Happiness is sitting on my favorite loveseat with my feet propped up, a cat in my lap, knitting in my hands, and a Pepsi on the side table.

The next number? 5! Leslie, who says:

What makes me happy?

Today, seeing my friend, MJ, who has lately endured 4 rounds of chemo, out and about again with hair even.

Kind gestures such as this one, pay it forward and I shall.

And finally, the lucky number 19! Susan T-O, who has a lot of things that make her happy:

Sunny days that aren’t too hot. Rainy days that aren’t too cold. Finding a forgotten $20 in the pocket of your coat. My husband & pets. Knitting. Spinning (with a spinning wheel, I don’t mean turning in place, ha ha!). Finishing a project & starting a new one. Reading a really good book. Iced coffee. Watching dogs playing at Dog Beach. Getting a sharp bird photo, especially if it’s a species I haven’t seen before. Watching “Survivor” & calling my sister to discuss the show during the commercials. Getting a letter from an old friend. Getting a back rub. Giving a back rub. The look on my husband’s face when I massage his feet. Coming home from work and discovering that someone did the vacuuming for me. Christmas carols, any time of year. Halloween. Pepperoni & mushroom pizza with hot sauce. Getting comments on Ravelry or my blog. Rubbing the dog’s back until her tail wags like crazy. Rubbing the cat’s head until he purrs like mad. A day at the park.

Sorry, guess I got a little carried away there!

Congratulations ladies! I’ll be in touch shortly, and thanks for playing along everyone! I like making things, and I also like hearing happy things.

• You leave a comment on this entry telling me something that makes you happy.
• On Friday, Feb. 13th, I’ll randomly choose three commenters and provide them with some sort of hand-made creation. It could be something knit, photographed, baked, entirely up to my discretion, though you’re welcome to make suggestions. You should receive your item by the end of 2009 at the latest. (Some things take time!)
• Since this is a Pay it Forward giveaway, the deal is that the winners (and anyone else who wants to) should then provide the same deal on their blog/website/life (I know not all my readers have blogs…)

Sound good to you? Then please enter, and help spread the love.

**Edited: The contest is now closed! Thanks for entering!**

You notice I also mentioned random acts of kindness. Just before I left for Sacramento (which you’ll hear more about later, I’m sure), I received a package in the mail from a very kind Raveler with my very first sock yarn and appropriately-sized needles. I’m eager to start my first pair of socks that aren’t acrylic, worsted weight, and too small. They’ll take some time to do on these small needles, but it’ll be fun, and more portable than my sweater, soon enough. Isn’t the yarn pretty? Thanks so much!

This is Boomer; a friend brought in his dog to spend the afternoon in the office on Friday. It really made my day just that much better. I love dogs. And Boomer is quite well-behaved. We became quick friends.

This is Anya’s bone. After she’s done chewing on it for awhile, she always leaves it upright, and it amuses Logan and I to no end.

While taking a break from work yesterday, Logan and I went to go grab some dinner and saw this on the way. With so many flags of so many different colors, I thought it was like a garden in its own right, so I had to take a photo.

Today’s photo (look, a photo of the day before 9 in the morning!) is another contest. I’m trying to grow this on my deck. Do you know what it is? Take a guess, and win a postcard from Italy if you’re right! (Since this is probably more difficult than the last contest, I’ll come back and post hints periodically – feel free to guess more than once!)

First hint: It’s a dwarf variety. I probably wouldn’t be able to grow the full-size version in a pot like that.

Second hint: It is not a vegetable, but parts of the plant can be used as foodstuffs.

Third hint: One of the (U.S.) states has it as its official state flower. (Not the dwarf version specifically.)

Yay! It has been guessed! Gerhard wins, and the mystery plant is a sunflower!

The first person to get it right gets bragging rights, and a postcard from Italy. Or something.