Embrace the Things you Enjoy

My daughter loves princesses.  She loves dress up, and wedding day Barbies, and horses with sparkly saddles, and ballet tutus, and just generally anything frilly and fancy.

So, when she got this beautiful Belle gown (from Beauty and the Beast) in the mail for her birthday (thanks to her sweet Aunt Kelley!), you can imagine her reaction.  As in, she wanted to wear it exclusively for the following 3 days.  And she wanted to watch Beauty and the Beast immediately (while in her dress with her Belle barbie doll.)  And she wanted to sing all the songs from Beauty and the Beast over and over and over, and over.

And I embraced it, remembering how I used to love Disney movies and dress up and getting lost in a good story.  So, I dug out the Beauty and the Beast movie, and (since my hubby was watching some soccer or football game) let her watch it in our bedroom on the travel DVD player.  Along with the Belle barbie I managed to find at the bottom of her Barbie basket.  She was in heaven.  And the next day, I let her wear her princess dress to her grandparents' house.  And she really just couldn't stop glowing.

It got me thinking, that when we embrace what we love, when we know what makes us happy and then do just that, it's easy to glow.

So, I had been reading the Hunger Games.  I had finished the first book, and loved it soooo much!  And I was trying to pace myself before reading the next two.  But then, I realized, if I love reading this trilogy, and it makes me happy to read this trilogy, then why wait?  So I got the next two books via my Kindle app and spent a blissful few days reading every chance I got.    Now, I've finished the books, but I have such happy anticipation of the movie (coming out in March, I think?).  When I hear anything about the Hunger Games, my face just lights up...I believe I glow!

So, embrace the things you enjoy.  It might just make you an easier person to be around.  I mean, who doesn't like hanging out with glowing girls?




What do you most enjoy doing?  Do you allow yourself to take the time to do just that now and then?  

Embarrassing but True

I’m trying to keep my happiness commandment to “Be Authentic,” and it’s tougher than I had first thought.

Turns out if I’m honest with myself, I’m not half as cool as I’d like to be. The real me is kinda dorky.

For instance,

I love to walk around Target and just look at things, as, like, a pastime. Who, besides me, does that for fun? I wish I loved jogging or kickboxing or knitting. You know, real hobbies. But I like to look at stuff. It reminds me of when I was young and would buy Vogue magazine just to flip through it for hours on end. I like to see the newest stuff people are selling. Strange, I know.

I love poppy country music. (You know, Taylor Swift, the Chicken Fried guy, that one about how “It won’t be like this for long”). I have even been brought to tears by songs like, “You’re Gonna Miss This”. Yes, I’m old now and have gotten sentimental. I even like Christian music. I've tried really hard to be modern and really get into the instrumental math rock bands my hubby listens to, but, alas, I am just not that cool.

I love reading books about disorders and their treatment in my spare time. I’m especially interested in autism, OCD, and attachment disorders. I also like to read child development books and books in Spanish. And sometimes child development books in Spanish. For fun. Sigh.

I don't like to be negative. I'd much rather say something nice about someone than gossip. This has really limited the number of people who want to be my friend, because a lot of people seem to bond over sharing the same contempt for someone or something. You know, those girls who just want to go out and complain about their husbands all night? or those coworkers who just want to hang out and bad-talk the boss all evening? At one job, I actually had a coworker tell me (in a half-joking way) that she just couldn't talk to me because I'd never complain about anything. I hate to be seen as a Pollyanna, but I guess if I'm honest with myself, maybe I am.

When no one else is home, I love to watch Mystery Diagnosis. Soooo interesting! I recently forced Robi to watch it with me, and he pretended to enjoy it, which I really appreciated! I wish I liked normal shows that I could talk about at work the next day, like American Idol or Dancing with the Stars or, um, that big football game that's on right now. But I just don't. And if I try to bring up Mystery Diagnosis with coworkers, it really doesn't boost my street cred.

Yup. Embarrassing.

But true.

But I think it's progress to be figuring out what I'm really like, and what it means to be authentically me. I may not like what the rest of the world likes, but, hey, that's just me.

You know, the nerdy redhead walking aimlessly through Target with a buggy full of Taylor Swift CDs.



When did you realize that you might never actually be cool?