Sharing Thanks

Photo by Ellen Birch. Taken at the Museum of Modern Art Water Lilies room. Art evokes emotions with color and light! To establish a grateful attitude focus on the beauty that is available to you everyday. Notice the light, and color of a moment. Sit and breathe in the beauty of that moment. Carry the picture of the moment in your mind and use it to bring you to a relaxing state of mind. I had many wonderful moments this long weekend.  I was thankful to be able to spend Sunday with my good friends at MOMA! We were energized by art and learning about the artists. One of our favorite places to go is the Water Lilies room at MOMA. The colors are mesmerizing and reflective. We sat in the room and soaked in the beauty and light of Monet's genius. It is one of the most relaxing places in New York City. I was thankful to have a good belly laugh with my friends. We went to a modernist art display and were chuckling over a piece of art work that resembled a stainless steel 

The Emmons Lab from the University of California has done a lot of gratitude research in the last decade and has found that the simple act of saying ThankYou   has many health benefits. Want to keep those New Years Resolutions? Then learn to say thank you! In one study people who kept gratitude lists were more likely to make progress toward achieving important personal goals over a two-month period compared to participants who did not keep gratitude lists. To learn more about this ground breaking gratitude research listen to Robert Emmons himself! I'm devoting the Month of January to help you start a gratitude habit! Each post this month will focus on techniques that will lead you down the road to thankfulness! I invite you to try these exercises! The first exercise is to start your day by waking up to gratitude! When you open your eyes to wake up, continue laying down in bed and take a deep breath. Breath in a "Thank You" Breath out a "Thank You"

Happy 2014! I look forward to sharing the new adventures I will be thankful for in the coming year. Let the good times roll. There is something liberating about putting on silly hats and tumbling into a photo booth! I love this crazy, silly photo of my family. This photo reminds me of many happy moments I was thankful for in 2013. In celebration of the New Year I am going to write some blog posts on how to add a dash of gratitude into your life. Being grateful is a choice and a mindset that can be developed by anyone, with practice. Here are the grateful moments in 2013 that this photo reminds me of. I was thankful to celebrate the wedding of my nephew Nick to the incredible Jess! The wedding in Philadelphia was a joyous event. They had a photo booth at the wedding with some silly accessories that led to many fun family photos. Our family gathered and danced the night away and toasted this beautiful couple. I was thankful my daughter Becky had a wonderful summer learning ex