Happy Birthday

Daniel turned 60 today! We had dinner at the Antivilos with the Rappleyes and the Flakes. It was nice! It was a HAPPY time for us celebrating a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY I saw a post the other day that caught my attention because I second every word of it. The post said:

 A research study at Harvard Medical found that, in fact, happiness is contagious. It suggests that happiness is influenced not only by the people you know, but by the people they know. The study showed that happiness spreads through social networks, sort of like a virus, meaning that your happiness could influence the happiness of someone you`ve never even met. They found that there were statistical relationships not just between your happiness and your friend’s happiness, but between your happiness and your friends, friends, friends happiness! They concluded that the happiness of an immediate social contact increased an individual’s chances of becoming happy by 15%, the happiness of a second-degree contact, such as the spouse of a friend, increases the likeliness of becoming happy by 10%, and the happiness of a third-degree contact — or the friend of a friend of a friend — increases the likelihood of becoming happy by 6%. So what does that tell us – choose friends who are HAPPY!!!

Happiness is…

• Listening to happy music while I do housework
• Fitting into old clothes like a new pair of Jeans
• Singing in your car at the top of your lungs to your favorite song on the radio
• A smile from a stranger
• A clean house
• A compliment from anyone
• Someone who says thank you
• Making your parents proud
• When your children love you
• Having peace of mind
• Learning to do something new for the first time
• Knowing that God loves you
• Curling up with a good book that you can’t put down
• Listening to my grandchildren’s laughter
• Dancing in your kitchen when I am home alone
• Holding a newborn baby that smells like baby magic lotion
• Looking forward to a trip or a holiday
• Having amazing children that make you really proud to be their mom
• Being married to the nicest husband ever!
• Watching your favorite TV show with my hubby
• Listening to the rain from the warmth of your home
• Learning to zip on some mate yerba
• Going to a movie you have been waiting to see
• Waking up late on a Saturday morning or even early afternoon
• Spending time with my mom

Most of all I think happiness is a feeling that comes when we recognize and appreciate the blessings in our life. And happiness is being surrounded by amazing friends who are grateful and happy themselves and who statistically increase your own level of happiness! She is right on! I am going to be thinking of things that make me happy and do them.