Grateful

So it is November 1st. Halloween has come and gone . . . with fewer trick or treaters than usual (read: I ate WAY more Halloween candy than I should have.) It's still too hot for it to feel much like Fall around here. I've packed up the Halloween box and flipped the door sign from "boo" to a wooden turkey. And time to look to what is one of my very favorite holidays.

Thanksgiving. I just like that name. Thanks and giving--two things I like combined.

I've been at this "cookie thing" for about a year now. I sort of cranked up my "business" about a year ago. And I think it is appropriate for me to take a little time this month to take a look back and see what this year has meant to me. (indulge me a little introspection if you will!) A lot of thanks and a lot of giving.

Grateful is one of my very favorite words. Not blessed (I can be too stressed to be . . . ), but grateful. Sometimes folks use these two interchangeably, but I kind of cringe when I hear that. I worry when I say I am blessed I imply that I have received some special treatment . . . and more importantly you may have not if your situation doesn't feel particularly "blessed." I would rather just be grateful and thankful showing appreciation for all that I receive.

There are all kinds of studies showing that gratitude is a mentally healthy way to think. And I am constantly attempting to make lists of items--3 a day, 3 with a prompt, list prompts, journaling--I've tried them all. You should see my bedside table full of journals, booklets, lists . . . all started and then set aside. But I do know when I do focus on my gratitude, I can change my attitude (oh, better cross stitch that one!). I can always find something to be grateful for in every situation I find myself, and I try hard to always do that.

So today, I'm going to start another attempt to be grateful. I'm going to look back on this year of beekindcookies to see where this new adventure has taken me ... and if you're interested, join me!