Happy Is As Happy Does

Well...trekked off to Borders today with the girls in search of the next book that I want to dive into:  The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin.  It is on our list for book club, so it may be an upcoming selection this summer, but whether or not our book club joins in, I want to read the book.  It is basically a memoir about the year in the life of a woman who makes being "happy" her project.  As we move through the book we learn more about her journey and perhaps begin to cultivate a journey of our own!  I checked out her blog last night, but figured I better start reading the book before I decide to give this new "kick" a try.

My own thoughts on Happiness?  And this is basically drawn from life experience (all 32.9 years of it!):  Is that to be happy, you need to BE happy.  It's about being grateful, accepting where you are in your life (whether it's challenging times or easy times), changing what needs changed, submitting to what cannot be changed, changing mental chatter from the negative to the positive, and changing ACTUAL chatter from negative to positive.

I have been reflecting a little over the past couple of weeks on a few things, how much more "at peace" I feel because I am clearing out the clutter in my home and finally realizing how to "do my job:"  this thing called "stay at home mom."  I spent a lot of time procrastinating from school age on and it's translated into putting off tomorrow what should be done today.  Hence overstuffed closets and pantry and drawers and dust bunnies and laundry pileups and babies who grow too quickly!

While clearing my clutter--well actually Jim came across it in HIS decluttering project--we came across a sketch book from when Jim and I were dating.  I loved looking through it because it reminds me of one of my happiest times with Jim.  One year for my birthday, Jim enrolled us BOTH in an art class at the community college.  It was the best gift EVER.  I give him all the credit in the world for coming up with this most amazing and perfect gift--I'm not quite sure how he knew to do it.  But anyway we took this little non-credit course together once a week for 6 or 8 weeks or so.  Even though he never claimed to be an artist--neither do I--or even claimed to LIKING to draw, the fact that he sat through the class with me and did his assignments and was just there spending time made it so wonderful.  I still smile when I think of it and smile when I look at what I created. 

I haven't drawn anything beyond a little crayon sketch or a fleeting picture on the magnadoodle in these last few years and it is something I miss...when I look at these pictures I get the urge to pull out the pencils and doodle a little and since I don't have a pile of stuff falling on my head when I open the closet door, maybe I can find some time to do a little of this or that again.

This is not something from Art Class...it's from college days--when Titanic was all the rage--It's probably the best portrait I've ever drawn though...

This was our first homework assignment: draw a chair.

Another homework assignment: draw a room.  This is the living room in my first apartment--the drawing is probably nicer than the real thing looked!

This was an in class assignment. I remember saying to Jim that we could hang it on the wall of the nursery for our first born son.  Well we never hung it in a nursery (and we never had a son!)

Here's another in class assignment I think...some tiger lilies...the problem is that even though it was a three hour class, I had trouble finishing my assignments within that time frame (I guess the perfectionist in me would come out).

Thanks for letting me share with you...it's been fun...now off to make dinner and give my husband a smooch.