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Joy

10 things that made us smile this week

Upworthy's weekly roundup of delights from around the internet.

10 things that made us smile this week
Nick Kosir/TikTok, @FredSchultz35/Twitter

From a dancing weatherman to a koala with a stuffed koala, here are 10 things to make you smile.

Hi friends!

It's the weekend, which means it's time for another roundup of joy from around the internet. Our world through the lens of the news and social media can look awfully bleak, and while there are definitely severe challenges to face and problems to work through, we don't do ourselves any favors by focusing primarily on the negative. We gotta break up the darkness with some sunlight wherever and whenever we can.

Sometimes that might look like highlighting an awesome human doing awesome things. Sometimes it looks like being reminded of the delightful joy of children and animals. Sometimes it might be a dose of fun-filled energy from a viral dance video. While they won't solve our problems, these seemingly small things can actually make a difference in our mindset and heartset, giving us the boost we need to keep on fighting the good fight.

So if you're feeling the weight of the world and need a little pick-me-up, we've got you covered. Here are 10 things that made us smile this week. Hope they make you smile, too.

Let's start with the bestest greeting ever. 

Who wouldn't be delighted to see this 3-year-old's confident "Good morning!" What a way to start the day.

Speaking of adorableness, check out this wee one trying to say "alligator."

@cnblucky38

Reply to @purplelovinggirl yep its right here 🤣🙌

"AGGLLGAGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGL!" Absolutely the best. Don't ever correct him, please.

This 5-year-old has got MOVES.

@officialnickkosir

Already goated and she’s only 5 🤩

Nick Kosir is known as "The Dancing Weatherman" (he really is a working meteorologist) but his 5-year-old sidekick definitely steals the show in this video. (His blue shoes, though. Love.)

The wholesome sass on this young lady. Epic. 

"You will see." Oh my. The pigtails combined with the arm stance combined with the glasses drop. It's Melody's world, y'all. We're just living in it.

Betty Reid Soskin blows #aginggoals right out of the water.

Soskin became a park ranger at 85, well after most people are fully past retirement age—not because she had to, but because she wanted to. She loved sharing forgotten stories of African Americans during WWII in her time with the National Park Service, but at 100—one hundred years old, holy cow—she's finally hanging up her hat. Read more about Ranger Betty and see her in action here.

High schooler's note to school librarian is a perfectly poetic ode to all librarians.

The student clearly wanted to express love for the librarian, and used quotes from famous authors (the first is from Barbara Kingsolver) to do so. So sweet.

Rick Astley's cover of a Foo Fighters song is surprisingly great. 

This isn't new, but it was new to me and holy cow. Am I the only one who didn't know Rick Astley had this in him? Read the full story here.

A TikTok challenge that's actually wholesome, kid-friendly and educational. 

TikTok "challenges" can be problematic, if not downright dangerous sometimes, so it's fun to see one that's just good old-fashioned fun. This video is riveting, like watching a game of Gen Z Jenga. Plus it's a good way for kids to experiment with surface tension. Read the full story here.

A koala with a stuffed koala friend. Come on now. 

I mean, this is just pure cuteness.

There is no one happier than this cat on a sheep.

That's a cat living its best life. And sheepy is just sitting there letting it happen. So soothing.

Hope that brought some delight to your day! Come back next week for another roundup of smile-worthy finds from around the internet.

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'Lazy' mom of four shares a video of her incredibly messy home and parents love her for it

"It's not dirty, it's just messy."

via themessymama4/TikTok

Bri James and her messy (not dirty) home.

It’s hard to keep your home clean when you have a child, but when you have four, unless you have a live-in maid, it’s completely impossible. There is no dishwasher fast enough to keep up with the dishes in the sink and no magical point where all four children have it together enough to put their toys away.

The problem is that if you take your eyes off the prize and let a day go by without cleaning up, you’re practically drowning in chaos.

TikTok user and stay-at-home mom Bri James (aka @themessymama4) did the unthinkable and let her home go four days without tidying up and shared the incredible mess with everyone on TikTok.


"I know I'm going to get roasted," she says in the clip, "but ... this is what happens when two really lazy adults have four kids and don't clean up after themselves."

The clip shows cutlery on the floor, empty packets everywhere, dishes piled a mile-high in the sink, and clothes and toys strewn everywhere. The house looks like the parents went away on a permanent vacation and left their kids to fend for themselves.

The video was praised by a lot of parents who are tired of seeing mommy influencers with spotless homes and children in matching linen outfits. Finally, there was a mom on TikTok they could relate to.

"I'd MUCH rather see you clean your realistic house than watch another blonde clean an already clean countertop," Meghan Sanders wrote.

TikTokker Its_not_that_serious put things in perfect perspective. "Dude, at the end of the day all of their fingers and toes are attached and feeling safe and loved you’re doing fine. Someday the house will be clean," they wrote.

"Having children is mentally and physically exhausting and you don’t always have the energy to clean every day," Rose added.

But not everyone appreciated Bri's slice of reality. Some people thought that her messiness was borderline neglectful and that she was setting a terrible example for her children.

"Set a good example for your kids. Make them help," carleebocciaa wrote.

"Without children = fine, your choice. With children (especially small ones) = completely unacceptable," ACZOgirly wrote.

Shortly after posting her first video, Bri got to work on the impossible task of cleaning up the entire house. Noticeably absent from the job were her spouse and four children. She appears to clean the entire place by herself.

She showed her cleaning prowess through a series of fast-motion videos.

@themessymama4

my butt does not look flattering in these Walmart lounge pants 🤦🏼‍♀️😅

Finally, at 9:30 p.m., Bri was done with most of the job, although she still had a bit of vacuuming to do and there were still some dishes in the sink. At the end of the job, she was exhausted. But she got the job done and that’s all that matters. It’s OK to let your house fall into disarray from time to time but eventually, you have to take care of business.

@themessymama4

I'm going to bed now. 🤣🥱😴

We’ll give TikTokker Sannon Martin the final word on this story because she hits the nail on the head. “Your home is exactly like mine,” she wrote. “Some days it’s a wreck and some days it looks amazing. That’s life. You’re doing great!”


This article originally appeared on 03.05.22

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