Easy steps towards living 'Sunny Side Up' ...

Happy Monday everyone! 

Today I read an article by Colleen Oakley from yesterday's Parade Magazine called "Sunny Side Up: Do you know how to be happy?".  As my husband and I have been discussing the topic of happiness a lot lately (as in how to have it post-baby when you generally want to jump off a bridge!), I decided to share the key points from the article.  After all, even happy people would like to be even happier, wouldn't they??

Easy steps towards living 'Sunny Side Up':

1.) Happy people don't give happiness much thought!  Dwelling on it is a characteristic of less happy people.
2.) Planning and anticipating a vacationis generally when people are happiest and not actually while on vacation!
3.) Happiness is apparently 50% genetic, 10% influenced by life circumstances, and 40% how you think and act every day!
4.) People who make friends with their cor-workers are happiest.
5.) When they're down, people who read become happier than those who watch TV!
6.) If happy people have free time, they get outside around trees and nature!
7.) Taking fish oil every day can actually increase your brain's ability to absorb mood-boosting hormones like serotonin and norepinephrine!
8.) Listening to music is an instant mood booster!

I just love articles like this that give you easy little ways to make life happier (or easier, healthier, etc.), don't you?  Bite-size advice, just how I like it :).

Also, as it's Monday, I have decided to share one of my goals for the week.  Over the weekend my husband and I were discussing our mutual desire to lose a few pounds of flab around the middle (non-existent flab in his case I might mention), so this week we have a mutual goal to cut out ALL alcohol during the week.  We're still going to allow ourselves a glass or two over the weekend (I mean we ARE human after all!!), but during the week we will dutifully abstain.  Wish us luck, my friends!

And in case you're curious about last week's goals, I did manage to stay within my goal for caffeine and desserts, but I drank 3 more glasses of vino than I had allowed for.  Still pretty good overall though I'd say :).