What little things in life give you a big smile?
The sound of my dog’s ears flapping always, always makes me smile, even when it wakes up the baby. My daughter, when she wakes up, grins from ear to ear. Everything she does gives me a big smile, every sound, every look. She’s magic.
Love notes from my husband, he leaves them for me everywhere, all the time. As well the flowers he gets me, particularly the roses that look like flames. Kisses. A nice, hot shower. Magnolia trees in bloom against the blue sky. Rainy days. The farmer’s market. Live music anywhere, whether it’s in a subway or at a concert hall or in a park or at a music festival. Hummingbirds. Kids laughing. Coffee. Memes.
My cousin Maggie’s laugh. My mother-in-law marveling at her granddaughter. Being silly in my garage with my best friends. Dancing. Cookbooks. Texting with my aunt about everything and anything all day. Her cooking. My uncle’s joyful optimism. Hugs. Hope greeting me when I get home, like I’ve been gone for months. Witnessing an act of kindness. FaceTimes with my family on the other side of the country. Conversations with my siblings. Group chats with friends all over the world.
Massage. A bath. Hot tea. Journaling.
Cuddling with Hope.
It's interesting that you mentioned hummingbirds. We were surprised to find them still coming to our feeders in January! We had a cold spell just before Christmas and I was alternating feeders to keep them from freezing. We've lived in this house for more than twenty years but this is the first time we've had a lot of hummers. We've put feeders out before and might have one or two but they've been coming to our feeders since back in the fall. I thought the ones here were transients but have since learned they stay in Texas year-round. They're fascinating little birds.
The things that made me smile this week...my son wearing his neon pink t-shirt required for his job at a frozen yogurt shop. My husband and son taking down the backyard Christmas lights together. Football on TV on cold days. A friend saying let’s skip the crab feed at the school and just have crabs at our house. (Why are large functions so taxing these days?) A photo of our past teenage babysitter now at her own baby shower. Seeing either or both of my daughters’ names pop up showing they have sent me a text. ❤️