Check the entire “5 things that bring me joy this week” weekly series here, a collection of seemingly insignificant things that serve as a reminder to appreciate the little things — those small joys that make a difference in our day-to-day.

This month so far has been a doozy and I am secretly hoping for a break on some fronts… The time change isn’t making it any easier as I constantly find myself thinking it’s much later than it actually is, which stresses me that I haven’t done enough, and so on and so forth. Did I mention I loathe the time change? Yes, I know I did many times, and it infuriates me that we’re still doing it...

Anyway… the point of this post is to highlight things that bring joy, rather than focusing on the opposite, so here are this week’s 5 things that bring joy:

• re-visiting the manatees at the Manatee Viewing Center. I shared about our first visit here, along with other useful info. Luckily, this time the weather was much more pleasant and we got to see a herd or aggregation of manatees (did you know that’s what they call a group of them?) We also saw a shiver of [small] sharks… Yep, we learned a few things... Anyway, seeing these very large, yet very gentle mammals sure brings joy.

• spending time with family. Both our families live far from us, so seeing each other in person is not something that happens often. A part of our family has visited us for a while, and it was really nice.

• getting back to our routine. Sure, having guests, doing things, and being out is fun, but I am at my best when I have a routine — I somewhat cherish it. Is it strange that our normal brings joy? I’m still recovering over here…

• declaring the holiday season officially open on the blog! My Holidays page is now active; there you’ll find gift and outfit ideas, our holiday stories and traditions, and more. Working on it brought me joy, for sure. And of course, there’s more to come!

• making plans for the holidays. Do I need to mention that it brings joy?

What’s bringing YOU joy this week?

xo,

Em