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Happy anniversary! Celebrating our second year with your favourite happiness posts

We’re hitting the two-year anniversary of The Happiness Plan here at Chatelaine.com—yay us! Admittedly, when I was asked two years ago to co-author this blog, I was thrilled…and puzzled. Is there that much to write about happiness? I wondered?

Lighting candles on a birthday cake Masterfile

We’re hitting the two-year anniversary of The Happiness Plan here at Chatelaine.com — yay us! Admittedly, when I was asked two years ago to co-author this blog, I was thrilled…and puzzled. Is there that much to write about happiness? I wondered. The answer is an enthusiastic yes! Not only are we celebrating more than two years of happiness news, but we’ve also released an e-book, How to be Happy: 50 Extraordinary Revelations on Love, Life, Lattes & Summer Camp. To mark the milestone, I’ve compiled your top five favourite posts from The Happiness Plan’s second year — and a few, if I do say so myself, that are worth revisiting. Enjoy!

1. “Do this five minutes a day to be happier” (December 2011): Who knew it only took a few minutes daily to start your road to happiness? Well, it seems Frank Clayton, the Salt Lake City, Utah-based therapist who specializes in positive psychology did. In this post, he shares why you should spend five minutes a day focusing on your personal “positives.” 2. “Three things you can do to become a happier parent” (January 2012): It was in this post I discovered that the wrestling matches my 4-year-old son and I occasionally engage in is just one of the ways I’m a happier parent. To find out more, Jennifer Kolari, a member of the Chatelaine Health Advisory Board and Toronto-based family therapist who authored Connected Parenting: How to Raise a Great Kid, shares useful advice on how to connect with our children. 3. “What to eat to feel happier” (July 2012): Guess what — noshing on salmon, organic strawberries and full-fat Greek yogurt is not only yummy and good for you, but can also help make you happier. So says Dr. Drew Ramsey, an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons and co-author of the book The Happiness Diet. Here, Dr. Ramsey tells us about feel-good foods, some of which can actually help depression. 4. “Want to be happier? Give the benefit of the doubt” (February 2012): Along with sharing my story of crashing into a Porsche with my newborn daughter in the car, this post finds Kurt Gray, an assistant professor at the University of Maryland and researcher in the area of good intentions and positive life experiences, telling us about how perceptions of other people’s intentions colour how we see the world. Giving the benefit of the doubt, he says, can ultimately lead to happiness.  

5. “Why you should think like grandma to be happier” (March 2012): Goodbye stewing over old grudges. In this post, Stefan Sütterlin, a German researcher with the University of Luxembourg shares why it is that as we age, we tend to mope less over minor conflicts and concerns. In turn, less brooding gives us better overall life satisfaction. Have a memorable Happiness Plan blog? Share it with us below. Want more happiness news? Follow me on Twitter @AstridVanDenB

How to be Happy: 50 Extraordinary Revelations   How to be Happy: 50 Extraordinary Revelations Get Chatelaine's How to be Happy: 50 Extraordinary Revelations on Love, Life, Lattes & Summer Camp, $4.99, on Kobo or iTunes.

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