Winter therapy

This delicious hot cocoa mix is going to get me through the long Washington winter.

Every winter I need a new gimmick, a new happy moment to make the dreary, rainy days more bearable.  When we first moved here five years ago I would turn on every light in the house first thing in the morning and leave them on all day.  Every. Single. Light.   And that somehow made me feel like it was bright and sunny, not gray and dreary.

A few years later I discovered "fuzzy socks." I think they are designed to be worn as sort-of slippers around the house, but during winter I wear them all day long, with and without shoes, out and about and everywhere. Every year I add a few new varieties, and my fuzzy socks keep my toes warm and cozy.

Then two years ago I found some fabulous super soft sheets.  They are still wonderful, and still make me happy all during the cold season. Which, in case you are wondering, lasts from October to July.

A few weeks ago I happened upon a big tin of  Starbucks Hot Cocoa mix at Costco, and with the very first mug I fell in love. The dark chocolate mix - prepared with milk - is rich, velvety, decadent, indulgent, and amazing. I have a mug of this cocoa every day, and I plan ahead to select a "cocoa time" when I can really focus on the chocolaty goodness. Every once in awhile I'll make a cup just after waking up, but at 5 a.m. I'm really not coherent enough to fully appreciate it. So, I usually wait until I get the last kid successfully off to school. Then I make my cocoa, breathe deeply, and enjoy my chocolate moment.  (I bought the Cocoa tin using a Costco coupon, and when I realized how magnificent it is, I raced back to the store to buy a winter's supply before it went off coupon!)

These are just a few of my winter coping strategies.