get along very well when we are together.  I guess it is just that life got so busy for all of us that we have just gone our separate ways and don't see each other very often.  This week my brother who lives in California came for a visit.  I had a very busy and stressful week and was not particularly looking forward to fitting even more things into my full schedule.  After going to a movie with my mom and all of my siblings, we decided to go to lunch.  The conversation began as any normal surface conversation does about the weather, work, children and grandchildren, etc.  However, the longer we talked the more in depth our conversation became and we were soon transported back to our childhood and were remembering together many funny, sad, exciting and nearly forgotten experiences.  It was amazing to me how much closer I felt to my siblings as we reminisced and shared feelings and memories that I hadn't thought about in years. As we talked, I felt a real change in my attitude and my desire to be closer to my siblings as that bond of memories filled my heart.  It made me reflect on how grateful I am for families and the absolute joy and happiness that each unique member brings into our lives. 

Happiness in Harmony

"Happiness and peace are found when we are in harmony with ourselves, with God, and with our fellow man" - Barbara B. Winder

Happiness comes from forgetting ourselves

I wanted to show you more of the gorgeous pictures that Jen took of my flowers, but didn't want to just put them all together in one big post.  Here's the picture of the day with a bonus quote by President Hinckley to go with it.

“Generally speaking, the most miserable people I know are those who are obsessed with themselves; the happiest people I know are those who lose themselves in the service of others...By and large, I have come to see that if we complain about life, it is because we are thinking only of ourselves.” 

Happiness Comes in Mint and Chocolate

I am in love.  

My mouth is watering just looking at this picture, taken by Sally's Baking Addiction.

This is quite possibly the BEST frosting I have ever eaten.  It tastes exactly like mint chocolate chip ice cream (even more creamy when you substitute Greek yogurt for the heavy cream).  Sally's Baking Addiction posted a chocolate cupcake recipe that balances out the frosting perfectly.  If I ever need an reason to smile, I will head to the kitchen and whip up a batch of these little bites of Heaven.

Maybe you just have to have a quirky sense of humor, but a guaranteed way to get our family to laugh is to watch a kid history video.  I am so grateful when people spend their time and effort making great entertainment that I can unabashedly share with my whole family.

Happiness in a craft project gone right!

I am not a crafty person, and despite my best attempts to create the cute kids projects I see online, most of them do not turn out successfully.  I should probably apologize for the section of our city landfill that contains our myriad of projects-gone-wrong.  So I was happily surprised to find a project that not only worked, but that my kids loved!   I found these pom pom shooters here and we decided to give them a try.  They were pretty inexpensive, and they kept the kids entertained for a couple of hours.  Definitely success!