In my quest to update and repost some of my favorite blog posts from my original (now deleted) blog, we have one of my favorite pieces of content, 200 Reasons to Be Happy.
Starting in my senior year o college, I would post ten reasons to be happy every week, until there was so many posts that it needed its own section on my website. It grew into something my readers were really excited about and that I thoroughly enjoyed doing. I've saved some of those old comments from my original blog at the bottom of this post.
The goal of this series was to appreciate the little things that made life special, so that you could more easily find the bigger things that cause joy too. This content was written from the lens of my life, but I hope it inspires your day and helps you find the next thing for you to be happy about.
The original 100 Reasons to Be Happy:
Written from 2011-2012, re-edited with commentary on April 27, 2024.
Cuddling with stuffed animals and my fiancé (Who is now my husband of almost ten years! How amazing to see this post has survived my archives for so long.)
Sleeping during a rain storm
Sharing my opinion and knowing it is valued
Reading (Dear past Rebecca, you are now an author! 💞)
The accomplishment of marathoning a season of a TV show
Cute kittens
Warm clothes from the dryer
Harry Potter FanFiction (something I still enjoy over ten years later)
Bacon
Anything purple
Achieving a long planned goal
Getting a smile from a stranger that feels real
A freshly made bed
Warm socks on a cold day
Cute cat videos
New purse smell
Receiving packages in the mail
Leaving notes in books for strangers (I forgot I used to do this! I would love to do this again.)
The smell of fresh-mowed grass
New agendas
Floral dresses
An organized purse
A fresh set of nails
Red hair (Future Rebecca regrets this! Ha! It was lovely but the damage has been hard to recover from.)
Fedoras
De-knotting my hair (I'm finding it really funny that I wrote this. I don't find this fun now, but I do love doing hair treatments.)
Finding an amazing sale
Kids playing make-believe
Hidden messages that you solve by yourself or in groups (If only past me know how much I loved Taylor Swift clues now. Clown crew!)
Strawberry and banana smoothies
Movie nights
Twitter @replys (Ouch, that hurts. Bye Twitter.)
Warm chocolate chip cookies
Exercise on a stressful day
Wearing a new outfit
Theme parks
New emails (I don't know why past me wrote this. I don't remember caring too much about emails, but preserving it here because of how odd it is.)
Delicious beverages
Time with nature
New clothing
Funny sayings on throw pillows
Baby ducks
French braids (Though I am horrible at them.)
Picnics
The feeling of warm ocean water
Finally understanding a math problem after working on it for an hour…. >.< (Wow, past me. You are adorable.)
Mr. & Mrs. matching objects
Whip cream
The flicker of candles in the dark
Staycations
Good hair days
The first paycheck at a new job
Looking at a newly cleaned room
Playing with dogs
Smores
Wearing a brand new pair of shoes
Making new friends in strange places
Staring at my engagement ring and day dreaming… sigh… (Don't worry past me, you'll get married in three years.)
Taking a shower (Now as a parent, sometimes the only way you can get a break is in a shower!)
Reading comments on YouTube and this blog (Comments are less common on blogs now, so I'd add here getting Instagram comments and DMs)
Glow in the dark ceiling stars (A classic)
Getting a massage (Especially when part of my ClassPass benefits)
Fuzzy slippers
The first day of school (I miss the feeling of the first. Part of me still thinks about going back to school.)
Studying in a quiet library
Getting lost in a story
Watching TV with my sister
Passing notes in class
“Steak night” at my Dad’s house
Facebook Birthday wall posts
Spending a few hours watching silly YouTube videos (Like cat videos!) (Past Rebecca listed cute videos and animals often in this list. I still love those things and spend way too much time with memes.)
Clear skin days
Finishing my to-do lists
Switching purses (Can you tell how much I like to organize based on the items in this list?)
Seeing a friend that you haven’t seen in months
Going to Target (lol that didn't change)
Taking the bus (Starring out the window listening to music and audiobooks, in particular.)
Meeting subscribers (It is wild to me that even with such a small amount of subscribers, I still ran into people that knew me occasionally.)
Learning something new and exciting
My iPod touch (OMG throwback. Spotify didn't exist yet.)
The Last Unicorn (my favorite childhood movie)
Walt Disney (Who wouldn’t be happy for all the joy he has brought to children?)
Plastic heels little children wear (So adorable!)
Movie nights (As I'm editing this, I'm watching to Shrek. A classic!)
Caesar salads
Editing new videos (I'm no longer a YouTuber, but still love how satisfying that was)
Selena Gomez’s song “Who Says”: Who says, who says you’re not perfect?Who says you’re not worth it?
Silky pajamas
Getting surprise checks in the mail for random reasons
No Eczema rashes on my body since last year (I've kept this streak, now ten+ years in)
No Eczema rashes on my face in almost two years (Did not keep this streak. When I'm stressed my face breaks out in rashes, but my multi-layered skincare routine helps keep it at bay as much it can be.)
EVOO as a moisturizer is a life-saver
Healthy sunscreen habits
Having no correlation with chocolate and my acne
Having less acne then last year
Laying down in bed with fuzzy blankets and having nothing to do
Natural blush from excitement
Time at coffee shops by myself
Liking what I see in the mirror!
Most of all, I am happy to be me.
The series then expanded to different kinds of happy lists, featured below.
The next two sections were written in 2011, re-edited with commentary from me now. It's wonderful to see how much is the same and yet different.
Wonderful Things to Be Grateful For Today
I am grateful to live in a world where I can follow my passions without fear.
I am grateful to my family for always supporting me, even if they don’t always understand what I’m doing.
I am grateful to have been able to grow up with the love of my life. I would not be where I am now without him. (For context, we met when I was 15.)
I am grateful for my friend’s never ending patience in me. I know I don’t call as much as I should. (My list of friends has changed a lot over the years and now most of them are online. Still, so grateful for them - but now because I can find more people that have similar interests. I didn't have that growing up.)
I am grateful for the “the giggles” (my sister’s adorable uncontrollable laughter). I see her and immediately feel joy. (Now, that gratitude for the giggles transfers to my son. He is definitely someone that gets the giggles.)
I am grateful for my brother’s smiles and time. (He used to smile more when we were younger and I see him less now. Seeing this made me realize that. I'm still grateful, but this comment is now tinted a different color in my mind.)
I am grateful for my ever expanding family. Those added through marriages, pregnancies, friendships, and my online subscribers. (Now, I can say, it grows with my readership. Over 30,000 people have downloaded my books now, a blessing I never imagined when I originally wrote this.)
I am grateful for the people that have come and gone from my life. Thank you for the lessons we have learned together and the lessons we will now learn apart.
I am grateful for the love I am given everyday. I am grateful to feel its warmth like sunshine.
Most of all, I am grateful for all the obstacles that have been thrown my way. Without them, growth would not be possible. (Wow past Rebecca, some more crazy obstacles are on the way! Don't worry, you still believe in the spirit of this statement. You are a better person now because of what you learned in this hardships.)
10 Reasons to Love Today
I love that it isn’t raining because that would have ruined my hair.
Speaking of hair, I love that my hair looks cute and curly with minimal effort on my part. (That changes, but my hair is finally getting back to its health with bond repair treatments.)
I loved eating a cookie for breakfast this morning.
I love the floral sunglasses I wore today, who cares if it is technically fall. (I find it interesting that past me thought flowers could only be a spring thing when we have very little weather changes in Miami.)
I love the Trident Vitality “vigorate” citrus gum I’m chewing right now. Yes! Thank goodness for no more braces! (Now I hate gum, so keeping this as a joke. Anyone else hate food and treats they used to love?)
I love that Chris finds a way to complement me everyday, even when I look horrible. He swears I wake up surrounded by butterflies, I beg to differ. (My honey still says I wake up surrounded by butterflies, that cutie.)
I love that I don’t have to do homework tonight. (Now instead I picked a career for myself that makes me want to work all the time!)
I love the new found energy I feel because of this blog post.
I love my job! (My job at the time was just school and YouTube, since I was on a scholarship that gave me more than enough and a monetized channel.)
I love you for taking the time out of your day to read this. (Seriously, right now if you are reading this you are talking to me in 2011 and 2024, that's really cool. Thank you for being here.)
20 Subtle Things to Appreciate
Written March 19, 2015 (Glad i saved these exact dates, I wish I had for the others), re-edited with commentary April 28, 2024
The way dogs wag their tails just because you smiled at them
The feeling of new clothing on your skin
The smell of fresh popped cinema popcorn
The feel of squishy paperback books (or is that just me?) (Now you can squish paperbacks you wrote, cutie.)
The beauty of great skin days
The feeling of accomplishment you get when a home cooked meal turns out better than you expected
The sweat of a satisfying workout and the rush of pride
The happiness of discovering a new blog (I read so few blogs now, even though I've done this for over a decade. I'd love to find a few that make me feel like they used to in college.)
The productivity a new desktop wallpaper brings
The fun of non-junk snail mail (it’s so rare!)
The peace that comes when staring at the moon (This is a new one I added in. I used to have a long commute where I would leave while it was still dark, from 2017-2020, and the moon made me so happy every morning.)
The imagination of a child (Hi mermaids!)
The nights spent cuddling and watching Netflix (I mention TV marathons a lot on these lists and I still love it, though no I mostly watch K-dramas while everyone is asleep haha.)
The strange thoughts that pop into your mind while in the shower
The appreciative feeling you get when someone takes your advice (Leaving this one, but find it really interesting. I thought about deleting it, but instead see it now as proof of my growth. It doesn't matter if anyone follows my advice. That's there on journey.)
The sound of rustling dried leaves being picked up from the wind
The delicious tingling of citrus fruits on your lips
The way a lingering hug can calm down your heart beat on an anxious day
The look of a full closet after laundry day
The quiet yet loud feeling of being engrossed in a book (Wow I love this.)
60 Simple But Amazing Things to Enjoy
Written September 11, 2015, half re-written April 28, 2024 as many of this content was repetitive to the first 100 list.
Crunchy ice cubes
Anything holographic
Free birthday gifts from stores you like
Black and white cookies
Ranting my feelings in my diary until I feel free of them
Creating vision boards
Characters you identify with
Warm meals
Funky patterned clothes
Inside jokes that don't even make sense anymore
Hot and sweet coffee
Cold water
Cabinets full of mugs
Waiting to buy something you want and then when you do get it, there is a coupon (Score!)
Song lyrics that speak to a very specific feeling you didn't know how to say before
When a cat meows at you as if it expects you to understand them
Small dogs that are like hot water bottle heaters under your blanket
Setting new goals and feeling like they can happen
Star gazing
Someone doing a favor without hesitation
The rainbow foam in the car wash
The color copper
Finally getting something I have been waiting a long time for
Acceptance (Keeping this one here, but it's definitely not a "simple" thing past Rebecca!)
Indulgences
Kindness
Praise
Fluffy towels
A full cabinet of clean dishes
A messy and loved home
New discoveries
A buzzed night of celebrations
Hand cream
Sensual massages
Going on a walk and getting deep into thought
A notification that makes you smile
Funny haikus
Plants I can actually keep alive (so far, only aloe has survived and some snake plants)
Thrilling conclusions to trilogies
The X-Files TV show
The sound of a carbonated can opening
AC apps so you don't have to get up to adjust the temperature
Golden hour
The fact that the truth is out there (see 40)
Pretty washi tape
DIY projects that go well
Learning a cool random fact you can pull out to add to any conversation
Stickers on laptops that represent your personality
Unlimited soup and salad at Olive Garden (Seriously, the best)
Butterflies flying in front of you
Productive days
Baby’s breath
Thinking about happy memories and getting happy again
Fresh notebooks
Filled notebooks
An uncontrollable laugh over something silly, yet you can't stop it
Saying something at the same time as someone else. Jinx, you owe me a soda!
Nostalgia for old fashion trends
The memory of the dial up internet sound
The touch of warm glass heated from the sun, feeling it and knowing you are safe (A contribution from my husband that is perfect for this last spot.)
And there we have it, the 200 reasons to be happy that I started sharing in 2011 and has evolved for my blog now in 2024. I hope that it brings you comfort that this content lived on and that happiness can come in many forms.
Share what makes you happy in the comments below!
This article has been repurposed from my original blog after I changed website providers, so all previous comments and shares have been lost. If you liked this post, I'd appreciate if you shared it on Pinterest.
Comment archive from the original entries - read for even more reasons to be happy!
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For the Pinterest lovers like me:
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