This is the first Happy Things Friday post of 2026.
I feel like I don’t have a lot of “new” Happy Things to add to my list, but I jotted down items that were making me happy and you’ll recognize a lot of them.
OUR FAMILY TEXT GROUP
I’m part of a family text group with most of my siblings, various nieces, Belle, my mom, and a handful of others. It was going crazy over Christmas and it was delightful. There were silly videos of a Gingerbread House competition. There were pictures of my brother and his wife dancing around the Christmas tree (a VERY Danish tradition; no self-respecting Dane would put their tree in the corner, it has to be in the center of the room). Even though were were separated by geography, it warmed my heart to get a glimpse into the celebrations happening in the homes of people I love.
DIGITAL PHOTOS
To that end, I am so thankful for digital photos. I know there are some negatives to having a camera in our pockets, but for me the positives outweigh them by a long shot. My kids love to look back at photos, my blog posts wouldn’t be nearly as fun (in my opinion, at least) without photos, and I love that I can take dozens of a single pose without worrying about cost.
CHRISTMAS
I’ve written at length (GREAT LENGTH!) about our Christmas. Everyone stayed healthy, we were able to celebrate with my parents and my father-in-law. We had snow on Christmas Day. We enjoyed copious amounts of delicious food. There were some lovely outdoor walks. There was time with friends.
I am still feeling a bit sad the whole shebang is over, but it was wonderful and I understand some of the bittersweet feelings that come between Christmas and New Year’s are precisely because it was such a lovely holiday and I’m not feeling ready for it to end!
BONUS HAPPY THINGS
- Peppermint mocha creamer. I am sad to stop using this for the next 10 months—how I love it! It screams festive drink to me, and making my morning cup of coffee was such a delight because of access to this creamer.
- Bonus points when I drank it out of a festive mug (most mornings).
- Bonus, bonus points when I drank it out of a festive mug while sitting in front of the tree.
- Juice Up 04 pens. SHU recommended these to me a few years ago and they are such a joy to use.
- The candelight service at church. This was our second candlelight service of the season and I absolutely loved the ambience (it had been years since we had our last candlelight service).
- Starting a new planner. IT FEELS SO GOOD! Everything is crisp and clean. I feel very much like Anne of Green Gables in that “there are no mistakes in it…yet.” I also love that I’ve used the Sprouted Planners long enough that they feel like “home.” I know where to document certain ideas and just generally have a well-honed system. Delightful!
- Ruby the dog. She really stole the show for us at our curling event. She was energetic, but gentle and sweet. These are the moments my heart thinks about how wonderful it would be to have a dog (but then I remember vet bills, food costs, all the responsibilities, AND the fact we travel regularly… and the minor issue that we have a child who is terrified of dogs). We will not be getting a dog, but Ruby was sure fun to be around for the day.
- Pickleball. We finally got in on the hype (in late November) and I’m so excited to add this to our list of activities for 2026!
- While she was detailing some challenging parenting moments, I adored this authentic and real glimpse into parenting young children posted by Rachel. On that note, I am SO EXCITED for our families to meet in June!!!
- Michelle’s art consistently brings me so much joy!
- As does Jana’s!
And now, if you’ll excuse me, it’s snowing beautifully—big, fluffy flakes—and it’s New Year’s Day and I’m headed outside for a wintery walk (…and then I’m coming home to make some Instant Pot Mac n’ Cheese!)
Which means it’s your turn:
- Tell me about some Happy Things in your life.
- If you need a space to vent, feel free to tell me about some of the Hard Things happening, too.
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I love Christmas, but I also love taking down all the decorations and getting the house back to normal. I feel like it’s a clean slate, and rather than get in a slump, I feel motivated. I do tend to get a bit sad the week before Christmas Day arrives, as I know the season is almost over, so I totally understand the blahs that others experience. Also, my daughter picked up “The Christmas Cat” and that’s left an emptiness in the house. Although, now I don’t have to worry about making sure all the doors are closed!
Things I’m feeling good about are getting the house back together, making plans and goals for the next few months, having some tasks that required a lot of organizing last year, settled for this year, and a big one – watch The Lord of the Rings Trilogy before January 1st! I mainlined the 3 (very long, way too many battle scenes for me) movies as a challenge from my nephews who love them. Frodo and Gollum’s story kept me going 🙂
I need to turn the slump into motivation, Jacquie! You’re inspiring me 🙂
My kids watched all the LOTR and The Hobbit movies over Christmas vacation. They are EPIC, though I admit I don’t really have to attention span for them now as an adult (I loved them as a teen when they came out).
I’with you 100% on digital photos. I love my photos and being able to take as many as I want, even if the most mundane things.
I am still down at Point Lonsdale with a lot of the extended family, although various members will be going home as the days roll on. I plan to be here until mid-January which is a very happy thing.
Enjoy the time with family! Sounds like a wonderful plan to spend a nice long stretch there.
Sometimes the most mundane pictures end up being the most treasured. And since I make photobooks each year, I often get to incorporate those sorts of pictures into our memory books. The silliest, tiniest things can sometimes elicit the biggest memories.
PHOTOS!! Always, everywhere! Pictures say more than a thousand words and they bring up all kind of memories.
Starting a new planner is always such a great feeling. I always try to write especially neatly on the first page and try to keep it that way, until everything disintegrates and gets slightly messy.
We’re in Zurich at the moment and enjoying meeting family and friends until mid-January. It’s such a nice time of the year!
I feel a bit overwhelmed with the photos this time of year since I will soon be preparing our annual photobook. But it is a delight to have a record of our lives.
Ha! Yes, January is always the neatest month in my planner. That’s okay. I look at my planner as a work of art, in a way.
Two happy things from yesterday: I started a 1000 piece Peanuts puzzle my oldest daughter gave me for Christmas and my husband made a delicious turkey chicken noodle soup from Thanksgiving leftovers.
That sounds like a delightful day – delicious food and a fun puzzle!
I also made a soup with our turkey leftovers and it was SO good. Plus, very easy since everything was already cooked and I just basically put all the leftovers into a pot, added some stock and water, a few spices and DONE!
Happy thing: after 9 months of jumping through hoops and impatiently waiting, my daughter finally has a cpap. I am already seeing more energy in her walk.
Hard thing: I have to get up a few times at night to put the mask back on her. She needs to use it in 21 out of 30 days for at least 4 hours a night so that insurance will pay for it. Admittedly, I am up for a while most nights, but having to go up and wrestle with the mask at 3am is not fun.
Happy thing: something I prayed for for a few years will happen in January.
Hard thing: that’s when the even harder work begins ( hopefully it won’t be too bad, but there are a lot of ways things can get worse. Pray that everyone is patient and works towards similar goals!) Sorry to be so obscure, but it’s not just me involved. But I’ve carried the weight of this matter for a few years and need to vent.
No planner, no plans here, buy I hope for a better 2026!
What a relief with the CPAP. I’m so glad you’re seeing results. That said, it does sound especially exhausting to have to sort the mask throughout the night. I hope as she gets used to it, it stays on more easily.
I understand obscure circumstances and am adding it to my prayer list right now!
Your family text group sounds wonderful, what a lot of fun and your Christmas too! I’m a little sad it’s all over too but I am still drinking out of my festive mugs. hehehe Happy New Year!
I put my festive mugs away when I packed up most of the Christmas decorations…maybe that’s the problem!!!
Happy New Year!!!
A happy thing for me was getting to see the kids have so much fun sledding yesterday for 2 hours. We got about 7-8 cm of “flurries” in the morning as the prelude to the main storm and then 20-30 cm in the afternoon-overnight last night. The morning amount was perfect for sledding and it was close to freezing so it wasn’t bitterly cold. It was a nice way to start the year!
Another happy thing has been seeing the kids mostly playing nicely together. They’ve had hours each day of playing a complex imaginary game that seems to carry over from day to day, and it’s been fun to see. There have still been some major sibling fights, but most of the day, most days, they’ve just been playing nicely. I’ve been thinking about how to tweak our daily routine on the homeschooling front in particular to try to give them more time to just play together.
That sounds like so much fun! And you inspire me in terms of how long you stay outside playing!!!
Hooray for sibling peace (when it comes) and developing deep, enjoyable friendships together. That’s lovely and so important since you spend so much time together as a family unit because of homeschooling! You are such an intentional parent and it is paying off in wonderful ways, Maria <3
Some happy things here:
– Ending the year better than how it started
– Like you, a new planner
– decorations put away…the living room feels big and spacious and bright now!
Almost all my decorations are away (I leave up the wreaths on doors for a while), and it DOES feel extra bright and spacious! I’m still a bit sad Christmas is over, but getting the decor down helps me feel ready to move on.
I went for groceries on Monday and I thought “I’m going to stock up on peppermint mocha” and Elisabeth, it’s GONE. So I guess that’s my sign to move on with my life! Wahhhh.
I also love the feeling of a fresh new calendar and planner! I always write so neatly in it at this time of the year, it’s sure to devolve over the months though. But we are starting fresh! I de-Christmassed the house yesterday and cleaned everything, and I do love that feeling of a fresh clean house on New Year’s Day (how did we have so much glitter?)
SAME! Nicole, I walked so confidently to the Silk display the other day ready to get one final carton and they were GONE. What??? Most years they have them into January. Sigh. Oh well. That’s that and it means I am already anxious for next Christmas.
We’re almost done with dismantling decor and it’s sad but also the necessary step to moving on. I think I need to reframe that the new year doesn’t really start (psychologically for me) until the kids go back to school. Reframing it has helped me feel a bit less antsy. They’re still in Christmas Break mode!
It just shows how disoriented I am- I forgot it was Friday, so it was a delightful surprise to find your Happy Things post! Yes, I have to keep reminding myself that the reason I’m sad now is I love the holidays so much- WHICH IS A GOOD THING. I should be grateful to have something so wonderful, that it makes me sad when it ends. Having said that… grr. I’m also not ready to put away the holiday mugs and I just bought another carton of peppermint mocha creamer (it was on sale! I had to!)
Let’s see, happy things… well, I hate to say it but January is usually our best wether month (I know- I’m very sorry). We don’t get the fall or the spring, and summers are horrible, so I have to appreciate our good weather while we have it! Both my kids are happy right now- usually it seems like one or the other of them has something difficult going on, so it’s nice when they’re both in a good place.
I definitely don’t think you can get a dog (the upcoming trip to Europe is a hard no on that) but it’s sweet that Levi and Ruby had such a good time together!
I keep mixing up what day of the week it is; more than other years, I think???
Nicole and I both have realized there is NO PEPPERMINT MOCHA CREAMER left in Canada. I am feeling bereft.
Yay for a content, healthy, happy family with big, exciting things ahead.
And I am so happy you get to enjoy nice weather. You have many months of pretty awful conditions, so you deserve this reprieve!!!
Well, now I have been influenced and need to order some of those pens. I need more good retractable pens in my life.
Happy things: Our cat, who we rescued from an overcrowded shelter, is a delight. I highly recommend cats to those who are thinking of a pet but dogs are a no-go. We have two kids and one adult who are terrified of dogs, but our cat is a wonderful animal. And less work than a dog, my husband assures me (he had a high maintenance collie dog while growing up).
I have a friend text group that is a lot of fun, and supportive. I love seeing the fun pictures and gifs we send each other.
I love these pens so much!
Yes to GIFs. They can be so hilarious.
John would love to have a cat. I am definitely the hangup on that. I have allergies (as does my dad), so I don’t see it happening anytime soon. Maybe in retirement? I know there are cats that are okay for hypoallergenic needs (and food + special meds that can make all the difference).
YESSS to the juice up – still my #1 black pen to use with my Hobonichi!! I’m so excited for you and your fresh sprouted planner 🙂 Things making me happy off the top of my head: the fact that adding collagen to my oatmeal made it a reasonably high protein breakfast (um, it’s the little things); the fact that we are experiencing a tiny taste of winter here; friends and family group chats – love this mode of communication (especially the ones that are actually not that active but getting a little note is like a fun surprise, like my college friends chat).
It really is the little things! Which reminds me, I have some collagen powder I have not been using.
I am looking outside my window and it is a full blown blizzard; I’m thinking I’d like your version of winter better 🙂
Snow! So much snow! I love that the landscape is snow-covered instead of brown and grey. I love it. It’s so pretty.
Hannah having zoomies in the snow is maaaybe the cutest thing ever. An old dog running and rolling around in the snow acting like a puppy? Yes, please.
+1 to brand new journals and trackers! Everything is so shiny! Also, I love that I’m on year 3 of my 5-year journal and so I’m starting to track patterns about our lives year after year. I love it all.
Zelda basically is a new appendage for me whenever I sit down because it’s so cold. She’s always next to me and I cannot be mad about a cat who cuddles.
It’s VERY quiet at work which means I’m reading blogs and not feeling guilty about it.
Hard thing: My friend with cancer has had a challenging time with chemo and now she has COVID. She’s been in and out of the hospital and I’m doing everything I can to support her, but it’s been hard. Here’s to her kicking cancer to the curb in 2026.
There is SO MUCH SNOW here right now, Engie. It’s currently snowing and since it’s Saturday and I don’t have anywhere to go, it’s quite lovely. It really does look like a snow globe outside my window.
I would love having a warm cat to cuddle in the winter!
I’m so sorry, Engie. It is so hard to see people we love struggle with health challenges and cancer is just the worst. I know we don’t align on faith topics, but I’m officially adding her to my prayer list.
Instant pot mac and cheese? I missed the announcement that you got the Instant pot. What do you think of it?
I can confirm all of the downsides of dog ownership==>it’s basically all of the responsibilities of a child with a few nuances. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, the difference between a kid and a dog is that the dog does everything that you say but you have to be involved to some extent every time that it uses the bathroom.
I’d like to vent a little bit about our latest cold snap, which basically makes staying inside the only viable option right now. But it’s going to get warmer tomorrow so the end is in sight. The happy things are having the boys home, snuggles with the dog, watching the dog play in the snow, yada yada yada. I have another week of domestic bliss and then I’m hitting the road again. Look out New Orleans!
I’m loving the IP so far!!!
Can’t wait to read about your next adventures. Birchie is on the road again!
I didn’t realize it was Friday until I saw SHU’s 5 things Friday post. I am looking forward to knowing what day of the week it is. It’s very disorientating! Paul keeps asking what day it is, too, so we are all very confused. I like this liminal part of the year between Christmas and New Years but I am also very happy to get back to normal routines/habits.
My vent is that a family text group is not enjoyable for me… but you know all about that! But you inspired me to start one with my 2 sisters. I’d like to feel more connected to both of them. I’m very connected with the younger one since we are in similar stages of parenting but my older sister and I do not communicate much. So a text chain is the solution!
Aside from not knowing what day of the week it is, it has been a nice “in between” week. I only ended up working 2/5 days this week which is very nice. Paul was not quite as easy as we envisioned him being… he had more outbursts than usual. I guess he felt the need to keep us on our toes so we were still in fighting shape when Taco is back? 😉 Taco also really missed us so having him up there on his own was maybe not the best decision in hindsight. But oh well. He still had a great time and made great memories. One day he road in the ranger (ATV type of vehicle) while my dad moved snow after a snow storm. He cuddled up against my dad and fell sound asleep. So hearing that really warmed my heart. He also went ice fishing with my dad several times so I know the 1:1 time has been wonderful for him. He was just a bit more homesick than usual w/out the comfort of Paul.
The days have been so bizarre lately; I don’t ever remember being quite so discombobulated.
Yay for a POSITIVE family texting situation.
Awww. Those memories with your dad are wonderful core experiences that he’ll cherish for life!
I am allergic to cats, as is one of my sons, and we were anxious about that (volunteering at a cat shelter was ROUGH for me), but when we read about Purina LiveClear Allergen Reducer, my husband was supportive of trying it. Our youngest had just fallen in love with “Fluffin” and it was clear this cat was not happy at the overcrowded, badly run shelter, So we brought him home, put him on the food, and within a few weeks I was having no symptoms whatsoever. He’s a medium-length coated cat, I brush him once a day on average, and we vacuum each day, but it’s the food that did it. I’m a total convert and tell everybody with cat allergies about it! I used to get severely itchy eyes if I touched a cat and then forgot and touched my face–but Clark will sleep right near my pillow and I’m fine. My son, who used to get hives around cats, is fine. He does keep the cat out of his bedroom, but can pet him and have no issues. Other cats will still cause reactions, but Clark is now “hypoallergenic” to us. I am, by the way, skeptical of the “hypoallergenic” breeds. All cats, i believe, have the protein in their dander that triggers allergies; maybe some have it in smaller degrees, but they all have it. The Purina food has a protein from chickens that binds to that protein and deactivates it.
I have heard such good things about that cat food (you’re not the first person to mention it to me). That’s WONDERFUL that you’ve found something to make cat ownership possible and Clark sounds like a darling <3
Yay for a new year of happy things and Happy Things posts 🙂
I love reading about all your happy things, Elisabeth! You’re so sweet to include my art on your list. ❤️ I’m with you, starting a new planner and calendars is such a nice feeling – although I really enjoyed the Sprouted planner you gave me, all through 2025! It seems a shame not to see that beautiful cover every day! A happy thing today is I got a 100 day exercise streak badge from Peloton! I can’t believe I’ve been working out for 100 days! I never dreamed that I’d be doing this!
I am SO glad you love Peloton!!! And congrats on such a long streak. That is so amazing, Michelle.
This is a great list. Your Christmas sounds so wonderful, no wonder you are sad that it’s over. I love the sound of your group chat and the fun videos.
Happy things here: we hosted two great family parties (each side, different days) on the 25th and the 27th. We enjoyed yummy leftovers. People were happy with their gifts. I got to take Curly to the mall to return some things she didn’t want, and we picked out things that she did like. I had a birthday on the 30th and Rae wrote me a very sweet card and while adopting isn’t easy, moments like that (getting a car that shows she gets it and she appreciates and loves us) make it so worthwhile and serve as great reminders about why we chose this path.
Tough times: I confronted my sisters about their juvenile and offensive behavior. Three of my older kids were with me and they were appalled and shocked at how my sisters treated me and how they spoke to my offspring. It was the stuff movies are made of – like their reaction to my very calm and carefully worded questions was nothing short of entertaining IF it had been on a movie screen. Mini admitted that had she not witnessed the way they behaved, she would never have believe it. I left the ball in their court in terms of wanting to move forward, but it is clear that they struggle with codependency (cannot and have not formed adult lives, still tied too closely to our parents and cannot form individual thoughts) and that we will no longer have a relationship. I’d distanced myself from them anyway, because they aren’t healthy people so that doesn’t feel all that earth shattering. I said things that were long overdue to say. I do hope that the cousins can rise above the nonsense, but that remains to be seen. Mini is very close to a couple of my sister’s kids and she suspects they will follow suit. That would be a shame, but we are just plowing forward being our best selves and being authentic and voicing concerns as adults, so they are free to behave in whatever way works for them.
Family dynamics can be brutally hard. It is difficult to be the enforcer of justice, but sometimes there is no happy resolution, there is just the courage to take the stand for what is right and to refuse to take abuse any longer. I am so sorry this has been such a burden for you all these years and of course there are challenges ahead. But I’m proud of you for standing up AND setting an example to your children to not be a doormat. And all you can control is yourself; it doesn’t make it less frustrating and painful, but it does pave the way to move forward on your end.
Yay for happy things!!!!! I’m so glad you are having moments of peace and love with Rae and Kay <3
What a great list! I love our family group chat too. So glad that technology exists!
Right now one very happy thing being able to swim in our family’s pools every day! Owen has grown so confident, and it’s a wonderful, active way to spend the time. Also the kids new trampoline, they use it every day.
Another happy thing is Owen’s cute words. He says “heart beep” instead of beat, and just told me his legs are “20 metres long”. So adorable.
3 weeks off work has been a very happy thing too!!
Awww. I miss some of my kids’ preschool words! They were precious.
And I also wish I had access (and need for) a pool right now. We are in the middle of a deep freeze and it is SO cold here, Sophie. -15C + WINDCHILL today.
You always find more Happy Things and I love it.
I am a little sad that the holidays are over and I am holding on to the peppermint mocha creamer, festive mugs and drinking coffee in front of the tree a little longer… weening myself off slowly 😉
We have a family group chat too and it’s my favorite thing – it’s especially precious when family is spread around the globe and being able to send pictures and instantly share what’s going on in our corner of the worlds is priceless! Will you be able to go and see your brother in Denmark when you’re in Europe? I am so excited you’ll be meeting up with Rachel, too!
I put my festive mugs away but I went to buy one last carton of PMC and it was gone. GONE, San. The audacity.
I will see my brother, probably twice. I think he plans to come to Helsinki when we’re there, and we hope to spend about a week in Copenhagen.
Now is probably not the time to tell you that I can get peppermint mocha creamer year-round in FL. I try to mix things up so it’s not the ONLY creamer I have… but I love that I never have to be without it!
I don’t know what I would do without digital photos. How else would I be able to take 15 pictures of one of my cats sleeping in the same position, from different angles?!?!
What is this sorcery? Though I think it wouldn’t seem as special that way. Still. I AM JEALOUS.
I love that you have so many sweet and happy things to share. Again, seeing Ruby and Indy: SO stinking cute!
I don’t know that you ever shared how your brother came to live across the world. I know you’re not here to share his story, but the readers’ digest version would be cool. And I need to know, how do you put your Christmas tree in the middle of the room and still plug it in? Do they use candles instead? I know, I have lots of questions, call me Nosy Suz!
We have some really happy news regarding real estate stuff that will ease our minds going forward. Woot woot! Plus, my little grandson is doing well, healthy and happy, and we can’t get enough of him.
My brother graduated with his MBA and tried to get a job in Canada and they said: “We won’t hire you until you have work experience” and he was like “How can I get work experience is no one will give me a job?” So he moved to Europe, makes buckets of money and pays no taxes in Canada, and easily got a job with his credentials.
He moved to Denmark, met a Dane, and married a Dane.
I don’t know how they manage the cords, but they print out song lyric sheets, hold hands, and walk in a circle while singing. Every year. And basically everyone in Denmark does this. I think they do still use real candles sometimes. And their trees all look a bit Charlie Brownish at the top which I find endearing. They have a LOT of Christmas traditions in Scandinavia.
Love your happy news. I’m sure the real estate news is a relief and your grandson sounds like a perfect little cherub, soon to be joined by a cousin. HOW EXCITING!
Thank you for satisfying my nosy self. It sounds like your Brother (aside from being so far from you and your parents) is doing well and living an amazing life! Woot Woot!
He has loved life in Scandinavia.