Can I Rise to the 100 Happy Day Challenge?

I recently only just found out about this 100 happy days project, perhaps I am a little behind on this! But hey, these things aren't always on my radar! 

I'm feeling rather cynical about it, I fail to see how one fleeting moment can be a true reflection of the whole day.  I am a very emotions led person, so I could go through all manner of highs and lows in a 24 hour period.  To have one picture of one moment of that day and say it was happy because of that doesn't seem real to me.

I watched a programme a little while ago on computer games (or video games as they used to be called) through the decades. When the programme got to modern times it was explaining a new term called 'gamification'. (Prounounced game-if-i-cation).  Basically it's a technique that applies the dynamics of gaming to non-game contexts.

For example, take social media, the need to gain followers, receive likes, comments, interactions, could be likened to achieving levels in a computer game.  I find this idea somewhat surreal.  Also, when using social media, we mostly, perhaps not always, present an edited version of ourselves to portray the best bits.  Apart from a no make-up selfie in aid of charity, when would we ever post a photo of us just woken up, no make-up on, with bleary eyes? The amount of times someone else takes an unflattering photo and it's the de-tag button all the way! So unless you are the kind of person who is 100% totally honest, it's not quite real.

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Hence how I feel about this challenge! On the website it states the number 1 reason people fail is lack of time.  For me, my excuse if I do fail will be entirely different.  Having suffered from ill mental health in the past, I am of course a little sceptical if I can find something to be happy about every single day!

But I am nothing if not a hypocrite because I'm going to give it a go! I've chosen to post on Instagram, so please do follow me at 'Just_Creative_Julia' under #100happydayschallenge to see how I get on! I'll also be sharing it on my Facebook page every day, find us and like us at www.facebook.com/jcjbloggingandcrafting. I hope to post on here about once a week, time and inclination dependant of course! With a more in depth round-up of the week.

Day 1 of Happy

I started yesterday and here we have the 1st photo.  I love mugs and found this one before I even knew about this challenge.  I'd actually got a decent night's sleep as my lovely husband had taken over the night time feeds (for my 11 week old boy) so was feeling a bit more chipper than usual.  I thought this would be a rather apt way to kick off the challenge.

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If I had the choice of more than one photo, which after doing a bit of research, it seems you can always do a collage photo for the day.  I'd choose this one.  I went to a birthday party for a very special 6 year old from my Church.  We had such fun on the bouncy castle! And considering I've been a bit lax in attending Church lately, it was nice to get some much needed fellowship.  Even taking this photo was a moment of joy - 'Girls, let's do a selfie!' and their excitement over this was priceless!

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And a third photo for Day 1! This was taken just down the road from the party as we were going home and was a nice way to finish off the evening.  I love taking nature photographs, God's creation never fails to inspire me!

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2nd Day of Happy

Initially, it was actually the flowers that were the focal point.  I love fresh blooms, they always brighten my day.  I tend to place them on our dining room table which is open plan next to the kitchen.  So I tend to walk past them most often placed here. 

After still struggling with a relentless feeding and medication regime for our 11 week old son, said table is covered in mess! (For those who know me, I am a messy person anyway but lately it's crept up on me even more!) I thought I'd 'keep it real' and take the photo without tidying up the mess.  Looking at the photo it then made me giggle! Beauty amongst the chaos as it were!

And that's your quota for now.  Don't forget to check in on Facebook every day this week to see how I get on.  Feel free to comment below or get in touch.

Useful links and photo credits:

If you are after a more positive outlook on the challenge, you might find this article helpful - http://cardiff.tab.co.uk/2014/05/08/100happydays-why-you-should-do-it/

For the official page telling you more if you haven't had a go yourself and fancy it - www.100happydays.com

Photo credit and more info for Gamification -

http://www.docebo.com/2014/03/31/gamification-corporate-learning/

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