Life is full of ups and downs and all those moments flat-lined between. It’s easy to celebrate the ups — the victories and milestones everyone seems to notice. You know the kind. Birthdays, anniversaries, a game-winning hit. And the downs, well, those get our attention, too. But it’s the level land — the moments defined by a long-ranging plateau — that need a little extra time and energy. After all, it’s the average, seemingly monotonous intervals that serve as the cornerstone of your highest and lowest moments. Downtime — plateau time — is exciting simply in how it prepares you for the up or downswing that awaits you at the edge. As such, recognize the times you feel the most blasé are some of the most important and most worth celebrating. When you start to celebrate what seems “normal” and “uninteresting,” life becomes just a bit more fun, and the days move in a happier manner. If you aren’t sure how to begin celebrating the everyday, try your hand at these seven ways to celebrate for no reason.

Acknowledge Small Successes

To celebrate the everyday, train yourself to see just how amazing each day really is. Heck, there are some days when washing your hair is a true feat. Take a chocolate after that, please. Try making a list of all of the things you’ve done throughout the day. Paid that ugly bill? Check. Called your mom? Check. Got boogers out of your kid’s hair? Put two checks for that one. These are the small successes that are worth your notice. Pat yourself on the back, eat a chocolate and sit down in blissful awareness that you are accomplishing great things.

Treat Yo’ Self

Life can be just plain ugly sometimes. And, even in its prettier moments, you can still get worn out and find you’ve put yourself on the backburner. You are worth so much more than a slow simmer, so kick up the heat and treat yourself. Whether that means taking 15 minutes each day to scour Pinterest while you drink your coffee (“Amen!” to that one, right?) or scheduling a session at the salon to cover those new, kid-induced greys, you deserve some rest and relaxation all to yourself. Celebrate you, kid.

Create Incentives

Remember that sticker chart you used to get your kids to use the potty? You need one of those — but for you. Before you poo-poo this one, let’s admit that there are always tasks we don’t want to take on. That pile of dishes? They’ve been sitting there for two days, and they’re not any closer to getting done. Solution? Incentives! Create a chart for the daily tasks you don’t want to do. If, at the end of the week, you’ve hit that task hard every day, give yourself a reward. It doesn’t have to be big: a latte from your favorite coffee shop would be a cheap, easy incentive. The point is to track your progress, and maybe you’ll figure this “adulting” out eventually.

Be Spontaneous

Does anyone else feel like the calendar controls you? Whether it’s written down or beeping at you from that gorgeous, too-expensive phone, that calendar is ruling you, and not the other way around. It’s time to take back your time. Scratch out the things that aren’t energizing you, and take that time to act spontaneously. Even going on an unplanned Target run can be exciting. If you’ve got a little extra money in the budget, get a baby-sitter and head out for the weekend with your spouse. Chances are, he/she needs the spontaneity as much as you do.

Host a Screening of Your Favorite Show or Movie

Downtown Abbey gets a whole lot more interesting when surrounded by fellow show lovers. Don’t go in for the fictitious marriages solo. Grab your best pals and make a night of it. Better yet, borrow a projector from a local library and set up the screen on your biggest wall. Voila! You’ve got yourself a live-in theatre. Popcorn and box candies from the dollar store will make this a true production. You may be surprised just how easy it is to put together and how much fun you and your pals will enjoy everything.

Bake a Cake, and Eat it, Too

Sometimes cake is just the bomb-diggity. You need it, and it needs you. Bake a cake today. Bake it because it’s Tuesday, and you can. Go simple or go fancy. Buy a box or make it from scratch. Invite others to eat it, too, or eat it all yourself. However you take your cake, just take it. Remember this: Life isn’t always a piece of cake, but today it is.

Celebrate and Give to Others

You aren’t alone, even when you think you are. There are people moving and breathing all around you. Your friends, your family, your co-workers, the perfect strangers sharing space in the same coffee shop. Their lives are connected to yours in ways that sometimes seem meaningless. But they aren’t meaningless. Have you ever had a day where someone randomly bought you coffee or helped you take groceries to your car or said you had a great idea? It made you feel good, right? Celebrate moments like those and give them to other people. Write a quick note of thanks to your spouse for putting up with your crazy days and loving you through them. Bring donuts into the office. Make your kids chocolate chip pancakes with more chocolate chips than pancake. They will light up with joy and so will you. Celebrating for no reason comes from an intentional realization that the norm is worth noticing. Your every day, your family’s every day, is worth more than the dull humming of calendar-driven routine. Don’t let the days pass by in a blur. Celebrate what you have, who you are and who’s around you. That plateau won’t last forever.