Happy Tuesday, and welcome to 2025’s penultimate Positive DONUT (try saying that 10 times fast). In case you needed a reminder…

Today, we’re highlighting our favorite stories from this year. From bubble weddings to terrible portraits, 2025 was a year full of good moments among an often-chaotic world.

We’ll see you next Tuesday for our final newsletter of the year. Until then, have a fantastic week! 🥰

–Kailyn

Ready, Set, Go: Today’s newsletter should be a ~3.70 minute read (984 words).

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I choose thoughts that empower and uplift me.

Forget rice or rose petals—one Texas judge is making courthouse weddings pop.

Most courthouse weddings are short, official affairs. But Judge Adam Swartz at the North Dallas Government Center has one secret weapon for turning routine drab-to-fab: a $20 bubble gun.

How this bubbled up

When Swartz was first elected in 2022, he wanted to make the unions he officiated feel less like a paperwork pit stop, and more like a real celebration. He tapped into his theater background, added music (anything from Michael Bublé to Whitney Houston), and—his favorite —bubbles. Now, when he pronounces a couple married, the gavel lands just as the room fills with shimmer.

• A video of his bubble ritual went viral on Instagram, with one commenter declaring, “Judge Swartz with his bubble gun is an icon.” 
• Couples have started requesting him by name, sometimes planning their whole courthouse stop around snagging “the bubble judge.”

It’s not just for show: Swartz has presided over ~3,000 unions since joining the bench, sometimes doing five to eight in a single day—right alongside eviction cases and traffic disputes.

• For Swartz, the weddings aren’t just a lighthearted break, they’re the most meaningful part of his job. “If you’re talking about my day-to-day impact on the community and people’s lives,” he says, “this makes all the difference in the world.”
• Theatrics aside, he puts care into every ceremony, scrolling through couples’ photo albums on the courtroom’s big screen, welcoming guests, and even tearing up himself.

His goal? To make courthouse ‘I dos’ feel less like paperwork, more like a movie moment.

(This story previously appeared in a September 2025 edition.)

This holiday season, consider a different kind of giving: funding a veteran's recovery journey.

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2,500+ veterans have already transformed their lives. 100+ more are waiting. Your tax-deductible donation gets them off the waitlist and into life-changing support.

👆 Meet Jacob Ryan Reno, a portrait artist whose portraits are, well...awful. And he’s the first one to say it.

• Jacob is a stand-up comedian, actor, and performance artist who has built up a client base in recent months with his self-described "terrible portraits." 
• He creates his artwork for nothing more than smiles and a good laugh, drawing each masterpiece in five minutes for $5. 

Jacob vows never to get better at drawing: “Actually,” he shared with CBC, “I intend to get worse.”

(This story previously appeared in an October 2025 edition.)

🎄 A Fort Worth elementary school’s 50-year tradition of giving every student a Christmas gift was on the brink of ending, until a staffer posted a last-ditch TikTok asking for help. Within 48 hours, strangers funded gifts for all 400 kids.

🐶 NYC film-maker Bryan Reisberg spends one day/week carrying shelter dogs around the city in an “Adopt Me” backpack and filming their personalities to show the world how lovable they are. His viral videos have helped nearly all the pups he’s featured find forever homes, and boosted adoptions more broadly.

💋 1,435 couples locked lips in Washington, DC, to claim a Guinness World Record for the most couples kissing underneath the mistletoe. The event was held underneath the National Mistletoe, a 10-foot-diameter sphere of greenery, ribbons, and a jingle bell suspended 30 feet high.

Meditating regularly can have some incredible effects on our minds and bodies. While there are many different kinds of meditations, my favorites are typically visualization, where the world comes to life in our mind’s eye. When you have a spare five minutes this week, try out this White Light Visualization Meditation—I’m certain you’ll feel just that little bit better by the end.

If you don’t have the time or meditation just isn’t your thing, try sitting with this gif for just a few moments before you keep scrolling.

Try out the guiding light meditation here.

(This mindfulness moment previously appeared in a May 2025 edition.)

If your expensive serums aren't delivering, the culprit might be your shower water. Chlorine and heavy metals in tap water can dry skin, irritate scalps, and damage hair. Filterbaby prevents all the above by removing 99% of contaminants from your water. Derm approved. Two time Time's Best Invention award winner.

Because What’s Your Win is here. 🎺 In this section of the newsletter, we celebrate all of the good news happening with you, our positive DONUT family.

Check out the wins we received this week!

✈️ Rosy G from Atlanta, GA, is feeling proud of her sister…

• “My sister, Deise, went on her first group trip without me, her big sister, to Peru! She had a lot of hesitation in traveling without me, as I’m the more seasoned traveler. But she did it anyway! She experienced and learned so much. I’m very proud of her!”

💪 One anonymous subscriber from Omaha, NE, is feeling free in her body…

• “Over the past three months, I’ve lost 30 pounds and I feel amazing! The last time I weighed this was pre-COVID, and the changes have been noticeable in so many ways: my clothes fit looser instead of tight and uncomfortable, I have more energy and am saving time from taking naps, and I’m experiencing benefits I hadn’t even considered. One unexpected moment really stood out—my husband and I recently visited a pumpkin patch and rode several amusement park rides. He’s lost over 60 pounds in the past 10 months, and with my weight loss too, we were able to fit comfortably in the seats for the first time. Normally, we feel squeezed and uncomfortable, but this time was completely different. It may sound small, but it was truly life changing. I’m excited to keep discovering more of these unexpected wins!”

🫂 Brittany B from Bradenton, FL, is starting over in the best way…

• “Last year, I went through an unexpected, heart-breaking divorce. I was so scared about supporting my daughter on my own and having to start over. It's been a wild ride, but I am doing it!!! I have lived in my own place for a full year, got a better paying job (and a few raises!), and my daughter and I have become even closer throughout all of this - crossing items off our bucket list and making amazing memories. I am proud of myself and happy to know I can do it when push comes to shove :) Feeling hopeful that I'm being the best example for my little girl.”

Even if you've been celebrated before, we'd love to keep receiving good news from you, so please don't hesitate to participate!

(Some responses have been edited for length and clarity)

🪴 Anyone who knows me knows I take my role as plant mom very seriously. If you’re looking to add a new plant baby to your collection, check out The Sill’s snake plants. Delivered right to your door in a pot of your choice, these plants are low maintenance, high reward, and sure to liven up any living space—no green thumb required. ✨

✍️ Looking to up your mindfulness practices outside of the newsletter? Look no further than the 5-Minute Journal. Starting this daily habit only takes 5 minutes a day and can bring you clarity, calm, and a sense of gratitude to your day. Check it out here. ✨

✨ Affiliate link. If you make a purchase, Positive DONUT earns a tiny commission at NO additional cost.

1. What can grow even when it’s completely shared?
2. The more of me you take, the more you leave behind. What am I?
3. I’m always in front of you, but can never be observed. What am I?

Big or small, there's always something to celebrate. And who knows? Sharing your day-to-day wins just may inspire someone else to notice theirs🥰. 

Let us know what you're grateful for... Feel free to brag about yourself in the best way; we promise to be your biggest hype-people. We may even break out a little dance like Danny Zuko😎👆.

Submit a win here.

1. Knowledge 🧠
2. Footsteps 👣
3. The future 🔮

Advertise with us: Want to reach other optimistic and engaged readers like you? Become a DONUT partner here.