Some thoughts on gratitude

There's a lot of wisdom in that quote and I'd like to remember to make it my motto!  I try to remind myself of this fact when I'm overwhelmed by laundry and diapers/potty training and housework and all the things that have to be done.  That drudgery will be forgotten one day, but the little memories we make each day will be treasured.  I'll remember the giggles and the little girl squeals echoing through the house.  Though silence is a rarity these days, I'm sure one day I'll find that it's much too quiet and wish for a little of this chaos.  So I'm digging in now and enjoying the craziness and disarray and the impromptu tea parties and dressing up like a princess (yes, some days you'll find me in a plastic tiara that coordinates *perfectly* with my yoga pants).  Today I'm lighting our special buttercream jar candle for no reason other than it smells good and we like it.  We're baking cookies.  We're reading books.  We're making artwork.  We're talking and laughing and enjoying each other's company.  This is the good stuff of life!
 
I think I blinked and November was over.  I enjoyed counting my blessings through the Gratitude Challenge.  Though I didn't post everyday, I certainly spent time thinking and thanking everyday.  One thing I realized is that it's fairly easy to say "thank you," but gratitude really means feeling "thank you."  It calls for more than just a laundry list of thankfulness to God for your blessings.  Gratitude asks us to dig deeply, to really feel the thankfulness, and to express it in tangible ways.  Saying I'm thankful for my daughters is easy.  Being patient, giving them the attention they need, educating them, and being a good role model is not easy, but it's a tangible way to express the gratitude I really feel.  In other words, do the people you're thankful for feel your thankfulness in your words and deeds?



What are you thankful for this week?  Link up with Brenda at Garden of Learning and Three Thinking Mothers every Thursday.








Word art quotation courtesy of Deb at Raising Figure Skaters.  Thank you, Deb!