99 Things I Love

I read a post on BobWP this morning about gratitude and setting aside 10 minutes to furiously jot down 99 things that you love. The idea here is that it forces you to think about your life in detail and better appreciate the small things. I’m always up for a challenge, so I thought I’d give it a shot. Here goes nothing…

1. Piping hot cups of coffee with the perfect mix of cream and sugar
2. My daughter’s wild spirit
3. My son’s sweetness
4. My husband’s sly laugh
5. Memories of my dad that float through my mind all day, every day
6. Vivid, happy dreams
7. A good night’s sleep
8. Ice cold water on a hot day
9. The sound of a cat purring
10. Relaxing, cold nights with a warm blanket and a good book
11. Binge watching TV shows on Netflix
12. The excitement when a favorite TV show or movie is about to premiere
13. The perfectly cooked steak
14. When my house is clean
15. Pinterest boards for organization
16. The feeling of soft yarn through my fingers while knitting
17. A craving fulfilled
18. Having money in the bank
19. Taking 100% guilt-free days off
20. When hard work pays off
21. Cold weather
22. New boots
23. Comfortable socks
24. My warm, faux fur robe
25. Good morning cat nuzzles
26. When technology works
27. Booklights
28. Reusable straw tumblers
29. Working on my patio
30. Ocean breezes
31. The sound of wind in the trees
32. Naps
33. Cold, sunny days
34. The smell of the earth after it’s rained
35. Plumeria lotion from Bath & Body Works
36. My daughter’s mismatched outfits
37. Documenting the things my daughter says
38. Making things
39. Baking anything
40. The smell of coffee first thing in the morning
41. Pizza night
42. Writing with no distractions
43. The perfect playlist to accompany a writing session
44. Spotify
45. Helpful people
46. Political activism
47. Generosity
48. Candy
49. Blank notebooks
50. Fountain pens
51. Calligraphy and old cards where my dad wrote out my name in perfect script
52. Candlelight
53. Fireplaces
54. The smell of Christmas
55. Rainy days when I don’t have to go anywhere
56. Slippers
57. Watching my daughter delight in playing in the ocean
58. Sandcastles
59. Memories of my grandmother’s kitchen
60. The spontaneous urge to Irish step-dance
61. Ideas for new websites
62. Stephen King
63. Finding the bright side
64. Morbid senses of humor
65. Laughing until my head hurts
66. The sound of my children laughing
67. Date night
68. The way yoga can unkink my neck and back
69. Knitting blankets
70. My Keurig
71. Doing crafts
72. Halloween
73. Autumn
74. Sweater weather
75. Compassionate people
76. Photos & videos of baby animals
77. That porcupine that really likes pumpkin
78. Watching my favorite movies with my daughter
79. The feeling of my son being so relaxed and falling asleep on my chest
80. Days at the park
81. A month without doctors’ appointments
82. Paleontology
83. All science, actually
84. Trips to the museum
85. Being proud of something I’ve written
86. Friends who truly understand me
87. Fully charged electronics
88. When my favorite song comes on the radio and staying in the car until it’s over.
89. Hearing a song from my childhood or that my dad loved while in a store
90. When both kids are asleep
91. New haircuts
92. Climbing into bed after a long day.
93. Freshly laundered sheets
94. Still warm from the dryer pajamas
95. Watching my kids discover the world
96. Getting packages in the mail
97. Funny coincidences
98. Supportive online communities
99. Decorating for the holidays

That was actually really fun. I tried to just let the thoughts flow and go back to fix typos later. I wanted to take full advantage of every second of those 10 minutes. I thought I would run out of things to list after about 50 or so but more ideas just kept coming. It definitely took me longer than 10 minutes though. Still, I figure what matters is I did it all in one session and spent time out of my day thinking of all the things I love in life. Pretty cool. I enjoyed this exercise and I encourage you to do the same! Be sure to check out the original post on the subject and to share a link to your post if you write one in the comments below.

Image source: Brian