10 Things That Brought Me Joy This Week: 7

Sharing 10 Things that brought me joy this past week, in the hope of inspiring you to find joy & happiness in all of life’s small things as well!

Happy Monday! Here today with my monthly 10 Things post. It’s hard to believe that we are days away from April. I feel like March has lasted a year’s time. Indonesia feels like FOREVER ago & we were there just a few weeks ago. It’s wild because we arrived home in New Hampshire the same day as everything began to get a little crazy & travel bans were set in place. Talk about good timing! Now, we found out a few days ago that here in New Hampshire, we are on a stay at home order under May 4th – I really can’t believe it!

I know everyone is taking their quarantine situation differently – which is to be expected. There’s a wide range of emotions occurring right now. Anxiety is high. Stress is very real. And many people are feeling the effects of isolation & being inside for too long. All very real things. All real, valid emotions. There’s a lot going on.

But with everything going on, I still wanted to share my 10 Things post for this month. Why? Because I think there are still things to be immensely grateful for. If you find yourself struggling or if you’re having an off day, or even if you’re having a great day, I encourage you to think about your past week & do the same! Not every moment during this social distancing time might be amazing for everyone 24/7, but it’s truly up to us to make the most out of our days & to find the joy in the small things in life. Especially in times like the present, those things are the difference makers!

So let’s get into it.

My 10 Things…

1. Fresh Air

Fresh air does wonders. Devin has been wanting to get out of the house almost once a day, so whether we just hop in the car to make a quick run to Whole Foods or just go for a walk, it’s been nice. On Saturday, we went for a long walk through our little neighborhood before I made dinner & it was really refreshing. The weather was perfect too, which made walking enjoyable. Highly encourage making time to go outside even if it’s just for a few minutes – it really does make a difference!

2. Lots of baking

I love to bake, I really do…especially with all of this free time, I SO enjoy throwing together a delicious recipe or two. This week I made my gluten free/vegan banana bread, my favorite chocolate-chip tahini cookies by Kale Junkie, & the most delicious Oatmeal Coconut Cookies by Sweet Like Cocoa. This week I want to make some banana muffins & I want to attempt some banana pancakes to hopefully share here on the blog. I have lots of brown bananas to use haha!

3. Community

Seeing people come together to help one another during such difficult times has been amazing to witness. Everything from assisting the elderly with groceries, to seeing a sign in someones front yard that says “we will get through this,” to genuinely being thankful for the people who are on the front lines fighting this virus…it’s amazing to see everyone come together in such a way. My alma mater, Southern New Hampshire University, not only has hospital beds set up in the gymnasium (in case the hospitals here begin to overflow), but yesterday they shared that they put together 5,000 brown paper bags full of food for children in need. It made me really proud knowing I went to a school that cares so much & it definitely made me smile.

4. Doing my makeup

Okay, I admit that I have been living the true quarantine life in my leggings & oversized sweatshirts (which are truly my fav) but there were a few days this past week where I actually sat down & did my makeup. I think doing your makeup while not being rushed (AT ALL LOL) is one of the best things & just a lot of fun. It’s the best pick-me-up too!

5. Being home

Now take this as you will, but as a true & I mean TRUE introvert, I LOVE being home. I almost feel crazy for saying this but I feel like I was born for the quarantine life, seriously! But all jokes aside, I’ve really enjoyed slowing down & spending time doing things that otherwise I wouldn’t have had the time to do. I also get to work on things that are important to me & my business which has been wonderful as well.

6. Online Shopping

Urban Outfitters has been having daily sales & a few days ago, they had 50% off Spring favorites. After debating for a few hours, I decided to snag a few pieces. Although my complete order isn’t in yet, I’m really happy with what I chose & received so far. I got a few comfy items in pretty neutral colors, which is definitely the vibe I’m going for when purchasing items for the reminder of the year. I also really needed a new pair of jean shorts so I was happy that I snagged a pair for 50% off – yay!

Here’s what I bought + a few other favorites!

7. Reading blogs

I love reading other people’s blog posts…it’s something I look forward to daily actually. I use a site called Bloglovin where you can follow a bunch of blogs & instead of receiving an email every time they post something new, it just shows up on a big newsfeed that you can browse through. It’s super convenient & fun to browse! A few blogs that I love following are The Skinny Confidential, Southern Curls & Pearls, Damsel in Dior, Half Baked Harvest, Gal Meets Glam, A Foodie Stays Fit, & Emma’s Edition!

P.S. you can follow my blog on Bloglovin here!

8. Being fortunate enough to work at home

I do not have a conventional job right now, but I feel SO grateful for the ability to work at home doing my blog & my business with Beautycounter. My business with Beautycounter has been such a blessing & I feel so grateful that the opportunity to join fell into my lap in the Fall. In April, I’m going to be celebrating 6 months being a consultant! I know times are difficult & if you are looking for a Plan B for something to hold you over, or you’re interested in potentially making Beautycounter your full-time gig (which is my personal goal), leave a comment below or send me an email at rowanmadi@gmail.com to chat more. I love being a consultant for so many reasons & I’d love for you to come along!

9. Hearing feedback

Yesterday, over on my IG stories (are you following me on IG yet?) I did a series of polls asking people to choose between different topics that they’d like or would enjoy seeing me post/write about. I really enjoyed seeing what the majority of people chose! I’m excited to continue to plan out April’s posts, as well as, the next few months! Any post topics that you’d enjoy reading about? Drop them in the comments!

10. Having good wifi

Okay, this has been something that I’ve been stubborn about for almost a year now. I REFUSED to buy my own wifi – yes, I like to save $$ whenever possible LOL. I had been using an xfinity hotspot that we had access to & to sum it up, it was horrendous. Devin didn’t seem to have a problem connecting his personal computer to it, but wow, I barely could connect mine…it was so frustrating, especially because I’m ALWAYS on my computer. Anyways, when we returned home from Indonesia, we went right to the xfinity store & I FINALLY bought some wifi. It’s been a dream & I’m now able to connect anywhere in the house, which call me dramatic, but it’s the best thing ever. I feel so grateful that I was able to go in the store to purchase it before everything basically closed down too – that would have been a LONG quarantine!

Want to read more 10 Things posts?! You can here!

What brought you joy this week? Feel free to share in the comments below!