Things that lift my spirits.

• Goofy dancing in the kitchen
• Hot coffee
• Talking to my sisters.  Even when we're talking about depressing things, like the end of one sister's marriage, our father's memorial service, or our inability to stop stuffing cookies into our faces.
• The tenderness with which my son interacts with his stuffed animals
• Birds at the feeder outside the kitchen window.
• Call me evil, but the knowledge that my niece, well-loved and well-parented since day one, blessed with health and intelligence and charm, can and occasionally does out-brat my own kids. 
• Zoloft.  I missed two days in the chaos of last week, and Saturday I was immobilized by headache and misery.  Now I'm back on track, and feeling fine.
• Spooning.
• The way my kids scream "Daddy!" and race to bear hug him whenever he walks in the door.
• Reading to my kids. They have rejected every chapter book besides the "early reader" types, but right now we are reading the first Harry Potter, and apparently it IS magic, because despite the lack of pictures, Britishisms, and very different pace than, say "Mr. Putter and Tabby Ride the Train," they are listening intently and asking for more. 
• Being known.  Last night my husband and I watched a movie together.  Afterwards I was sitting on the couch with my laptop.  He wandered past and, without looking at the screen, asked, "What do the reviews say?"  So I told him.
• Getting outdoors.  
• The clock on the mantle.  The tick-tock and bonging on the hour drive my husband and son nuts.  But it's the clock that was in the kitchen as I grew up, so the sounds are old friends to me.  I like the ritual of winding it each week, and I appreciate being reminded of the time each half hour.  
• Time with friends.  
• Getting into the car and realizing my husband filled the tank.
• The incredibly soft sweatshirt my husband got for Christmas.  Purr.  It's a win-win, since he loves me to rub his shoulders.  
• Singing my daughter to sleep.
• Payday.  Times are tough, and there's a palpable sense of relief each time the bank account gets replenished.
• Red wine, chocolate, and reading.  Duh