Last Sunday night I got all excited thinking about my evening of knitting and watching Downton Abbey, and then I stopped for a minute and thought, “How’d I get here?”

(Okay, shut up, I didn’t do one of these maudlin retrospective posts for my birthday, so I’m due.)

It sounds stupid to say it, but I think lately I’ve learned that you should value what makes you happy. How did I learn that? Was it because of having kids? Was it because I’ve spent the last year thinking a lot about simplifying my life? Did a little birdie whisper it in my ear out in the woods at the Haven?

Things that make me happy:

• Spending time with the kids, like ice skating and playing checkers
• Writing
• Playing guitar and accordion
• Reading
• Being outside
• Knitting
• Trying new foods / experiences
• Travel

Things that do not make me happy:

• Clutter
• My daily commute
• Buying things

Geez, seems kind of obvious when you put it like that. How did I not know this until I turned 33? Isn’t that like, the one thing everybody knows?

Sometimes I think that past me would look at current me and say, “Dude. I don’t even know you anymore.” But then other times I think that I’m still me, only more so. Like I’ve finally arrived at the end of this path I’ve been traveling down my entire life. Maybe past me would look at current me and say, “Ah ha! That’s the answer to the equation I’ve been working on! That’s the last sentence at the end of the book that makes this all make sense!”

The good news is I know what makes me happy, which is more than a lot of people. The bad news is not knowing what makes you happy makes it a lot easier to convince yourself to keep doing all the crappy things you have to do in life whether they make you happy or not.

• Ants on a Raft – noun –  Ants on a log for people who don’t like celery; the raisins are instead on bread. – “Aunt Anna, will you make me some ants on a raft?”
• Baboon – intransitive verb –  To baboon someone, that is, to speak rapidly and be the first person to complete the sentence, “Not too soon, you big baboon!” – “See you later alligator, after while crocodile, not too soon you big baboon!” “Oh, you babooned me!”
• Cabrella – noun– Umbrella. “Mama, where’s my cabrella?”
• Callapitter – noun – Caterpillar. “Ollie look, a callapitter!”
• College Money – noun – Paper money – “Thank you for the college money.” antonym: see Ice Cream Money
• Creams – noun – 1) The vast series of Vaseline/steroids/lotions applied to control Oliver’s eczema. 2) Any lotion. – “Ollie, come here, it’s time to do your creams!”
• Duclos – noun – Duplo. – “I want to build a tower out of duclos!”
• EE – proper noun – Evie. – “Is it time to get up yet EE?”
• Face, The – noun – The face one makes by gritting their teeth and flexing the muscles in their neck until their head shakes. – “Ollie, make your face!”
• Floobooberbabbooberbubs – noun – 1) A name to use as a placeholder when you can’t think of someone’s name. 2) A default noun to be used when you can’t think of the right word. – “What should we name her?” “Floobooberbabbooberbubs?”
• Flute – noun – Anything that can be blown into to make a noise. – “Listen to my flute!”
• Friends – noun – Stuffed animals. –  “I’m going to sleep with all my friends.”
• Hamster – noun – A clothes hamper. – “I already put my clothes in the hamster.”
• Haven, The – proper noun – Our property in Michigan. – “We’re going to the Haven this weekend.” synonym: see the Property.
• Hector – proper noun – The name of every boxelder bug. – “Uh oh, how did Hector get in here?”
• Ice Cream Money – noun – Coins – “I found some ice cream money on the ground.” antonym: see College Money
• Kitty Manners – noun – Good manners, especially in public or specifically at a restaurant. – “Okay, I want to everyone to have their kitty manners tonight.” antonym: see Piggy Manners
• Ladybug – noun – 1) A spider. 2) Any bug. – “There’s a ladybug in the corner!”
• Loose – adjective – When a boys ::ahem:: parts aren’t tucked into his underpants properly. – “Mama, it’s loose.” synonym: see Squishy
• Milkwater – noun – A glass of water with a little bit of milk in it. – “Ollie, that’s enough milk, do you want water now?” “I want milkwater!”
• Minnicin – noun – Cinnamon – “I need some minnicin for my applesauce.”
• Monsters – noun – An excuse for anything, especially when something is missing or to avoid going in a room alone. – “Monsters ate my other shoe!”
• Nu Nu Nu Nu – verb – To run around stark naked singing a very specific song that goes, “Nu nu nu nuu nu, nu nu nu nu. Nu nu nu nu nuuuuuu.” Sometimes you freeze in place and point at someone with your mouth open. This is required before you can take a bath. – “Go do nu nu nu nu so you can get into the bath.”
• Piggy Manners – noun – Bad manners, especially in public or specifically at a restaurant. “Evie, that’s piggy manners.” antonym: see Kitty Manners
• Pooncooks – noun – Pancakes. – “Daddy, what’s for breakfast?” “Pooncooks.” “These aren’t pooncooks, they’re pancakes!” “Oh yeah, who’s making them? These ones are pooncooks.”
• Property, The – proper noun – Our property in Michigan. – “We’re going to The Property this weekend.” synonym: see The Haven.
• Relaxing Time – noun – An hour or two in the afternoon when you don’t have to nap, but you do have to stay in your room and do a quiet activity. – “Evie, go back in your room. Relaxing time isn’t over yet.”
• Schnozberries – noun – Default name for any kind of berry. – “Are they blueberry pancakes?” “No, schnozberry pancakes.”
• Shushi – proper noun – Evie’s imaginary friend. – “Don’t open the closet! Shushi is hiding in there.”
• Smooch Sandwich – noun – 1) Two pieces of bread with smooches in between (literally kissing the bread). 2) Smooching someone up in order to tickle them. 3) The answer to the question, “What’s for dinner?”. – “Daddy, what’s in my lunch?” “Well, there’s a smooch sandwich…” synonym: see Tickle Pie.
• Smoochnose McGee – proper noun – A name to use as a placeholder when you can’t think of someone’s name. – “What should we name her?” “Smoochnose McGee?”
• Spicy – noun – Sriracha – “I need more spicy please.”
• Squishy – adjective – When a boys ::ahem:: parts aren’t tucked into his underpants properly. – “Mama, it feels squishy.” synonym: see Loose
• Tickle Pie – noun – 1) Tickling someone. 2) The answer to the question, “What’s for dinner?”. – “Daddy, what’s for dessert?” “Tickle pie.” synonym: see Smooch Sandwhich.
• Trail Mix – noun – Cranberries and walnuts. Nothing more, nothing less. – “Can I have some trail mix in my lunch?”
• Uncle Nathan Green – adjective – A particular shade of crayon; a light- or yellow-green. – “Look, I found Uncle Nathan Green!”
• Wipe – noun – A little homemade square of flannel, with stitched edges. – “I need a wipe!”
• Woo – proper noun – The person responsible for everything. – “Who should do it?” “Woo should do it!” “Okay I’ll tell Woo if I see him.”