A wise man once said...

Exactly!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Happy on a Monday night :)

Happy Monday night my Happy clan!  I hope everyone had a wonderful day!  I did - even though we had a lot to do today it was still such a nice day!!

However, since it's already very late, tonight I am going to share a quote with you that's all about being happy!  This is just a great quote and I know it will make all of you smile like it did to me:

"Life is too short too miss out on being as happy as you can possibly be!" 

And how true this quote is!!  You don't need a reason to be happy, just be it!  I promise, life is so much easier when you are wearing a smile!  So, smile and go get some sleep!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

An unsuspecting but incredible Happy

Happy Sunday night my Happy clan!  How was everyone's day?  Mine was so nice!  I got packing done, I baked 6 loaves of banana bread and Matt and I spent the evening with our awesome friends... I'm so going to miss them!!

This morning when I woke up I had a lot of anxiety running through me because of the move and I was not happy about that.  So, I went outside with Duke to try and clear my head a little bit and I looked up at the sky, like I normally do, and I saw this:

Not sure if you see it, but that's a rainbow around the sun!!  Talk about awesome!  So, I decided to share this with all of you because how amazing is this site?!?!  I've never seen this before and why should I be the only one who gets to enjoy this!!!

So you now have your bright Happy to surround yourself in before saying goodnight to the week!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Smiling's a GREAT Idea!

Howdy hey my Happy clan!  Happy Saturday Night!  I hope everyone had a super day and your evening is just as awesome, if not better :)  I had a really nice day, I didn't get as much done as I wanted to but Johnny and I did get to go have lunch with my girl and her amazing daughter.  We went and saw my old boss so she could say hello and I could say goodbye.  It was a really nice lunch and I'm really going to miss them!  I'm so grateful for the amazing people I've been lucky enough to work with for the past year and a half or so.  I'm glad I decided to go and visit him one more time before leaving, it was definitely a good idea because he was a great boss.

This makes me think about all the other "good ideas" we have in life.  So many times we think they're actually "bad ideas" so we never do anything about them.  But, in most cases, we only see them as bad ideas because they're difficult.  Like, for instance, saying goodbye to someone we care about.  However, I just look at it in a different way and instead of saying goodbye I now always say "See you later!".  Because that's what it really is - no matter what, one day we will all see each other again!  So, what could have been seen as a bad idea was easily transformed into a good idea.  Another example of something that could originally be viewed as a bad idea - going out with friends and spending money when money is tight so we should probably just stay home.  If we stay home, sure we save money, but we now just missed out on making memories with people we love and in the end it's the memories that really matter, not the possessions we stayed home to pay for.

See what I mean?  Some of those bad ideas are actually good ideas - you just have to make sure you're looking at the idea properly.  Now, don't get me wrong, there are most definitely bad ideas.  I could list so many of them for you right now, and I'm sure you have your own list you could share ;)  But instead, I'm going to turn these bad ideas around and make them our Happy for tonight!  I'm sure a lot of you know the cartoon, Animaniacs.  If you don't, WHY?!?!  Well, it is a hilarious WB cartoon that ran from 1993-1998.  It's one of my favorite childhood shows!  Well, anyways, they used to have this little skit called "Good Idea Bad Idea" and to this day I crack up watching it.  So, since it fits so well with my rant today, I thought I'd share with you a complete Good Idea Bad Idea compilation I found on YouTube.  I hope you all get a nice laugh or at least giggle from this:

Wasn't that just great!!!  Man, I miss that show.  I hope it's available on DVD soon :)  Anyways, I'm going to go snuggle with Johnny before he falls asleep so until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Sunshine and Smiles!

Happy Friday night my Happy clan!  Today was a really nice day - and I hope it was for all of you as well!!  I got to go to the water park with my son, his friends and their moms.  It was a goodbye gathering for Johnny and his friends, but I also got to spend the day with my Johnny pretty much all day and his best bud's mom.  I've really gotten lucky with the friends I've made out here.  They're really just so wonderful!!!

Anyways, before I get all sappy and turned around from what today's Happy is - we shall proceed forward.  Since today was a day in the sun I thought it was a great day to use some Ella Fitzgerald for our Happy!  And what better song than Blue Skies?  So, without further ado, I give you the amazingly talented, Ella Fitzgerald singing Blue Skies (and right underneath are the lyrics):

Blue skies

Smiling at me

Nothing but blue skies

Do I see

Bluebirds

Singing a song

Nothing but bluebirds

All day long

Never saw the sun shining so bright

Never saw things going so right

Noticing the days hurrying by

When you're in love, my how they fly

Blue days

All of them gone

Nothing but blue skies

From now on

(Scat)

I never saw the sun shining so bright

Never saw things going so right

Noticing the days hurrying by

When you're in love, my how they fly

Blue days

All of them gone

Nothing but blue skies

From now on

I love that song so much!  And it always puts such a big smile one my face, I hope it did the same for all of you!!  But now I'm off to dreamland so, until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Especially Quick

Happy Thursday night my Happy clan!  So, as you can see, it's another super late post for you all.  And, since it is even later than usual, it's going to be another quick one.  This Happy is just a sweet and simple message from me to all of you...

And I pray that you all do remember this because you are!!!  But I need to go to sleep, so until "tomorrow" keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Creating Happy Memories

Happy Hump Night my Happy clan!  I hope everyone had a wonderful Wednesday!  Mine was really nice - really busy but really nice.  The best part of the day was tonight though.  We got to sit down and relax and watch an old school classic, Better Off Dead.  Matt had never seen it before and, thanks to my awesome buddy from work for lending it to us, he finally got to watch it - and he loved it, of course!

What is it about old school movies that just put the greatest smile on our faces?  And the most loving tears in our eyes?  It's not just the awesome story lines that, in your own bizarre way, you connect so perfectly with.  It's not just the corny love story that proved love was found in the strangest of places sometimes.  It's not just the quotable lines that you can always manage to throw in to any conversation.  It's the memories that are connected to these movies.  And every time you watch these movies with someone new, you get the opportunity to create new memories, like I did tonight!!

Which brings me to your Happy for tonight.  Tonight's Happy is the poem/song called The Way We Were.  This poem/song also comes from an old classic movie that I could watch over and over again as well, Big:

Memories, light the corners of my mindMisty water color memories of the way we were
Scattered pictures of the smiles we left behind
smiles we gave to one another
for the way we were.
Can it be that it was all so simple then
or has time rewritten every line?
If we had the chance to do it all again
tell me would we? Could we?
Memories, may be beautiful and yet
what's too painful to remember
we simply choose to forget
So it's the laughter we remember
whenever we remember
the way we were.

I hope this brought a smile to your face, either as you are falling asleep or waking up to a new day (since I'm so slow at posting lately).  Either way, enjoy!!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!
Karen :)

Sweet & Simple Smiles

Happy super late Tuesday night my Happy clan!  It's another late post for me tonight but as long as I get you your Happy posted, then I'm happy :)  However, since it is so late and I am so tired, it is going to be a quick one tonight.  So, I thought that I'd share with you a few super sweet animated gifs that I found that made me smile!

I know they're just simple little pictures, but they are so adorable I knew they were Happy-worthy!  Now, enjoy your Happies and until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Home is where your heart is...

Happy Monday night my Happy clan!  I hope you all had a great rest of your day!  I had a lot to do today, but got quite a bit accomplished so I am very happy about that.  The most important thing I got done today was getting plane tickets for Matt and Johnny to fly back home.  We found great tickets at a really awesome price!  And as soon as the tickets were booked I was filled with a huge sense of happiness.  We're one step closer to moving back home!!

It's funny though, when you talk about home, most people start talking about the house they live in and how many rooms it has or where it's located.  But to me, that's not home.  Home is (as the title of today's post states) where the heart is.  As long as I'm with those I love, I know I'm home.  And I have so many different homes now!  I'm quite lucky to not only have so many people that I love in this life, but those people truly love me back!!!  And that's what a home is, isn't it.  Somewhere where you are surrounded by those you love?  So, tonight's Happy are some beautiful quotes about what a "home" really is:

A house is made of bricks and beams,

A home is made of hopes and dreams!

Life takes you to unexpected places,

Love brings you home!

Home:

Where you treat your friends like family

And your family like friends!

Home...

Where love resides, memories are created,

friends always belong and laughter never ends!

Home is the starting place of love, hope and dreams!

There's no place like home!!!

It really is such an amazing Happy - and we all have a place that we can call home too.  Most of us have a lot more "homes" than we realize!  But I am going to head off to bed now so goodnight to all of you and until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Spring into Happiness!!!

Happy Spring my Happy clan!!!  Yes, I know I'm a few days late with this post, but I don't care.  I love Spring, LOVE Spring!  And since I was too sick to post a Happy yesterday, you will be getting two today, and the first one is going to be dedicated to... you guessed it, Spring!

Spring is just so amazing!  It's the rebirth of the world!  All the snow and ice melts away and all the plants start to grow again!  Love is in the air!  The rain showers bring rainbows and flowers!  It's just a season of wonder and beauty!!!  And on top of all of that, Baseball season begins too :)  Spring is just an all around Happy!

So, here's some beautiful pictures and quotes about Spring with a Spring compilation video shoved in the middle!

Ah Spring!  Doesn't that make you all happy inside and out!  Well, there is your Happy from yesterday - be back in a little while to give you today's Happy!  Until then, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Almost a Sunday Happy!

So it's a very late Sauturday post. Why? Because I was out with my girl, Erin!  But I truly enjoyed my night with my girl, even though I'm not remembering a lot of it.  So, for tonight's Happy, since I'm not really with it and it's almost tomorrow, here's your Happy for yesterday:

Now, if you're not already in bed, go there!  And keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Smile while you dream :)

Happy Friday night my Happy clan!  I hope everyone had a spectacular day today!  It was another very long day for me but a really good one so I'm not going to complain.  Plus, even though there were obstacles that got in my way I did not allow them to bring me down.  I hope that all of you have been trying to do the same thing.

I noticed that the sky is taking a page out of our Happy book tonight.  I was taking Duke outside one last time before we all turn in for the night and I noticed it had rained and was still drizzling a little bit out.  I looked up and noticed that the sky was pretty dark with a couple dim flashes of lighting in the distance.  But to the west of me there is a big clear patch with stars shining through as bright as if it were a clear night.  It's pretty amazing how God can use something as simple as an evening rainstorm to show us that there is always a glimmer of hope nearby!

Now, since it is so late, I wanted to find something simple that goes along with my above stated story.  Something that would leave a sweet smile across your face, even as you sleep and dream!  So, without further ado, here is your Happy for today:

I hope my Happy stood up to the hype... And I hope you all find yourself surrounded by sweet dreams and a comforting sleep!!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Who's reaching out to capture a moment?

Happy Thursday my Happy clan!  I hope everyone is having a super wonderful day!  My day has been extremely hectic and insanely busy but my smile stayed on and I kept moving forward :)  That's how I try to handle all situations in life.  And if you aren't living this way yet, it's time you start!

Sometimes it's really easy to find the positive ... But other times you have to dig pretty deep, but keep digging because it is there somewhere!  You just can't give up.  I know that's easier said than done, but I've been there and I can honestly tell you if you keep looking you will find your happy!  You need to capture each moment of life and enjoy it because it's not going to last.  Before you know it, today is over and tomorrow's here - if we're lucky enough to get another day.

When I was younger I used to waitress at Denny's.  I can't say the job was always the greatest, but the people were.  Especially some of my regulars.  I had one customer that used to call me Windy - he said I reminded him of the song by The Association.  Have you ever heard that song?  It's such a great song that I have to share the lyrics with you (and if you'd like to hear the song, just click on the title below and it will bring to the video on YouTube):

Windy

Who's peekin' out from under a stairway

Calling a name that's lighter than air

Who's bending down to give me a rainbow

Everyone knows it's Windy

Who's tripping down the streets of the city

Smilin' at everybody she sees

Who's reachin' out to capture a moment

Everyone knows it's Windy

And Windy has stormy eyes

That flash at the sound of lies

And Windy has wings to fly

Above the clouds (above the clouds)

Above the clouds (above the clouds)

[Flute]

And Windy has stormy eyes

That flash at the sound of lies

And Windy has wings to fly

Above the clouds (above the clouds)

Above the clouds (above the clouds)

Who's tripping down the streets of the city

Smilin' at everybody she sees

Who's reachin' out to capture a moment

Everyone knows it's Windy

[Repeat And fade]

I love that I am portrayed that way - because I really try to be that person.  I love being so happy all the time and I just hope that my happiness and my outlook on life rubs off on those that I come across.  That's one of the reasons I started this Happy Blog, to push my happiness on even more people!  I just hope it's making a difference in some of your lives, and I hope you know that writing this for you all every day has brought so much more happiness to my life and that was an unexpected gift to me.  So, thank you for allowing me to share my happy happy joy joy attitude with you!  But now it's time for me to get to bed so until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Be Happy to Be You!

Happy Wednesday night my Happy clan!  I hope everyone's hump day was lovely :)  As you can probably tell by all my late posts lately that I've been quite busy - but at least I don't allow life to stop me from sharing a bit of happiness with all of you!!

And tonight's Happy is actually a pretty quick Happy ... Mostly because it's a pretty straightforward-right to the point-no explanation needed Happy :)  Today's Happy is just a simple message (or more so reminder) for all of you, and me too!

Please, always remember this because it's so very true!  Stop worrying about what others say and think and feel and do, just start worrying about making yourself happy!  But, I'm going to head off to bed so until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

May you live as long as you want, and never want as long as you live.

Happy St. Patrick's Day my Luckily Happy clan!  I hope you all are having a day full of fun shenanigans and lucky charms!!  Since it is St. Paddy's day, today your Happy is going to be dedicated to the Irish :)  And since I am Irish - this will be "dublin" up my dose of happiness for today (get it, dublin-doubling... har-dee-har-har).

First, let's start off with some Irish Blessings:

I tried to go with some not as popular sayings but still had a powerful message (as most Irish Blessings do).  I love reading Irish Blessings - they always make me feel all warm and sunshiny inside :D

However, I also love Irish jokes.  Yes, I am Irish - and I am VERY proud to be Irish!  But, the Irish carry along with them some humorous baggage, and I embrace that part of my heritage as well.  Not all of these pertain to me, but some of them do:

How does every Irish joke start?

By looking over your shoulder.

Why don't you iron 4-leaf clovers?

You don't want to press your luck.

How do you blind an Irishman?

You put a bottle of whiskey in front of him.

How did the Irish Jig get started?

A whole lot of drinks and not enough bathrooms.

What's the main difference between an Irish wedding and an Irish funeral?

One less drunk at the party.

HAHAHAHA!!!  Being Irish is so fun - we really are a loud and crazy bunch and I couldn't be more proud to be included in the Irish crew :)  I'm not really a typical "Irish drinker" (in my eyes, whiskey = yucky) and besides potatoes, I am not a fan of Irish food, but I am Irish and I am damn proud of it, too!!

So, I've shared some Irish blessings and some Irish jokes and now I'm going to end with an Irish Prayer set to a beautiful Celtic melody:

I hope you all enjoyed your Irish post tonight and here's hoping I got lucky and I made you smile an extra smile!  But, now it's time for me to bid you all goodnight, so "Oíche mhaith agus codladh sámh" (goodnight and sleep well in Gaelic).  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

If you don't have a smile, I'll give you one of mine!

Happy Monday night my Happy clan!  I hope you all are having a great start to your new week.  It was a good start to my week, got a lot taken care of but lots more to do tomorrow.  That's okay though, that just means I am lucky enough to be alive for another day, and that's such an amazing Happy!!

You know what else is another amazing Happy?  Anything - as long as you allow it to be!!!  For instance, it was already 90 today in AZ, and our bedroom thinks it's a sauna when it's hot outside, so instead of pouting around about how hot it was, I took a nice cool shower :)  That was a great Happy!  See, it's as simple as that.  You can be happy all the time and it's time you know that!!!

Did you know the easiest way to make yourself or someone else happy is by smiling?  Seriously, try it!  Didn't that feel just awesome?!?!  Don't lie, you know it did ;)  So, tonight I am going to give you some smile quotes to keep the smile train rolling:

• Smiling is the best way to face every problem, crush every fear and get rid of the pain!
• Keep smiling and one day life will get tired of upsetting you!
• Use your smile to change the world, but don't let this world change your smile!
• You're never fully dressed without a smile!
• A smile is the most beautiful curve on your body!
• Smile!  It is the key that fits the locks of everybody's heart!
• Keep smiling - Happy looks good on you!
• When life gives you a hundred reasons to cry, show life you have a thousand reasons to smile!!!

So - there you have it!  Now, go enjoy the rest of your evening and remember to put your smile on!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Make all moments good ones!

Happy Sunday evening my Happy clan!  So, we all made it through another week - good for you guys!  I'm so proud of all of you!!  I'm so excited about what this new week ahead has in store for me, how about you?  I know there are going to be so many happy and wondrous and joyful moments once again this week and I can't wait to be a part of them.  Yes, I'm sure there are going to be difficult times trying to shove their way in as well, but remember, when something bad happens you can either let it define you, let it destroy you or let it strengthen you!

Tonight's Happy I thought I'd share a few more quotes about turning negative situations into positive ones.  I thought it was not only a good thought to end the week with but a great one to start the new week on as well :)  So, here's the selected ones I decided to share with all of you!

"If you want the rainbow you gotta put up with the rain." -Dolly Parton

Don't confuse your path with your destination.  Just because it's stormy now doesn't mean that you aren't headed for sunshine!

Look at your problems as problems and they will continue to hold you down.  See them as blessings in disguise and that's exactly what they will become!

Just because something isn't happening for you right now doesn't mean that it will never happen!

"Only when it is dark enough can you see the stars!" -Marin Luther King Jr.

Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to dance in the rain!

"Nothing is impossible.  The word itself says 'I'm Possible'!" -Audrey Hepburn

So, there's your line-up of positive quotes for your Sunday evening (or Monday morning... or afternoon or evening).  It's time for me to head off to bed so until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Let me make you happy!!!

Happy Saturday night my Happy clan!  I hope you all are having a wonderful weekend so far.  It's been a very long day for us.  We've been up since 6am so we could make it to Johnny's competition for the Odyssey of the Mind regionals at Scottsdale Community College, which is a beautiful college by the way.  We were there until about 1:30pm and then we headed to U-Haul to swap out cars since we had appointments to get hitches installed on our cars today.  Once that was finished we had to run a couple errands and now it's a little after 9pm and we're finally home and ready for bed!  Well, I most definitely am anyways ;)

Since I am feeling as tired as I am I decided it was time to come online and write your Happy before I fell asleep and forget to do it.  But I noticed that not as many of you are reading your daily Happy and you should be!  Why don't you want to smile?  Why won't you let me make you happy?  Well, it's time to change that.  I am now making it my new goal to get more of you to read my blog so more of you can smile each day!  My resolution for 2015 was to make as many people smile throughout the year as I could and darn it - I am going to keep my resolution this year!

So, because of this, today I decided our Happy needs to be something extreme - something that will make you happier than the happiest man in Springfield!  Something that is just so ... well ... HAPPY!  I did a crazy amount of google searching for this "extreme happy" so I hope that I made the correct final decision (I think I did):

Yep, I so went there!  But, this really is the extreme happy - watching the men and women fighting in our military for us every day being reunited with their loved ones is just an amazing sight!  So, I hope you all enjoyed and I'm guessing you all cried a few happy tears as well ;)  Now, time for bed for me so until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Just another day in paradise...

Happy Friday afternoon my Happy clan!  I hope everyone is doing wonderfully today!  It was a long and busy day at work for me but I had a fabulous day because I chose to have one.  There were plenty of opportunities for me to get upset but I just kept my smile on and kept moving forward!!  It's Friday the 13th, for the 2nd month in a row!  That's just crazy lucky :D

I have a lot that needs to get taken care of in the next few weeks, and a lot is kind of an understatement, but I don't care.  Tonight, Johnny's school is having a Mom-Son event.  It's a Freaky Friday Neon Night with a lot of fun events like dodgeball!  So, I painted my nails in neon green and orange (have to stick with the St. Patty's colors in case I don't have a chance to change them before Tuesday) and we're drawing cool little pics on our face with bright face paint colors.  I'm so extremely excited and cannot wait!!  Unfortunately though, we can't stay out much past when it ends because tomorrow morning Johnny's scholastic group in Odyssey of the Mind has their regional competition so we have to be in bed early so we are there on time.  But, we're so excited about that as well so it's all good ;)

Life can be so insane sometimes, but it still sure is fun!  We all live in this insane, crazy world together yet some of us are still choosing to miss out on the awesomeness and live in negativity and sadness.  For example, have you ever asked someone how they were and their response was "just another day in paradise"?  If I asked you to raise your hands, I'm guessing you all have your hands up.  I'm sure some of you are guilty of saying it yourself, don't worry - my husband is as well ;)  I think it's funny that the phrase "Just another day in paradise" is considered a negative thing.  I am guilty of using this phrase, but when I say it - I mean it!  I say it with enthusiasm and joy and love!!  My life is always another day in paradise!!  And it should be that way for all of us.  Yes, life is not always easy.  Yes, life can be very sad sometimes.  Yes, life can make it very hard to stay happy all the time ... But there is ALWAYS a reason to smile.  You just have to focus on that reason instead!  Life is paradise - so go out and enjoy it like it is!

Here is a song called "Just Another Day in Paradise" by Phil Vassar.  I found a version of it that includes the lyrics because that's what makes this song so awesome!

I hope you all enjoy your evening in paradise while I go enjoy mine with my son!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Late Night Lovelies!

Tonight's Happy is a sweet simple prayer for all of you!  Goodnight and sweet dreams my Happy clan!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Off to dreamland we go!

Happy Wednesday night my Happy clan!  Yeppers - another late night post from yours truly.  I can't believe how fast time is going right now.  I feel like it's bedtime as quickly as it's time to wake up...  But I take on each day with love in my heart and a smile on my face, because no matter what, the show must always go on!  And the show does go on with sunshine and flowers leading my way :)

For today's Happy, I just wanted to send something sweet your way before we all head off to dreamland.  It's a cute little gif I found online and I thought it was just too sweet not to share with all of you!

So always remember to

I love you all and hope you have a wonderful night's sleep with the sweetest of sweet dreams!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Loving Life :)

Happy Tuesday night my Happy clan!  Can you believe it - tomorrow's already hump day!!  How quickly the time goes by ... Whether you're having fun or not ;)  I'm trying to make sure and enjoy every single moment of life now.  I always used to try and grab each moment of life but, like most people, I took life for granted.  Now that I'm older I know just how precious our time is and even though it is hard sometimes, I still make sure and enjoy every moment I am alive!!!

Life is such an amazing gift - without life we wouldn't have any of our family and friends, which is what makes this all worthwhile anyways.  And at the end of our earthly life we get to go spend an eternity with all these people we love.  And not just the people, but our furry family members too!  See what I mean... Best. Gift. Ever!

So, tonight's Happy is me hammering this reminder into your head like a nail into the wall!  Life is good!  Life is great!!  Life is wonderful!!!  So live your life - enjoy every single moment of it!!  Stop letting the negative and bad take control.  YOU are in control, so choose to be happy and love your life, all of it!!  All the ups and downs and insides and outs and one step forward but two step back times and everything's coming up Milhouse days!  Just love your life and love everyone around you and always remember to smile :D

Now, go get some sleep and when you wake up tomorrow greet the new day with a giant smile and go love the new day of life you've been given!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!
Karen :)

Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy!

Happy Monday evening my Happy clan!  I hope all of you had a wonderful day today!  I am watching Seinfeld with my Matty as we're laying in bed getting ready to fall asleep.  As I lay here I'm thinking about what would be a great Happy to share with all of you today (since I decided on an evening post again today).  Then, out of nowhere, an old school thought popped into my head and I knew exactly what I was going to share tonight.

Sometimes, all we need is just a simple reminder to just be happy.  And sometimes that reminder may be simple yet as tremendous as a thunderstorm!!  That's exactly what tonight's Happy is ... A tender thought that thunders through! ;)

Now, go get some sleep so you can get your "Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy" on tomorrow!!!  Sleep tight and sweet dreams to you all!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Another Sunday Evening Sentiment

Happy Sunday night my Happy clan!  Congratulations on making it to the end of another week!  I hope you all had a wonderful day and a week full of happiness and love!!  I did!!!  But, I'm sure you already knew that ;)  I had a lot to take care of today but I feel quite accomplished and am feeling more and more weight being lifted off my shoulders every day!  Now, that's a fantastic Happy if I do say so myself!

I know most of you went through the daylight savings time change last night so it's quite late for my Happy, but that's okay.  Better late than never (as I'm sure I've said in other posts).  Tonight I have a goodnight wish for you all - seeing as how it is late and it is bedtime as well!

Sleep well, sweet dreams and I love you all!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Enjoy your ride called life!

Happy Saturday night my Happy clan!  I hope this post finds you all happy and smiling!!  I am ... Just in case you were wondering if I was following my own words of wisdom ;)

Today was a very nice day and I'm so thankful for my day of blessings and love!  God really is so very generous and loving!  How can I not be happy all the time - I mean, I am still alive and have the chance to live another day spreading this love and happiness that I am blessed with!!  Knowing that I might possibly be able to make someone (or multiple someones) smile gives me such an incredible joy!!!

I saw an amazing quote today that I just knew I had to share as part of our Happy today.  It's a great way to sum up life:

Life is a roller coaster,

With highs and lows,

With speeds and slows,

With screams and blows,

With dreams and woes...

Just smile and enjoy the ride!

Isn't that just so fantastic?!?!  What made this even more incredibly fantastic for me was I was just talking with my coworkers and friends the other day about how much I loved roller coasters and how much I loved the thrill of them.  And it really is the perfect metaphor for life.  Like a roller coaster - there are some scary moments that sometimes almost make us feel as if we aren't even going to make it out alive!  But, those moments usually end up being the most fun and exciting parts!

Have you ever seen the movie Parenthood directed by Ron Howard?  It's one of my favorite movies!  Well, at one point, Steve Martin's character, Gil, just quit his job and comes home to find out his wife, Karen, played by Mary Steenburgen, is pregnant with their 4th child.  Gil and Karen are in the middle of a parent argument (you know, the fighting parents do when kids are around) when Gil's grandma walks in and interrupts them.  Here's the clip:

I couldn't agree more with their Grandma!  I like the roller coaster too!!

Life is most definitely an incredible Happy when you think of it like this, wouldn't you agree?  And this is just another reason I am always so happy and am able to keep a smile on my face 99.9% of the time ;)  I love my roller coaster of life and wouldn't stop this ride for anything - I'm so thankful for however long I get!!  So, I'd like to share one more quote about life and how it's like a roller coaster before I say goodnight:

So, from here on out, I want all of you to start enjoying your roller coaster of a life and when things start getting scary, don't close your eyes and hide away, throw your hands up and smile because it will be worth it in the end!

On that note, it is time for me to retire!  Goodnight and sweet dreams to all of you!  Remember, unless you are in Arizona, set your clocks ahead an hour so you can "spring forward" with the time change.  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Look beyond and see the good!

Happy Friday evening my Happy clan!  I hope you all had a super day!!  I know for some of you just knowing it's Friday makes today an extra special Happy, but it should be an extra special Happy for all of you!  Even if you have to work it can still be a Happy, you just have to let it be.

Today's Happy is a quick and simple message to help you make every day a Happy one:

Being Happy doesn't mean that everything is perfect,

It means you've decided to see beyond the imperfections!!

And it really is that simple!!  And it's very late so take that with you now and forever and until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

You're never alone!!

Happy Thursday my Happy clan!  I hope you all are having a wonderful day and are ready for the weekend - which is now almost one day away!  It's been a crazy busy week and it's just going to get crazier, but as long as I've got my boys I know I'm going to be okay.  After all, love is all you need, no matter what life may throw at you...  And it's so awesome being loved, it makes the hardest days seem quite easy to deal with!

And that's one thing you can always depend on your family for - to love you and be there for you no matter what.  And remember, family isn't always blood.  It's the people in your life who want you in theirs, the ones who accept you for who you are.  The ones who would do anything to see you smile and who love you no matter what!  And guess what, that's your Happy for today ... But I'm thinking you already guessed that ;)  Today's Happy is just a reminder that you are loved by the "family" you have in your life, and guess what, I'm one of those family members!  And just one more reminder to add to your Happy for today:

So, next time you feel alone or left behind, remember you aren't... You always have someone who loves you and is thinking about you and will always be there for you - I promise I will always be!!  But, now it's time for me to head off to bed so until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

How are you defined?

Happy Wednesday my Happy clan!  I hope you all are having an awesome hump day!!  My day has been great - busy at work because I had a lot to get done but a really nice day.  I brought my homemade peanut butter and chocolate chip banana bread in so that immediately put everyone in a great mood!  Which put me in an even better mood, I really get a kick out of knowing I made someone else's day better :)  I just love being happy!!!

My whole life I've had people ask me how I can be so happy all the time, how I can always be smiling...  Have you ever looked up the definition of the word "Happy"?  Webster's Dictionary's definitions are:
     1) favored by luck or fortune
     2) notably fitting, effective or well-adapted
     3) enjoying or characterized by well-being and contentment

This can be the definition of you if you let it!!  And let me tell you, it's a pretty awesome way of being defined.  I love knowing when people come see me they know they are going to be greeted with a smile, a hello and in most cases, a hug!!!  And what's even greater is knowing they enjoy when they see me!  I try to make sure everyone I meet knows that I'm happy and grateful to have met them and spent time with them.  And I hope all of you know how happy and grateful I am to have you - and I love you all!!

Today's Happy is a simple affirmation and also a helpful way to show you how to always be happy!

Don't look for a reason to be happy - just be happy!  First of all, because there is ALWAYS a reason.  And secondly, because you don't need a reason!!!  So, I hope you all really take this in and learn from it and go out there and get to being happy!!!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Baking up some Happiness!

Happy Tuesday my Happy clan!  I hope you all had a super day - I know I did!  It was another super busy day but I got so much accomplished, and I'm still going too.  This morning, even though we woke up almost an hour late, we got Johnny ready and out the door only 5 minutes later than he should have left.  I made it to the bank before 10am, I got almost all my paperwork dealt with before lunch time and we got a lot of necessary plans put together as well.  And now, I'm waiting for my last two loaves of banana bread to finish baking so I can let them cool long enough to wrap up for the evening.  I changed up my recipe a bit, this time I made chocolate & peanut butter chip banana bread, and it is delicious!!!

I find it quite amazing how easy baking comes to me.  I never thought I'd not only be able to but enjoy baking like I do.  Life gives us so many unexpected but awesome surprises and I'm thankful for ever single one of them!!  What's even more fantastic is that it happens to all of us, we just have to pay attention.  Sometimes the signs in life are so apparent but other times they can be quite subtle.  For example, for 2 years in a row my mother-in-law bought me the first two books in the "Hello, Cupcake" series.  I thought they were cute but didn't give them much else thought.  That is, until my mom's birthday one year.  I had no money but still wanted to do something special for her.  I found some cake mix in my pantry and decided, how about I bake her a cake.  But, a cake seemed too boring, so I started looking through all my cookbooks until I found the baking section.  The "Hello, Cupcake" book immediately caught my eye and the first recipe I opened up to was a recipe for bowling pins, and my mother is obsessed with bowling!  Well, of course, I had to make these cupcakes!!  So, I went to the store to get the remaining ingredients needed and spent about 3-4 hours baking.  Here's a picture of the final product:

For my first attempt at "fancy" cupcakes, I have to say, I did a pretty fabulous job!  After baking this batch, I thought it would be pretty cool to start baking cupcakes for everyone on their birthday - I was thinking this would be a unique gift just from me, but still wouldn't cost too much (um... yeah, it's actually a lot pricier than I thought).  So, next in line were Kathy and Kelly (technically my dad comes afterward but he was living out of state at the time so he missed out).  Kat and Kelly are twins but have very different likes - so, Kat got some kitties and Kelly got my first attempt at "CubCakes".  Here's their final products:

It was definitely easier for me when I had a design to follow, but as I kept baking, I just got better :)

And I still use designs I find along the way that I like:

Now, I not only design, but make my cupcakes completely from scratch (no store bought mixtures for this redhead - and a lot of the pictures above are made completely from scratch!) and I'm in the process of creating my own recipes as well!  It's such a thrill whenever I bake and it really is just a multitude of Happies for me!  One Happy is the actual baking - I love creating the batter and working on it to make it my own!  Another Happy is waiting for the cupcakes to bake and the house smelling better and better as the time ticks away!  And yet another Happy is when they're all finished and watching people go crazy so they can get one more of my cupcakes because they're just that good!!  God truly blessed me with an incredible gift and I promise all of you that I will continue to work on my baking and one day it will be available to everyone everywhere!!!

So, to go along with my point, today's Happy is about the special talents that we all have.  Whether it's something like being able to whistle, or being able to recite all the elements and their abbreviations of the Periodic Table, or being able to flip your eyelids inside out or (in my case) being able to bake fun and yummy cupcakes, we all have a talent and we should embrace these talents!  We're given them for a reason - and sometimes we have other talents that we didn't even knew was there.  Start opening your eyes more and seeing the amazing things you can do.  But, don't just see it - celebrate it!!!  You are amazing and you do amazing things and you should be very proud of yourself!!!  Now, go celebrate the awesomeness that is you and have a beautiful sleep with the sweetest of dreams!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

The answer to happiness is so simple...

Some Happies just don't need an explanation... Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)

Sunday Slumber

Happy Sunday night my Happy clan!  I hope that you all had a stupendously wonderful week!!  Can you believe it's not  only the end of another week but the beginning of a brand new month!  Just like that and it's almost springtime :) I know there's still another few weeks or so to go but I can feel it!  And until then, "Just remember in the winter far beneath the bitter snow lies the seed that with the sun's love, in the spring becomes the rose." (The Rose, -Bette Midler)

The thought of spring makes me so happy in so many different ways!  I can guarantee I'll have some lovely dreams tonight thanks to these thoughts - and I'd like for you all to have lovely dreams as well!

So, tonight's Happy is a sweet and simple song that gracefully depicts the exquisite wonder that is springtime:

I love the soft melody of the piano... I think it fits quite well - and makes for a great tune to fall asleep to ;) In fact, that's just what I'm going to do!  Until tomorrow, keep smiling and spreading that love!!

Peace, Love and Happiness!

Karen :)