10 Things That Made Me Happy as a Child

In a previous post, 25 of The Best Choices That I Have Made in My Life, I shared a list based on a prompt from the books, 52 Lists of Calm and 52 Lists of Happiness which can both be found on Amazon or Walmart.

In today’s post, however, I am answering the prompt, 10 Things That Made Me Happy as a Child. Over the weekend, when I started thinking about the list, I got pretty emotional. I was happy about most of the memories, but I also missed a lot of those precious times.

This is why it is so important to understand that time is the only thing that we can’t get back. Once those people are gone or those moments are gone, it’s over; just like that.

Anywho, let’s jump into this list of childhood memories, shall we?

Going to Bluefield

One of the most exciting things that I looked forward to every year as a child was going back to my hometown of Bluefield, West Virginia. I loved spending the summers there with my grandmother, great-grandmother, aunt, cousins, and friends.

Sending & Receiving Snail Mail

As a child, and even to this day, I love sending and receiving snail mail. When I was a child, I had a number of pen pals over the years, but my aunts and grandmothers would also always send me adorable things in the mail.

A few of the things that stay in my mind include a ring from my aunt along with a wooden bunny that she made and sent to me.

Other things include some Precious Moments figurines and various birthday cards and letters.

My aunt also sent me her handwritten recipe for “Cornflake Chews”. I have no idea what they are really called but, I have the recipe and make them from time to time. They are certainly delicious!

Stationery, Lisa Frank, Stickers

To go along with the snail mail, I would always have to have pretty stickers and stationery. Lisa Frank was my favorite. I loved all things Lisa Frank!

In fact, I broke out my 80’s sticker album for my nieces to see last year. You can check out the Lisa Frank stickers in this post.

Duffin Dollar

Growing up in Memphis in the 90’s, there weren’t any Dollar Trees. Instead, there was Duffin Dollar. It was very similar to Dollar Tree. I would love to go there, but it wasn’t often that we went.

The Candy Store in the Mall

Another favorite of mine was being able to shop in the candy store at the Mall of Memphis. I don’t recall what the store was, but it was lined with candy in clear bins. You could grab your white bag and fill it and then have it weighed. You had to be careful to make sure that you could afford whatever it was that you put in that bag though.

Batons (I always wanted to be a majorette.)

Two schools that I attended during elementary school in Memphis were Dunbar Elementary and Oakhaven Elementary. At each school, I wanted to be a majorette and be really good at twirling batons like this, but I was just so uncoordinated, that I never even tried.

So, instead, my parents would let me get batons from the toy aisles. So, I would waltz around the house twirling the batons the same way, over and over again.

Birthday Cakes

Growing up, my mom always made sure that we had a birthday cake, if nothing else. So, I always looked forward to my birthday and my brother’s birthdays to see what kind of cake we would have next.

Two of my favorite birthday cakes of all times included a huge Cabbage Patch cake when I was about four and a Ballerina cake when I was five. The cake had these adorable cake toppers on it! I still have the photos to this day.

Snacks: Ninja Turtle Pies and Fudge Rounds

Speaking of cakes, I loved snacks as a little girl and my weight would always fluctuate. I would be chunky and then a nice normal size and then chunky again. But, looking back, I already know what it was. I loved eating those Ninja Turtle Pies and Fudge Rounds.

Many times, when my mom would pick us up after school before heading home, we would stop at the grocery store. Typically, we could always get one thing at the register. I would always opt for the Ninja Turtle pie with the yummy vanilla filling or a Little Debbie Fudge Round. They were delicious!

If you’ve never heard of the Ninja Turtle pies, just do a quick Google search on them. They came out in 1991 by Hostess. They were green with a vanilla pudding filling. LOL. Y’all this is probably why I couldn’t be a majorette, eating all the TMNT pies (eye roll).

Anyway, I couldn’t tell you the last time I actually ate either one of them. I don’t have a desire for them anymore (thank goodness), but it’s fun thinking back on it.

Doing Well in School & Getting Ribbons

Back in the day, whenever you did well at something in school, there was a ribbon for it. Honor Roll. Perfect Attendance. Etc. Etc. I loved collecting ribbons! I would do really well in school subjects, make the honor roll, and save all of my ribbons.

I still have most of them to this day in a tote somewhere tucked away. One day, I’ll hunt them down and update this post with photos.

My Two Teachers, Mrs. Brown and Ms. Pegues

Lastly, I had two teachers that I adored, Mrs. Brown and Ms. Pegues. Mrs. Brown was my kindergarten teacher. We kept in touch through letters for several years. The same was true of my 5th grade teacher, Ms. Pegues.

Ms. Pegues was amazing! She taught us great penmanship, how to type, and how to make a school newsletter. I was Editor-in-Chief that year (Surprise!). It made me so proud!

Over the years, I searched high and low for her with no luck. Recently, on yet another search, I found out that she had passed away in 2006. It broke my heart, but it made me feel better when I read the comments from the obituary. So many women who had had her growing up shared a lot of what I shared, as well.

Final Thoughts

Well, there you have it, 10 things that made me happy as a child. I’m sure there are so many other memories, but these were the first 10 that came to mind to share.