I’m a little late linking up to my writer/blogger friend Sara Letourneau this month for What’s Making Me Happy (WMMH). I wish I could say this post is late because I was busy doing the things that make me happy, but that wouldn’t be the whole truth. Partly, I’ve been spending quality time with family and friends, celebrating my birthday, relaxing. But I’ve also been painting the laundry room, moving furniture, organizing toys, going to doctor’s appointments, and all the other things that I put off during the school year and feel compelled to do before the next school year starts.

I’m adding a twist to this month’s post: one thing that’s NOT making me happy. I’m doing this to be more realistic about my life and not put the full “Facebook-effect shine” on things. I also want ask myself the hard question of what’s making me most unhappy this month, so that I can make changes in August.

I’m watching… Stephen Colbert’s monologues

I’ve been in serious mourning since Jon Stewart left The Daily Show, but I’m finally getting my daily late-night political comedy fix again. (I adore John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight, but that’s only once a week.) I’ve always been a fan of Colbert’s, but this summer he and his writers are just hitting it out of the park. Every joke lands with the perfect twist of ironic humor and “truthiness.” My husband and I have been watching the previous night’s show over coffee each morning. I’m going to miss that ritual when I go back to work. I don’t need the whole show, just the first 15 minutes. Maybe I’ll catch it on YouTube during my lunch break.

I’m eating… our farm share.

I kind of can’t believe I haven’t written about the farm share until now. In early May, we took the plunge and signed up at the Poughkeepsie Farm Project for a weekly half share of vegetables and a seasonal fruit share, and it’s been an amazing thing for us. Every week we pick up a bounty of freshly grown produce that’s been pre-picked, as well as pick-your-own allowances for things like blueberries and snap peas. We even get to pick fresh flowers (see picture). I’m loving the high-quality lettuce and cucumbers for our salads, and my husband is learning new ways to cook vegetables like okra and kale. It’s been a happiness boost and a focus on eating healthy, clean foods.

Lest you think I’ve gone all healthy-living, I confess that I’m also eating way too much of the grasshopper ice cream that our local homemade place serves. Dark chocolate ice cream mixed with mint Oreos: yes please.

I’m wearing… these TOMS sandals. I finally found the perfect sandal (and requested it as a birthday gift from my parents). It’s incredibly comfortable, like having leather molded to my foot. And it has the perfect high-low look that can be dressed up or down.

I’m listening to… the return of my favorite seasonal podcasts, Revisionist History and Tell Me Something I Don’t Know. Entertaining, informative, addictive. I strongly recommend that you subscribe!

I’m reading… my way through the 2017 Summer Reading List. I’ll do a whole post on this at the end of the summer; for now, let me say that I am LOVING having a permanent what-to-read-next queue and I’ve never read more books in a shorter amount of time. Better: I’ve never read more GREAT books.

And now for something NOT making me happy this month: sleepless nights. Between helter-skelter vacation schedules, getting the (teething) baby girl to sleep in her crib, and staying up too late reading really good books (see above), I haven’t been sleeping as much or as consistently as I need. I’m really feeling it, both physically and emotionally. Sleep is huge for me; I even figured out that I can’t lose weight unless I’m sleeping well. I have to start enforcing early bedtimes for myself. That will be hard, because I normally don’t do much relaxing until after the kids are in bed, so an early bedtime cuts into me-time. Which might lower my happiness, but not as much as being tired all day.

What’s making you happy this month? What’s the number one thing that’s NOT making you happy?