Identify things that make me happy – money NOT being one of them

My Family, Ice Cream, Shopping, Friends, Fashion, TV! haha being skinny and cheerleading and dance

One of the really hard things about going back to work this week was getting used to not having my dogs around me all day. I`m sure that might sound funny, but it really was! Since I`ve been home on sickleave from work for a long time, and one of my dogs has separation anxiety so I can never leave her, I`m used to having my dogs around me 24/7. Oh, how I missed them at work!! It does make me appreciate them even more though, and today it`s saturday, and I can`t wait to take them out for a long walk in the forest! (I`ll have to wait for them to wake up though! They found getting up very early in the mornings this week just as hard as I did, so today they`re happily snoring, none of them has moved a paw so far this morning, so I`ve concluded they deserve to sleep in today.)

Ahhhh. It`s friday. Finally. No work for two whole days! Ahhhh!

I just came back from my daily walk in the forest with my dog, and it was lovely. The forest looks like a perfect christmas card, with all the snow, it`s gorgeous! So my dogs got to stay out extra long today, because I had to stay and enjoy the scenery for a little extra time. I so hope the snow will stay all december, christmas just isn`t the same without it.

However, some time in january, I usually start feeling really fed up with cold, snow and darkness, so then I just want winter to go away. But for now, I love it!

It always puts me in a good mood when I log on to 43T and see that someone has cheered me. ;)

The kind that gives me that sad feeling when I`ve read the last page, because I really want the book to go on and on… There`s a lot of good novels, but some documentaries and historical books also give me that feeling. just because I find them so interresting and want to learn more.

It can be anything really, from making my own beaded necklaces and bracelets, to glass painting or making christmas ornaments. Or painting, which I`m unfortunately not really good at, but I have fun trying. I`ve found that I can`t keep doing one technique all the time, I need some variation so I try to follow my mood and make whatever I feel like that day. The trick is to find things to make where I really enjoy the process of making it, instead of just looking forward to the end result.

I`m not that much of a Christmas person anymore really, spending several days stuffed into an appartment with my family is just a bit too much. It can be nice in a way, but pretty exhausting at the same time. But I do love Advent! Which is a bit strange, since advent is supposed to be all about looking forward to Christmas. But to me, Advent is just a great time of year in itself. I love the whole thing, all the lights everywhere that lights up this dark months, lighting candles, making christmas ornaments with friends, lovely church concerts (and a lot of commercial ones that aren`t lovely at all, but I`ve learned to avoid them), getting together with friends to have fun and drink gløgg (a scandinavian thing I think, or maybe it exists in other countries under another name?). I try to buy presents in November, so that I don`t have to spend advent running around in shops, it`s a time to relax really.

It`s like a light comes on in their eyes. They`re so proud and happy they finally figured it out, and so am I. It`s a lot of fun!

I think it`s easy to underestimate the effect of different coulours on our mood and wellbeing. I have realized lately that colours are actually very important to me. For instance, I love calming colours like different shades of blue in my bedroom, in autumn I like to surround myself with warm autumny colours like red and warm orange taht makes me feel warm and cosy, and in spring, colours like turcoise and apple green makes me feel even better about that lovely time of year. I really want to explore the world of colours and their effects even more!