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.

I know everyone’s focus right now is on Christmas, but I can’t believe that next week is the last one of 2022. I’m not sad one bit as this year has been pretty terrible, but I’m still in disbelief at the speed by which time flies.

This little series I started this year sure helped me cope with the intense challenges 2022 threw my way, so I’m keeping it going. Here are this week’s 5 things that bring me joy:

• making my own almond milk. I presoaked 2 cups of almonds overnight and blended them with 4 cups of water (add more or less depending on how dense you like it), and a pinch of Himalayan pink salt. Drinking it sure brings a lot of joy (yes, it tastes so much better).

• our seafood Christmas dinner. We decided to go light and have baked salmon instead of the traditional turkey or ham, and I’m so looking forward to it.

• having a TV to watch all the holiday movies on… I have not changed my stance of not wanting to have a TV in our home, however, since our rental comes with it, we’re taking advantage to watch all the fun holiday programming.

• uninterrupted sleep. I’ve been having trouble sleeping through the night for a while now, so finally managing several nights of sleep without awakening over and over throughout the night sure brings joy.

• this humidifying ultrasonic aromatherapy oil diffuser. I love this little device, and use it whenever I want fragrance in our place without the fumes that come with burning a candle. I love using it with these aromatherapy oils as I found them to be the best of what I tried so far (my favorite by far is the eucalyptus, and can never have enough of it).

What’s bringing YOU joy this week?

xo,

Em