Create a Sharing Thanks Journal with someone to cultivate a Grateful Heart
I am very thankful for this very special Christmas gift given to me by my daughter Liz. She made me a Sharing Thanks Journal. I love her heart design and the picture of us she printed to adorn the inside of this very special journal. The best gift of all was that we used the journal together to practice gratitude. She wrote the first entry listing four things she was thankful for and passed the journal back to me. We use the journal to share what we are thankful for. It has helped me practice gratitude and has helped me and my daughter connect on a deeper level. It is wonderful to have a dialogue where we share our blessings. I love writing my thanks and sharing what brings me joy. It could be a beautiful sunset, or a kind smile a stranger gave me. I love learning about what my daughter is thankful for.
I recommend sharing a journal with someone special to help your gratitude practice. It will allow you to focus on counting your joys and help you connect to someone in a loving and positive way. I encourage you to find a gratitude buddy and start a sharing thanks journal with them. What you share with each other should be private.
Open your heart to gratitude by sharing it with a friend or a loved one. Wishing everyone a loving Valentine's Day. Celebrate all the love in your life not just the romantic love!
That is a wonderful idea! What a great gift! Stopping by from SITS to spread some comment love!
ReplyDeleteThis is a wonderful idea and would be great to share with someone on Valentine's day!
ReplyDeleteLove this! What a great way to share with your daughter. I'm sure it will be a treasured moment in your family for years to come.
ReplyDeleteLove the journal your daughter made! I have keep journals for many, many years! My mother does as well, and she has over 40 years worth! Thank you for a great post! #SitsBlogging new follower!
ReplyDeleteI don't have a gratitude journal but I do live with a attitude of gratitude. It's a great concept. #sitsblogging
ReplyDeleteI've never thought about sharing a journal before! Usually, I safe guard my journal and scorn anyone who gets too close or touches it. This is an amazing idea. Thank you for sharing!
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I love journaling. I actually have a planner where I'm supposed to list my daily gratitude. It's nice to reflect. #SITSBlogging
ReplyDeleteWhat a great gift and a perfect way to speak your heart in your family :) #SITSBlogging
ReplyDeleteI love this idea...I have done a gratitude journal, but have never done one that I've shared with someone back and forth. Stopping by from SITS Girls ~Krissa (http://www.morethanmundane.com)
ReplyDeleteTHis is a great idea. #SITSblogging
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea! Your daughter must be very special to you to love you enough to give you such a thoughtful gift. You are blessed! #SITSBlogging
ReplyDeleteSuch a cute idea. I love to journal, and opening to your heart to another is such great practice. It makes both you and the other person feel wonderful inside.
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Lauren
That's a beautiful idea! If my daughter could write better, I'd start one with her.
ReplyDeleteHi! Beautiful idea. I love to journal and my older children do too. Thanks for sharing!
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Kim This Ole Mom
What a great idea. I'm looking forward to starting one with my own daughters. Great way to keep the line of communication open! #SITSBlogging
ReplyDeleteGratitude is my attitude! It warms my heart every time my little one says, "Thank you". It's second nature to him and I hope he retains that his whole life. Thanks for sharing. #SITSBlogging
ReplyDeleteI live constantly with the concept of gratitude, we all ahve good times and bad times and a journal like this helps you focus on the positive.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely post. I am grateful for the wonderful love that beams upon me each day. Grateful for the beautiful landscapes and seascapes that I get to gaze upon each day. I am grateful that I walk in divine health. I can on and on...
ReplyDeleteRachel recently wrote Using the Oreo Cookie to Get Clients
Thanks for sharing some simple joys. I appreciate nature everyday. I especially love watching the sunset!
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ReplyDeleteThis is such a wonderful idea to have a sharing journal with any friend or relative. Many, Many years ago I participated in something similar. Thanks for reminding me of those wonderful memories.
What a beautiful idea! I will have to keep this in mind for the future. Visiting from #SITSBlogging
ReplyDeleteLove this idea! My parents still have a journal we made as my kindergarten project 30 years ago :) I'll have to remember this one for when my kids are old enough. #SITSBlogging
ReplyDeleteWhat an incredible idea - it sounds like something that every family could do. You know how communication can be an issue in so many of our families? This could help! Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeletePatty
What a thoughtful idea. I love receiving hand made items from my kids. Just yesterday my daughter brought me a valentine she forgot to give me, she's only 5 and got right to the point : "I love you mom, because you are sweet and you are my mom". That will be a keeper for sure!
ReplyDeleteI love journaling. It was a friend of mine who got me started in the first place, and I have loved it since then. having a gratitude journal is even better.
ReplyDeleteSuch a beautiful idea. I also practice gratitude, but I don't have such a beautiful journal, and I don't share it with anyone. Maybe I should! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThat is such a sweet gift! It employs writings from the heart. I would love to do something like that with my sister.
ReplyDeleteThis is such a wonderful way to show gratitude! I plan to stuck this away for when my young children are older to do with them and also for them to do with one another. I will cherish the finished product for many, many years to come.
ReplyDeleteI created a gratitude journal this past November, and I loved how it made me look at things differently. This is a great idea to share with someone else!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea! I currently use project life for this but I can see having a dedicated journal would be so much nicer!
ReplyDeleteThats a wonderful idea, and such a great way to connect with your daughter. Thanks for the idea
ReplyDeleteI do love this idea! I have heard about doing something like this with your kids when they are younger to get them to be open in writing things they might not say. Might have to encourage something like this. I am expecting my first right now, so it will be a little while!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea! I've heard of the idea of writing in your own journal something your grateful for every day, but never thought of sharing that with someone. I could totally see how that could open up all kinds of conversations with your children or spouse. That in itself would be a wonderful thing to be grateful for. I may have to give this a try. Thanks for the idea.
ReplyDeleteHello Linda,
ReplyDeleteI am really enjoying your blog and can't wait to do some more browsing. We seem to be in sync about this idea of feeling and expressing gratitude. The joint gratitude journal idea is a great one. Writing is one of my passions, but my hubby not so much. I think this will work for him. Not feeling like he has to fill up a book will take some pressure off. I am excited to start.
What a fun idea! My son is learning to read/write right now so maybe next year I can share a journal with him. It would be a fun way to teach him the importance of keeping a journal and being thankful!
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful idea! I think that I will do this with my daughter too. I am always looking for things that will help us connect better- and I think this idea is something I will love to try :-)
ReplyDeleteHi Linda, that's a great idea! Being thankful is so important for our happiness and health! Sometimes I think we tend to overlook things if we are not being purposely thankful. I know I am often thankful for even the smallest pleasures in life... a warm home, a comfortable bed, good food, the companionship of my dog, etc. I'm not one to be able to keep a journal, I have a hard time just writing my grocery list, lol. I had seen a neat idea for a Thank Jar, where you write down things you are thankful for on a piece of paper and stuff them in a jar. At the end of the year you can pull them and reread them. Of course, I haven't done that either. I've also had an idea of taking pictures of things/people/events I am thankful for and creating a scrapbook or putting them in my website. Perhaps one day... Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThat is such a beautiful idea your daughter had. And the way she personalized it makes it even more special. I like this idea of the journal. I wonder if I should do two of them (one with my 14 year old and one with my 10 year old). This would be a great way to bond and share with my daughters on another level. Thank you for sharing this wonderful idea with us because I'm seriously thinking about it myself. :)
ReplyDeleteI think this is a wonderful idea. I find it far too easy to focus on the negative in my life and forget how blessed I truly am. I do something similar. I have a positivity jar. Each time I think of some good that has happened, or something I should be grateful for, I write it on a slip of paper and stick it in the jar. At the end of the year I plan to write them all down in a journal and look back at all the blessings I have had this year.
ReplyDeleteWow! That's a really great idea. I had a "letter book" when I was a kid where my friend and I would write letters to each other. This is kind of like that but better. I've never thought of the idea of a sharing thanks journal. That's a really cool idea. Thank you for sharing that.
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting idea. I think I might just put together a sharing journal for our two boys. They can write, draw, cut and tape things they are grateful for having in their lives. It'll be a great thing for them to do together and something they can cherish years down the road.
ReplyDeleteI have journals with each of my daughters too! It's great to get to know them.
ReplyDeleteI recently started journaling. I'm not quite ready to share it with others but journaling is a great way to document the good, the bad and the uncertain.
ReplyDeleteDivachyk @Relaxed Thairapy
What an amazing idea! I can't wait to do this with my daughter who is just a toddler now. Maybe we can start with something simple and progress to a gratitude journal like yours when she's older. Gratitude is a powerful thing - how much more when you do it with someone you love! Great post!
ReplyDeleteA gratitude journal is a great idea - I have an app on my iphone that I just love. It randomly asks me throughout the day, "What are you grateful for right now?" I've found it's really helped my attitude - especially on tough or busy days when I start getting agitated or crabby with my kids. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThis sounds great. I use my blog as a place to count blessings. I try to be consistently upbeat and thankful for all that's good in my life. Please come and visit!
ReplyDeleteI like this idea. I have started journals so many times in my life but never stuck with it. What a great way to communicate with your daughter. I will consider doing this to keep myself motivated.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great way to really get to know what is going on inside your child's head! Great idea!
ReplyDeleteI did Al-Anon for awhile and I remember one of my first assignments once I got a sponsor was to write down like 100 things I was greatful for! It was so hard, but it definitely made you realize the small things! I think I might try to share at least one greatful thing per day! Thanks for the idea!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a great idea, and made it proably even more speical to share it with your daughter. I have to keep this in mind for little one when she gets older :) very nice post!!
ReplyDeleteThis is amazing. I am thinking about doing a Prayer Journal. Every day you write a prayer for someone then at the end of the month you give it to them.
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of a journal like that. I think it would be a great family activity too. Children may just love to be able to get in on that.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter and I also do something like this but we just write notes to each other. She's 10 years old and it's a great way to communicate sometimes if there's an issue that's sensitive or if she is embarrassed to ask. I recently wrote a post on how to cover a composition notebook with fabric and that made the journal personal to the two of us. http://womenwithintention.com/cover-composition-notebook-fabric/
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad the two of you are connecting :)
Wow! That is such a touching and great idea :) The best kind of gift! I hadn't heard of that before, thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI have journaled for years but because it has always been such a private thing I would never have fought to share a journal. What a wonderful idea! I really like that for use between husband and wife also. That could be a great counseling tool. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea! Last year I got into the practice of writing something down on a piece of paper each day that I was thankful for and putting it into a box. Maybe I'll have to give this a try this year.
ReplyDeleteCute idea! How sweet of your daughter!! I am totally doing this!!
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful!! A great post, Linda.
ReplyDeleteCounting your blessings and sharing a gratitude buddy - what a wonderful idea.
ReplyDeleteI use my prayer time for praise. It makes me grateful for everything.
What a beautiful idea and gift!
ReplyDeleteOh, I love her heart, too! What a beautiful gift, and it is even more beautiful to share it together. Love this.
ReplyDeleteI love love love this idea! Such a beautiful thing to be part of!
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful idea. I love that you can look back many years later and have a beautiful written piece written from years past
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