The Act of Making Merry

Merriment: Gaiety and fun

Mirth, Gaiety, Joy, Hilarity, Glee Frolic

Today is the last day in January and for maybe the third day in a row, we are stuck inside because of illness and or weather.  February is on the verge of appearing and, in the Midwest, February is another long month of cold, dark and at times dreary days, so the outlook for fun and adventure seems dismal at best.  The sun makes a sneak appearance at best, and most times it shines just long enough for me to see how dirty my floors really are...
When stuck in the doldrums of winter, one has to choose to be happy, be energetic and be creative. In warm summer months those attributes seem to come naturally and ooze from every activity and outing.  Yesterday, as I cared for a sick husband on the couch, a four year old, a three year old and a eight month old, I had to choose to be happy, creative and energetic.  That is when I thought of merriment... making merry....that is when it hit me, "merry", doesn't just happen, it requires effort and attitude and action.  When your outside atmosphere is less then merry, all you have to do is MAKE it Merry, MAKE MERRY, MERRIMENT!  Even the word can make you happy, say it a few times...it makes you just a little bit happy, a slight smile maybe creeping to your face? 
So, what did I do yesterday to make a little merry?  First, I turned on some tunes baby. I love me some classical music and yesterday it was Chopin, I cleaned my kitchen....maybe not the merriest of acts, but when it is done, nothing makes you feel happier and more at ease then a clean kitchen!  Then, I made it all dirty again by calling the chickens in.  Okay, not real chickens (even though I really want some...but that is another post) chickens, i.e. children.  We made Ethan's volcano erupt, which turned out to be a bit lackluster, but still fun.  Then we made some homemade play dough, also not the stellar outcome we were looking for.  I was not prepared for it and didn't have any food coloring or Cream of Tatar,  which the recipe said you could skip, so we did, and the dough was really sticky and actually just made the kids upset because it just stuck to their hands and wasn't play material.  I think that was a great lesson though, we had fun just in the act of making it, even though the end result wasn't what we were hoping for. We tried something new, had fun, and learned a few lessons on how to make it better then next time around. 
So, the birth of this blog has happened. It has been in my head for quite some time and after yesterday I felt inspired and creative enough to go for it.  What are my goals for the blog? I want to blog about The ACT of Making Merry, about all things happy and fun, colorful and whimsical, bright and bold and all this wonderful.  For kids, for adults for home, for outside, for inside, parties and products.  I think everyone can use a little merriment in there lives, and I may not have a degree in merry making, but if it can add a little joy to my life, maybe it will to yours too.

XOXO Madame Merriment