Projects For Happiness

Recently I've found myself feeling very down about a lot of things. I felt like my friends were distancing themselves from me and I didn't have anything I could commit to. I didn't want to be around my family and I spent a lot of time alone in my room. Before I fell too far down this path, I decided to take action. Here's a list of projects I starting to help me get out of my funk and back into a positive mindset:

1) The 52 Lists Project

I've always wanted to keep a diary or some form of journal about my life but I suck at keeping up with it. My mom had purchased The 52 Lists Project awhile back and has gone on and on about how much she enjoys it. I decided to get one for myself and try it out. Honestly, I thought it would end up on my pile of forgotten journals (believe me, there are a lot of them). But, I've actually found myself keeping up with it. Instead of doing it everyday, you do it every week. Each week has a prompt for some type of list and then a prompt for how you are going to take action. My personal favorite has been the list of happiest memories. I am now 5 weeks into this project and haven't gotten bored with it yet!

2) The Dog Walking Project

If you live in Missouri, you know we've been having some pretty wacky weather lately. 70° in February is pretty much unheard of! As much as I want to hate it because of global warming and all that, I can't help but find myself embracing it. Typically, the first thing I do when I get home is head straight up to my room to work on homework. After seven hours of sitting in a classroom and 2-3 hours of sitting in my room, I'm usually not a very happy camper at night. With the weather being so nice, I have decided to take my dog on a walk everyday when I get home from school. I don't even open my backpack until I return home from the walk. I didn't think it would do much but honestly, I'm loving it. It's the perfect break in between study sessions and is helping me become more active and positive at night. Who knew something as simple as walking your dog could make such a drastic change?

3) The Happy Earth Apparel Project

As many of my friends and Instagram followers know, I was a representative for a company called "Serengetee" for two semesters. I loved doing it over the summer as it motivated me to hike more and spend more time outside. When I was asked to come back for the fall semester, I was ecstatic. It was a blast over the summer so I thought it would be great during the school year too. Unfortunately for me, school became increasingly stressful and I wasn't able to keep up with my duties as a rep. I loved repping the company, I just didn't have time for it. Recently, I found a new, smaller company that was looking for representatives. It's called "Happy Earth Apparel" and focuses on conserving the earth and going green. Considering I signed up to take AP environmental science next year, I figured this company would be a good fit for me. As much as I loved serengetee, I think I will love Happy Earth even more. Their clothes fit my style and they donate 50% of what they earn to conservation. A lot of people have asked me why I rep companies. Do I get free clothes? Do they give me money? Honestly, I do it because companies like these give me a reason to be outside and make me feel like I'm doing good. Sure, I get free clothes occasionally and gain a couple more Instagram followers, but I also am helping raise money for a cause I believe in and feel like I have an obligation to be in nature. You can get 15% off your order and help raise money for conservation by using my code, "Aldridge15" at Happy Earth Apparel. 

4) The Body Positive Project

Ugh I know, another "body postitve" blogger and health guru. Let me tell you, I am the farthest thing from a health guru there will ever be. I love me some ice cream and Girl Scout cookies. However, I do believe that it is important to feel comfortable and confident in your own skin. For me, this has always been an issue. I've always felt too chubby or fat at some point in my life. Now, I know I'm not overweight, but I'm definetly not a Victoria's Secret model. This project is mainly going to be me gaining confidence in my body and becoming healthier. I'm trying to convince my mom to let me take kickboxing classes to help improve my physical fitness, and my strength and footwork for tennis. We'll see if she actually lets me or not.

5) The Social Project

Although I try to be outgoing, I really am an introvert. If I'm not with one of my friends, don't expect to be hearing much from me. Aside from trying to be more social with people in my community, I am also going to try and build on relationships I already have. This is going to be something I call "Coffee Tuesday". Every Tuesday, I will try and meet someone at Starbucks to talk or just hang out for a little while. These people can be someone I'm already really good friends with, or someone I'm only kind of friends with. The point is, I want to get to know more people and build as many relationships as I can before high school is over. If you would be interested in getting coffee (or tea) with me, please let me know!

I know these projects might be simple, but the ones I've already started have made a MAJOR impact in my life already! I'm excited to see where the rest of them can take me.