A lot of times I can feel baseline, or a little above that - good. However, there's not  much I can think of that goes miles above that and brings me Joy.  

 

Decorating cookies actually brings me joy. 

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It's a feeling of creativity, peace, and contentment all rolled into a sugary piece of art. It's taken me quite a while to perfect my craft... lots of trial and error. I'll find a picture of my first ever cookie when I have time... I was trying to make Halloween cookies... Specifically, a cat. Unfortunately, I messed up so badly, I ended up just dumping all of the frosting onto the poor feline and called it "ugly Christmas sweater cat". I figured, if I couldn't make it look pretty, I might as well make it tasty with a bunch of extra frosting.

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I admit, I was holding back tears.

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I'm so glad I didn't give up. I worked until I figured out the frosting consistency - I've learned tricks on with paint, and lately, even frosting shape transfers. 

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Next up I'm hoping to start working more with chocolate. Apparently, I need to use oil based food coloring for that to keep the chocolate from seizing up. I learned that with my last attempt - but much like ugly Christmas sweater cat, it can only get better from here. 

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I'm thinking about joining our local neighborhood farmers market to sell my cookies, fresh backyard chicken eggs, and homemade vanilla extract. What do you think?

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Soo many things I do that make me happy - but only this one thing I can think of that strikes PURE JOY.