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Happiness

How it Went: Month 1 of the Happiness Project

May 16, 2021 By Jodi

Spending a month getting reacquainted with myself, while trite, was incredibly meaningful.

Do You Have Any Family Sayings?

April 20, 2021 By Jodi

Several months ago, I was scrolling the Instagram very late at night—as one does—and came across a post by a dear friend that stopped me in my tracks, stopped me in my scrolling, stopped my breathing, maybe even made my heart stop for a beat or two.

Solitary cabin in winter, we are all islands

Happiness Project: January: Self-knowledge resolutions

March 30, 2021 By Jodi

Starting a happiness project is all the easier when someone does the legwork for you. Freed from having to think too much about it, it was easy to get started on January's theme of self-knowledge by picking up a handful of suggestions from Gretchen and throwing in a couple resolutions of my own. The idea...

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Happiness Project Redux

March 23, 2021 By Jodi

In my previous post, I mentioned that I'm endeavoring a Happiness Project again. I've written a lot of background about happiness projects, and why I find the idea meaningful—as opposed to mere frivolity––so I won't go into that again now. This time, though, due to some Black Friday margarita drinking*, I'm actually doing the official...

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A Soft Restart

March 8, 2021 By Jodi

Well. Here we go again. A confluence of minor life events—a card we sent out, a drunken email I wrote to a popular website, the launching of a new happiness project—led to the unbearable, inevitable sentiment that I have to start doing this again. I want to start doing this again.

Watercolor flatlay

The Surprising Uses of Melancholy: Watercolor Painting and Reading Poetry

April 9, 2019 By Jodi

I may have mentioned that I went through a spate of melancholy recently. 😉 The good news it that I'm through it; the better news is that I got a lot out of it.

How Much Alone Time Do You Need?

February 22, 2019 By Jodi

Last weekend I traveled without my family for the first time. While James has traveled for work regularly throughout our married life, ever since having kids I have been the one to stay put and hold down the fort. Also, I've had a nursing baby for most of the last seven years, so it has...

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Colored leaves in fall

Some Categories of Anger (and Melancholy, of Course)

February 8, 2019 By Jodi

What's your Achilles' heel? Mine is definitely anger. I get angry a lot. (I have a lot of other shortcomings, but that's the one that dominates.) I get angry irrationally and I get angry for totally appropriate reasons (though my husband and children might disagree). So I was immediately intrigued when I came across this...

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Jodi with babies in lap

What Do You Most Wish for Your Children?

December 11, 2017 By Jodi

I was flipping through a local magazine for moms last week when I came across an interview with the cover mom, a local business owner. One of the questions, thrown unceremoniously into the middle of the interview, was, "Your biggest wish for your kids is..." Can you guess the answer?

Palm trees in Hollywood

Naming What's Hard: Melancholy, Regret, and Tears at Target

September 21, 2017 By Jodi

I cried at Target yesterday. I was standing just a few feet from the customer service lane, where a helpful employee was working on my situation. It had been a successful resupply run, and my cart was full of enough diapers, wipes, toilet paper, and coffee filters to last a couple months: I wouldn't have...

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About Jodi

I just repatriated from Sweden to the US with my British husband and three young kids. I started this site while living in Sweden to build the conversations and community we've had with loved ones around the world, and to create a space to share thoughts about life, beauty, motherhood, and everything else. read more →

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Making Hard Parenting Choices (i.e. Preparing for Another Big Change)

November 27, 2017 By Jodi 5 Comments

Boys dressed as superheroes, kinda

Although we're finally settling into a new rhythm and set of routines, we're preparing for some significant changes come January. Because we haven't had enough life-shattering change in the last few months...

Does Seeking Happiness Make Us Miserable?

October 10, 2016 By Jodi 6 Comments

seeking-happiness-girl-running

Over the weekend I noticed an essay on Vox titled America is obsessed with happiness--and it's making us miserable. Obviously, given all that I have written about happiness here, including my own efforts to do a happiness project, the title jumped out at me. Even without reading the essay, that title gave me a prick of discomfort...

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Stockholm With Kids: Gröna Lund

September 14, 2016 By Jodi Leave a Comment

grona-lund-carousel-swing

Normally I'm quite unsure about what I want to do for my birthday. I always have the vague notion that I would like to see friends and eat good food, but beyond that, no clear idea. This year, however, I knew exactly how I wanted to spend my birthday weekend--outside, having fun. 

Great Parenting Books That Don't Make Me Feel Like a Shitty Mother

April 6, 2017 By Jodi 2 Comments

Best parenting books

I have to admit: I'm a fairly confident parent. Not confident that I do everything perfectly, or that every decision I make is Right, or that I couldn't possibly be raising my children any better, but confident that I'm mostly doing the best that I can do and that my children are emotionally and physically healthy. I generally trust my...

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About Dear Sabrina

Welcome! Dear Sabrina is a lifestyle blog for the thinking woman (and man, if men read lifestyle blogs). I hope that visiting this site gives you something to think about, makes you laugh, or shows you something new. If you want to further connect, find me on one of networks below or send an email.
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