It is so easy for me to get caught up in what is wrong or difficult about my life and forget to take the time to remember all the wonderful things that are right with my little world. That’s why I have decided to take up the challenge from Ann Voskamp to document God’s gifts. Actually, I am not sure that “challenge” is the right word, because I only have to glance around my dining room to see His gifts all around me. One of them is sitting next to me singing “Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star” at the top of her lungs and poking pencil eraser holes into a pop-tart. Perhaps the challenge is to consistently look for those gifts, especially when the day seems dreary, the dust bunnies are piling up, and the finish line seems so far away.
Yesterday, while the kids were having a “picnic” on our teeny plastic picnic table, I asked them what they were thankful for so I could include their thoughts on my list too. It’s a healthy habit for them to develop before anything truly difficult happens in their little lives.
And so, we begin…
#1: Shelter, so we don’t have to live in the wilderness (Madi)
#2: Hugs (Parker, and then he dashed over and gave me a long squeezy hug)
#3: Fruit Snacks (Fiona, which was implied by the sheer number of “snacks” she was pilfering from her siblings and stuffing in her mouth)
#4: Mom and Dad, because they help me know what is right (Madi)
#5: Hair, because I like to play with hair (Parker, and boy, he sure does)
#6: Family bike rides through Riverside Gardens, while watching the swollen Grand River rush past us
#7: Scotch Tape, the building block of all of Parker’s magnificent creations
#8: Hobbies with finite accomplishments; crossing the finish line of my first 5k of the season was invigorating
#9: Forgiving children, who don’t get mad if I doze off while reading stories in the middle of the afternoon, but just nudge me awake
#10: Leftover Easter candy, tucked away in a drawer, so I can indulge in a chunk of Godiva chocolate in those sleepy mid-afternoons
Little things, but they bring a smile to my face. I think this is going to be a journey worth taking.
What a fantastic idea. I need to partake in this as well. Far too easy to focus on the negative.
Dallas
I’m looking forward to the weekly discipline of it…gives it structure! Right after I posted it, my day started going downhill, and I just kept saying to myself, “Be thankful…be thankful” 🙂
I absolutely love doing the count…I’m sure you will, too. It’s a great way to kick off a week!
Loved this post!
I´m a very sporadic journal keeper myself, but thought I´d share a little idea anyhow: Since my early teens I´ve written what I call little “books of joy – things I like”. They are small notebooks where I jot down things I´m grateful for, happy about, things I enjoy doing/eating/listening to, etc etc. Anything, really, as long as it is something positive, something worth remembering.
My exchange year in Webster the entries read things like
* “Reece´s Peanut Butter Cups!” (which were new to me, and yummy)
* “lunch at Applebees with my entire host family after church”
* “someone complimenting my English”
etc etc.
Now they read things like
* “baby Sverre slept for 4 continuous hours this night!”
* “rediscovering my pre-pregnancy clothes, because they fit”
* “the view of the Mediterranean from our rented house in Italy”
* “watching Magnus´ (2 1/2) love and care for his baby brother”
etc etc – you get the idea
What´s really great is flipping thru the pages and reading entries at random. Very useful on blah days. There are SO many great things in life!
What a great idea! It is those little things that really get me – those special moments of life!! So cool that you have all of them too – the ones from Webster? Made me smile…:)