Perfume, please.

If there's one small luxury I'm grateful for every day it's perfume. It wasn't until I ran out, for the first time in forever, that I realised how much it meant to me. It's a ritual, night and day.

At the moment it's Burberry London, which is beautiful, but my all time favourite is Sicily by D&G - divine!

The power of smell to evoke memories is something I've always been acutely aware. Whenever I smell vanilla it takes me back to junior high school - because one of my best friends used to drench herself in it.

A study by Bruce Turetsky, a psychiatry professor, proves that smell can be more memory provoking than any other sense. He says different scents may "have a greater ability to bring up an emotional memory in you than seeing a picture or hearing a voice."

Here's hoping I'm not smelling of Sicily on an occasion I'd rather forget.

Has anyone ever had a memory evoked by a familiar scent?

Dark chocolate & red wine.

Last night I broke out the dark chocolate (Lindt!) and a bottle of red wine. These are a couple of guilty pleasures that I am so grateful contain something that's actually good for me! I'm talking about antioxidants.

Apparently, a natural antioxidant found in grape skins and red wine can help destroy pancreatic cancer cells (Science Daily). Yet another great reason to blissfully enjoy red wine without feeling guilty.

As for chocolate, it's rich in flavonoid antioxidants (especially, epicatechin). A human (in vivo) study reported in the Journal Nature found that intake of dark chocolate increased antioxidant capacity in blood plasma!

Bliss!

The gift of a daughter

Today is my birthday. I received many beautiful gifts but the best one of all was my 2-year-old daughter's arms wrapped tightly around me this morning and her whispering, 'Happy birthday mummy, love you much...I have present you!'

I'm already so proud of who she's becoming. She's kind, gentle, thoughtful and so curious. I'm in awe of how much so already knows about the world and I'm loving reliving my childhood through her. Tiny teapots, Dora dolls, bags and plastic jewellery - so much fun!

My own mum gave me a beautiful book for my birthday called Forever My Daughter with inspiring quotes on the true meaning of being given the gift of a daughter. Here's my favourite one, which I think sums up this precious relationship perfectly.

Stronger than life ...
Like it or not, we are bound to one another
It is the lightest of links - so light that sometimes we forget it altogether.
But it is stronger than life itself.
One tiny tug will have me dropping anything I'm doing
- you are, above everything, the heartbeat of my life.

Memories kept.

Today I found a poem written for me by my Granddad. He was a huge part of my life even though he lived on the other side of the world. He was the one who inspired me to write. So today I'm feeling grateful that this was something I hung onto, because no-one expects their loved ones to die.

He was only in his early 60's when he passed away and it was such a shock to everyone because he was so vibrant, healthy and full of life. He was also the funniest person I have ever met.

They say people have three deaths. One is when they pass away, the next is when they're buried/cremated and the third is when people stop speaking their name.

So I'm publishing one of his poems so he'll never experience the third.

Untitled.
As last I've found my heaven
But it's right here on Earth
It's very far away
And not my place of birth
The land is rich and fertile
The sky is clear and blue
The sun shines on this heaven
Australia, I love you.

By Eric Longbottom.

- This poem is for the place I found and love and to my beautiful princess Haley whom I love dearly and miss terribly. x Always, your Granddad.

The power of grateful.

Lately I've been feeling a little low, which got me thinking about the power of feeling grateful.

I just got back from a walk around my block on one of the most spectacular days I've ever seen. The temperature was perfect, the sky a gorgeous blue sheet under which I, a healthy and fully able mother pushed her beautiful 2-year-old daughter in a pram.

A simple walk really put everything into perspective for me. If you have your health and you love and are loved then it seems quite selfish to feel anything but grateful.

I also discovered some research that proves writing about what makes us grateful increases our happiness. The research study, by Dr Steven Toepfer, an assistant professor of family and consumer studies, shows expressing gratitude through writing can significantly improve our feelings of happiness.

A similar study by James W. Pennebaker, a professor of psychology and author of Writing to Heal ($41.95, New Harbinger Publications), found those who write feel happier and less negative than before writing.

So I've decided to blog, every single day for the next month, about one thing that has made me feel grateful! If you've been feeling a bit sorry for yourself lately, join me and lets see if our happiness goes up a few notches!